Silver EcoVadis medal on the first assessment: how to structure your CSR approach

In 2026, EcoVadis is no longer reserved for large corporations. A growing number of SMEs and BtoB agencies are facing the same requirement from their clients: provide a verifiable, audited, comparable CSR rating.

The reason is straightforward. Responsible buyers can no longer accept statements of intent. They need evidence — structured, documented, assessed by an independent third party. EcoVadis has become one of the reference standards for meeting this demand.

But achieving a good EcoVadis rating doesn't happen by chance. Many companies have genuine CSR practices — and receive disappointing scores, not because they're doing poorly, but because they don't know how to document what they do.

This article explains how to structure a CSR approach to tackle an EcoVadis assessment in the best possible conditions — illustrated with the concrete example of Tawkr, which achieved a Silver medal on its first assessment.

What is EcoVadis — and what does it actually measure?

EcoVadis is a CSR assessment platform that rates companies across four themes: environment, labour and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement.

Each theme is assessed on the basis of documents provided by the company — policies, reports, evidence of actions — verified by EcoVadis analysts. The final score, from 0 to 100, determines the medal: Bronze (45-54), Silver (55-64), Gold (65-74) and Platinum (75+).

What many companies fail to realise before their first assessment: EcoVadis doesn't rate what you do. It rates what you can prove you do.

The difference between real practices and auditable evidence

A company may have solid CSR practices — ongoing training policy, community engagement, carbon footprint reduction — and still achieve a low score, simply because these practices aren't documented in a way that satisfies EcoVadis criteria.

Conversely, a company that doesn't yet have every practice in place but rigorously structures what it already has can achieve a significantly higher score than expected.

This distinction — between what exists and what can be proved — is at the heart of any serious EcoVadis preparation.

How to structure your CSR approach before a first EcoVadis assessment

Preparing for EcoVadis follows a multi-step logic. It starts well before filling in the questionnaire.

Step 1 — Map what already exists

The first mistake is believing you need to build a CSR approach from scratch to pass EcoVadis. In most cases, the practices already exist — they simply aren't identified as CSR and aren't documented.

Mapping involves exhaustively listing what the company already does across each of the four EcoVadis themes. This is often a revelation: social practices that hadn't been thought to valorise, environmental commitments already in place, procurement processes worth formalising.

Step 2 — Identify strengths and blind spots

Once the inventory is complete, the task is to distinguish what can be immediately valorised from what requires prior structuring work — and what represents a genuine gap to address.

This prioritisation is strategic: it focuses effort on high-impact actions on the score, rather than spreading energy across secondary workstreams.

Step 3 — Produce the key deliverables

EcoVadis expects specific reference documents. Three deliverables are particularly structuring for a first assessment:

The CSR policy. A governance document formalising the company's commitments across the four themes. This is not a communication document — it must be operational, dated, signed by management, and reflect measurable commitments.

The CSR report. The translation of practices into documented evidence. Indicators, actions taken, results achieved. This is the heart of the EcoVadis file — and the document that most often makes the difference between an average score and a strong one.

The responsible purchasing charter. EcoVadis assesses not only what the company does internally, but also how it selects and manages its suppliers and partners. An operational responsible purchasing charter directly addresses this theme.

Step 4 — Conduct a white audit before submission

A white audit involves assessing your EcoVadis file against the same criteria as the analysts, before submitting it. This is the step that identifies missing evidence, insufficient wording, and documents that need strengthening.

Without a white audit, many companies submit a file they believe is complete — only to discover after rating that they could have scored 10 to 20 points higher with minor adjustments.

Common mistakes to avoid

Waiting until "everything is in place" before starting

EcoVadis assesses a trajectory, not a final state. A company that can show it has identified its blind spots and put an improvement plan in place can achieve a good score — even if all practices aren't yet fully deployed.

