Verra’s CEO Mandy Rambharos made an intensely grim announcement on October 21st about company restructuring. Coming to the point directly, he said,
“Today, I informed our team of a difficult but necessary decision to reduce our workforce by roughly 25 percent. This step, though not made lightly, is critical to aligning our resources with our core priorities and ensuring that Verra remains agile and capable of leading in a rapidly changing environment. This realignment will allow us to focus more intently on maintaining the rigor and integrity of our standards programs, providing stronger support for our stakeholders, and continuing to work collaboratively across the ecosystem to bolster environmental and social markets.”
In his press statement, he stressed the importance of sharing Verra’s vision and reinforcing its commitment to make climate action more impactful. Additionally, he highlighted the need for sustainable development in voluntary carbon markets (VCM). This involves constant evaluation of how to serve stakeholders in a better way in an evolving market environment.
Rambharos also highlighted the insights from the 2024 Stakeholder Survey. He noted that Verra had recognized the recent challenges in project review times, stakeholder engagement, clarity in processes, and technical solutions. This prompted the decision to restructure and streamline operations to address these challenges, even with a reduced workforce.
The CEO reaffirmed Verra’s mission and expressed confidence that these changes will strengthen the organization, making it more resilient and capable of leading the future of VCM.
In 2023, Verra laid new foundations and enhanced ongoing initiatives aimed at advancing climate action and sustainability. The company expects these standards programs to be highly successful in the future.
A major achievement in the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Program was the launch of a new REDD methodology (VM0048) and a module (VMD055) that focused on preventing unplanned deforestation. These tools are meant to channel funding to forest conservation. The program also updated several existing methods and progressed with developing the next version of the VCS.
To expand its reach, the program worked with the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) and teamed up with governments and financial institutions. Additionally, Verra initiated work on a Scope 3 Standard Program to help companies lower the carbon emissions in their supply to achieve their climate goals.
However, last year the carbon credit certifier made headlines for approving “worthless” offsets which would dampen its integrity. In January 2023, The Guardian performed a high-profile investigation and claimed that over 90% of its rainforest offset credits are likely “phantom credits”. It means they may not reflect “real” carbon reductions. Having received serious criticism over the quality of its products, David Antonioli, the former CEO of Verra, had to step down in May 2023.
But that’s not the end of the story, Verra’s VCM and GHG crediting program is still touted to be one of the most trustworthy and globally acclaimed.
Nevertheless, downsizing the workforce by 25% is a tough decision regardless of the reasons behind it. We hope CEO Mandy Rambharos succeeds in his efforts and upholds Verra’s goodwill as outlined in this announcement.