Top management: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)
Top management (French: direction) is the person or group of people who direct and control the organisation at the highest level: chief executive, executive committee, board of an association. ISO 53001 makes top management accountable for the effectiveness of the SDG system, its consistency with strategy and the allocation of resources.
Updated: · edition covered: ISO/UNDP 53001:2026
In an ISO/UNDP 53001 audit
The auditor interviews top management directly; a certification audit without that conversation is incomplete. Leaders are expected to know the priority SDGs chosen, the related objectives and the results achieved, and to explain the trade-offs made when SDG contribution conflicts with other priorities.
A highly committed SDG manager is not enough if the leadership team does not own the system. Full delegation, with no visible decision from the top, is a nonconformity frequently raised under clause 5 of the ISO/UNDP 53001 standard.
What can and cannot be delegated
Top management can delegate tasks, such as compiling indicators or running internal audits, but not accountability for the system. The auditor checks that the delegate reports to the top, that decisions on priorities and resources are taken there, and that leaders attend the management review rather than simply receiving its minutes.
See also
- Leadership: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)Leadership (French: *leadership*, the same word) refers, in standards built on the harmonized structure, to the demonstrated involvement of top management in the management system.
- Management review: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)Management review (French: *revue de direction*) is the examination of the SDG management system by top management at planned intervals: results, changes in context, feedback from interested parties, audits, resources.
- Policy: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)A policy (French: *politique*) states the intentions and direction of an organisation, as formally expressed by its top management.
- ISO/UNDP 53001 clause 5: what the auditor checksISO 53001 clause 5 deals with leadership.