Supply Chain Sustainability Policy and Governance

Build the systems that make your commitments verifiable.

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Governance components diagram

What Governance Actually Requires

Most companies have sustainability commitments but lack the governance infrastructure to prove them. For CSRD assurance, CSDDD due diligence, EcoVadis ratings and B Corp certification, companies must be able to answer:

Questions You Must Be Able to Answer

  • Where are your policies?
  • Who owns the process?
  • How do you identify risk?
  • How do you track corrective action?

Three Components of Governance

Policy: Defines the Commitment

Establishes expectations for environmental management, supplier conduct, human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

Procedure: Carries the Commitment Out

Documents supplier onboarding, assessment, monitoring and escalation processes when issues arise.

Risk Management System: Monitors Performance Over Time

Tracks supplier risk, assessment cycles, corrective actions and ongoing performance.

Why It Matters

A GHG Inventory

Without data governance is harder to verify.

An EcoVadis Submission

Without policies and evidence will underperform.

A B Corp Application

Without documented stakeholder management will stall.

A CSDDD Program

Without procedures creates legal and operational risk.

Our Approach

A structured path from a governance baseline to assessment-ready policies, procedures, and risk systems.

01

Governance Baseline Assessment

Review existing policies, procedures, scorecards and risk practices against applicable standards and rating requirements.

02

Policy and Procedure Development

Develop or strengthen policies for environmental management, supplier conduct, human rights, labor standards, ethics and sustainable procurement.

03

Risk Management System Design

Build supplier risk registers, tiering frameworks, due-diligence workflows, corrective action processes and monitoring cadences.

04

External Assessment Preparation

Prepare evidence files, questionnaire responses and documentation for customers, EcoVadis, B Corp, CSRD assurance or CSDDD review.

Governance Services

Sustainability Policy Development and Procedure Design

Develops environmental management policies, supplier codes of conduct, human rights and labor standards policies, ethics and anti-corruption policies, and sustainable procurement policies.

  • Governance responsibility matrices
  • Training, acknowledgment, and review procedures
  • Policies built for real use, not just assessors

Policies written only for an assessor create risk.

Supply Chain Due Diligence and Risk Management Systems

Helps companies build supplier risk classification systems and ESG screening methodology.

  • Risk registers and supplier tiers
  • Grievance and corrective action workflows
  • Monitoring schedules and documentation for regulatory review

Documented, monitored systems that hold up under regulatory review.

EcoVadis Consulting Services and Score Improvement

Supports preparation through gap analysis, policy and evidence review, and documentation development.

  • Questionnaire preparation
  • Score improvement planning
  • Annual renewal strategy

A repeatable process that compounds score improvements year over year.

B Corp Certification Consulting

Assists with readiness review against B Lab standards and gap identification.

  • Governance documentation and evidence organization
  • B Impact Assessment preparation
  • Guidance on required governing document changes

A clear path through B Lab requirements without guesswork.

Business Drivers

CSRD and Sustainability Disclosure

Requires disclosure of governance arrangements, risk management processes and internal controls. Assurance providers review the systems behind disclosure language.

EcoVadis Rating Requirements

Evaluates environment, labor and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement. Policy documentation, management systems and evidence of action directly influence scoring.

EUDR, Supply Chain Transparency and Emerging Risk Requirements

Expanding expectations across commodity traceability, forced labor screening, human rights disclosure and supplier risk monitoring require repeatable systems.

CSDDD and Supply Chain Due Diligence

Requires embedding human rights and environmental due diligence into policies and decision-making processes, including procedures for identifying adverse impacts and managing complaints.

Frequently Asked Questions

What sustainability policies does my company need?

Most companies need environmental management, supplier code of conduct, human rights and labor standards, ethics and anti-corruption, and sustainable procurement policies. Requirements vary by reporting obligations, customer needs and certification goals.

What is supply chain due diligence?

The documented process of identifying, assessing, preventing and addressing human rights and environmental risks across suppliers and business relationships, requiring procedures, risk screening, corrective action and ongoing monitoring.

How do I improve my EcoVadis score?

Start with gap analysis across EcoVadis' four themes. Most common improvements involve policy documentation, evidence of management actions, supplier assessment processes and measurable results.

What is the difference between EcoVadis and B Corp?

EcoVadis is a supply chain sustainability rating often required by enterprise customers; B Corp is voluntary certification by B Lab for companies meeting stakeholder impact standards. Both require documented policies, procedures and evidence.

How long does EcoVadis preparation take?

Typically four to eight weeks depending on existing policy maturity, evidence files and management systems. Limited documentation may require additional time.

What governance changes does B Corp certification require?

Requires documenting stakeholder impact management and amending governing documents to consider stakeholder interests beyond shareholder interests, plus evidence across B Lab's impact areas.

Build the Governance Infrastructure Your Sustainability Program Actually Needs

Sustainability commitments that are not documented, owned and monitored do not satisfy assessors, customers or regulators. Whether your driver is an EcoVadis requirement, B Corp certification, CSRD assurance or CSDDD readiness, Clearyst° helps build the policies, procedures and risk systems your program needs to stand up.

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Governance is what turns sustainability commitments into evidence, action and accountability. Explore Our Sustainability Services →