A manufacturer receives an EcoVadis invitation before an RFP is due. A distributor is asked for emissions data during a customer review. A specialty contractor is required to disclose climate information to remain on an approved supplier list.
For many mid-market companies, requests like these arrive without warning. But the request is rarely random.
Large customers are under growing pressure to understand environmental, social, and operational risk across their supply chains. As a result, they are asking more suppliers to provide sustainability data through EcoVadis, CDP, and similar reporting frameworks. Yet, sustainability reporting may not be part of the supplier's regular operations. There may be no dedicated sustainability team, no established reporting process, and no clear owner for the response.
Mid-market companies are increasingly being asked to complete EcoVadis assessments and CDP disclosures because large organizations now need sustainability information from suppliers throughout their value chain—not just their largest vendors.
Until recently, sustainability reporting was largely associated with public companies and multinational corporations. Today, those expectations are extending much deeper into supply chains. As large organizations face growing pressure from customers, investors, and regulators, they are increasingly asking suppliers to provide sustainability data as well.
In 2025, more than 270 major buyers asked approximately 45,000 suppliers to disclose through CDP’s Supply Chain program. Nearly 11,000 small and medium-sized companies used CDP’s dedicated SME questionnaire that same year.
EcoVadis has reached a similar scale. Since 2020, the Index has covered 159,000 sustainability ratings across nearly 89,000 companies, in more than 250 industries and 150 countries.
This is no longer reserved for public companies or global brands. A mid-market supplier may be asked because it is one step upstream from a customer that needs better Scope 3 data, a clearer view of supplier risk, or a more defensible procurement process.
That is why these requests can feel sudden. A mid-market company may be one or two steps removed from a large public company, but it is still part of the value chain that the customer is being asked to measure, manage, and defend. For many organizations, supply-chain emissions account for the largest share of their total footprint.
The challenge is that many companies do not yet have a dedicated ESG or sustainability lead, a formal greenhouse gas inventory, documented sustainability policies, or an established reporting process. The information may exist across utility bills, safety programs, HR records, procurement files, and operational teams. Still, it has never been gathered in one place or evaluated against a customer’s reporting criteria.
Many organizations are already doing the right things. They have safety programs, energy efficiency initiatives, supplier standards, ethics policies, or other sustainability efforts in place. The challenge is that these activities often haven't been documented or organized in a way that aligns with changing customer expectations and reporting requirements.
That does not mean the company is unprepared operationally. It means its practices have not yet been translated into the data, policies, and supporting documentation that EcoVadis, CDP, and similar customer requests require.
EcoVadis and CDP are often requested by the same customers, but they evaluate different parts of a company’s sustainability readiness. A supplier may be asked to complete one, both, or a unique customer questionnaire built around similar expectations. The common thread is that each requires reliable information, clear ownership, and documented evidence.
Although many people refer to it as an EcoVadis rating, EcoVadis is actually a sustainability assessment that results in a rating. It evaluates how well a company manages sustainability through its policies, actions, and results, so written policies alone are rarely enough. Training records, supplier requirements, certifications, internal metrics, and other evidence demonstrating that programs are actually being implemented all matter.
CDP is more focused on climate and environmental disclosure. It asks companies to report greenhouse gas emissions, climate risks and opportunities, governance, targets, and performance over time. The data is often more technical and quantitative, but the starting point is practical. You need to understand where your company's environmental impacts come from, identify the information already available, and document assumptions where data is incomplete. Ultimately, CPD evaluates not only what your environmental performance is today, but also how well you understand, manage, and disclose it.
In simple terms, EcoVadis asks, "Can you demonstrate that sustainability is embedded in your business?" while CDP asks, "Can you measure, understand, and transparently disclose your environmental impacts?" Together, these frameworks show whether a supplier can both manage sustainability issues and report on them credibly.
It is tempting to pull together whatever is available, submit the questionnaire, and move on. That can get a response out the door, but it often creates weak evidence, inconsistent data, and the same scramble when the next customer asks.
One request is rarely an isolated event. Similar questions can show up in RFPs, supplier reviews, lender conversations, and annual disclosure cycles. A rushed response can also expose a gap between what a company does and what it can prove.
The better approach is to use the first request as a signal. Build one reporting foundation that supports multiple customer needs, rather than a different answer for each deadline.
Start with ownership. Reporting spans operations, finance, HR, EHS, procurement, and leadership, so a single person or team needs to coordinate the process.
Then organize the information that already exists: utility and fuel records, waste and water data where relevant, safety and labor policies, ethics guidance, supplier requirements, and evidence of current improvement efforts. For emissions, define the organizational boundary and the most relevant Scope 1, 2, and 3 categories.
The goal is not perfection in year one. It is a repeatable process that documents assumptions, improves data quality, and reduces the burden of the next request.
Viewed this way, sustainability reporting becomes less about checking a compliance box and more about building the internal processes needed to respond confidently to future customer requests. In other words, it’s about business readiness as much as reporting readiness.
Many mid-market companies know they need to respond to an EcoVadis or CDP request but aren’t sure where to begin. Emerald Built Environments, a Crete United Company, helps companies move from reacting to customer requests to building a clear, repeatable reporting process. Our sustainability consulting services help identify what information already exists, organize supporting evidence, fill the most important data and policy gaps, and guide teams through EcoVadis assessments, CDP disclosures, GHG inventories, supplier engagement, and reporting improvements.
That means less time chasing documents across departments and less uncertainty about what a customer is actually asking for. As an Approved EcoVadis Training Partner and EcoVadis Gold-rated company, Emerald understands both the reporting requirements and the practical realities.
The goal isn't simply to complete the next questionnaire. It's to build a reporting process that becomes easier to maintain over time, making it easier to respond when the next customer request arrives.