ISS ESG Environmental and Social Disclosure Data QualityScore (CSR)

Environmental and Social Disclosure (E&S) QualityScore provides a measure of corporate disclosure practices and degree of transparency provided to shareholders and other stakeholders. Investors report that company disclosure is a meaningful signal in its own right –i.e. limited disclosure is often indicative that further investigation is needed to rule out the presence of poor practice –and a prerequisite to an effective comparison of company performance against peers. E&S Disclosure QualityScore uses a numeric, decile-based score that indicates a company’s disclosure practices relative to their industry group. Scores measure the depth and extent of disclosure. This showcases the company’s understanding of its environmental and social risks, along with its preparedness to face and mitigate them, and drastically increasing its responsibility and accountability. Scoring is framed around eight categories under two pillars, the environmental and social. The environmental pillar includes scores on management of environmental risks and opportunities, carbon and climate, natural resources, and waste and toxicity. The social pillar includes scores on human rights, labor, stakeholder & society, and product safety. The content of the environmental and social pillars has been informed by the recent developments in disclosure standards and frameworks, such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the SASB standards and the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). E&S Disclosure QualityScore products are data-driven scoring and screening solutions designed to help institutional investors monitor the ESG disclosures of their portfolio companies. Measuring the depth and extent of disclosure of more than 4,900 companies globally, decile-based scores represent a relative measure based on the raw score calculations of the other companies in their specific industry group. A score of 1 indicates relatively higher quality disclosure and transparency practices, and conversely, a score of 10 indicates relatively lower quality. E&S Disclosure QualityScore focuses on a company’s disclosure practices. Data is collected from company publications including mainstream filings, sustainability and corporate social responsibility reports, integrated reports, publicly available company policies and information on company websites. Confirmation of company participation in or formal endorsement of authoritative multi-stakeholder initiatives is collected from websites or member list made available by the relevant initiatives. Aside from issuer requests for update, company data is updated annually on a rolling basis, based roughly on the timing of their annual general meeting which is the typical time of filing annual reports and sustainability reports, issuing updates on company policies and introducing other significant changes to corporate disclosures. Data is used by a broad range of institutional investors, asset managers, asset owners, fund managers, banks, government institutions, universities and research firms.