Climate-related disasters—from floods to droughts to wildfires—are financially pummeling the world’s largest companies, even as many executives concede they aren’t fully prepared for the consequential adverse financial impact. It’s no wonder the heated debate over climate-risk disclosures has reached a global boiling point.

Jaclyn Jaeger is a freelance contributor to Compliance Week after working for the company for 15 years. She writes on a wide variety of topics, including ethics and compliance, risk management, legal,...