Do I still need an ESG consultant if I use Carbon GPT?
On This Page (5 sections)
It depends on what you need. Carbon GPT helps you collect activity data, calculate emissions and produce emissions reports. A consultant helps with judgement and strategy, for example climate risk analysis, targets and assurance readiness, so many companies use both.
What carbon accounting software does
In Carbon GPT you can:
- Set up your facilities and the measures that apply to them
- Record activity data and calculate emissions with emission factors
- Collect data from colleagues and suppliers with request forms
- See your emissions by scope and category, and generate reports
This covers the repeated, data-heavy work of an inventory. It also keeps the data and calculations in one place for review.
What a consultant usually adds
Reporting under IFRS S2 needs more than an emissions inventory. It also covers:
- Governance: how the board oversees climate-related risks
- Strategy: the risks and opportunities that affect the business, including climate scenario analysis
- Risk management: how the company finds and manages those risks
- Metrics and targets: including any reduction targets and transition plans
A consultant can help with these, and with:
- First-time decisions, such as the consolidation approach and which Scope 3 categories are material
- Setting science-based targets
- Preparing for assurance, which becomes mandatory for Scope 1 and Scope 2 in Malaysia from 2028 for the largest listed companies
- Industry-specific methods, for example process emissions or financed emissions
How companies combine them
- Do it in-house: a company with a capable sustainability or finance team uses the software and these guides, and gets an external review before it reports.
- Consultant-led: a consultant sets up the approach and the first inventory in the software, and the company maintains it in later years.
- Consultant as user: a consultant uses the software to manage the data and reports of several clients.
A simple test
If your main need is to collect data and calculate Scope 1, 2 and 3 reliably, software and your own team may be enough. If you must report under IFRS S2 for the first time, set targets, or face assurance soon, expert help is usually worth it.
Explore what the app does in the Carbon GPT Platform guides.
