Financial disclosures and the management and integration of climate considerations into reporting: Reviewing the substance behind the reports

Veronica Poole,  Vice Chair Deloitte UK, and Global IFRS & Corporate reporting leader, Deloitte 
Veronica Poole is a Vice Chair of Deloitte UK and Global IFRS and Corporate Reporting Leader. She chairs Deloitte’s Global IFRS Leadership team, which is the voice of the Deloitte global network on IFRS and corporate reporting. Veronica drives change in the accounting profession, including reporting of ESG and climate. She facilitates standards harmonisation by working with leading sustainability standard-setters to advance a comprehensive corporate reporting system, including the prototype climate standard based on the TCFD pillars. She has been leading Deloitte’s contributions to the WEF IBC Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics, helped launch the UK Directors’ Climate Forum – Chapter Zero and spearheaded Deloitte’s partnership with The Prince’s Accounting for Sustainability Project (A4S) Finance for the Future Awards. She was also instrumental in establishing Deloitte’s global response to climate change: WorldClimate.

Veronica’s external appointments include: member of the International Integrated Reporting Council member of the FRC Advisory Panel, member of BEIS Corporate Disclosures External Stakeholder Group, Chair of the Advisory Group to the ICAEW Financial Reporting Faculty, advisory member to the Hundred Group Financial Reporting Committee, member of the G7 Impact Taskforce, former member of the Financial Reporting Advisory Board to HM Treasury and a former member of the UK FRC’s Corporate Reporting Council.

Alan N. Smith, Senior Advisor on Climate and ESG Risk Management, HSBC  
Alan Smith is Senior Advisor – ESG Risk and Inclusion at HSBC where he helps shape their global strategic and risk management approach to ESG. He is a member of HSBC’s ESG Steering Committee and its Climate Business Council, which is responsible for shaping the bank’s sustainability strategy.  From 1 October 2021, Alan has been appointed as the First Church Estates Commissioner of the Church of England.   

Alan’s career spans 35 years in risk management, finance, investment banking and advisory roles at HSBC and KPMG. From 2011 to 2020, Alan was Global Head of Risk Strategy and Chief of Staff to HSBC’s Group Chief Risk Officer and has worked for HSBC for 27 years in a variety of senior ESG, risk and capital management, and investment banking roles. Prior to HSBC Alan worked for KPMG for 8 years.  Alan is the Chair of the Systemic Resilience Forum of the Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment and also a Trustee of the Global Association of Risk Professionals.

Francesca Tondi Guy, former banker, and non-executive director and ESG Committee Chair of UniCredit  
Francesca is Non-Executive Director on the Board of UniCredit group, where she chairs the ESG Committee and sits on the Risk and Audit committee. As Chair of the ESG Board Committee Francesca is leading the ESG debate at board level and is responsible for promoting the ESG angle to the Group’s business strategy. 
Francesca is also Global Financial Sector Lead for the Climate Governance Initiative, and a member of both Chapter Zero UK and Chapter Zero Italy.
She is advisory Board member of Angel Academe a UK’s leading Business Angel investor network, and sits on the board of other non-listed companies. 

Francesca spent her executive career in major US investment banks (Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan) with fifteen years at managing director level. She has had direct experience in advising finance ministries, divisional heads of European central banks, regulatory bodies, and provided strategic advice at CEO and board level of major European banks.