METHODOLOGY 

How the rating is created and data gathered

in order to rate listed companies on

their Corporate Social Responsibility

METHODOLOGY of the CSR RATING

The rating is created from public information the listed companies publish on their web sites. This includes web pages, PR material, quarterly and annual reports, etc..

When Sustainify uses information from web pages of the listed company we mention the date of access. This is done as information on webpages can be subject to changes. Sustainify is rating annually and changes after a rating will not be reflected until the next rating.

Any error in the information we collect on a web site that Sustainify cannot verify might also be in the rating. Sustainify strives to only rate information that we can verify.

Sustainify makes a distinction between Executive management and management.

Sustainify do not distinct between board members and if they are union representative, appointed by employees or other distinctions.

The companies are rated after their gender balance – it is considered a balance when there are 50% men and 50% women in a group of an even number of people. When the group is an uneven number one person more (of either gender) is also considered a gender balanced group. As long as there isn’t an equal amount of female and male chairmen of the boards and CEOs in a country – a chairman of the board and CEO of the underrepresented gender gives half a point on the rating scale that goes from 1 to 10. Half a point is also given to companies that have progress in achieving the gender balance – this is only relevant if the company gender balance has been checked the year before.

The rating of the board of directors is added to the rating of the same company’s executive management and then divided by 2 in order to find the current rating. In order to score a 1 the group (board of directors or executive management) must have achieved gender balance and a group leader from the underrepresented gender (either chairman of the board or CEO). When the underrepresented gender is equally represented in the leader positions in the specific country this will no longer be relevant.

A rating of 1 is given to companies with a balanced group of people in leadership and the overrepresented gender as CEO or Chairman of the board.

A rating of 2 is given to companies with a balanced group of people and the overrepresented gender as CEO or Chairman of the board

A rating of 3 is given to companies that have achieved the average of 3 from the rating of the gender balance in the board added to the rating in executive management divided by 2

The rating of 4 is given to companies that are missing one of the underrepresented genders and has a leader of the underrepresented gender. Also the company (if it has been rated before) shows progress or no change.

The rating of 4,5 is given to companies that are missing one of the underrepresented genders and has a leader of the overrepresented gender. Also the company (if it has been rated before) shows progress or no change.

The rating of 5 is given to companies that are missing 1 person and a leader of the overrepresented gender. Also the company (if it has been rated before) shows setback.

The rating of 6 is given to companies that are missing 2 people of the underrepresented gender and a leader from the underrepresented gender.

The rating of 7 is given to the companies that are missing 2 people of the underrepresented gender and has a leader from the overrepresented gender.

The rating of 8 is given to companies that are missing 3 people of the underrepresented gender.

The rating of 9 is given to companies that are missing 4 people of the underrepresented gender.

The rating of 10 is given to the companies with 5 or more people missing of the underrepresented gender.

The companies are sorted on the above criteria first and then on their ability to progress towards a gender balance and last on the percentage of gender balance. Sustainify rounds upwards or downwards to nearest decimal in percentage.

If the information isn't found on the company website the investor relations of the company is contacted and asked for the info.

The rating scale from 1 to 10 is in three clours - green for the best rating covering the numbers 1-3. Yellow for the second best rating covering the numbers 4-7 and last the colour red covers the bottom rating and the numbers from 8-10.