EDGE Standards and Certification
EDGE Certification is the leading global standard for diversity, fairness, and inclusion, centred on a workplace gender and intersectional equity approach. The Standards – EDGE (gender-binary) and EDGEplus (gender and intersectionality) – offer a holistic framework against which organizations can measure where they stand in terms of gender and intersectional equity. The framework consists of requirements and specifications against which conformance is audited by an independent third-party leading to EDGE Certification.
EDGE Certification Requirements
The current standards are the EDGE Certification Requirements Version 6, effective from 1 January 2026.
Dive deeper into the EDGE Certification Requirements v6
EDGE Standards and Certification Framework
The first section of the EDGE Certification Requirements v6, encompassing both the introduction and all details relevant to Clauses 1-7 of the EDGE Certification Requirements v6.
The EDGE Standards
Information regarding the EDGE Standards, pertaining to Clause 8 of the EDGE Certification Requirements v6.
EDGE Certification Process and Procedures
Details about the EDGE Certification Process and Procedures, specifically pertaining to all information related to Clauses 9-10 of the EDGE Certification Requirements v6.
The EDGE Gender Pay Equity Analysis Methodology
See the current version of the EDGE Gender Pay Equity Analysis Methodology to identify any unexplained pay gaps between women and men within certifying organizations.
The EDGEplus Pay Equity Analysis Methodology
See the current version of the EDGEplus Pay Equity Analysis Methodology to identify any unexplained pay gaps between women and men of different races/ethnicities.
What the EDGE Standards Measure
The EDGE (gender-binary) and EDGEplus (gender and intersectionality) Standards, Assessment Methodology and Certification System are built on four pillars that define success in gender and intersectional equity:
Representation
Pay equity
Effectiveness of policies and practices to ensure equitable career flows
Inclusiveness of the culture
*Click or hover over each box for further information
Representation
This diversity-related pillar measures representation across different types of jobs and different levels of responsibility.
Pay Equity
Pay equity ensures that individuals performing substantially equal
work within the same organization receive equal remuneration,
regardless of their gender, race/ethnicity.
Effectiveness
Effectiveness of policies and practices is an equity related pillar. A thorough assessment of an organization’s policies and practices is important to analyse if it is effective in promoting equitable career flows.
Inclusiveness
The inclusivity pillar is about understanding how inclusive the culture of the organization is, as reflected in employees’ experiences in terms of their career development opportunities within the organization.
Triangulating Processes and Outcomes for a Holistic Gender and Intersectional Equity Assessment
Passing the EDGE (gender-binary) Standard requires quantitative data and qualitative information from three different sources about an organization’s approach to, and implementation and employees’ rating of, gender equity in the workplace for a given 12-month reference period. Organizations seeking EDGEplus Certification choose to input data into one, two, or all three sources of information.
Organizational Statistics
Data Tables
Infrastructure
Policies and Practices Questionnaire
Experience
Employee Survey
Third-Party Certification System
To maintain impartiality, EDGE Certification operates as a third-party certification system. Certification Bodies are accredited, EDGE-approved third-party organizations that conduct audits and certification according to EDGE Standards. They verify that an organization meets the EDGE Standards and issue certification documents to confirm compliance.
FLOCERT is a leading global certification body, providing sole certification to Fairtrade and offering verification services for social and environmental standards as well as private codes of conduct.
Intertek is an industry leader with more than 44,000 employees in 1,000 locations in over 100 countries, delivering Total Quality Assurance expertise with industry-winning processes and customer-centric culture.
SGS is one of the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing, and certification companies. With 99,600 employees, SGS operates a global network of 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.
EDGE Certification Seal
Organizations that achieve EDGE (gender-binary) Certification and EDGE and EDGEplus Certification are awarded an EDGE Certification Seal. This seal gives visible recognition that the organization chooses to hold itself to the highest standards in workplace gender and intersectional equity at one of the EDGE Certification levels: Assess, Move, Advance, or Lead. Organizations certified with EDGEplus receive the EDGE Seal at their achieved EDGE (gender-binary) level, with a plus symbol added.
EDGE Assess
EDGE Assess is the first level of certification. It’s all about recognizing an organization’s commitment to workplace gender equity.
EDGE Move
EDGE Move is the second level of certification and showcases progress in workplace gender equity. At the EDGE Move level, the organization has reached the EDGE Standards in some of the assessed areas.
EDGE Advance
EDGE Advance, the third certification level, is achieved when an organization reaches key milestones toward workplace gender equity and meets the EDGE Standards in nearly all assessed areas.
EDGE Lead
EDGE Lead is the highest EDGE Certification level, showing that the organization meets every single one of the EDGE Standards across the four pillars of the methodology.
EDGEplus
EDGEplus Certification showcases the organization’s commitment to analysing gender in
intersection with other dimensions of diversity. EDGEplus Certification is a visible and credible recognition of an organization’s commitment to intersectionality, alongside their achieved EDGE level of Certification.