We audit our suppliers regularly — isn't that enough to manage human rights risks in our supply chain?

Audits are a useful starting point for identifying risks, but the industry has learned through hard experience that auditing alone rarely drives lasting improvement. Audits capture a snapshot of conditions on a single day; they don't address the underlying causes of poor labour practices, and suppliers who know an audit is coming can — and do — prepare for it in ways that don't reflect everyday reality.

Some of the worst labour abuses in global supply chains have been found in factories that passed audits with flying colours. That's not a failure of auditing as a tool — it's a recognition that audits were never designed to do the work that meaningful change actually requires.

ETI membership gives you what comes after the audit: the frameworks, expertise and peer support to understand root causes, engage constructively with suppliers, and drive systemic improvement over time. That's what regulators, investors and civil society are increasingly demanding — and it's what distinguishes companies that are genuinely managing human rights risks from those that are simply documenting them.

See also: Mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence guidance