Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Software Startup Gives Companies a 'QuickStart' on CSR Reports

Software firm Gaia Metrics released its first product last week aimed at helping companies produce corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports.

The Massachusetts-based startup developed CSR QuickStart to drastically reduce the time it takes to collect the data and information typically found in a non-financial report.

'CSR QuickStart was meant to make it faster, easier and cheaper for companies to get on board and say, 'Hey, starting today we are a sustainability reporter, and we are a reporter using a recognized reporting framework,' said Gaia Metrics CEO Erik Thomsen, who co-founded the company with John O'Connor, who serves as vice president of sustainability research.

CSR QuickStart can help companies produce Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), PSI, ISO 14000 and ISO 26000 reports. It collects the underlying data by searching company websites and intranet, public records, filings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and other relevant sources for key words and numbers. The information is then compiled, highlighting gaps where additional data may need to be collected.

If a company wants to produce a report that complies with the GRI, CSR QuickStart can produce a rough draft of the index within days, such as this index from Gaia Metrics customer Südwolle Group. Additionally, Gaia Metrics offers consulting services and may also host company sustainability reports that point back to the client's website.

An annual subscription for CSR QuickStart, a cloud-hosted information service, starts at about $15,000, Thomsen said. In comparison, he's heard of companies spending as much as $200,000 to put together a CSR report.

CSR QuickStart can also be used to scour sources to identify stakeholder concerns, such as documents coming out a company's finance department or even community blogs.

'When it comes to the stakeholder engagement process,' Thomsen said, 'I'm not aware of any technology help that allows a CSR manager to efficiently digest the interests and preferences of the various stakeholder groups with which they engage.'