As environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance becomes a central measure of long-term business success, SSINDEX (Stakeholders Sustainability Index) is emerging as a powerful global tool that bridges perception, performance, and accountability.
Developed by experts from Yale University, SSINDEX is the only index in the world that measures a company’s sustainability management directly through the evaluations of its stakeholders—employees, customers, suppliers, and communities—on a 0 to 100% scale across 53 ESG variables.
In this interview, Rod Castro, CEO and Co-Founder of SSINDEX, explains how this innovative platform can help UAE-based companies and investors strengthen ESG credibility, anticipate risks, and align with the highest global sustainability standards.
Why is SSINDEX important for companies and investors in the UAE?
SSINDEX gives companies a stakeholder-based view of their sustainability performance. Unlike traditional ESG assessments that rely on internal data or self-reported metrics, our model gathers direct evaluations from employees, clients, suppliers, and local communities.
This is crucial because it allows companies to identify hidden operational risks and investment priorities in sustainability—where real impact can be achieved.
For investors, SSINDEX provides a third-party validation layer. They can compare what a company claims in its sustainability reports with what stakeholders actually perceive, turning those external voices into authentic ESG verifiers.
How can SSINDEX help companies in the UAE qualify for global sustainability standards?
SSINDEX enables organizations to collect and report data required for major international sustainability frameworks, including SASB, DJSI, and GRI.
All the necessary stakeholder information—feedback, opinions, and ESG indicators—is automatically captured and structured by our system, simplifying the process of reporting and benchmarking.
This means UAE companies can align faster and more efficiently with global ESG compliance standards, a growing priority for both regulators and investors in the region.
How does your system use AI to anticipate risks and define sustainability focus areas?
Our platform captures and analyzes all stakeholder feedback—from employees, customers, suppliers, and communities—replacing traditional surveys with a continuous intelligence model.
Using AI and natural language processing (NLP), we process structured and unstructured data gathered not only from our own surveys but also from public digital sources such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
This allows us to detect emerging risks, measure reputation and sentiment in real time, and define priority ESG actions based on data patterns rather than assumptions.
What types of collaborations are you seeking—corporate partners, ESG consultants, or government programs?
We are pursuing three main collaboration streams:
- Corporate clients – CEOs and sustainability managers of companies with over 100 employees who want to strengthen their ESG performance through stakeholder insight.
- Industry associations – to co-create sector-specific ESG standards and comparative benchmarks for their members. We’re already running this initiative in five countries, focusing on 18 industries.
- Investors – partners interested in supporting the global expansion of SSINDEX, which currently operates in 82 countries and measures across 18 industry sectors.
Our goal is to make ESG transparent, measurable, and credible—empowering businesses and investors alike to make decisions based on verified stakeholder intelligence.
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