How do you choose credible sustainability frameworks?

1 Define your goals and scope

Before you dive into the sea of sustainability frameworks, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and how you want to measure it. What are your sustainability priorities and objectives? What are the material issues and impacts that affect your business and stakeholders? What are the legal, regulatory, and industry standards that you need to comply with? By defining your goals and scope, you can narrow down your options and focus on the frameworks that align with your purpose and vision.

2 Research the frameworks

Once you have a clear direction, you can start researching the different sustainability frameworks that are available. You can use online databases, such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards Hub, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Standards Navigator, or the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) Framework Database, to find and compare frameworks that cover your topics of interest. You can also look at the frameworks that your peers, competitors, and customers use, and learn from their best practices and challenges.

3 Evaluate the credibility

When evaluating the credibility of a sustainability framework, it's important to consider who developed it and their qualifications, expertise, and reputation. You should also assess how often the framework is updated to reflect the latest trends, issues, and expectations. Additionally, you should look at how comprehensive, consistent, and comparable the framework is in terms of scope, indicators, and reporting formats. Furthermore, you should consider how well the framework addresses the needs and interests of your key stakeholders and how easy or difficult it is to implement in your organization.

4 Test and validate

Before you commit to a sustainability framework, you may want to test and validate it with some of your internal and external stakeholders. You can conduct a pilot project, a survey, or a focus group to gather feedback and insights on how the framework works in practice and how it adds value to your sustainability strategy. You can also seek external assurance or verification from a third-party expert or auditor to ensure that the framework meets the quality and credibility standards that you expect.

5 Review and improve

Choosing a sustainability framework is not a one-time decision. It is an ongoing process that requires regular review and improvement. As your sustainability goals and scope evolve, as new frameworks emerge or existing ones change, and as stakeholder expectations and preferences shift, you need to reassess and adjust your framework selection accordingly. You also need to monitor and measure your performance and impact using the framework, and communicate your results and progress to your stakeholders.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?