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.

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.

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 The Role of Gender Diversity on Tax Aggressiveness and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Italian Listed Companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Vacca ◽  
Antonio Iazzi ◽  
Demetris Vrontis ◽  
Monica Fait
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Global Reporting Initiative ◽  
Tax Aggressiveness ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

The paper aims to examine the moderating role of gender diversity within a corporate board on the relationship between tax aggressiveness and a firm’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) approach. This analysis was conducted using a set of indicators of financial statements of 168 Italian listed firms between 2011 and 2018. In addition, the sustainability reports of the same companies were observed. To perform the analysis a logit regression model is used. This paper shows different empirical results. First, this study notes that there is not a direct relationship between tax aggressiveness and CSR reporting. Second, gender diversity in a board of directors increases the orientation of companies to CSR disclosure, but does not have an impact on the relationship between tax aggressiveness and CSR disclosure. Instead, CEO gender has a positive influence on the relationship between corporate tax planning and CSR reporting in accordance with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. This study emphasizes the key role of gender diversity in the growth of the CSR approach and the reputation of companies. Therefore, governments and policymakers of major countries should promote gender diversity in corporate decision-making bodies, which contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

scholarly journals Corporate Social Reporting By Mauritian Banks

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dineshwar Ramdhony
Keyword(s):  
Human Resources ◽  
Commercial Banks ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Legitimacy Theory ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Social Reporting ◽  
Narrow View ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Code Of Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social

The paper examines CSR disclosures by commercial banks operating in Mauritius. Annual reports for the year 2011 were scrutinized using content analysis. Five categories of disclosure were chosen in line with the Code of corporate governance and prior studies. Due to the small number (20) of banks operating in the country all banks were selected. Findings show that banks with higher visibility disclose more CSR information thus confirming that the legitimacy theory is an explanation for CSR disclosure by Mauritian banks. CSR reporting is prevalent among all banks but forty percent of banks disclose CSR information relating to one category only showing a narrow view of CSR. The primary area of disclosure is ‘Human resources’ which is at odds with previous studies. The paper contributes to the scarce literature on CSR disclosures by banks in a developing country.

scholarly journals Application of Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Principles for Measuring Quality of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Disclosure: Evidence from Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11409
Author(s):  
Hina Ismail ◽  
Muhammad A. Saleem ◽  
Sadaf Zahra ◽  
Muhammad S. Tufail ◽  
Rao Akmal Ali
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Global Reporting Initiative ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Development Agenda ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

CSR Reporting is an essential mechanism for ensuring the transparency and accountability of companies towards sustainability performance. To further promote that sustainable development agenda, CSR-related regulations and policies have emerged worldwide, including in Pakistan. Therefore this study assesses the quality of corporate social responsibility in annual reports issued by firms listed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange. This study has operationalized the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) principles for examining the quality of CSR disclosures. The paper sample comprised 540 annual reports of 90 financial or non-financial companies from the years 2012 to 2017. Content analysis is performed to look for six quality principles and measures, i.e., balance, comparability, accuracy, clarity, reliability, and timeliness. Results suggested that most Pakistani firms provide precise and on-time information and put less emphasis on the balance of information and comparable information. Moreover, this study also highlighted that organizations should implement the GRI principle for disclosing qualitative CSR report.

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 Reporting in India: A Study of SENSEX Companies

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shafat Maqbool ◽  
M. Nasir Zamir
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Community Development ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Business Practices ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Environmental Activities

This study examines the corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure of Indian firms in the wake of the Companies Act, 2013. The annual reports of SENSEX companies for 2016–2017 were scanned to observe the dominant field of CSR reporting related to ‘community development’, ‘environmental activities’, ‘human resources’, ‘products & customer relations’ and ‘fair business practices’. Analysis of annual reports reveals that ‘fair business practices’ received most attention followed by ‘community development’ and ‘environmental activities’. Likewise, the most reported items have been ‘education’, ‘health’ and ‘energy conservation’. The results show that the CSR disclosure is pronouncedly communicated by ‘mining and mineral’ companies followed by ‘power sector’ companies.

scholarly journals CSR reporting and ownership structure: Evidence from Italian listed companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 146-157 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio Fortuna ◽  
Mirella Ciaburri ◽  
Silvia Testarmata ◽  
Riccardo Tiscini
Keyword(s):  
Ownership Structure ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Ownership Structures ◽  
Csr Reporting ◽  
Concentrated Ownership ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Dispersed Ownership

The paper empirically explores how firms’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosure varies according to their ownership structure. Three different kinds of ownership structures are considered: family firms (FFs), state-owned firms (SOFs) and firms with dispersed ownership (DOFs). It is the first study examining the relationship between CSR disclosure and ownership structure, which includes in the analysis also FFs and SOFs. The analysis is provided on a sample of 192 listed firms with reference to Italy, a suitable setting for the purpose of the study due to the considerable presence of both FFs and SOFs. Firstly, a content analysis on the CSR documents disclosed by the 192 firms is provided and then data are empirically analysed to test whether the ownership structure influences a firm’s CSR disclosure. Results show that FFs and SOFs disclose less CSR information and the explanation can be found in the lower level of agency problems they have to face. The paper contributes to the stream of literature about CSR disclosure, because it argues that the contents of CSR disclosure vary according to firm’s ownership structure and also to those about FFs and SOFs because it shows that the presence of a concentrated ownership lowers the level of CSR information disclosed.

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.

scholarly journals Companies Participation in Developing Sustainability in Local Communities: a Literature Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (53) ◽  
pp. 166-182
Author(s):  
Luciane Silva Franco ◽  
Simone Soares ◽  
Sérgio Luis Dias Doliveira ◽  
Edicreia Andrade dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Organizational Performance ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Business Community ◽  
Complete Analysis ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) in recent years has received significant interest from several researchers who have revealed the results of CSR disclosure in relation to organizational performance around the world. The purpose of our study was to assess the engagement of organizations and the impact on the development sustainability in local community. However, we performed a systematic review applying the Methodi Ordinatio, using the Scopus and Web of Science databases, which resulted in the complete analysis of 28 articles. Among the results obtained, the importance of the relationship between organization and stakeholders, especially community involvement, is emphasized. Evaluation using the stakeholder approach will not only create a holistic assessment of the process, but will also help promote a sense of ownership of the community engagement program. We conclude that business-community engagement brings benefits to both parties and contributes to community development. Keywords: stakeholders, sustainability, community, engagement.

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