10 Year Audit – A Decade of Platform Assurance

AUTHOR – Gary Davis, CEO

At Ecometrica, we’re proud to celebrate a new milestone – 10 years of our platform being assured as Audit-Ready. We’ve recently completed our rigorous tenth annual audit by PwC, and can announce that our platform has once again demonstrated its reliability and effectiveness. In a world where sustainability reporting and compliance are of paramount importance, our commitment to platform assurance has set us apart as a leader in the landscape.

Audit-Ready is a concept that was first conceived by Ecometrica’s co-founder, Dr. Richard Tipper, MBE. Its purpose was to reassure our clients that when they use the Ecometrica Platform, they can always rely on it to provide controls-based information. This means that the auditors can trust the data and processes that underpin the platform, ensuring the integrity and accuracy of the information it produces. In a compliance-driven landscape with regulations such as the U.S. SEC and EU CSRD, this level of assurance becomes increasingly vital.

The Audit-Ready output that our team has achieved over the past 10 years is an outstanding accomplishment. While the term “reasonable assurance” may sound modest, it represents an exceptionally high bar to clear. This achievement is a testament to the dedication and expertise of the people at Ecometrica. It also highlights a key advantage of Ecometrica – our extensive track record of success and standard-setting. While many others imitate the language of Audit-Ready, no one else offers independent assurance, and certainly not for a continuous span of 10 years. We take great pride in this milestone, which reinforces our position as industry leaders.

Features of an Audit-Ready System:

To ensure that a sustainability reporting platform is audit-ready, several essential features must be in place. These features include:

• Up-to-date and accurate emission factors database.
• Up-to-date and accurate conversion factors database.
• A robust system for maintaining emission and conversion factors.
• Quality assurance checks integrated into the GHG assessment workflow.
• Comprehensive presentation of information required for independent assurance, including PDF reports, Excel sheets, and supporting evidence for submitted data.
• Controls that prevent unauthorized changes to data and results after publication without approval from Ecometrica.

Ecometrica’s Commitment

We confidently assert that the Ecometrica Platform fully supports Audit-Ready Output through its base factors and accompanying controls. To validate this claim, we commissioned PwC to test and verify our platform’s compliance with these assertions. This credible third-party assurance not only bolsters the accuracy of the base factors but also helps our clients reduce the financial and time burdens associated with auditing sustainability data. By providing a market-leading product that meets rigorous standards, we contribute to the success of our clients and the wider sustainability reporting ecosystem.