CSRD questions
Where does Mettle fit in the CSRD ecosystem?
Mettle delivers assurance-ready, EFRAG-compliant, materiality assessments in under 10 minutes in an intuitive dashboard. We do not handle IRO reporting. Our materiality assessments complement or replace the current trend for stakeholder surveys by curating far more and far wider stakeholders’ conversations every day. We then combine them with internal reports and industry data, delivering EFRAG Step A. We deliver Step B by also gathering material topics outside the ESRS taxonomy. Step C drillls down to individual subtopics to determine whether they should be reported as IROs. Finally, Step D brings together the topics to display which are material and which are not in a simple doughnut chart that can be included in your annual report.
What is materiality?
Materiality refers to the importance of specific topics based on publicly available information, assessed as a percentage of their presence within different frameworks, such as ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards), ISSB (International Sustainability Standards Board), or academically-reviewed models of reputation and trust. We analyse topics such as environmental and governance concerns to determine their relevance as a percentage of overall market conversations. Unlike traditional materiality assessments, which are performed annually and rely on stakeholder surveys, OSINT materiality provides dynamic, data-driven insights updated daily to show how materiality shifts over time and how it compares across peers, and benchmarks against industry standards.
Does Mettle distiguish between financial and impact materiality?
Yes. Once an issue is identified as material, we use automation and human expertise to assess both. Financial materiality: How the issue impacts a company’s financial performance, position, or access to finance. Impact materiality: The actual and potential, positive or negative effects on stakeholders over different time horizons.
Does Mettle's open source intelligence approach work with noisy conversations?
Yes, Mettle’s approach is designed to handle noisy, complex data sources effectively. Two critical insights from our nine years of experience are: 1. Context-Specific Training Data. The training dataset must accurately reflect both the subject matter and the format of the data being analysed. For example, technical language, jargon, abbreviations, and even slang can differ significantly across topics, industries, and data formats. Mettle works with five specific models—CSRD, ISSB, Reputation, Trust, and Thematic—each tailored to its unique vocabulary and nuances. 2. Format Versatility. The accuracy of sentiment and topic analysis can vary based on the data source. Short-form content (e.g., social media posts, message boards) and long-form content (e.g., newspaper articles, blogs, annual reports) often require different handling. To address this, Mettle segments long-form content into snippets that mimic short-form content, ensuring that each section is analysed with optimal precision. This dual approach—training on both content and format—minimises false positives, avoids topic inaccuracies, and ensures relevance. For example, it allows us to identify multiple relevant insights within a single long-form document while maintaining the ability to analyse high-volume, fast-moving short-form data. By embedding these techniques, Mettle delivers robust, reliable intelligence even in noisy, unstructured data environments.
Does Mettle's Internal dataset include company sustainability reports?
Yes, Mettle’s dataset includes both sustainability reports and audited annual reports. This dual approach enables a thorough analysis of a company’s disclosures, helping identify inconsistencies or potential greenwashing risks. For instance, sustainability reports often highlight environmental and social initiatives, while audited annual reports focus on financial performance. By comparing these sources, we provide a balanced view of qualitative claims and quantitative metrics, enhancing the accuracy of materiality assessments.