A Global Semiconductor Company Hires OBATA to Produce Its First Sustainability Report
CLIENT
Renesas Electronics Corporation
PROJECT
2022 Sustainability Report
SERVICES
- Reporting Strategy
- Copywriting & Editing
- Report Design
- Interactive PDF
- Infographics Design
- Report Promo Video
- Webpage Banner
- Social Media Graphics
OBATA recently designed the inaugural sustainability report for Renesas Electronics Corporation, a global semiconductor company.
The people at Renesas are driven by a mission to develop products and solutions that directly contribute to building a more sustainable future. This is rooted in a history of doing what is right for the earth, technology, and those who work for Renesas.
Renesas turned to OBATA when they needed to produce their first sustainability report and help tell their corporate sustainability story. Their objective was to showcase the progress they have made toward meeting their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals.
Planning is the Foundation for Achieving Success
Renesas sought the assistance of OBATA in organizing and carrying out its first-ever sustainability report. The success of the report hinged on setting crucial milestones, gathering significant marketing and branding materials, and collaborating to establish a content framework.
Finding Sustainable Stories and Messages
Our team took charge of the copywriting process, using a jointly developed outline as our guide. To create the report, we drew from a multitude of content sources including the website content, executive Q&A content, and data provided by Renesas’ Sustainability Promotion Office and internal subject matter experts. Thorough editing and proofreading of 100+ pages in the report were essential to ensure the accuracy of the content.
WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
“We had the pleasure to work with OBATA in producing our first Sustainability Report. Not only did the team at OBATA successfully help us tell our sustainability story through design, words, and compelling graphics, but they created ways for us to share our commitments through social media images, an animated video clip, and a website banner to promote our inaugural report.”
Renesas Electronics Corporation
Vice President of Investor Relations and the Sustainability Promotion Office
Designing an Inaugural Sustainability Report
OBATA created several design concepts. After presenting these creative approaches to Renesas, we established a final look and feel that leveraged existing Renesas brand guidelines. In this design concept stage, we explored several possible Renesas’ sustainability stories and corporate messages from Renesas.
We also investigated ways to highlight data that showed the progress made by Renesas toward its sustainability and ESG goals. This final design concept provided a creative framework that OBATA’s design team used to build the entire report.
OBATA collected approved copy, data content, and supporting visuals from the Renesas image library in order to design their sustainability report.
This is usually the most time-consuming step in creating a sustainability or ESG report, as it involves selecting the most effective visual elements to tell a company’s sustainability story. In Renesas’ case, OBATA took care to highlight the company’s previous efforts towards sustainability goals and to emphasize the commitment and involvement of the leadership team.
Easy to Navigate Report Layout
The custom iconography on the left side of every page was created by our design team to establish a global navigation hierarchy. Additionally, color is used to clearly delineate each section of the report. By incorporating a global navigation bar, readers can easily access the specific content they are interested in, regardless of their location within the report. Furthermore, the inclusion of hyperlinks enables viewers to swiftly navigate to various sections of the report or external websites for additional information.
Leveraging Data to Graphically Visualize Their Narrative
The report utilized infographics, charts, and tables to present the advancements in various sectors such as greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), and supplier involvement and supervision. The report also highlighted environmental initiatives that focus on monitoring and regulating energy and water consumption and waste management.
Renesas places great emphasis on the creation of environmentally-friendly products. To present their efforts, OBATA incorporated a section that shared their story using written content, infographics, and sidebars. Renesas’ dedication to the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) is highlighted in the report to demonstrate their progress and commitment in relevant areas.
To share Renesas’ commitment to advancing DE&I, the report highlights employee resource groups (ERGs), educational events, and other achievements. Employee health and safety (EHS) initiatives and the company’s commitment to communities where they live and work were brought to life through images and narratives communicating the positive impacts being made through the involvement of Renesas employees.
Finally, Renesas’ sustainability report included an appendix with supporting data for the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
Beyond the Report
Renesas has published its sustainability report and has collaborated with OBATA to explore additional methods of sharing and making this content more accessible to stakeholders.
While downloadable PDFs are commonly used for distributing sustainability reports, Renesas has also implemented alternative methods to broaden the report’s reach.
This includes a brief animated video clip showcased on a dedicated sustainability page on Renesas’ official website, as well as social media graphics and images in both English and Japanese to emphasize the thoughts and significant achievements of Renesas’ leadership.
Following the publication of the report, Renesas leveraged these social media resources on LinkedIn to pique interest and generate buzz about their sustainability report.
Collaboration was the Key to a Highly Successful Sustainability Report
Our corporate reporting team collaborated with Renesas’ sustainability team to organize, write, and design the 2022 sustainability report. Renesas published the report in the sustainability section of its website.
OBATA’s ESG and sustainability reporting process enabled Renesas to effectively communicate its sustainability story to stakeholders and position itself as a leader in the industry.
Together, we supported Renesas in accomplishing their reporting goals within their designated timeframe and their financial budget.
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Trusted Corporate Reporting Experience
At OBATA, we take pride in our corporate reporting capabilities, which extend beyond sustainability reporting. Our expertise also includes annual reporting, proxy design, and investor communications. We understand the importance of effectively communicating a company’s values and achievements to stakeholders, and we are committed to helping our clients achieve their reporting goals.
To learn more about how OBATA can assist your company in effectively communicating its ESG initiatives and sustainability efforts, please click on the link below. We look forward to collaborating with you and helping you position your company as a leader in sustainability.