Lexique

All traces and documents that allow for tracking the origin, collection, validation, and use of non-financial data. Essential for meeting the auditability requirements of the CSRD.

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An environmental accounting tool for measuring an organization's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, divided into three scopes. Used to drive an emissions reduction pathway. Discover how Harnest structures your carbon assessment.

A strategic document describing how a company plans to align its operations with a 1.5°C global warming limit pathway. Required by GRI 102 and CSRD standards.

European Directive on Sustainability Due Diligence. It requires large companies to identify, prevent, and mitigate the negative impacts of their operations on human rights and the environment, including within their value chain.

A voluntary approach through which a company integrates social, environmental, and economic concerns into its operations and its relationships with stakeholders. CSR is the historical framework that preceded the regulatory formalization of non-financial reporting.

A European directive that mandates standardized, detailed, and verifiable sustainability reporting for companies, based on ESRS standards.

An elementary data point to be collected and recorded within a reporting framework. A CSRD report can include several hundred quantitative and narrative data points.

‍‍Former French non-financial reporting mechanism, gradually replaced by the CSRD. Mandatory for large French companies exceeding certain thresholds, it covered social, environmental, and governance issues.

‍‍European body responsible for developing ESRS standards under a mandate from the European Commission. EFRAG also developed the VSME framework for SMEs.

An analytical framework that evaluates a company's performance based on its environmental, social, and governance impacts, beyond just financial indicators.

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Official standards that define what companies must publish in their sustainability report (indicators, policies, action plans, risks, etc.).

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A European classification system that defines environmentally sustainable economic activities. It serves as a reference to guide investments towards activities aligned with the EU's climate objectives.

Assessing the importance of risks and opportunities related to sustainability issues on a company's financial performance and value in the short, medium, and long term.

A French association that brings together private equity stakeholders. It has developed an ESG reporting framework for funds and portfolio companies. Learn more about the France Invest standard.

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In private equity, the GP is the management company that manages the investment fund and makes investment decisions. It is specifically responsible for collecting ESG data from its portfolio companies as part of the EDCI.

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Assessment of the significance of a company's positive and negative impacts on the environment and people. It considers the scale, scope, and irreversibility of these impacts.

The ability of a company or an industry sector to anticipate, resist, and recover from external shocks—whether geopolitical, climatic, energy-related, or health-related. This notably involves securing supplies and maintaining critical skills.

The ability of a state or an industry sector to control strategic technologies, supplies, and expertise necessary for its economic and security autonomy. A central issue for companies in the BITD and critical sectors.

Analysis framework used in the ESRS to identify material topics that must be described, measured, and managed.

An organization established by the IFRS Foundation in 2021 to develop global sustainability reporting standards for capital markets. It published IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 in 2023. Learn more about the ISSB in Harnest.

A level of external verification applied to CSRD sustainability reports, less demanding than a full certification. The auditor checks for consistency and the absence of significant misstatements without conducting an exhaustive audit.

In private equity, the LP is the investor who contributes capital to the fund without participating in its management. LPs are increasingly demanding regarding ESG data from their portfolios, particularly with regard to the EDCI and the SFDR.

A visual representation positioning sustainability issues according to their impact materiality scores (Y-axis) and financial materiality scores (X-axis). It allows for visual identification of the most significant issues.

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Former European directive on non-financial reporting, replaced by the CSRD. It applied to companies with more than 500 employees that were listed on a stock exchange or of public interest.

Non-financial information related to an organization's environmental, social, and governance performance. This information complements financial data to provide a comprehensive view of a company's performance and risks.

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A set of processes enabling continuous monitoring, measurement, and improvement of an organization's non-financial performance: IRO management, action plans, indicators, and dashboards. See how non-financial management works in Harnest

European Directive adopted in December 2025 and entered into force in March 2026, which significantly revised the framework of the CSRD by raising the application thresholds (over 1,000 employees AND over €450 million in revenue) and simplifying the ESRS standards.

In a double materiality analysis, an event or trend related to a sustainability issue that is likely to have a positive effect on the company's financial performance.

Cycle d'amélioration continue utilisé comme cadre méthodologique pour le pilotage extra-financier : planifier les objectifs, mettre en œuvre les actions, mesurer les résultats et ajuster la stratégie. Ce cycle structure nativement le pilotage extra-financier dans Harnest : définition des cibles et politiques, déploiement des plans d'action, suivi des indicateurs et tableaux de bord, ajustement continu de la démarche.

A company's formal commitment to a sustainability issue, outlining its objectives, guiding principles, and responsibilities. These policies are evaluated as part of non-financial management to measure their effectiveness and scope.

An artificial intelligence technique that combines text generation with retrieval from a document database. It allows an AI assistant to produce answers grounded in specific documents rather than general knowledge, thus ensuring the relevance, traceability, and confidentiality of the generated responses. This is the architecture powering Companion, Harnest's native AI assistant : it queries your document database and your Harnest data to produce analyses, summaries, and suggestions contextualized to your organization, without ever mixing your information with that of other companies.

A set of standards, indicators, and methodologies defining what a company must measure and publish in its non-financial reporting.

US organization that developed sector-specific sustainability reporting standards, now integrated into the framework of the ISSB.

Carbon Emission Categories: Scope 1: Direct company emissions. Scope 2: Purchased energy. Scope 3: Indirect value chain emissions.

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17 goals defined by the United Nations in 2015 to achieve sustainable development by 2030. They often serve as a reference framework for structuring and communicating companies' non-financial commitments.

All internal and external stakeholders involved in the company's operations: employees, customers, suppliers, investors, communities, regulators, etc. Their involvement is essential for any sustainability initiative.

An environmental, social, or governance theme that could impact the company or on which the company has an impact. Identifying material issues is the foundational step for any non-financial initiative.

A document published by a company describing its sustainability impacts, risks, opportunities, and performance. As part of the CSRD, it is integrated into the management report and subject to limited assurance.

A set of financial practices that integrate ESG data to assess risks, guide investments, and support the ecological and social transition.

A framework for recommendations on climate-related financial disclosures, developed by the Financial Stability Board. Now superseded by IFRS S2 standards from the ISSB.

Plan définissant les étapes et objectifs de réduction des émissions de GES d'une entreprise dans le temps, aligné avec les accords de Paris et l'objectif de limitation du réchauffement à 1,5°C.

A roadmap that outlines how the company will achieve its sustainability goals (carbon, social, governance) through concrete actions, timelines, and resources.

The full scope of a company's internal and external activities (suppliers, operations, customers) where ESG impacts, risks, and opportunities can be found.

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All upstream and downstream activities, suppliers, subcontractors, distributors, and customers of a company. The CSRD requires companies to analyze their impacts, risks, and opportunities across their entire value chain.

A mechanism introduced by the Omnibus Directive limiting the non-financial information that large companies subject to CSRD can require from their suppliers not subject to CSRD. These requests are capped at the information specified by the framework VSME.

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Simplified European standards for SMEs not subject to CSRD, tailored to their size and maturity, with a reduced scope but compatible with ESRS.

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