Element 4: Monitor, Verify and Report
It is important for companies to understand and track their progress towards meeting NDPE and responsible sourcing commitments once they have begun implementing actions to meet these commitments. Monitoring progress ensures that a company’s actions are delivering results towards meeting commitments and allows the revision of strategies when targets are not met or have changed.
This briefing note provides an overview of tools and methodologies that companies can use to monitor their own systems and processes, supply chain and applicable industry initiatives. Approaches to verifying monitoring results, as well as reporting on them, are also provided in this document.
This briefing note is split into 6 different sections, namely:
1. INTRODUCTION TO MONITORING
This section introduces companies to the concept of monitoring progress through implementing a robust monitoring process. This is done by defining the purpose and scope of their monitoring, and setting suitable process and impact Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that measure progress and performance.
2. MONITORING PROGRESS AND PERFORMANCE TOWARDS MEETING NDPE COMMITMENTS
This section refers to the development of suitable KPIs to support the monitoring progress of company activities and processes. More information is also given on the monitoring of non-compliance through a grievance mechanism.
3. KEY TOOLS FOR MONITORING PROGRESS AND PERFORMANCE WITHIN SUPPLY CHAINS
This section covers the tools, methods and strategies that can be implemented to monitor the performance of a company’s suppliers and their supply chain. This includes monitoring potentially new or sporadic suppliers via certification status, NDPE commitments, traceability and non-compliance with NDPE commitments; and monitoring of established suppliers and associated supply chains via T1 supplier scorecards, Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audits (SMETA), and NDPE Progress and Performance: The Implementation Reporting Framework.
4. KEY TOOLS, METHODS AND PLATFORMS TO MONITOR PERFORMANCE BEYOND SUPPLY CHAINS
Monitoring performance beyond supply chains is usually more complicated due to the involvement of multiple stakeholders and often varies depending on the scale and scope of interventions. This section provides a guideline for companies to monitor the initiatives and programmes (i.e. landscapes or jurisdictional approaches, sectoral initiatives or collaborations, and broader multi-stakeholder initiatives) that may impact the production regions that they are sourcing from. Furthermore, companies can also monitor performance beyond supply chains through: RSPO performance and credits, MSPO performance (Malaysia), and ISPO performance (Indonesia).
5. KEY TOOLS AND APPROACHES FOR VERIFICATION OF MONITORING RESULTS
Verification provides assurance that commitments are met and compliance is achieved through defined points for validation, and is carried out adhering to good practices of credibility, rigour and independence. This section informs companies on the validation and verification of traceability data, IRF data verification, response to and verification of human rights grievances, and remote auditing.
6. KEY TOOLS AND APPROACHES TO REPORTING AND COMMUNICATING
Public reporting allows companies to be transparent to all stakeholders in the palm oil supply chain through disclosure of their supply chain performance and progress towards meeting their commitments. Companies can do this through public reporting and communication, where common elements include: traceability information, grievance management and risk assessment, external initiatives and more. This section also provides some examples of public reporting formats used by companies to communicate their progress monitoring.
More information is available in the briefing note below – BN04: MVR