Treating EcoVadis as a communication exercise

EcoVadis analysts verify submitted documents. Vague wording, undated commitments, policies without indicators are systematically under-rated. The credibility of the file comes from precision, not from the ambition of the declarations.

Neglecting the "sustainable procurement" theme

This is often the least-prepared theme — and the one where companies leave the most points on the table. EcoVadis expects concrete evidence that the company applies CSR criteria in the selection and monitoring of its suppliers.

Filling in the questionnaire alone without external review

The EcoVadis questionnaire is complex. Some questions admit answers that seem equivalent but are rated very differently. An external review — by someone who knows the assessment grid — can make a significant difference to the final score.

What a well-structured approach concretely produces

Beyond the score, serious EcoVadis preparation produces lasting effects on the organisation.

Reusable deliverables. The CSR policy, report and purchasing charter don't only serve EcoVadis. They respond to clients' CSR questionnaires, feed tender responses, serve as a basis for future audits and certifications.

Internal visibility on commitments. Structuring a CSR approach means looking at what you actually do — not just what you think you do. This is often uncomfortable. It is always useful.

Concrete commercial advantage. For BtoB companies whose clients have strong CSR commitments of their own, a credible EcoVadis rating changes the nature of the relationship. You're no longer responding to a constraint — you become an aligned partner.

The Tawkr case — Silver medal on the first assessment

Tawkr is a face-to-face customer acquisition agency operating in France and Belgium. In 2025-2026, against a backdrop of strong growth and increasing demands from BtoB clients, it decided to structure its CSR approach and sit a first EcoVadis assessment.

The starting point was the one many companies recognise: genuine practices, sincere commitments — but dispersed, implicit, undocumented.

With Imagreen's support, Tawkr completed this structuring in 6 targeted days. Three deliverables produced: a CSR policy, a full CSR report, an operational responsible purchasing charter. A Carbon Footprint assessment had previously been completed with the same partner.

Result: Silver EcoVadis medal on the first assessment.

Imagreen published the full case study on their site.

👉 Read the article: https://imagreen.fr/retours-experiences/premiere-evaluation-ecovadis-et-medaille-silver-comment-tawkr-a-structure-sa-demarche-rse-en-un-temps-record/

Conclusion

Achieving a Silver EcoVadis medal on the first assessment is possible — provided you don't confuse "having CSR practices" with "knowing how to document them".

The method exists. It's reproducible. It starts with an honest inventory of what already exists, continues with the production of precise, auditable deliverables, and takes shape in a structured evidence file.

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What is the EcoVadis Silver medal and how do you achieve it?

The EcoVadis Silver medal is awarded to companies scoring between 55 and 64 out of 100 — placing them in the top 25% of companies rated in their sector. To achieve it on the first assessment, you need to map existing practices, produce key deliverables (CSR policy, CSR report, responsible purchasing charter) and prepare a precise, auditable evidence file.

How long does it take to prepare a first EcoVadis assessment?

With targeted support and existing practices to formalise, a first assessment can be prepared in 4 to 8 weeks. The Tawkr case shows that with 6 days of intensive support from a specialist firm like Imagreen, achieving a Silver medal on the first attempt is possible.

Can an SME achieve a good EcoVadis score?

Yes. EcoVadis accounts for company size and sector. An SME with genuine, well-documented CSR practices can achieve a high score — sometimes higher than large companies with less structured approaches. The key is the quality of the evidence provided, not the size of the organisation.

What documents are essential for an EcoVadis assessment?

The three most structuring deliverables are: a formalised CSR policy (dated, signed, measurable commitments), a CSR report documenting practices and results, and a responsible purchasing charter. A Carbon Footprint assessment significantly strengthens the environmental theme.

Does the EcoVadis medal need to be renewed?

Yes. The EcoVadis assessment is valid for 12 months and must be renewed annually. This is precisely what makes it credible to buyers: it's not a once-and-for-all label, but a reflection of continuously evolving CSR practices.