Board diversity and CSR reporting: an Australian study

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathyayini Rao ◽  
Carol Tilt
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Board Diversity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Diversity Measure ◽  
Multiple Directorships ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between corporate governance, in particular board diversity, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting among the top 150 listed companies in Australia over a three-year period. Design/methodology/approach The quantitative analysis involving a longitudinal study is used where content analysis is undertaken to analyse the extent of CSR disclosures in annual reports. Regression analysis using panel data is used to analyse the potential association between CSR disclosure and five important board diversity measures, specifically independence, tenure, gender, multiple directorships and overall diversity measure. Findings The results based on the regression analysis reveal that three of the board diversity attributes (gender, tenure and multiple directorships) and the overall diversity measure have the potential to influence CSR reporting. The relationship between independent/non-executive directors and CSR disclosure however is unclear. In addition, three of the control variables (firm size, industry and CEO duality) are found to have some influence on CSR disclosure, whereas board size and profitability are found to be insignificant. The results also indicate the existence of some possible interaction effects between gender and multiple directorships. Originality/value The paper has implications for companies, for policymakers and for the professional development needs of board members. Australian companies should consider identifying board attributes that enhance CSR disclosures, as it has been shown in previous studies that CSR disclosure in Australia is low when compared to other developed countries. Moreover, given that there is such limited research linking board diversity and CSR disclosure, the results of this paper provide scope for further research. Moreover the paper contributes to the existing literature on board composition and CSR disclosure by extending the literature to board diversity and provides preliminary evidence of the influence of board diversity on CSR disclosure in Australia.

scholarly journals Muslim CEO, women on boards and corporate responsibility reporting: some evidence from Malaysia

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Absdulsamad Alazzani ◽  
Wan Nordin Wan-Hussin ◽  
Michael Jones
Keyword(s):  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Upper Echelons ◽  
Board Diversity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Upper Echelons Theory ◽  
Women On Boards ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Csr Disclosure

PurposeVery limited research has been devoted to answering the question of whether the religious beliefs of the upper echelons of management and gender diversity have any impacts on the communication of corporate social responsibility (CSR) information in the marketplace. This study aims to fill the void in the literature by posing the two research questions: first, does the CEO religion affect a firm’s CSR behaviour?; second, do the women on the boards influence CSR reporting?Design/methodology/approachThe authors performed the tests on a sample of 133 firms listed in Bursa Malaysia that have analysts following using a self-constructed CSR disclosure index based on information in annual reports in 2009. A total of 23 per cent of the sample firms have Muslim CEOs, and women made up only 8 per cent of board members.FindingsThe authors find that Muslim CEOs are significantly associated with greater disclosure of CSR information. The authors also find a moderate relationship between board gender diversity and CSR disclosure. This is probably because of insufficient number of women on boards.Research limitations/implicationsThe disclosure index is based on unsubstantiated CSR information provided in annual reports, and the authors examine only two aspects of board diversity, namely, Muslim religiosity and gender mix.Originality/valueThis study advances the research on upper echelons theory by illuminating the importance of religious value in influencing the CSR behaviour of corporate leaders. This has been largely overlooked because of lack of data.

Does CSR disclosure influence financial performance of firms? Evidence from an emerging economy

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aditi Singh ◽  
Madhumita Chakraborty
Keyword(s):  
Financial Performance ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Government Interventions ◽  
Community Environment ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This study aims to empirically examine the relationship between corporate social responsibility disclosure (CSRD) and financial performance (FP) in Indian firms. Design/methodology/approach Data for CSRD is collected by conducting content analysis of CSRD in annual reports of the sampled firms. A multidimensional measure of CSRD is constructed based on the stakeholder theory, consisting of six stakeholder groups – employees, customers, investors, community, environment and others. The aggregate CSRD measure is created by combining disclosure of the six CSR dimensions. Multiple regression analysis is used to examine the CSRD–FP linkage, controlling for the confounding effects of size, risk, age, industry, ownership and period. Findings The results of this study indicate that the aggregate CSRD measures, both for quality and quantity, have a positive association with the accounting measures of firms’ FP. However, the market measure of FP is observed to have a statistically insignificant association with aggregate quality and quantity of CSRD of Indian firms. Practical implications The results reveal that adopting transparent and extensive CSRD is relevant for the profitability of firms, and that government interventions are required to promote CSR programs, with a specific focus on the CSR dimensions that provide no apparent financial gains. Social implications This study recommends the adoption and reporting of CSR practices by Indian firms for their stakeholders. Originality/value This study contributes to the scarce literature on the CSRD–FP linkage in the context of emerging economies by using a more inclusive data set, creating a reliable measure of CSRD applicable to a large universe of firms and including relevant control variables that affect the CSRD–FP relationship.

