Domain E · Area E-CA3 · Data quality, comparability, lineage and system controls
E.9Maintain metadata, data lineage and record integrity
Working Draft version 1.1
Purpose and scope
This unit covers the capability to maintain traceability from published sustainability information through disclosure, consolidation, calculations, adjustments and controls to underlying source records. It includes metadata, identifiers, versions, timestamps, ownership, approvals, access, retention, provenance, manual interventions and the integrity and retrievability of reporting records across files and systems.
Applied competency statement
Can maintain complete, controlled and retrievable metadata, data lineage and reporting records from source to disclosure, including versions, transformations, adjustments, ownership, review and approval.
Boundary and escalation
This unit owns source-to-disclosure data and record lineage, metadata, identifiers, transformations and authoritative versions. F.4 organises reviewer-ready working papers and evidence packs; I.9 governs AI and tool auditability and lifecycle records; G.11 maintains published and superseded archives. Enterprise records, privacy, security and legal-hold matters require specialists.
Key quality risks
Published values that cannot be traced to source records; lineage ending at a consolidation spreadsheet; missing transformation or adjustment steps; overwritten formulas or source files; undocumented manual intervention; inconsistent identifiers across systems; evidence links that break after file moves; unclear authoritative version; incomplete timestamps or approvals; excessive or insufficient retention; unauthorised access or deletion; and records that exist but cannot be retrieved in time for review or assurance.
E.9-K01
Understands source-to-report, source-to-calculation, system-to-system and disclosure-to-evidence lineage and the distinction among provenance, traceability, audit trail and workflow history.
Knowledge Type: Lineage concepts · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-K02
Understands identifiers, definitions, entity, site, period, unit, boundary, source, owner, status, timestamp, version, transformation, evidence, reviewer and approval metadata.
Knowledge Type: Metadata · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-K03
Understands extraction, mapping, conversion, aggregation, elimination, allocation, estimation, manual adjustment, override, restatement and disclosure transformation records.
Knowledge Type: Transformations and adjustments · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-K04
Understands working, reviewed, approved, published, superseded and archived versions and the need to identify the authoritative source, calculation and disclosure record.
Knowledge Type: Version and authoritative record · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-K05
Understands retention periods, archive, legal and contractual requirements, access, searchability, link stability, backup and timely retrieval for internal review and assurance readiness.
Knowledge Type: Retention and retrieval · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-K06
Understands access, change, deletion, file and system migration, evidence-link integrity, checksum or other integrity concepts and the boundaries with privacy and cyber-security.
Knowledge Type: Integrity and protection · Normative Weight: Core
E.9-S01
Map each reported metric or statement to source records, calculations, transformations, adjustments, controls, evidence and approvals.
Skill Type: Core applied capability · Observable Output or Result: Source-to-disclosure data-lineage map
E.9-S02
Define identifiers, fields, relationships, status, timestamps, version and ownership needed to trace reporting information across files and systems.
Skill Type: Metadata design · Observable Output or Result: Metadata, version and transformation register
E.9-S03
Identify authoritative records, preserve working and approved versions and record manual adjustments, supersession and publication state.
Skill Type: Record and version control · Observable Output or Result: Authoritative-record and version index
E.9-S04
Define retention and archive requirements, maintain stable evidence links and test that records can be retrieved and reassembled.
Skill Type: Retention and retrieval · Observable Output or Result: Reporting record-integrity and retention schedule
E.9-S05
Assess lineage effects of file moves, system migrations, interfaces and process changes and remediate broken or incomplete traceability.
Skill Type: Change and migration control · Observable Output or Result: Lineage gap and remediation record
E.9-B01
Does not accept a reported value or statement as supportable when the source, calculation, adjustment or approval trail is incomplete.
Behaviour Type: Traceability discipline · Non-compensable Requirement: No
E.9-B02
Does not overwrite, delete or relabel working and approved records in a manner that obscures the historical reporting trail.
Behaviour Type: Record integrity · Non-compensable Requirement: No
E.9-B03
Protects records and access in accordance with sensitivity and retention needs and escalates privacy, legal-hold and security questions to qualified owners.
Behaviour Type: Proportionate protection · Non-compensable Requirement: No
Typical tasks · 4
E.9-T01
Identify published metrics and statements, source systems, calculations, transformations, adjustments, controls, evidence and approval points.
Primary Output Link: E.9-O01
E.9-T02
Define metadata, identifiers, versions, timestamps, owners and relationships across the reporting data flow.
Primary Output Link: E.9-O02
E.9-T03
Establish authoritative-record, archive, retention, access and evidence-link rules and test retrievability and re-performance.
