1,721,020 research outputs found
Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal
No full textThe Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal brings together research from a range of disciplinary approaches to improving social and environmental sustainability and the social and environmental consequences of climate change and other issues. Working towards finding practical and policy solutions to improve the performance of organizations and societies, the journal take research from academics, practitioners and consultants in the field.
Coverage includes, but is not limited to:
•Carbon Accounting and Trading
•Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility
•Economic Impact of Social and Environmental Sustainability Policies
•Environmental Management Accounting
•Environmental Ethics
•Environmental Management
•Human Rights
•Sustainability Strategy
•Environmental and Social Policy
•Organisational Studies
•Social and Environmental Audit
•Sustainability Accounting, Accountability and Reporting
•Sustainable Development
•Stakeholder Engagement
•Workplace Wellbeing
Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal is Indexed and Abstracted by:
ABI/INFORM Complete, ABI/INFORM Global, ABI/INFORM Professional Advanced, ABI/INFORM Professional Standard (ProQuest), Academic Search Alumni Edition, Academic Search Complete, Academic Search Elite, Academic Search Premier (EBSCO), Accounting and Tax Periodicals (ProQuest),The British Library, Business Source Alumni Edition (EBSCO), Cabell's Directory of Publishing Opportunities in Accounting, Economics & Finance and Management, Discovery, OCLC - Electronic Collections Online, Professional ABI/INFORM Complete, Professional ProQuest Central, ProQuest Central (ProQuest)
and ranked by:
Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) Journal Quality List, ESSEC (France), NSD (Norway), Polish Scholarly Bibliography (PBN), Scopus
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Social capital and integrated reporting: Losing legitimacy when reporting talk is not supported by actions
No full textPurpose: To present the continuation of a case study by Beck et al. (2017) on an Australian bank (CBD) during the period 2004–2013 by examining whether integrated reporting affects relational capital and helps to repair an organisations’ reputation. Both studies examine how a bank rocked by a major scandal in 2004 has attempted to repair its legitimacy through integrated reporting (). The paper aims to discuss these issue. Design/methodology/approach: This study is a post facto analysis based on the original research from Beck et al. (2017). The research process involved a case study approach with an analysis framed by impression management theory to investigate whether the information in CBD’s integrated reports is consistent with other information available to investors. Findings: The authors find there is a gap between what CBD discloses in its integrated reports and what is publicly available in other media. CBD’s talk and actions are not aligned, and that asymmetry translates into a decline of trust in CBD. The bank’s integrated reports reveal how management discloses or withholds information to protect their own interests and at their own discretion. These conclusions indicate that the integrated reporting paradigm is being co-opted by IM strategies to improve legitimacy through trust, reputation and social capital. Research limitations/implications: Future research needs to reach beyond the organisational boundaries and understand if adds value for society, or is just a new form of multicapitalism, being an ideology to help the rich become richer? The answers are important if we ever hope to see misconduct disappear from our corporations and for company reports to become documents bearing truth and not espouse rhetoric based on organisational hypocrisy. Originality/value: The paper adds to the growing body of research investigating in practice to understand the impact of and whether it is a new and useful reporting tool or just another management fashion
Assurance Providers’ Challenges for Sustainability Reporting
No full textThe Corporate Sustainability Reporting (CSR) Directive issued in 2022 has made compulsory the assurance of the sustainability reports for undertakings falling into its scope, while the previous Non-Financial Reporting Directive left to Member States the option to implement or not such obligation. Assurance on environmental and social information is therefore deemed fundamental by the European Union to increase the level of credibility, transparency, accountability, and confidence of sustainability information. This change will develop the assurance market for sustainability information. Nonetheless, there is uncertainty on the readiness of auditors and audit firms to this new market demand and the quality of assurance statements is sometimes contested by the literature. Past research has mainly focused on the assurance standards, their implementation and impacts of the perceived quality of sustainability reports, while the key professional features that shall help auditors provide reliable and mindfulness assurance reports are under investigated. Consequently, this paper aims to understand what are the features that auditors are developing and exhibiting to offer a reliable assurance service on sustainability reporting and what are the features that auditors are asked to exhibit to companies when performing their activity. This topic is addressed adopting a qualitative approach and relying on semi-structured interviews with auditors. Possible findings from the analysis are described in the extended abstract
Educare alla rendicontazione di sostenibilità attraverso un approccio basato sul gioco
No full textOltre a supportare gli stakeholder esterni, i processi di misurazione e rendicontazione della sostenibilità hanno lo scopo di cambiare l’approccio manageriale nei confronti della sostenibilità e di promuoverne la gestione integrata alle dimensioni economico-finanziarie. Di conseguenza, insegnare ai professionisti del futuro come redigere un report relativo ai fattori ESG può contribuire significativamente alla loro formazione nell’area dell’accounting. Nel contempo, gli educatori dovrebbero valutare l’utilizzo di metodi innovativi, più efficaci nel coinvolgere gli studenti.
Questo studio offre spunti di riflessione sui vantaggi dell'utilizzo di un approccio didattico basato sul gioco, nel supportare gli educatori nel migliorare i processi di apprendimento. Più precisamente, è stato progettato un gioco da tavolo per incoraggiare gli studenti ad applicare le loro conoscenze e soft skill, come il pensiero critico, la comunicazione, il problem solving, la creatività, il lavoro in team.
