Assessing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks enables firms to identify opportunities for sustainable growth and manage social and environmental impacts. For European listed SMEs, this process is essential as they face increasing stakeholder pressure (Torelli et al., 2020) and expanding sustainability reporting requirements (Baumüller and Grbenic, 2021). 

This policy brief summarises the study “Environmental, Social, and Governance Evaluation for European Small and Medium Enterprises: A Multicriteria Approach” by D. Barro, M. Corazza, and G. Filograsso. The research applies a multi-criteria decision-aiding (MCDA) framework, using the MURAME model to develop a transparent and robust ESG scoring system for SMEs. Applied to a sample of European firms, the method evaluates ESG performance across key indicators while addressing missing data through a prudential imputation strategy (Sahin et al., 2022). The model provides a practical, data-driven tool to support inclusive and evidence-based ESG policymaking.