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EcoVadis Frequently Asked Questions
Please see below some of our frequently asked questions about EcoVadis and our services.
1. What does an EcoVadis consultant do?
An EcoVadis consultant helps businesses align policies, governance, and evidence to EcoVadis assessment criteria, improving score outcomes and reducing submission risk.
2. How long does it take to improve an EcoVadis score?
Most SMEs see measurable improvement within 6–12 months, depending on starting maturity and implementation commitment. Kindred CSR can support businesses to make significant improvement within 3-4months if priority and resources are allocated by our clients.
3. Is EcoVadis mandatory?
EcoVadis is not legally mandatory, but many customers require it as part of supply chain due diligence or contract tendering requirements. This is because Sustainable Procurement is part of the customer's strategic sustainability or ESG goals which includes selecting suppliers that are more environmentally, socially and ethically focused.
4. Can SMEs achieve Gold or Platinum Rating?
Yes. With structured governance and documented implementation, Micro businesses and SMEs can achieve high ratings. Just look at Kindred CSR as an example!
5. Who needs to be involved in the EcoVadis submission process?
We would recommend that you create an EcoVadis / ESG working group that consists of people from the following departments:: Human Resources (HR), Finance, Procurement, Operations and Facilities, Compliance and IT. It helps to have someone who has authority to make decisions, as well as someone in the team who can access documents relared to policies, actions and data reports.
6. What are the most common mistakes a company makes when completing their EcoVadis Assessment?
Not following EcoVadis's Document Guidelines for quality by not including the company logo or review dates on documents
Not attaching the most approriate or detailed documents against the selected answers in each theme and indicator
Not being able to sufficiently evidence their actions due to a lack of formal process or procudre being written down and montired regularly.
Not allowing enough time to improve answers or collate high quality evidence before the re-assessment becomes active or within the deadline fro submission.
7. How long does it take for an EcoVadis Scorecard to come back?
EcoVadis state that a scorecard will come back anywhere between 6-8 weeks after submission. The timeline can be shorter or longer depending on company profile and demand. Select subscription holders may receive results sooner.
8. Are Kindred CSR's EcoVadis support packages flexible?
Yes. If you have limited budget or you are not sure how much support you need to submit your assessment, then you can choose pur basic packagae and "top-up" to the advaned package as we begin to work through the assessment process.
9. Our scorecard has just come in and it's lower than we expected. Can you work with us now to improve for next year?
Yes. We can start working with you straight away to understand your scorecard, identify where you need to make improvements, explore why documents have been rejected, identify gaps in your evidence, create an action plan and coordinate an EcoVadis Working Group to ensure progression in your score. We will charge this out under standard day rate as part of our ESG Fractional Management Services.
10. Can EcoVadis be considered to be our ESG Strategy?
No. EcoVadis is an independent third-party assessment that rates the quality of your ESG policies, procedures, and reporting. While it aligns with major global ESG frameworks, it is not a substitute for a tailored ESG strategy. Businesses should develop a strategy based on what is most material to them, using EcoVadis as a tool to prioritise and strengthen annual improvement efforts and demonstrate the work they are doing.
11. Is it worth maintaining EcoVadis if customer demand has reduced?
We wouldn’t recommend stopping. EcoVadis is an annual assessment that reflects your ESG performance at the time of submission. As other companies continue improving each year, scoring benchmarks evolve. If you pause your efforts, you risk falling behind — even if your practices haven’t worsened. ESG expectations from customers, investors, and employees rarely move backwards. Maintaining momentum helps protect your score, your competitiveness, and your reputation both internally and externally.
