ESG Goals in ITAD: Governance & Compliance Key

There are two ways to achieve governance ESG goals within the ITAD industry, and both are necessary to run a successful disposition process. ESG reporting highlights a company’s environmental, social, and governance achievements. Practicing legislative compliance and ensuring all certifications are up to date will help an enterprise achieve governance ESG goals.

Governance ESG criteria focus on a company’s transparency and accuracy in accounting, reporting methods, audits, leadership, executive pay, and shareholder rights. Electronics recycling requires many steps in device processing that can lead to disaster, and legislative compliance helps hold an enterprise accountable for risk prevention and maintaining certifications. 

Legislative compliance and certification come hand in hand when operating machinery or processing equipment. Compliance is a core requirement for many businesses, especially those operating heavy machinery or processing IT equipment, and acquiring the necessary certifications helps build a trustworthy foundation for clients to rely on. Additionally, legislative compliance shields facilities from any potential legal issues. 

As part of legislative compliance, certifications provide documentation to ensure clients that their equipment is in professional hands and accountability in the workplace. There are several certifications for ITAD facilities, including the R2 and eStewards standards. 

In July 2020, Sustainable Electronics Recycling (SERI) released R2v3, the first significant revision of the R2 practices since 2013. As the highest quality standard certification in the sustainability space, R2v3 compliance can pave the way for achieving successful ESG criteria. R2v3 is an updated version of the R2 certification, including tighter safety measures regarding data security and a more detailed description of services, such as a scope statement, process requirements, a list of other locations, etc. The revisions span ten different areas and include new safety measures. 

Last year, e-Stewards announced plans to develop a certification option more tailored to the daily operations of those in the ITAD industry as a stepping stone for those just entering the industry \to “maintain the ethics and integrity of the e-Stewards program while providing a certification solution for niche organizations that will not be overburdensome.” 

Whether your organization is a small up-and-coming business or a sprawling ITAD enterprise, practicing compliance and maintaining certifications will help boost ESG reporting benefits and help others identify your business as an eco-friendly potential partner.

Staying compliant is one of HOBI’s top priorities throughout our services. HOBI’s R2v3, RIOS, and ISO 14001 certifications ensure all equipment is processed under full legislative compliance. We also undergo yearly audits and only work with compliant downstream vendors. 

For more information about our ITAD services, call 817-814-2620 or contact HOBI at sales@hobi.com.