Find and Select ESG Technology
ESG technology is one of the fastest-growing categories in enterprise software. Driven by regulatory pressure, investor scrutiny, and a genuine shift in how businesses think about their environmental, social, and governance responsibilities, organisations of all sizes are now actively looking for software platforms to measure, manage, report, and improve their ESG performance.
The challenge is that the ESG technology market is fragmented, fast-moving, and - in some areas - still maturing. Finding the right platform requires a clear understanding of your specific ESG priorities, your reporting obligations, and how ESG software fits alongside your existing governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) tools.
Viewpoint Analysis is an independent Technology Matchmaker. We help sustainability leaders, Chief Risk Officers, CFOs, and IT teams find and select the right ESG and GRC technology quickly, objectively, and without vendor bias. Whether you are exploring the market for the first time or running a formal selection process, we bring structure and independence to every stage.
Below you will find our latest ESG and GRC vendor content, a guide to the market landscape, our selection services, and free tools to support your project.
What is ESG Software?
ESG technology encompasses the software platforms and tools that organisations use to measure, manage, disclose, and improve their performance across environmental, social, and governance dimensions. It is a broad and evolving category, with significant overlap with the GRC (Governance, Risk and Compliance) market - many of the leading GRC platforms now offer ESG modules, while dedicated ESG platforms are increasingly incorporating risk and compliance capabilities.
The main categories within ESG and GRC technology include:
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ESG Reporting and Disclosure Platforms - tools that collect, consolidate, and report ESG data in line with frameworks such as GRI, SASB, TCFD, CSRD, and the new ISSB standards. Critical for organisations with mandatory or voluntary ESG disclosure obligations.
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Carbon and Emissions Management - platforms that track Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions, support science-based target setting, and manage decarbonisation programmes across the organisation and supply chain.
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GRC Platforms - integrated Governance, Risk and Compliance platforms that manage enterprise risk, internal controls, audit management, policy compliance, and regulatory change. Leading vendors include Vanta, Optro (formerly AuditBoard), and others. These platforms increasingly incorporate ESG risk and disclosure capabilities.
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Trust and Security Compliance - platforms that help organisations demonstrate compliance with security frameworks such as ISO 27001, SOC 2, and Cyber Essentials, and manage trust with customers and partners (e.g. Vanta).
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Supplier and Supply Chain ESG - tools that assess, monitor, and improve ESG performance across the supply chain, including supplier due diligence, modern slavery compliance, and Scope 3 emissions tracking.
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Social and Workforce ESG - platforms that measure and report on social and workforce metrics including diversity and inclusion data, pay gap reporting, employee wellbeing, and community impact.
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ESG Data Management - tools that aggregate ESG data from across the business, ensuring data quality, audit trails, and the integrity needed for external disclosure and third-party assurance.
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Sustainable Finance and Investment - platforms used by financial institutions and investment managers to assess ESG risk in portfolios, screen investments, and report to regulators and investors on ESG credentials.
The boundary between ESG software and GRC software is genuinely blurred in the market today. Many organisations find that the right answer is a GRC platform with strong ESG reporting modules, rather than a standalone ESG tool sitting alongside an existing GRC system. Independent guidance is particularly valuable in navigating this overlap and avoiding unnecessary duplication.
ESG and GRC Vendor Content
Our analyst team publishes independent ESG and GRC vendor profiles, category explainers, and market guides to help sustainability, compliance, and IT leaders understand the landscape. The following are a strong starting point:
How to Select ESG and GRC Technology
ESG technology selections are more nuanced than most enterprise software decisions because the market is less mature, the terminology is less standardised, and the regulatory landscape is still evolving rapidly. Many organisations are also navigating the ESG/GRC overlap for the first time, which adds complexity to the vendor evaluation.
