Consumer-Centered Management Certified Companies Show High ESG Levels

Korea Consumer Agency, Analysis Results of CCM Certified Companies Data

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chunhan] Companies certified with Consumer-Centered Management (CCM) were found to have higher levels of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management as well.

On the 7th, the Korea Consumer Agency announced that this was confirmed after analyzing annual CCM certification data from 2012 to 2020 and ESG rating data from the Korea Corporate Governance Service.

CCM is a system where the Korea Consumer Agency reviews whether all activities performed by a company are conducted from the consumer's perspective according to the Framework Act on Consumers, and the Fair Trade Commission certifies it. The Consumer Agency analyzed 66 companies for which data was available, comparing the ESG levels of CCM-certified companies and non-certified companies within the same industry and with similar asset sizes for three years before and after the base year.

For CCM-certified companies, the average ESG score for the three years after the base year was 3.579 points, which is 4.37% (0.150 points) higher than the average of 3.429 points for the previous three years. In contrast, non-certified companies had an average ESG score of 3.407 points for the three years after the base year, which is 0.84% (0.029 points) lower than the 3.436 points for the previous three years.

Among the detailed ESG areas, the social sector showed a notable increase. CCM-certified companies saw an 8.72% (0.311 points) rise in the average social sector score after the base year, which is 4.74 percentage points higher than the 3.98% increase seen in non-certified companies.

The Consumer Agency plans to collaborate with ESG evaluation agencies and government ministries to expand the CCM certification scoring in the social sector and to ensure that CCM certification status is reflected when establishing new ESG evaluation indicators or guidelines in the future.