Performance Metrics

The Difficulty of Measuring a Company’s Social Impact

The Difficulty of Measuring a Company’s Social Impact

Asset managers, nonprofits and others are working on making a positive social impact but many companies still struggle with how to define their own positive social results. In the article, Casey O’Connor Willis shares insights from our research into the current limits of social measurements.

Global Companies Get Too Much Credit for Their Transparency

Global Companies Get Too Much Credit for Their Transparency

Marc Bain writes on the failure of corporate transparency around environmental, social and governance issues to translate to meaningful performance outcomes, citing the Center's report “Putting the ‘S’ in ESG.

Putting the 'S' in ESG: Measuring Human Rights Performance for Investors

Putting the 'S' in ESG: Measuring Human Rights Performance for Investors

In March 2017, the Center published Putting the 'S' in ESG: Measuring Human Rights Performance for Investors, an in-depth study of 12 leading frameworks for assessing companies’ social practices and impacts. It found that current measurement focuses on what is most convenient rather than most meaningful. Ninety-two percent of measures looked at company governance structures without any attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of those structures.

Investors Need Better Ways to Find Companies Making a Difference

Investors Need Better Ways to Find Companies Making a Difference

In their op-ed, Casey O'Connor and Sarah Labowitz reveal the findings of their study on metrics concluding that though there are many initiatives striving to measure human rights, none sufficiently evaluate what matters most: outcomes and performance.

Measuring Human Rights Performance

Measuring Human Rights Performance

As companies work to meet their responsibility to respect human rights, metrics that help internal and external stakeholders understand the social impacts of their operations are urgently needed. While numerous measurement efforts have emerged in recent years, none has yet advanced a concise set of user-friendly, industry-specific indicators of strong performance. 

Creating Industry-Specific Standards to Operationalize the “Responsibility to Respect”

Creating Industry-Specific Standards to Operationalize the “Responsibility to Respect”

Any measurement of progress requires a baseline – determining whether the dial has moved can only be assessed if we know where it was before. Companies in the same industry face similar human rights challenges. They should therefore define the same priorities as they address human rights challenges.  

“One Eye Open and One Eye Closed” – Visibility vs. Responsibility in the Supply Chain

“One Eye Open and One Eye Closed” – Visibility vs. Responsibility in the Supply Chain

Today, global companies report on their supply chain activities in a dizzying array of formats. The problem with most of these reports is that they fail to identify a significant source of risk for human and labor rights violations in companies’ global supply chains: sub-tier suppliers.

Can Rankings and Benchmarks Provide Real Human Rights Accountability for Corporations?

Can Rankings and Benchmarks Provide Real Human Rights Accountability for Corporations?

Interest in data that assesses and ranks a company's sustainability performance has been growing substantially over the past decade. Yet the challenge remains, can an assessment methodology find a balance between being thorough yet concise? 

NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights Comments to the International Bar Association (IBA)’s Working Draft, “Business and Human Rights Guidance for Bar Associations"

NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights Comments to the International Bar Association (IBA)’s Working Draft, “Business and Human Rights Guidance for Bar Associations"

Sarah Labowitz and Michael Posner offer their comments to the International Bar Association's in regards to their working draft, “Business and Human Rights Guidance for Bar Associations.”