43 Q 41. What is the role of internal and external expertise in the assessment of human rights impact? Guiding Principle 18 states that the process of assessing adverse human rights impact should “draw on internal and/or independent external human rights expertise”. Even if an enterprise has internal expertise on human rights, those personnel will need to consult external sources that reflect evolving understanding of how enterprises in the sector can have an impact on human rights, best practice in assessing impact, as well as information on changes in the enterprise’s operating environments and their implications for human rights. Many of these sources will be in writing and publicly available. Insights and advice from individual experts in Government, academic, practitioner and civil society circles are also frequently available and accessible. These kinds of resources can also be particularly important in helping small and medium-sized enterprises, which will rarely have internal human rights expertise, to keep the resource implications of meeting the responsibility to respect human rights proportionate to the human rights risk that they need to address. If direct consultation with affected stakeholders is not possible (see question 42), expert resources of this type become more important, as do the insights offered by organizations or individuals that legitimately convey the perspectives—or likely perspectives—of those who may be affected by the enterprise’s activities or relationships. Q 42. What is the role of consultation with directly affected groups and other relevant stakeholders in the assessment of human rights impact? Guiding Principle 18 also states that the process of assessing adverse human rights impact should “involve meaningful consultation with potentially affected groups and other relevant stakeholders, as appropriate to the size of the business enterprise and the nature and context of the operation”. As the commentary makes clear, enterprises need to understand, as far as possible, the concerns of those who may be directly affected by their operations. This is particularly important for enterprises whose operations or operating contexts suggest they will have significant human rights risks.