Carbon Accounting Tools for SMEs: What to Recommend (and When Not To)
A practical guide to carbon accounting methods for SMEs, comparing major software tools and knowing when to say "not yet" without overselling clients on systems they won't maintain.
Reserve Your Seat
What you will learn:
- Method Over Mechanism: Why picking the right calculation method (spend-based vs. activity-based) matters far more than the software brand.
- The Software Landscape: A neutral look at tools like Sage Earth, Sumday, and Greentally to understand exactly which client types fit each one.
- Advisory Confidence: How to recommend tools without feeling like a salesperson, and when the best advice is actually "do nothing for now".
- Avoiding Abandonment: The red flags that suggest a client isn't ready for software and will likely stop maintaining the data within six months.
Agenda
- The Confusion: Why SMEs struggle with carbon data
- The Methods: Spend-based vs. Activity-based accounting
- The Tools: A high-level comparison of the market leaders
- The Decision: A framework for recommending the right solution
- The Conversation: How to set expectations and avoid shelfware
Alex Alvey
Sustainability Reporting Lead
Alex specialises in helping accountants navigate the complex landscape of sustainability tools, focusing on practical fit rather than technical features.
Registration Resources
After the webinar, all registrants will receive:
- Method Comparison Guide: A cheat sheet on when to use spend vs. activity data.
- Client Readiness Checklist: A tool to test if a client is actually ready for software.
The Software Decision Guide
Before you suggest a tool, we will walk through the four checkpoints that determine if a client is actually ready for software or if they are better off waiting.
Clarify Purpose
Why measure? Is this for a one off carbon reduction plan to win a tender, or for ongoing management? If it is a one off, software is likely overkill.
Choose Method
Spend vs Activity: We will show you why accurate "activity" data is useless if the client cannot maintain it, and when "spend" estimates are enough.
Assess Capacity
The Maintenance Trap: Most tools fail because no one owns them. We will share the red flags that indicate a client will abandon the system.
Recommendation
Software or 'Not Yet'? How to position doing nothing as a strategic choice that saves the client money and builds your credibility.
Stop selling, start steering
Your clients do not need another software subscription they won't use. They need you to tell them what is proportionate. This session gives you the confidence to recommend the right tool, or no tool at all.
Why register today?
- Neutral Comparison: We are not selling software. We are comparing the market leaders objectively based on client fit.
- Practical Tools: Get our "Method Comparison Guide" and "Client Readiness Checklist" to use in your next advisory meeting.
- Can't attend live? Register now to ensure the recording and resources land in your inbox automatically.
Secure Your Place
Complete the form below to register for the live session and the post-webinar resources.