Corporate social responsibility practice and corporate financial performance: evidence from Nigeria companies

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 749-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aliyu Baba Usman ◽  
Noor Afza Binti Amran
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Financial Data ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Corporate Financial Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the nature and trend of corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in Nigeria. The second objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between the dimensions of CSR disclosures and corporate financial performance (CFP) among Nigerian listed companies. Design/methodology/approach – To carry out this research, content analysis was conducted to extract CSR and financial data from annual reports of 68 companies listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange. Financial data were cross-referenced with the NSE Factbook. CSR indexes and financial performance measures were computed for estimation of the regression analysis equation. The percentages were used to describe the nature and trend of CSR practice in Nigeria. This was followed by the hierarchical multiple regression analysis to examine the relationship between CSR and CFP. Findings – The results of the descriptive statistics show that the listed companies used CSR initiatives to communicate social performance to their stakeholders. From the regression analysis, community involvement disclosure, products and customer disclosures and human resource disclosures were found to enhance CFP. The results also reveal a negative relationship between environmental disclosure and CFP, which indicates that disclosure of environmental impact information could be value destroying in Nigeria. Research limitations/implications – The major limitation of this paper is the sample size. Also, failure of corporations to disclose CSR in the annual reports will have a material effect on these findings. Practical implications – The findings of this paper have practical implications on the management of Nigerian companies to re-think and re-strategize their CSR policies that incorporate social and economic performance to improve their CFP. Social implications – This paper has implication on stakeholders in validating the corporate citizenship of corporations based on the level of commitment and participation in CSR initiatives. Also, findings of this paper will alert the enforcement agencies on the status of CSR practices in Nigeria. Government in collaboration with private and public agencies should consider the needs for CSR framework and database to guide social and environmental reporting in the country. Originality/value – The paper has examined the relationship between CSR and CFP based on CSR dimensional approach. Aspect of human resource and products/customers CSR has been neglected in the context of Nigerian CSR research. This paper makes valuable contribution by offering new and fresh insight on these dimensions.

scholarly journals Institutional and economic determinants of corporate social responsibility disclosure by banks

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 196-227
Author(s):  
Jonas da Silva Oliveira ◽  
Graça Maria do Carmo Azevedo ◽  
Maria José Pires Carvalho Silva
Keyword(s):  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Csr Disclosure

PurposeThis study aims to explore the firm’s and country-level institutional forces that determine banks’ CSR reporting diversity, during the recent global financial crisis.Design/methodology/approachSpecifically, this study assesses whether economic and institutional conditions explain CSR disclosure strategies used by 30 listed and unlisted banks from six countries in the context of the recent 2007/2008 global financial crisis. The annual reports and social responsibility reports of the largest banks in Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal were content analyzed.FindingsThe findings suggest that economic factors do not influence CSR disclosure. Institutional factors associated with the legal environment, industry self-regulation and the organization’s commitments in maintaining a dialogue with relevant stakeholders are crucial elements in explaining CSR reporting. Consistent with the Dillard etal.’s (2004) model, CSR disclosure by banks not only stems from institutional legitimacy processes, but also from strategic ones.Practical implicationsThe findings highlight the importance of CSR regulation to properly monitor manager’s’ opportunistic use of CSR information and regulate the assurance activities (regarding standards, their profession or even the scope of assurance) to guarantee the proper credibility reliability of CSR information.Originality/valueThe study makes two major contributions. First, it extends and modifies the model used by Chihet al.(2010). Second, drawn on the new institutional sociology, this study develops a theoretical framework that combines the multilevel model of the dynamic process of institutionalization, transposition and deinstitutionalization of organizational practices developed by Dillardet al.(2004) with Campbell’s (2007) theoretical framework of socially responsible behavior. This theoretical framework incorporates a more inclusive social context, aligned with a more comprehensive sociology-based institutional theory (Dillardet al., 2004; Campbell, 2007), which has never been used in the CSR reporting literature hitherto.