Primary Output Link: E.9-O03
E.9-T04
Monitor lineage gaps, migrations, broken links, manual changes and missing approvals and implement and verify remediation.
Primary Output Link: E.9-O02
Level 1 · Foundation
E.9-L1-01
Can maintain approved lineage and metadata records, link reporting items to source and evidence and identify missing versions, approvals or broken references.
Indicator Dimension: Task execution
E.9-L1-02
Can distinguish working, approved and published records and escalate incomplete traceability, unauthorised changes or retention issues.
Indicator Dimension: Quality, judgement and accountability
Level 2 · Practitioner
E.9-L2-01
Can independently design and maintain lineage and metadata for a moderately complex reporting workstream across several files, systems and transformations.
Indicator Dimension: Task execution
E.9-L2-02
Can resolve routine identifier, version, adjustment and retrieval issues and explain residual lineage limitations and remediation to owners and reviewers.
Indicator Dimension: Quality, judgement and accountability
Level 3 · Advanced Practitioner
E.9-L3-01
Can design or critically review enterprise metadata, lineage and reporting-record governance across complex systems, group structures and publication channels.
Indicator Dimension: Method design and review
E.9-L3-02
Can challenge opaque or broken data flows, resolve major migration and record-integrity failures and advise governance bodies on retention, supportability and assurance-readiness risk.
Indicator Dimension: Leadership and governance
Illustrative evidence · 6
E.9-E01
Source-to-disclosure data-lineage map covering sources, calculations, transformations, adjustments and approvals.
Evidence Type: Work product
E.9-E02
Metadata, version and transformation register with identifiers, timestamps, owners and status.
Evidence Type: Work product
E.9-E03
Reporting record-integrity and retention schedule with archive, access and retrieval requirements.
Evidence Type: Work product
E.9-E04
Re-performance, retrieval, evidence-link, version and migration test trail.
Evidence Type: Process evidence
E.9-E05
Documented data, IT, records, privacy, legal, quality or assurance-readiness review and the practitioner's response.
Evidence Type: Review evidence
E.9-E06
Observed tracing and defence of a reported value from disclosure back to source.
Evidence Type: Observed performance
Assessment · 3
E.9-A-L1
Lineage-completion exercise, version review and situational judgement
Traceability; correct authoritative version; metadata completeness; recognition of record-integrity and escalation issues.
E.9-A-L2
Integrated source-to-disclosure case and professional memorandum
Lineage and metadata design; transformation and adjustment visibility; retrieval and version control; remediation.
E.9-A-L3
Complex system-migration case, portfolio and oral defence
Method design; record integrity; migration and retention governance; challenge and senior communication; oral defence.
| From | To | Type | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| E.1 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Metric and data definitions form core metadata for source-to-disclosure lineage. |
| E.4 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Source systems and records form the starting point for data lineage and record integrity. |
| E.5 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Consolidation must preserve source-level identifiers, transformations and manual adjustments. |
| E.8 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Original and revised versions, calculations and disclosures must remain traceable. |
| E.9 | F.4 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Data lineage and metadata support organised working papers and evidence packs. |
| E.9 | I.9 | Digital and technology linkage | Tool ownership, logs and human approval support reliable lineage and accountability. |
| E.9 | E.10 | Risk and control linkage | Access, change, interface and record controls protect lineage and record integrity. |
| E.9 | G.11 | Disclosure, claims and publication linkage | Authoritative published and archived versions depend on controlled records and lineage. |
| F.3 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Data lineage and record integrity support evidence provenance, coverage and retrieval. |
| F.4 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Metadata, versions and data lineage support complete and retrievable working papers. |
| G.8 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Lineage and version records support the identification of controlled reporting sources. |
| H.4 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Metadata, versions, access and retention support protected and traceable information handling. |
| I.8 | E.9 | Evidence and traceability linkage | Metadata, lineage, retention and authoritative records support controlled digital and AI use. |
| 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 | Practitioner | Required? | A case or work sample demonstrating independent performance, documented judgement and a reviewable professional output. |
| Sustainability Reporting Adviser or Consultant | Practitioner | Required? | A case or work sample demonstrating independent performance, documented judgement and a reviewable professional output. |
| Sustainability Data, Systems and Controls Specialist | Advanced Practitioner | Role-defining? | A complex case or verified portfolio, supplemented by oral or observed defence, demonstrating method design, challenge and governance capability. |
| 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 | Foundation | Supporting? | A supervised or defined work sample showing correct application, traceability and recognition of escalation needs. |