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MONITOR, REVIEW REPORT - monitoring, measurement, auditing and feedback - MRR1
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Key Questions
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‘Are our strategic and tactical plans and management programmes delivering our vision for sustainable development?’
‘Are we doing what we say we do?’
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Alignment with principles
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Organisations should ensure that:
| Their performance reflects the significant sustainability actions, impacts and outcomes identified during the implementation process and helps the organisation pro g ress towards its stated vision, mission, and operating principles. |
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When
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When Throughout the implementation programme and then at agreed timeframes according to the nature and potential severity of the sustainability impact or outcome.
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Who
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Project Champions, Board Members and Senior Management Team, Implementation Team, Independent Audit Team.
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Collecting and evaluating objective evidence
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Key activities
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Collecting and evaluating objective evidence:
| - | Opening meeting(s) with relevant personnel and key stakeholders |
| - | Reviewing documentation and records |
| - | Reviewing observable practice |
| - | Monitoring of key performance indicators |
| - | Undertaking root cause analysis to determine reasons for unsatisfactory performance or deviations from organisational vision, adopted operating principles, strategies, tactical plans and objectives and targets |
| - | Assessing new opportunities for performance improvementsCommunicating and reporting non-conformities/compliances and agreeing a timeframe for appropriate actions to be undertaken |
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Suggested resources
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| AA1000 Assurance Standard |
| ISO 19011 - Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing |
| FEE Discussion Paper: Providing Assurance on Sustainability Reports (April 2002) www.fee.be |
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Outcomes & outputs
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Review papers, including:
| Evaluation of effectiveness of document control |
| Tangible evidence that processes are being followed and are delivering performance improvement |
| Root cause analysis |
| Records of interviews and stakeholder perception audits - including findings and prompts for stakeholder engagement process |
| Completed surveys and questionnaires |
| Monitoring records of key performance indicators |
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Records and learning from previous incidents, accidents, events, failures of internal control and complaints or compliments
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Consulting with stakeholders on performance and future challenges
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Key activities
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| Undertaking interviews and surveys |
| Capturing stakeholder perception |
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Suggested resources
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Outcomes & outputs
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Audit/assurance team
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Key activities
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| Selecting and training internal audit/assurance team, including team leader, ensuring competency and impartiality of team members |
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Suggested resources
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| AA1000 Assurance Standard |
| ISO 19011 - Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing |
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Outcomes & outputs
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Audit/assurance team competence and selection criteria, including consideration of composite team competence and individual specialist knowledge required (e.g. legal, language, technical, organisational vision, policies, etc.) |
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Audit/assurance preparation and planning
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Key activities
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| Agreeing scope and objectives of audit/assurance, including timing, location and schedule of activities |
| Preparing audit/assurance plan and working papers |
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Suggested resources
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| AA1000 Assurance Standard |
| ISO 19011 - Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing |
| 'Sustainability Reporting Guidelines' Global Reporting Initiative (August 2002) www.globalreporting.org |
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Outcomes & outputs
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Agreed and documented audit/assurance scope and objectives, including physical locations to be included within the scope of the audit/assurance.& Written audit/assurance plan, including team members, timing and duration of the audit/assurance, physical locations to be visited, data to be verified, report content, format and audience, etc.Agreed and documented audit/assurance scope and objectives, including physical locations to be included within the scope of the audit/assurance. |
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Written audit/assurance plan, including team members, timing and duration of the audit/assurance, physical locations to be visited, data to be verified, report content, format and audience, etc. |
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Audit/assurance close out
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Key activities
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| Agreeing scope and objectives of audit/assurance, including timing, location and schedule of activities |
| Taking preventive, corrective and innovative actions as appropriate. |
| Audit/assurance close out |
| Producing and communicating an audit/assurance report - including key recommendations and observations for consideration during Strategic and Tactical Review |
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Suggested resources
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| AA1000 Assurance Standard |
| ISO 19011 - Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing |
| FEE Discussion Paper: Providing Assurance on Sustainability Reports (April 2002) www.fee.be |
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Outcomes & outputs
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Audit/assurance report(s), including:
| Agreed audit / assurance criteria and objectives |
| Assessment of current state of alignment with operating principles and relevant legislation and regulation |
| Progress against organisational vision, stated policies, strategies, tactical plans, objectives and targets |
| Observations, preventive, corrective and innovative actions |
| Recommendations for improvement |
| Other objective evidence (including actions completed/progressing to plan) |
| Communication of audit report to all relevant personnel |
| Evidence of preventive, corrective and innovative actions being undertaken according to audit report |
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Key Issues
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Useful documents:
| Statement of organisational values, mission statement and adopted operating principles |
| Performance Review Report |
| Corporate Governance Review |
| Action, Impacts and Outcomes Report |
| Compliance Report |
| Strategies, tactical plans and management programmes |
| Agreed objectives, targets and key performance indicators |
Previous audit findings and recommendations from previous Strategic and Tactical Reviews, etc.
Real-world tips:
| Those organisations that have already produced sustainability reports following the guidelines available from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) will have already taken a big step towards managing their organisational sustainability. Even those who have not yet approached such a level of reporting will gain from viewing the guidelines and ensuring that their management systems, monitoring regimes and report structures can be aligned with GRI Guidelines where appropriate. |
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Those organisations favouring performance measures and indicators may wish to give further consideration to a combination of the GRI Guidelines and a development of the approach stated in ISO 14031: Environmental Performance Evaluation - Guidelines. The creation of three different types of indicator for each relevant impact (Management Performance Indicators, Operational Performance Indicators, and Sustainability Condition Indicators) will allow organisations to build data sets that:
| - | are appropriate to the scope of their own implementation programme |
| - | are matched to their own objectives and targets |
| - | are appropriate for use in their ongoing stakeholder dialogue |
| - | act as an adjunct to their existing management systems, and |
| - | allow accurate diagnostic feedback of progress. |
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Some organisations may additionally wish to produce objective evidence of progress for their own internal use, and may also wish to develop auditing regimes in order to capture such evidence. Internal audit or assurance teams should be competent to perform the duties expected of them and independent of the activity to be audited or verified.
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