Domain C · Area C-CA2 · Materiality assessment and controlled professional judgement

C.7Integrate impact and financial materiality where both perspectives apply

Working Draft version 1.1

Purpose and scope

This unit covers the capability to design and operate a double-materiality or equivalent combined process when the reporting basis requires both impact and financial perspectives. It preserves the distinct objectives, criteria, evidence and decision records of each perspective, identifies overlaps and relationships, controls shared inputs and produces a combined reporting conclusion without netting, averaging or allowing one perspective to exclude a matter material under the other.

Applied competency statement

Can integrate impact and financial materiality assessments while preserving their distinct criteria and conclusions, reconciling shared evidence and relationships and producing a combined reporting decision without inappropriate netting or cancellation.

Boundary and escalation

This unit applies only where both perspectives are required or intentionally used. It does not create a double-materiality obligation where the reporting basis does not require one, and it does not replace the separate competence required for impact materiality in C.5 or financial materiality in C.6. Management and governance bodies retain responsibility for the combined conclusion.

Key quality risks

Using one score or matrix to conceal distinct criteria; treating impact materiality as evidence of financial materiality or vice versa without a supported pathway; excluding a matter because it is material under only one perspective; offsetting negative impacts with opportunities; double counting shared evidence; conflating users and affected stakeholders; and publishing a single visual matrix without a traceable decision record.

Required knowledge · 6

C.7-K01

Understands the different objectives, users, criteria, evidence and decision logic of impact and financial materiality and why each assessment must remain independently traceable.

Knowledge Type: Distinct perspectives · Normative Weight: Core

C.7-K02

Understands that a sustainability matter may be material from the impact perspective, the financial perspective or both, and that materiality under either required perspective is sufficient for inclusion in the combined material set.

Knowledge Type: Double-materiality logic · Normative Weight: Core

C.7-K03

Understands how impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities may be related without assuming automatic conversion between perspectives.

Knowledge Type: Relationships and pathways · Normative Weight: Core

C.7-K04

Understands which governance, scope, evidence, engagement, data and specialist activities may be shared and which assessment criteria and conclusions must remain separate.

Knowledge Type: Shared processes and evidence · Normative Weight: Core

C.7-K05

Understands combined registers, relationship maps, reconciliation memoranda, non-netting, duplicate control, topic aggregation and the limitations of visual matrices.

Knowledge Type: Reconciliation and presentation · Normative Weight: Core

C.7-K06

Understands instrument-specific double-materiality requirements, the risk of unsupported equivalence and the need for separate governance approval and evidence for each perspective.

Knowledge Type: Reporting and boundary · Normative Weight: Core

Applied skills · 5

C.7-S01

Design a combined process that identifies shared inputs and workflow while retaining separate impact and financial assessment criteria and decision records.

Skill Type: Core applied capability · Observable Output or Result: Double-materiality process design

C.7-S02

Align topics and matter identifiers, reconcile scope, time horizons and evidence and distinguish overlap, linkage, difference and non-correspondence.

Skill Type: Reconciliation · Observable Output or Result: Perspective reconciliation and relationship memorandum

C.7-S03

Create a combined register that preserves the result and rationale under each perspective and identifies matters material under one or both perspectives.

Skill Type: Combined decision · Observable Output or Result: Combined impact and financial materiality register

C.7-S04

Test for netting, cancellation, unsupported conversion, duplicate evidence, inconsistent topic aggregation and visual simplification that obscures the underlying decisions.

Skill Type: Quality challenge · Observable Output or Result: Double-materiality quality review

C.7-S05

Explain the combined outcome, disagreements, limitations and disclosure implications and obtain appropriate approval for both perspectives and the combined material set.

Skill Type: Governance and communication · Observable Output or Result: Double-materiality governance decision record

Professional behaviours · 3

C.7-B01

Does not subordinate one required materiality perspective to the other or convert distinct criteria into a single unsupported score.

Behaviour Type: Perspective integrity · Non-compensable Requirement: No

C.7-B02

Keeps impact and financial conclusions, negative and positive matters and unresolved relationships visible and separately evidenced.

Behaviour Type: Non-netting and transparency · Non-compensable Requirement: No

C.7-B03

Escalates disagreements between perspective owners and does not use a visual matrix or consensus workshop as a substitute for documented criteria and approval.

Behaviour Type: Governance accountability · Non-compensable Requirement: No

Typical tasks · 4

C.7-T01

Define the combined methodology, shared inputs, identifiers, owners, workflow and separate criteria for impact and financial materiality.

Primary Output Link: C.7-O04

C.7-T02

Perform or receive the separate assessments and reconcile scopes, time horizons, matter definitions, evidence and relationships.

Primary Output Link: C.7-O02

C.7-T03

Prepare the combined register, identify matters material under either or both perspectives and test for cancellation, duplicate or aggregation errors.

Primary Output Link: C.7-O01

C.7-T04

Present conclusions, disagreements, limitations and reporting implications for management and governance approval.

