Beyond is delighted to have supported the development of the STITCH Partnership’s Framework on Meaningful Stakeholder Engagement, released in February 2025. This new framework provides companies with practical guidance to embed meaningful stakeholder engagement at the core of their human rights due diligence processes.
Built around five fundamental LASER principles (legitimacy, accessibility, safety, equitability, and respect) the MSE Framework supports companies in creating space for workers’ voices to be heard and acted upon. Meaningful stakeholder engagement is essential for driving real improvements in working conditions and is now a core regulatory expectation under the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). With new legal requirements emerging, companies must shift from surface-level consultations to sustained, constructive dialogue.
Designed primarily for companies, the MSE Framework offers a set of common principles and practical guidance to help integrate meaningful stakeholder engagement throughout human rights due diligence processes. It also serves as a valuable reference for rights-holders, governments, trade unions, and civil society organisations involved in or affected by due diligence efforts.
The Framework includes:
- An overview of meaningful stakeholder engagement requirements under the international soft-law framework on responsible business conduct;
- A clear explanation of the purpose, timing, and different forms of engagement within HRDD;
- Guidance on identifying, analysing, and understanding stakeholders;
- Five core principles that underpin meaningful stakeholder engagement: legitimacy, accessibility, safety, equitability, and respect.
Beyond remains committed to advancing practices that place workers’ voices at the centre of responsible business and drive meaningful, lasting change across global value chains.