Voluntary CSR disclosure works! Evidence from Asia-Pacific banks

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ameeta Jain ◽  
Monica Keneley ◽  
Dianne Thomson
Keyword(s):  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Asia Pacific ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Maximum Improvement ◽  
Csr Disclosure

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting in six large banks each from Japan, China, Australia and India over the period of 2005-2011. Design/methodology/approach – CSR and banks’ annual reports and websites were analysed using a comprehensive disclosure framework to evaluate the themes of ethical standards, extent of CSR reporting, environment, products, community, employees, supply chain management and benchmarking. Findings – Over the seven years, bank CSR disclosure improved in all four countries. Australian banks were found to have the best scores and Indian banks demonstrated maximum improvement. Despite the absence of legislative requirements or standards for CSR, this paper finds that CSR reporting continued to improve in quality and quantity in the region on a purely voluntary basis. Research limitations/implications – This study indicates that financial institutions have a commitment to CSR activities. The comparison between financial institutions in developed and developing economies suggests that the motivation for such activities is complex. A review of the studied banks suggests that strategic rather than economic drivers are an important influence. Practical implications – Asia-Pacific Governments need not mandate bank CSR reporting standards as the banks improved their CSR reporting consistently over the seven years despite the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). Originality/value – A disclosure framework index is used to assess the comprehensiveness of bank practice in relation to CSR reporting. This approach enables cross-sectional and cross-country comparisons over time and the ability to replicate and apply to other industries or sectors.

scholarly journals Presenting a core-periphery model of voluntary CSR disclosure in Australian annual reports

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 438-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Paul Andrew ◽  
Mark Wickham ◽  
Wayne O’Donohue ◽  
Frank Danzinger
Keyword(s):  
Annual Reports ◽  
Voluntary Reporting ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Strategies ◽  
Business Operations ◽  
Strategic Csr ◽  
Executive Managers ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between perceived Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance and desirable outcomes is well established in corporate governance literature. Over the past two decades in particular, there has been an increased recognition of this relationship by executive managers and a concomitant increase in the quantity and detail of CSR activities being voluntarily reported by companies has been observed. The increasing level of voluntary CSR reporting has been attributed to two main corporate strategies: to conform to social expectations and to legitimize business operations to salient stakeholder groups within the community. Whilst there has been extensive academic interest in the concept of CSR, it has focused almost exclusively on normative definitions of the concept, and/or the presentation of empirical evidence that details ‘why companies report their CSR activities’ and ‘what CSR activities they report’. What is lacking in the literature, however, is a focus on the ‘patterns of strategic CSR reporting’ by companies. Based on the recognition of voluntary reporting patterns in the Australian industry, we present a core/periphery model of strategic CSR disclosure. The model allows for predicting how companies will voluntarily disclose their CSR performance given the issues, events and/or crises that affect their industry environments.

The effect of award on CSR disclosures in annual reports of Malaysian PLCs

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 831-852 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdirahman Anas ◽  
Hafiz Majdi Abdul Rashid ◽  
Hairul Azlan Annuar
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The paper aims to examine the determinants of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures in the annual reports of Malaysian public listed companies (PLCs). In 2006, Bursa Malaysia Berhad (BMB) launched its CSR Framework (effective in 2007) which is supposed to guide the Malaysian PLCs’ CSR disclosures. It is believed that this CSR framework may influence CSR disclosures to be more systematic, yet there is no evidence whether this framework influences the extent and quality of CSR disclosures. Thus, this study examines this area of research. The study also tests the influence of award on CSR disclosures. Design/methodology/approach – CSR disclosure checklist was developed to analyse the extent and quality of CSR information disclosures in the year 2008 annual reports of the Malaysian PLCs. Findings – Malaysian PLCs disclose more CSR information related to community and environment than workplace and marketplace CSR themes. On the other hand, the quality of disclosure practices was minimal when it is compared to the extent of disclosure practices. Finally, the study also found that the award’s variable has a significant positive relationship with both the extent and quality of CSR disclosure practices of the Malaysian PLCs. Research limitations/implications – The recently developed BMB’s CSR framework seems to have impact on the level and systematic CSR reporting practices of Malaysian PLCs. However, the quality of CSR disclosures is considered minimal. Practical implications – The results of the study bring some practical implications to the regulators, particularly Bursa Malaysia. First, it is good to observe that most companies have practiced specific disclosure in a separate statement with regard to CSR. However, the format of presentation and the extent of disclosure vary among the firms. Second, further guidelines need to be developed to provide a clearer framework of disclosure for CSR information. At the moment, Bursa Malaysia only listed down general principles of CSR themes. In addition, the regulators should also look into the evolving issues in CSR, such as the issue of climate change reporting. For example, the Climate Disclosure Standards Board has issued a voluntary Climate Change Reporting Framework. Originality/value – This study examined both the traditional (i.e. firm size and profitability) and non-traditional (i.e. award) factors influencing management’s decision to disclose CSR information in the annual reports of the Malaysian PLCs. Furthermore, the study reported how Malaysian PLCs comply with the recently implemented CSR framework issued by BMB.

