NQC is a leading provider of web-based vendor engagement systems. NQC's unique combination of proven sourcing expertise and innovative technology enables customers to identify risks, reduce the environmental impact of their supply chains, and drive more responsible corporate behavior. Its contract system enables organizations to access N-tier supply chain data from the prime contractor and multiple subcontractor layers to support the need for transparency and visibility of supply chain data.

Over the past decade, NQC had pioneered leading supply chain mapping and visualization technologies using specially designed technologies and open source standards.The solutions used by NQC are recognized in different sectors, including government, defense, automotive, health and financial services.

NQC's customers cover Europe, the Americas and most of Asia, and the company's multilingual team is able to serve suppliers in different geographies. 

Supplier Assurance Platform, Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)

Use the latest SAQ 5.0 to manage sustainability issues and implement controls to verify supply chain compliance.

As a tool for assessing suppliers' social responsibility practices, the SAQ (Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire) is the globally recognized sustainability standard for the automotive industry and applies to all suppliers in the global automotive supply chain. This includes purchasing, manufacturing, logistics, assembly or retail.

In line with the Global Automotive Industry Sustainability Guiding Principles, SAQ focuses on improving supply chain sustainability performance by evaluating policies and practices in human rights and environmental sustainability, health and safety, business ethics and compliance, and responsible supplier management.

The SAQ evaluation process is as follows:

Enquiry - Buyers invite suppliers to complete the SAQ and upload evidence to support their SAQ answers. Buyers can track suppliers' progress in real time and view existing SAQ results as suppliers share data.

Verification - NQC's team of compliance analysts verifies that the evidence submitted by the supplier is consistent with its SAQ declaration. The platform highlights to suppliers and buyers where the evidence provided is insufficient. 

Suggestion - Once the SAQ validation is complete, vendors receive their SAQ scores and customized best practice corrective actions based on their validated responses. Buyers can quickly identify potential sustainability risks and areas of risk in their supply base and compare supplier results to identify common trends.

Correction - The buyer may issue specific deadlines to the supplier to confirm when they expect the corrective action to be completed and to demonstrate the results. Suppliers can update their SAQ at any time to show their progress.

The questionnaire items are introduced:

The SAQ questionnaire is divided into the following parts:

The first part, basic information，including company address, number of employees, main business activities and categories;

The second part is the main part of the questionnaire，according to the industry category selected by the enterprise, the system will automatically list one or more items of the so-called minimum range of questions, which must be completed and will be recorded in the enterprise's score. The remaining questions can be selected independently, but will affect the sustainability score. Optional options include:

Corporate governance, Human rights and working conditions, Health and safety, business ethics, environment, responsible supply chain management, responsible sourcing of raw materials.

The enterprise can choose the problem to be completed. Any unselected sections will not be displayed throughout the questionnaire. Each item is scored individually and then compared to national and industry averages.

The Corporate Management section covers responsible persons and overall policy and reporting, considering accountability and reporting. Scores for this topic take into account reporting practices, such as senior management representation and sustainability reporting. Up to 13 questions can be selected. If the company chooses to disclose documents such as sustainability reports, it needs to upload the documents as required for review.

The Working Conditions and Human Rights section considers employment-related factors such as working conditions, wages and benefits and human rights issues such as harassment, discrimination and forced Labour. The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which policies and procedures are in place for the locations covered by the assessment report, covering the range of policies and procedures in place to respect the human rights of employees. You can select up to 4 questions. Companies that choose to have a formal policy covering working conditions and human rights are required to upload documents for review. If employees have participated in training on working conditions and human rights policies, they also need to upload relevant materials for review, such as training materials, training certificates, etc

The Health and Safety section considers the identification, assessment and control of hazards in or from the workplace. The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which policies and procedures are in place for the sites covered by the assessment report. This section covers the assessment and control of hazards occurring at or from the workplace, as well as the scope of policies and procedures to provide a safe and healthy working environment for employees. You can select up to 4 questions. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

The business ethics section considers factors such as corruption or bribery, as well as effective governance and compliance with local and international legislation. The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which policies and procedures are in place for the locations covered by the assessment report and also the extent to which policies and procedures are in place to ensure that the highest standards of operational integrity are met. You can select up to 3 questions. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

The Environment section evaluates environmental protection by implementing policies and management systems. The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which policies and procedures are in place for the sites covered by this assessment report. This section also includes the scope of policies and procedures developed to support proactive environmental responsibility. Up to 15 questions can be selected. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

The Responsible Supply Chain Management section considers compliance with all of the above areas in a company's supply chain. The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which a company's suppliers formally request these areas and how these are communicated. This section also includes the extent to which these scopes are formally required of the company's suppliers and how this information is communicated. You can select up to 6 questions. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

The score for this topic takes into account the extent to which a company's suppliers formally request these areas and how these are communicated. This section also includes the extent to which these scopes are formally required of the company's suppliers and how this information is communicated. You can select up to 6 questions. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

The Responsible sourcing of raw materials section includes the due diligence carried out to determine the source of raw materials required for the company's products, and also includes the extent to which raw materials are sourced responsibly. You can select up to 7 questions. If there are corresponding documents, they also need to be uploaded one by one for review.

After the questionnaire is submitted, the SUPPLIERASSURANCE team will review all uploaded documents to ensure compliance. After the audit, the company will be notified of the results by email. Companies can then view the scores themselves, any gaps that may be found in the uploaded evidence, or any suggestions for improvement. Updates can also be selected to address any gaps or demonstrate improvements in sustainability performance.

At Leverage, we provide technical support for the Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) and other related services, mainly including: 

1.  Provide questionnaire analysis services for enterprises to improve their ratings; 

2.  Issue CSR reports and authentication services for enterprises according to their requirements; 

3.  Provide rating improvement support services for enterprises.

A supplier of an automotive brand received unsatisfactory scores in its initial self-assessment of the SAQ 5.0 Sustainability Assessment questionnaire in the first place. After systematic and targeted counseling by the Leverage professional team, professional evaluation is carried out according to the dimensions involved in the questionnaire itself, corresponding improvement measures are proposed, and corresponding training is conducted for the shortcomings of the internal construction of the enterprise. In the final evaluation, the score of each project has been greatly improved, and finally obtained a satisfactory rating, which met the requirements of the automobile brand to the supplier and was recognized.

Leverage, as a responsible third party service organization, has been committed to achieving sustainable development for our clients through our quality services since its inception. Our strong team can provide you with SAQ 5.0 questionnaire analysis and filling guidance services, as well as ISO14001/45001 /SA8000/ESG report preparation services required for your questionnaire, to help you improve your management system and help you get a higher score in the rating performance.