At a high level, any robust ESG or GRC technology selection process should address:
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Clarifying your primary driver before approaching vendors - are you selecting primarily for external ESG disclosure and reporting, for internal GRC and risk management, for supply chain ESG, or for security and trust compliance? The right platform varies significantly depending on your primary use case
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Mapping your current regulatory and reporting obligations - CSRD, TCFD, GRI, ISO 27001, SOC 2, and sector-specific requirements all place different demands on your platform. Build your compliance roadmap before evaluating vendors
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Assessing the ESG/GRC overlap in your organisation - if you already have a GRC platform, evaluate whether it can serve your ESG reporting needs before selecting a standalone ESG tool. Duplication is a common and costly mistake in this category
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Evaluating data collection and integration capabilities - ESG platforms are only as good as the data flowing into them. Assess how each platform collects data from across the business, and how it integrates with your ERP, HR, supply chain, and finance systems
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Checking the vendor's regulatory update process - ESG reporting standards are evolving quickly. Your platform needs a credible process for incorporating new frameworks and regulatory changes without requiring significant configuration work on your side
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Assessing audit trail and assurance readiness - as ESG reporting moves toward mandatory external assurance, the integrity of your platform's data trail becomes a critical evaluation criterion
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Evaluating vendor stability and market position - the ESG software market is still consolidating, and some vendors that were prominent two years ago have been acquired or pivoted. Vendor viability should be part of every ESG technology evaluation
Finding ESG Technology
If you are at the early stage of an ESG or GRC technology project and are not yet sure which platforms or vendors to evaluate, our finding services help you bring structure and objectivity to that initial assessment.
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ESG Innovation Series - looking for new ideas? Our Innovation Series brings vendors and thought-leaders to present new ideas and technologies.
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Stick or Switch Application Review - a great way to decide whether to continue with your existing ESG or GRC software, or move elsewhere.
ESG Technology Selection
Once you are ready to move into formal ESG or GRC vendor selection, Viewpoint Analysis offers three distinct services depending on where you are in the process and how quickly you need to move.
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Rapid RFI and Rapid RFP - Our super-quick approach to the old-fashioned technology selection process to go from a 'long list' to a shortlist of potential options.
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30-Day Selection - need to move even quicker? Our fastest selection process is completed in less than a calendar month!
Useful ESG Software Selection Advice
The following Viewpoint Analysis resources are designed to help operations leaders and IT teams run better technology selection processes:
Enterprise Software Selection Playbook
Our Enterprise Software Selection Playbook 2026 is the most complete instructional guide to finding and selecting enterprise technology across any market or category. The structured approach to requirements definition, market assessment, RFI, RFP, and vendor evaluation applies directly to ESG and GRC technology selections.
Can We Help With Your ESG Technology Project?
Whether you are exploring ESG software for the first time, navigating the overlap between ESG and GRC platforms, or looking for an independent view before a renewal decision, Viewpoint Analysis can help.
Get in touch to discuss your requirement and we will explain exactly how we can support your project. No obligation, no vendor agenda.
Frequent Asked Questions
What technology areas do you cover with the ESG Technology Matchmaker?
We help companies to find and select any aspect of software and technology to underpin their wider ESG strategy. Our approach is based on the specific need - we focus on that and then work to find the right technology partners that can meet that need.
How can Viewpoint Analysis help us with our ESG Project?
The ESG Technology Matchmaker is designed to help business and IT teams find and/or select software and services that will deliver the ESG strategy. Our solutions can help the team to find new innovative systems and introduce technology vendors that can help with particular issues. Our job is to understand the marketplace - so that when our customer needs those new technology ideas, we can quickly bring the right technology vendors to the table.
If our clients know what they need, we run market assessments (Rapid RFI) and ESG RFPs (through our Rapid RFP service) to quickly find the right ESG technology to meet their needs.
Do you only work with certain software vendors?
No, we are not tied to any software vendor and do not receive any compensation for introducing our clients to them or bringing them into an ESG selection process. We only work on behalf of our clients. Our service is built to help the business teams to find and select new ESG technology and therefore we will go to whichever vendor can offer the right service to our client. Furthermore, we only act as a matchmaker - meaning that we bring the different vendor options, but ultimately it is the transformation team and their leadership that make the vendor selection.
How long does a Vendor Selection Process take to complete?
We strongly believe that a software selection process should be quick and easy - both for the buying team and also for the software vendor and systems integrator (if applicable). There is a business requirement that is driving the selection process, and we want to make sure that our clients get on to implementing the ESG tech rather than running a vendor selection process. Our Rapid RFI and Rapid RFP are both designed to quickly find and then select the right ESG technology vendor for the customer - we expect the process to be completed in a few weeks (an average of 6 to 7 if we go from a standing start).
Can you run an ESG RFP process for us?
Yes we can run the ESG RFP but our vendor selection process is not an old-school digital transformation RFP process, it is super-quick and super easy to run. We want the process to be simple for the buying team and simple for the technology vendors. We want to drive an ESG software selection decision in the quickest possible time - whilst getting the right solution. We also want to build a partnership between the IT vendor and the team. So yes, our Rapid RFP and ESG Vendor Selection might be what you need to make your vendor selection.