Methodology

How we separate claims
from evidence

Aperta Analytics does not rate companies. It verifies whether their public claims are substantiated by observable, independent evidence.

Approach

ESG frameworks are the ruler.
We read what it measures.

Aperta Analytics uses established ESG frameworks (GRI, SASB, TCFD, CDP, MSCI) as benchmarks. Not as compliance tools. As the ruler against which claims are measured.

Every company makes sustainability claims. Few provide evidence that would survive independent scrutiny. The methodology identifies the gap between what is said and what is provable.

This is not consulting. Aperta does not help companies write better reports. It checks whether existing reports, ratings, and public statements hold up under systematic, evidence-based review.

The methodology is claim-agnostic and industry-agnostic. It applies the same evidentiary standard whether the subject is a multinational energy company or a 12-person consumer brand.

Results are framed as methodology: evidence-based scoring modeled on the analytical approach used by MSCI and Sustainalytics. Every finding is tied to specific, citable evidence. No conjecture. No accusation. Documentation.

Evaluation dimensions

Five dimensions.
Scored independently.

1

Environmental

Materials, emissions, waste, water, energy. What the company claims versus what is documented.

2

Social & Labor

Wages, working conditions, supply chain labor, community impact. Named factories or vague assurances.

3

Governance

Ownership structure, board oversight, reporting cadence, conflict of interest management.

4

Transparency

How much is disclosed. Scored separately from alignment. A company can be transparent about poor performance.

5

Claim-Evidence Gap

The distance between what is marketed and what the evidence record supports. The core of every evaluation.

Evidence hierarchy

Not all evidence is equal.
The hierarchy defines what counts.

Four tiers
T1Third-party auditedB Corp, SA8000, GOTS, Bluesign, ISO 14001
T2Independently verifiedPublished reports, press investigations, academic research
T3Self-reported with detailNamed supplier lists, specific emissions data, factory addresses
T4Self-reported, vague"We care about the planet," "ethically sourced"
Scoring separation

Alignment and transparency
are scored independently.

What the evidence says

How closely a company's actual practices align with the standards it claims to meet. A company can score high on alignment while scoring low on transparency. It does the right things but doesn't document them well.

What the company shows

How much information a company makes publicly accessible. A company can score high on transparency while scoring low on alignment. It discloses extensively but the disclosures reveal poor performance.

Process

How an evaluation works

1

Claim mapping

Every public sustainability claim is identified, catalogued, and categorized by dimension.

2

Evidence collection

Public records, certifications, reports, press coverage, and regulatory filings are gathered and classified by tier.

3

Gap analysis

Each claim is measured against the evidence. The gap between what is said and what is provable is documented.

4

Report delivery

The complete evaluation is delivered with per-dimension scoring, evidence citations, and actionable recommendations.

See where your claims stand.

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