Does CSR disclosure enhance corporate brand performance in emerging economy? Evidence from India

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Soumya Sarkar ◽  
Manali Chatterjee ◽  
Titas Bhattacharjee
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Brand Performance ◽  
Corporate Brand ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to delve into the influence of corporate social responsibility on the corporate brand performance of Indian business-to-business (B2B) companies. Design/methodology/approach The corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices have been measured through CSR disclosure index (CDI), generated by surveying annual reports/CSR reports/websites of 131 Indian B2B firms. The same was mapped to corporate brand performance of these firms, measured as customer-based corporate brand equity, which was measured through a questionnaire-survey of purchasing managers and users working in firms that are customers to the above-mentioned firms. Findings The result reveals the positive influence of CSR practices in shoring up corporate brand performance. Research limitations/implications CDI has been developed based on CSR reporting across the stakeholder groups. However, the impact has been mapped onto one stakeholder category, the customer. The sample period was only one year, and the data is cross-sectional. Future studies may investigate the long-term effect of CSR using longitudinal data on larger data sets. Practical implications This study will encourage Indian B2B firms to practice CSR not only for conforming to the regulatory requirements but also as a strategic tool in strengthening the competitive advantage. Originality/value It is the first study of its kind to evaluate the imprint of corporate social responsibility, measured based on CSR reporting by firms, on corporate brand performance. It looks into the return earned by firms from the resources invested in CSR activities.

The impact of family vs non-family governance contingencies on CSR reporting in Bangladesh

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (10) ◽  
pp. 2758-2781 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pallab K. Biswas ◽  
Helen Roberts ◽  
Rosalind H. Whiting
Keyword(s):  
Audit Committee ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Family Firm ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Family Governance ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Based on the socioemotional wealth (SEW) perspective and agency theory, the purpose of this paper is to examine how the introduction of the 2006 Corporate Governance (CG) Guidelines and family governance affected the level of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting of non-financial companies in Bangladesh. Design/methodology/approach The authors use multivariate regression to analyse 2,637 firm-level annual observations, from 1996 to 2011 annual reports of Bangladeshi publicly listed non-financial-sector companies, to investigate how firm-level CG quality affects CSR disclosure in family and non-family firms. Findings CG quality significantly increases the level of CSR disclosure and this relationship is stronger prior to the new CG Guidelines. Family firms’ CSR reporting levels are significantly lower than non-family firms’, and this effect is stronger after the change in the CG Guidelines. CEO duality, the presence of an audit committee and profitability improve family-firm CSR reporting in Bangladesh, while non-family CSR disclosures are positively associated with board size and firm competition. Board independence is not related to CSR disclosure. Originality/value The authors provide evidence of the benefit of the CG Guidelines’ introduction on company CSR disclosure in an emerging economy and the importance of specific governance mechanisms that differentiate family and non-family-firm CSR disclosures in Bangladesh using a SEW framework.

scholarly journals The voluntary CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports: Evidence from Australia

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Paul Andrew ◽  
Mark Wickham
Keyword(s):  
Business Community ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Strategies ◽  
Stakeholder Groups ◽  
The Past ◽  
Strategic Csr ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between credible Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance and desirable firm outcomes is well established in corporate governance literature. Over the past two decades in particular, there has been an increased recognition of this relationship in the business community and a concomitant increase in the quantity and detail of CSR activities being voluntarily reported by corporations has been observed. The rationale for the increasing levels of voluntary CSR reporting has been attributed to two main corporate strategies: to conform to the expectations of the society and to socially legitimise their operations to their salient stakeholder groups. Whilst there has been extensive academic interest in the concept of CSR, it has focused almost exclusively on normative definitions of the concept, and/or the presentation of empirical evidence that details „why corporations should report their CSR activities‟ and „what CSR activities they should report‟. What is lacking the literature, however, is a focus on the question as to „how do corporations strategically report their CSR activities?‟ We find that there is evidence to support a „Core/Periphery Model‟ of strategic CSR disclosure, which we feel provides a framework for predicting how corporations will voluntarily disclose their CSR performance given the issues, events and/or crises that affect their industry environments.

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