Sustainable Brand Benchmark Methodology

One of the biggest challenges in the sustainability industry is the need for more normalized data on sustainable procurement. Today, there are more standards that define sustainability than most consumers and companies can understand. At CommonShare we are launching the world’s most comprehensive system for the comparative evaluation of companies on their commitments to sustainable production and consumption.

CommonShare’s Sustainable Brand Benchmark® allows companies, consumers, governments, and investors to easily benchmark sustainable procurement performance across each industry. The data powering on the benchmark is continually updated through a combination of human research, machine learning algorithms, LLM driven AI, brand survey response, and real time management of company data within CommonShare’s platform.

The first version of the Sustainable Brand Benchmark® launched in April 2023. New industry categories will be rolled out throughout 2023 and 2024 with the goal of 10 industry benchmarks covering over 100k+ entities. We believe this will provide a meaningful contribution towards United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 12 (Responsible Production and Consumption).

Data from members of CommonShare is used to rebalance the benchmark quarterly with data submissions required by May 31st, August 31st, November 30th, and February 28th of each year. Non-members have the opportunity to include their data on November 30th of each year.

Companies in the top half of the distribution for their industry are eligible for CommonShare’s Sustainable Brand Accreditation®.

Obtaining a grade for each Company

We specifically look at 5 dimensions: Credibility, Relevance, Commitment, Traceability, and Accessibility. Each Company obtains a grade between 1 to 5 for every dimension, 5 being the highest (best) grade, and 1 being the lowest. We then calculate the average from the total of all the dimensions to obtain the final grade.

Credibility

Our credibility metric refers to how credible the sustainability, labor, quality, and origin claims a company makes. We specifically consider whether or not companies are using third-party certification to define their commitments to sustainable procurement. While we understand that these certifications are not perfect, we simply cannot imagine a world where regenerative, circular economies are defined by self-certification.

Variables used:

Does a company rely on third-party certifications to aid its sustainable procurement processes?

Which certifications and how many does a company use?

Does the company have proof of certification at the product and facility level?

Grades:

The company uses claims defined by third party certification and has digital badging proving certification (with proof/back-up through CommonShare or another application). Companies with five stars will also be in the top half of the distribution in use of certifications within their industry.

The company uses claims, third party certification, digital badging proving certification (with proof/back-up through CommonShare or another application). Companies with four stars will also be in the bottom half of the distribution in use of certifications within their industry.

Similar to the evaluation criteria for 4 stars but with no digital badging.

The company makes eco-claims without backup as to which standards actually define those claims.

The company makes no known claims or commitments to sustainable production and consumption.