Tra una serie di strumenti didattici alternativi disponibili, questo studio si concentra sui giochi da tavolo didattici con l'obiettivo di testarne l'efficacia attraverso un sondaggio sottoposto a studenti di corsi di laurea triennali e magistrali, di diverse nazionalità e con background differenziati. Il questionario somministrato esplora gli elementi chiave di un serious game, che possono influire sulla percezione dell'apprendimento da parte degli studenti: motivazione, attitudine verso il gioco, flusso e grado di soddisfazione rispetto al teamworking.
I risultati preliminari (descritti nell’extended abstract) mostrano che questi elementi possono avere un impatto rilevante sull'apprendimento percepito dagli studenti, inteso come proxy dell'efficacia dei giochi nel preparare gli studenti ad affrontare le sfide legate al reporting di sostenibilità.
I risultati finali saranno d’interesse pratico per gli educatori in ambito accounting nello sviluppo di materiale didattico a tutti i livelli di istruzione, con l'obiettivo di aumentare il coinvolgimento degli studenti e migliorare le loro prestazioni di apprendimento. Inoltre, lo studio contribuisce ad arricchire la scarsa letteratura esistente sugli impatti della gamification sulle conoscenze degli studenti in materia di sostenibilità
From voluntary to mandatory non-financial disclosure following Directive 2014/95/EU: an Italian case study
Full text linkThis study investigates the non-financial disclosure in an Italian banking group following Directive 2014/95/EU over a period of eight years, from its voluntary (2013–2017) to mandatory (2018–2020) implementation. The paper relies both on primary and secondary data sources. It first adopts a content analysis on non-financial reports while considering other relevant available material. Second, the study relies upon semi-structured interviews and seminars to gather primary data. The analysis has been interpreted in light of institutional theory in order to understand the institutional forces driving non-financial disclosure. Results show that non-financial disclosure significantly increased in quantity after the regulation; however, the improvement in quality is fairly low, with the exception of themes relevant to the company under investigation. Through the lens of institutional theory, it emerges that an interplay of institutional mechanisms co-existed within the bank, during two periods of reporting for different topics of disclosure
TRAVEL CARBON EMISSION REDUCTION: MANAGING AND ACCOUNTING IN A GLOBAL COMPANY
No full textPurpose: This case study explores how a global company does or does not adapt to climate change through changes in managerial action. Specifically, the research concerns a travel project in a global consulting company based in London, the stated aim of which was a 25% reduction of carbon emission generated by air travel in one year. The research explores the actions undertaken to achieve carbon emission reduction.
Design: A case study method is employed to follow the travel project over one year to examine its contributions, if any, to carbon emission reduction.
Findings: Several solutions were implemented by management aimed at reducing carbon emission by air travel. Travel incentive schemes to reduce flight travel were implemented, with a focus on new communication technology. Despite significant managerial effort, carbon was not reduced. When, at the completion of the analysis, the stated objective of achieving 25% carbon emission reduction had not been met, the company instead changed its targets to adapt too much higher levels of carbon emissions to meet its actual levels, which had increased significantly.
Research limitations: This case study is limited to a branch of a global organisation, and the research focus was on air travel reduction over 12 months.
Practical implications: The evidence suggests that voluntary corporate actions to reduce carbon emissions may not be workable in practice.
Originality: This research examined a branch of a global company and how it tried to manage and account for a voluntary reduction of carbon
Developing trust through stewardship: Implications for intellectual capital, integrated reporting, and the EU Directive 2014/95/EU
No full textPurpose: This paper examines the gap between reporting and managers’ behaviour to challenge the current theoretical underpinnings of intellectual capital (IC) disclosure practice and research. The authors explore how the key features from IC and integrated reporting can be combined to develop an extended model for companies to comply with EU Directive 2014/95/EU and increase trust in corporate disclosures and reports. Design/methodology/approach: This essay relies on academic literature and examples from practice to critique the theories that explain corporate disclosure and reporting but do not change management behaviour. Based on this critique, the authors argue for a change in the fundamental theories of stewardship to frame a new concept for corporate disclosure incorporating using a multi-capitals framework. Findings: We argue that, while the inconsistency between organisations’ reporting and behaviour persists, increasing, renewing or extending the information disclosed is not enough to instil trust in corporations. Stewardship over a company’s resources is necessary for increasing trust. The unanticipated consequences of dishonest behaviour by managers and shareholders compels a new application of stewardship theory that works as an overarching guide for managerial behaviour and disclosure. Emanating from this new model is a realisation that managers must abandon agency theory in practice, and specifically the bonus contract. Research limitations/implications: We call for future empirical research to explore the role of stewardship theory within the dynamics of corporate disclosure using the approach. The research implications of those studies should incorporate the potential impacts on management behaviours within a stewardship framework and how those actions, and their outcomes, are disclosed for rebuilding public trust in business. Practical implications: The implications for integrated reporting and reports complying with the new EU Directive are profound. Both instruments rely on agency theory to coax managers into reducing information asymmetry by disclosing more. However, agency theory only re-affirms the power managers have over corporate information. It does not change their behaviour, nor to act in the interest of all stakeholders as the stewards of an organisation’s resources. Social implications: We advocate that, in business education, greater emphasis is needed on how stewardship has a more positive impact on management behaviour than agency, legitimacy and stakeholder theories. Originality/value: We reflect on the current and compelling issues permeating the international landscape of corporate reporting and disclosure and explain why current theories which explain corporate disclosures do not change behaviour or engender trust in business and offer an alternative disclosure model based on stewardship theory
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