This metric is based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standard Guidelines.

In the context of the GRI Standards, the economic dimension of sustainability concerns an organization’s impacts on the economic conditions of its stakeholders, and on economic systems at local, national, and global levels.

GRI 201 addresses the topic of economic performance. This includes the economic value generated by an organization; its defined benefit plan obligations; the financial assistance it receives from any government; and the financial implications of climate change. Information on the creation and distribution of economic value provides a basic indication of how an organization has created wealth for stakeholders.

Several components of the economic value generated and distributed (EVG&D) also provide an economic profile of an organization, which can be useful for normalizing other performance figures. If presented in country-level detail, EVG&D can provide a useful picture of the direct monetary value added to local economies.

In 2018, the GRI G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines were superseded by the GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards (GRI standards). For this metric, the code G4-EC1-a is used in company reporting prior to 2018, and the new GRI 201-1 code used in reporting from 2018 onwards. The methodology for the former G4 standard for this metric can be found here.