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A questionnaire for evaluating ESG performance

This questionnaire provides an overview for measuring ESG performance. With this questionnaire it can be evaluated whether a) a company actively addresses the ESG impacts of its business activities and b) whether a company sustainably delivers positive and measurable performance in all value dimensions (economic, social, environmental and governance/compliance) for society and the economy.

1.1 Value dimension Economy

The value dimension Economy assesses the financial and ESG performance of a company.

1.1.1     KPI development

Enter the historical development of the following key figures over the last 3 years and a forecast for the current company year:

  • Turnover (in mEUR)
  • EBITDA (in mEUR)
  • Operating cash flow (in mEUR)
  • Investments (CAPEX) (in mEUR)
  • Number of sustainable/social products (#)

1.1.2     Soft factors

Indicate the number of measures taken to increase research and development and briefly describe them

Indicate the number of measures taken to create sustainable products and briefly describe them

1.1.3     Documentation/reporting

Is the value dimension of business documented in a sustainability report (e.g. GRI)?

Number of KPIs measured?

Are objectives and risks sufficiently explained?

1.1.4     Economic relevance (dividend to society)

Amount of investment plus taxes

Taxes in relation to EBT (%) and international taxes paid

EBITDA in relation to market/industry (%)

1.2 Value dimension Social/People

The social value dimension evaluates the internal and external employee-related corporate activities, its ESG performance as well as the corporate culture, especially in relation to current social issues.

1.2.1     KPI development

Enter the historical development of the following key figures over the last 3 years and a forecast for the current company year:

  • Average number of employees (FTE)
  • New hirings (FTE)

1.2.2     Soft factors

Indicate the number of activities that will be set to improve workplace

Are there plans to reduce staff?

Costs of training measures in the Group (mEUR)

Are human rights respected (especially in the case of international companies)?

Is the focus on recruiting under 20s or over 50s?

Other characteristic (freely selectable): (e.g. employee satisfaction, co-determination possibilities, bonus systems, etc.):

1.2.3     Documentation/reporting

Is the social value dimension documented in a sustainability report (e.g. GRI)?

Is the social value dimension presented in an integrated report?

Number of KPIs measured?

Are objectives and risks sufficiently explained?

Are plan/actual deviations presented?

1.2.4     Economic relevance (dividend to society)

Number of employees multiplied by average remuneration

Employee hiring in relation to unemployed in the company’s main market (%)

Average remuneration in relation to the market (%)

1.3 Value dimension Environment

The environmental value dimension describes and evaluates the company’s use of natural resources, in particular the resource-conserving and energy-efficient use of production factors.

1.3.1     KPI development

Enter the historical development of the following key figures over the last 3 years and a forecast for the current company year:

  • Energy consumption (Consumed electricity) (GWh) – percentage renewable
  • Water consumption (Consumed water) (m3)
  • Waste (Production of waste) (t)
  • Percentage waste recycled (%)
  • CO2 emissions (carbon footprint) (tCO2e)
  • etc

1.3.2     Soft factors

Number of measures to reduce the use of raw materials

Number of measures to reduce Co2 emissions

Development of energy costs in % of turnover

Number of environmental accidents

How energy efficient are sites/factories?

Other characteristic (freely selectable)

1.3.3     Documentation/reporting

Is the environmental value dimension documented in a sustainability report (e.g. GRI, ISO 14001)?

Is the environmental value dimension presented in an integrated report?

Number of KPIs measured?

Are objectives and risks sufficiently explained?

Are plan/actual deviations presented?

1.3.4     Economic relevance (dividend to society)

Percentage of reduced resource use (%)

Co2 emissions in relation to other market participants (%)

Recycling rate in relation to competitors (%)

1.4 Value dimension Compliance/Governance

The Compliance value dimension describes and evaluates the quality of a company’s compliance with rules of conduct and laws.

1.4.1     KPI development

Enter the historical development of the following information over the last 3 years and a forecast for the current company year:

  • Are there written documented rules of procedure? (Yes/No/Partial)
  • Is there a code of conduct established by the company? (Yes/No/Partial)
  • Is there a documented internal control system? (Yes/No/Partial)
  • Is there a documented risk management system? (Yes/No/Partial)
  • Is there a zero tolerance policy on corruption? (Yes/No/Partial)

1.4.2     Soft factors

Number of compliance/governance trainings for employees

Has a whistleblower hotline been set up or similar measures taken?

Lobbying and donations to political parties

Are the rules and regulations updated on an ongoing basis?

Is the remuneration structure of the board of directors appropriate in relation to the average income?

Other characteristic (freely selectable): (e.g. communication of decision-making structures in the company, meeting minutes about regular meetings, suppliers involved, etc):

1.4.3     Documentation/reporting

Is the Compliance value dimension documented in a sustainability report (e.g. GRI)?

Is the value dimension of compliance presented in an integrated report?

Number of KPIs measured?

Are objectives and risks sufficiently explained?

Are plan/actual deviations presented?

1.4.4     Economic relevance (dividend to society)

Corruption cases/penalties (None, Insignificant, Significant)

Are business ethics integrated into the processes? (Yes/No/Partial)

Are agendas for community/towns taken over? (Yes/No)

Conclusio

Evaluation of your ESG performance is essential for ESG Reporting or –Rating. There are numerous rating schemes in the market that are used for company evaluation. Before starting your ESG reporting, you should set up an organisational project to implement ESG measures in your company. Contact us for support.

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Georg Tichy

Georg Tichy is a management consultant in Europe, focusing on top-management consultancy, projectmanagement, corporate reporting and fundingsupport. Dr. Georg Tichy is also trainer, lecturer at university and advisor on current economic issues. Contact me or Book a Meeting