Compliance Is King: How Compliance Management Differentiates EHS Software Firms In The European Market

As noted in the 2025 Green Quadrant on EHS software, a key area of differentiation for EHS software vendors is the strength of their compliance management capabilities – and those with more advanced functionality in this area are especially competitive in the European market. European respondents to the 2025 EHS global corporate survey placed slightly more emphasis on the importance of improving regulatory change monitoring to ensure compliance than those in other regions. One in seven European practitioners (14%) identified this as their most important operational priority over the next two years, compared with 12% in Africa and the Middle East, 11% in North America, and 9% in Asia and Latin America (see Verdantix Global Corporate Survey 2025: EHS Budgets, Priorities And Tech Preferences).

This is, in part, because EHS practitioners in Europe face a particularly stringent level of regulation under the remit of the EU. Current and upcoming regulatory changes in the EU span the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), new directives on occupational exposure limits, the European Deforestation Regulation, and the Omnibus simplification package – which will streamline reporting obligations.

These regulations and directives are dense and complex, and many organizations lack the necessary expertise to ensure that there are no missteps in ensuring compliance, leading them to turn to EHS software firms for assistance. In tandem, many EHS software vendors have strengthened their compliance management capabilities through partnerships with regulatory content providers, enabling them to offer users an up-to-date view of how to ensure compliance. Enhesa is a particularly prominent partner in this space: among the 21 EHS platforms assessed in the 2025 EHS software Green Quadrant, 14 have established partnerships with Enhesa. Meanwhile, Ideagen has also augmented its EHS compliance management functionality by developing proprietary natural language tools that can identify legal obligations relevant to EHS practitioners buried within detailed and dispersed legislative text.

It’s important to note that commercial success in the European market will also depend on sales and marketing teams mastering regional procurement practices and outcompeting incumbent vendors. To understand more about market dynamics across France, Germany, Southern Europe and the Nordics, check out the Verdantix Market Trends: European EHS Software report – or set up an analyst inquiry call for more regional insights.