Regulation and sustainability
Where to start with new regulation
The four steps that work with any of them, before knowing whether it applies to you.
New regulation arrives and the first reaction is to check whether it applies to you. That is logical and usually a pit: the texts are long, the timelines are staged and concrete answers cost money. These four steps work before you know, and none is wasted if it turns out not to apply.
The four
- 1
Find out who will know before you do
Your trade association, your certification body or your largest customer. Almost always one of those three is already asking.
- 2
Look at what information it asks for, not what it obliges
Nearly all ask the same: composition, origin, who did what and when. That can be gathered without deciding anything.
- 3
Start asking your suppliers
It takes longest and does not depend on you. Asking early costs nothing if it later turns out unnecessary.
- 4
Ask the specifics of whoever should answer
With the first three done, that consultation is shorter, cheaper and more useful.
Important
The order matters. Almost everyone starts at step four, paying for advice on whether it applies, and reaches step three six months later — which is when they discover their suppliers need another six to answer.
What is never wasted
None of the three depends on which rule ends up applying. They are useful under any of them, and they are what your customers will ask for even if no authority ever does.
Watch out
Be wary of anyone selling you a solution for a specific rule before its timelines and scope are settled. What is certain is that you will be asked for supply-chain data; the wrapper will change.
Worth knowing
This help centre cannot tell you whether a rule applies to you, and nobody who does not know your case should either. What it can do is help you arrive prepared to that conversation.
›What if I start and it does not apply?
You will have gathered supply-chain information customers will ask for contractually anyway.
›Can I wait until everything is clear?
You can, and it is a legitimate decision. The cost is that third-party data takes months to arrive.
›Who confirms it for me?
Your adviser, your trade association or your certification body.
A real case
The situation
A company pays for advice on whether new regulation applies and waits three months for the answer.
What you do
- Meanwhile starts asking suppliers for composition and origin
What you get
When the answer arrives it already holds half the data, instead of starting then.
The situation
You start by trying to understand the whole rule.
What you do
- Starts by inventorying what information already exists
What you get
Less turns out to be missing than it seemed.
The situation
The adviser is consulted with no data to hand.
What you do
- Brings the inventory to the consultation
What you get
The consultation is short and specific.
The situation
You wait for the date to arrive before starting.
What you do
- Requests early whatever depends on third parties
What you get
The wait does not pile up at the end.
The situation
Each department prepares their part separately.
What you do
- Gathers the information in one file
What you get
There is one picture, not four.
The situation
Nobody knows exactly what is missing.
What you do
- Keeps a list of gaps with an owner
What you get
Progress is visible without meetings.
This article answers
- new regulation affects me what do i do
- where to start with a new obligation
- how to prepare for regulation coming into force
- i do not know if this rule applies to me