Rate the Raters

Corporate sustainability ratings are going mainstream, but how they work in practice remains somewhat of a mystery. For phase three of Rate the Raters we conducted in-depth evaluations of 21 ratings, in an attempt to shed light on this important area. The 21 ratings we focused on were a representative sample of the 100+ ratings that we inventoried in phase two.

Our phase three work revealed numerous examples of good practice, which are detailed in our report. We are starting to see efforts to reduce the survey fatigue that companies face. A greater number of raters are soliciting feedback and direction from external experts, many through formal advisory panels. And we observe a few raters opening up their black boxes to let us in on their methodologies. Yet we found many areas in need of improvement as well, and offer a number of recommendations to raters for the future.

See full Article.