ESG rating 2022

The pilot edition of the ESG Rating, prepared for the Association of Corporate Responsibility by the globally recognized business school program CEMS, taught at the Faculty of Business Administration, University of Economics in Prague, was introduced on May 25, 2022.

“Our shared goal is to facilitate the implementation of individual ESG criteria into their strategies for organizations. To educate the Czech society about all areas covered by non-financial reporting and to introduce them to examples of good practice from companies actively focusing on sustainability,” explained Lucie Mádlová from the Association of Corporate Responsibility.

“Currently, non-financial reports are mainly prepared by companies operating in Western markets because ESG values are demanded by customers and investors there. Therefore, in our ESG Rating, we compare both companies for which non-financial reporting is already mandatory and those for which it will become mandatory,” added Ladislav Tyll, academic director of CEMS. “The aim of the ranking or directives is not to praise organizations that claim to be absolutely green and socially responsible but to especially recognize those companies that communicate about their environmental impacts and social values honestly and transparently.”

What does the ranking focus on?

For the environmental area (E), the main criteria evaluated were the approach to environmental pollution, consumption of electric energy, and waste and water management.

The society category (S) focused on the company’s approach to diversity, employee rights, and supporting the communities in which the company operates.

In the case of governance and management (G), the key areas evaluated were the company’s transparency in communicating its business model, ownership structure, or how effectively ESG-related risks are monitored.

Results of the ESG Rating 2022

For the pilot edition of the ESG rating, 762 companies from small businesses to multinational corporations were approached. Eventually, 87 companies from 23 different sectors participated in the rating, whose total turnover in 2021 reached 1.36 trillion Czech crowns, representing altogether 22 percent of the Czech Republic’s GDP creation for the last year.

The section of big companies makes up 56 percent of participants, 44 percent of participants are SMEs.

Learn more about the rating and participating companies in Forbes (CS): Conduct business, but in a good way. ESG Rating awarded the most sustainable Czech companies.