Interpreting topic score results
After running your Double Materiality Analysis (DMA), the platform generates a long list of potential topics, shown in two views.
Tornado view
This view ranks topics on the evidence found. Click any topic to open its detail and explore the supporting data and sources. You can add notes to record why a topic is particularly relevant, or not, for your organisation.
Note: a topic concluded material through the top-down path shows a green star, Included Material (top-down), in the Tornado view.
Value streams view
This view evaluates topic relevance by value stream. As in the Tornado view, click the Financial or Impact side of a topic to see the breakdown.
Refining the topic list with Topic Screening
To narrow the long list to the topics most relevant to your business and value chain, use Topic Screening.
In the Topic Screening popup, filter topics by how likely they are to represent material IROs (Impacts, Risks or Opportunities), using probability levels:
- Low -, Low, Medium, High, High +
Adjust the filter with the sliding scale, or enter a value between 0.01 (Low -) and 1 (High +). You can update this filter at any time.
How the topic list is categorised
Based on the probability threshold you set, the long list is split into two groups.
Included
Topics above the threshold move forward to the next stages. For each included topic, you then choose a materiality path:
- Top-down: conclude the topic is material at topic level, without scoring each IRO
- Bottom-up: identify the topic's IROs and assess each one, then apply a threshold
Screening does not make this choice for you, and it does not conclude materiality on its own. Only bottom-up topics have their IROs assessed individually; top-down topics are concluded at topic level. See Choosing a topic's materiality path: top-down or bottom-up.
Excluded
Topics below the threshold are excluded from further analysis. You are asked to add a rationale in the Topic Screening popup, which supports reporting quality and your audit trail.
Manually adjusting topic inclusion
If a topic matters but falls below the threshold, you can include it manually. If a topic scores above the threshold but is not relevant, you can exclude it.
To change a topic's status:
- Click the topic to open its detailed view.
- In the top-right corner, select Included or Excluded from the dropdown.
Note: the same dropdown shows the topic's current status: Included, Excluded, Undecided, or Included Material (top-down).
To reveal and manage excluded topics:
- Click the Topic Screening button.
- Find the topic, open its detailed view and use the Notes feature to update its classification.
Next steps
Your refined list of included topics is the basis for the next DMA stages. What happens next depends on the path you set for each topic: concluding it top-down, or identifying and assessing its IROs bottom-up. See [Choosing a topic's materiality path: top-down or bottom-up].
To export your full topic list, including scores, data sources and value stream details, click the three-dot menu and choose Exports > Topic Scoring Export.