ESG Consultant Shortage Looms as Corporate Reporting Race Begins

Big accounting firms, tech companies, and even climate boutiques stand to rake in billions helping Wall Street companies create investor-ready regulatory filings detailing climate concerns.

Companies are quickly finding, however, that there’s a limited pool of specialized consultants to help them report air pollution and meet proposed SEC reporting requirements. That lack of talent is emerging as a major stumbling block as corporate climate reporting shifts from voluntary and niche to mandatory and mainstream.

“We don’t even know what this work is yet,” said Fiona Czerniawska, founder and director of Source Global Research, which tracks the consulting industry. “How ...