Primary Output Link: C.7-O03

Expected outputs · 4

C.7-O01

Combined impact and financial materiality register

Output Type: Professional work product

C.7-O02

Perspective reconciliation and relationship memorandum

Output Type: Professional work product

C.7-O03

Double-materiality governance decision record

Output Type: Professional work product

C.7-O04

Double-materiality process design

Output Type: Professional work product

Proficiency indicators

Level 1 · Foundation

C.7-L1-01

Can maintain separate impact and financial assessment fields in an established combined register and identify matters material under one or both perspectives.

Indicator Dimension: Task execution

C.7-L1-02

Can identify obvious netting, cancellation, duplicate or missing-rationale issues and escalate disagreements or unsupported relationships.

Indicator Dimension: Quality, judgement and accountability

Level 2 · Practitioner

C.7-L2-01

Can independently operate and document a moderately complex double-materiality process, reconcile shared inputs and produce a traceable combined conclusion.

Indicator Dimension: Task execution

C.7-L2-02

Can resolve routine differences in scope, terminology, time horizon and topic aggregation and explain one-perspective and two-perspective outcomes to management.

Indicator Dimension: Quality, judgement and accountability

Level 3 · Advanced Practitioner

C.7-L3-01

Can design or critically review double-materiality methodologies for complex groups, multiple reporting instruments or contested impact and financial conclusions.

Indicator Dimension: Method design and review

C.7-L3-02

Can challenge cancellation or false unification, resolve material disagreement between perspective owners and advise governance bodies on combined reporting implications and residual uncertainty.

Indicator Dimension: Leadership and governance

Illustrative evidence · 6

C.7-E01

Combined impact and financial materiality register with separate criteria, results, rationales and approval fields.

Evidence Type: Work product

C.7-E02

Perspective reconciliation and relationship memorandum showing scope, time-horizon, evidence, overlap and difference.

Evidence Type: Work product

C.7-E03

Double-materiality governance decision record including disagreements, limitations and final combined set.

Evidence Type: Work product

C.7-E04

Shared-source, identifier, duplicate-control and topic-aggregation trail.

Evidence Type: Process evidence

C.7-E05

Documented impact, finance, risk, specialist, management or governance review and the practitioner's response.

Evidence Type: Review evidence

C.7-E06

Observed defence of a matter material under only one perspective or resolution of a contested combined conclusion.

Evidence Type: Observed performance

Assessment · 3

C.7-A-L1

Combined-register exercise and situational judgement

Preservation of separate results; correct combined logic; recognition of unsupported relationships, cancellation and missing rationale.

C.7-A-L2

Integrated double-materiality case and written memorandum

Method integrity; reconciliation quality; non-netting; treatment of one-perspective materiality; evidence and communication.

C.7-A-L3

Complex contested case, portfolio and oral defence

Method design; preservation of perspective integrity; disagreement resolution; governance advice; challenge and oral defence.

Relationships · 7

From	To	Type	Rationale
B.3	C.7	Feeds into	Clear concept separation supports coherent double-materiality assessment without netting or conflation.
C.7	C.5	Prerequisite	A combined process must retain the separate impact-materiality conclusion and evidence.
C.7	C.6	Prerequisite	A combined process must retain the separate financial-materiality conclusion and evidence.
C.7	C.8	Method, data and analytical linkage	Combined scoring and presentation must not collapse or cancel the distinct criteria of each perspective.
C.7	C.9	Feeds into	The combined register, reconciliation and governance decision form part of the materiality file.
C.7	G.3	Disclosure, claims and publication linkage	Combined conclusions inform coherent connectivity among impacts, risks, opportunities, strategy and governance.
C.8	C.7	Risk and control linkage	Double-materiality methods must preserve separate perspective logic and prevent cancellation.

Role profiles for this unit

Role	Target level	Relevance	Evidence expectation
Corporate Sustainability Reporting Practitioner	Practitioner	Required?	A case or work sample demonstrating independent performance, documented judgement and a reviewable professional output.
Sustainability Reporting Manager or Lead	Advanced Practitioner	Role-defining?	A complex case or verified portfolio, supplemented by oral or observed defence, demonstrating method design, challenge and governance capability.
Sustainability Reporting Adviser or Consultant	Advanced Practitioner	Role-defining?	A complex case or verified portfolio, supplemented by oral or observed defence, demonstrating method design, challenge and governance capability.
Sustainability Data, Systems and Controls Specialist	Practitioner	Required?	A case or work sample demonstrating independent performance, documented judgement and a reviewable professional output.
Assurance Readiness and Reporting Quality Specialist	Advanced Practitioner	Role-defining?	A complex case or verified portfolio, supplemented by oral or observed defence, demonstrating method design, challenge and governance capability.
Investor, Capital Markets and Ratings Disclosure Specialist	Practitioner	Required?	A case or work sample demonstrating independent performance, documented judgement and a reviewable professional output.