EcoVadis has become one of the most widely used sustainability assessment platforms for evaluating companies’ environmental, social and ethical performance. Many organizations are now requested by their customers, partners or procurement teams to complete an EcoVadis assessment and share their score.

As a result, improving EcoVadis performance has become an important business objective for many companies.

Beyond the score itself, the EcoVadis assessment provides a structured framework to help organizations formalize, implement and communicate their sustainability approach.

What EcoVadis evaluates

EcoVadis assesses companies across four main themes:

Environment

Including greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, environmental policies and environmental management practices.

Labor & Human Rights

Including working conditions, health and safety, diversity and human rights policies.

Ethics

Including business ethics, anti-corruption measures and compliance practices.

Sustainable Procurement

Including how sustainability considerations are integrated into supplier management.

The assessment is based primarily on documented policies, actions and reporting, and on how well these are structured and implemented.

Why many companies struggle to improve their score

A common misconception is that EcoVadis evaluates only performance.

In reality, EcoVadis also evaluates how well sustainability is structured, managed and documented.

Many companies already implement relevant sustainability actions, such as reducing energy consumption, improving operational efficiency or strengthening internal policies. However, these actions are often not fully formalized, documented or integrated into a structured sustainability framework.

As a result, their EcoVadis score may not fully reflect their actual efforts.

Common challenges include:

– Lack of formal sustainability policies

– Limited documentation of existing actions

– Absence of clearly defined objectives and action plans

– Lack of centralized data and monitoring

– Limited internal ownership and coordination

Based on our experience supporting industrial organizations undergoing EcoVadis assessments, structuring policies, clarifying responsibilities and strengthening documentation are often key factors in improving assessment results.

Improving EcoVadis performance often requires structuring and formalizing existing practices, in addition to implementing new initiatives where relevant.

Practical actions that can help improve your EcoVadis score

Several practical actions can significantly strengthen EcoVadis performance.

Formalize your sustainability policies

Documenting environmental, social and ethical commitments is a key foundation. This includes environmental policies, codes of conduct and sustainability objectives.

Define clear objectives and action plans

Setting measurable sustainability targets and defining concrete actions to achieve them demonstrates structured management.

Assign responsibilities and governance

Clearly defining roles and responsibilities for sustainability helps ensure consistency and progress.

Designate internal contributors to support the assessment

Preparing an EcoVadis assessment often requires gathering information from multiple functions, such as environment, health and safety, human resources, procurement, legal and operations.

Designating a coordinator and involving relevant internal contributors early in the process helps ensure that existing policies, actions and evidence are properly identified, consolidated and documented.

This collaborative approach not only improves the quality and completeness of the submission, but also contributes to strengthening the organization’s overall sustainability structure.

Document and communicate your actions

EcoVadis evaluates documented evidence. Ensuring that policies, actions and results are properly documented is essential, as undocumented practices cannot be taken into account in the assessment.

Deploy actions throughout the organization

For larger organizations, EcoVadis evaluates the extent to which sustainability policies and actions are effectively deployed across relevant entities, sites or subsidiaries.

Strong practices at headquarters alone are not sufficient if implementation cannot be demonstrated more broadly across the organization. Insufficient deployment or documentation at group level can therefore affect the overall assessment.

EcoVadis as a tool to structure your sustainability approach

While improving your EcoVadis score may be the initial objective, the real value of the assessment lies in helping structure your sustainability approach.

It provides a useful framework to:

– Identify gaps

– Prioritize actions

– Formalize policies

– Strengthen internal organization

– Improve transparency with stakeholders

Organizations that approach EcoVadis as a structuring tool, rather than only a scoring exercise, typically achieve stronger and more sustainable progress.

Conclusion

EcoVadis has become an important component of many organizations’ sustainability journey.

Improving your score requires not only implementing relevant actions, but also structuring, formalizing and documenting your approach.

With the right structure in place, EcoVadis can become a powerful tool to strengthen your sustainability performance and credibility.

Dembaco supports organizations in structuring their sustainability and decarbonization initiatives and preparing robust, high-quality EcoVadis submissions aligned with business and operational realities.

Practical note

Companies often engage in EcoVadis assessments under time constraints and with limited internal resources. Starting early, structuring documentation and involving the right internal contributors can make a significant difference in both the quality of the submission and the resulting score.

In many cases, improving EcoVadis performance is less about new initiatives than about clearly documenting and coordinating existing practices.

A structured and well-prepared approach not only improves assessment results, but also strengthens the organization’s overall sustainability management.

Contact us to discuss your EcoVadis preparation or sustainability structure.

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