Corporate Responsibility Practices in Engineering Consultancies

Willetts, Richard; Burdon, Jim; Glass, Jacqueline; Frost, Matthew W.

doi:10.1080/15623599.2011.10773166

Cited by 9 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 48 publications

(42 reference statements)

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“…In addition to the mentioned challenges, our findings recognise a lack of a systematic approach to engage stakeholders in defining material issues in corporate sustainability reporting processes. Our findings are in line with the majority of previous literature reviewed in section 2 (see P. Jones et al, 2016Jones et al, , 2015Andelin et al, 2015Andelin et al, , 2013Glass, 2012;Willetts et al, 2011).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 93%

“…However, the lack of independent external assurance can decrease the integrity and credibility of the sustainability reporting processes. These findings are in line with those of Jones, P. et al (2015Jones, P. et al ( , 2016 and Willetts et al (2011).…”

Section: Findings and Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Third, environmental sustainability is the most common type of information reported by real estate companies in the Europe (Andelin et al, 2015; J. Willetts et al, 2011;Caijas et al, 2012). Fourth, there is no clear approach to embrace materiality, external assurance of sustainability information, and stakeholder engagement (Glass, 2012;Willetts et al, 2011;P.…”

Section: Sustainability Reporting In the Real Estate Sectormentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Later, authors re-read each document for several times in order to explore the content of the given data by using the coding system. The review of the previous studies investigated sustainability reports in the real estate sector shows that content analysis has precedence in the real estate-related research (for example Chen et al, 2016;Zuo, Zillante, Wilson, Davidson, & Pullen, 2012;Glass, 2012;Willetts et al, 2011;T. Jones et al, 2010;Myers, 2005).…”

Section: Content Analysis Process and Coding Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainability Reporting in the Nordic Real Estate Companies: Empirical Evidence From Finland

Rashidfarokhi

Toivonen

Viitanen

2018

International Journal of Strategic Property Management

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The purpose of our study was to investigate the content of sustainability reporting issued by real estate sector. Content analysis was employed to identify the strengths and weaknesses of sustainability information provided by sample companies. The content analysis structure considered both quantity and quality of information simultaneously. Our results show an inconsistency in the form, extent and quality of sustainability reports. In addition, our findings recognise a lack of clear approach to embrace materiality, external assurance, and further engagement of stakeholders in the sample reports. It seems that most of the sample companies were engaged in issuing sustainability reports to fulfil the legislative requirement and avoiding financial or legal risks. Our study provides information on the current status of sustainability reporting to real estate professionals. In addition it contributes in decreasing the financial and legal risks, and increasing the corporate reputational capital, by revealing the common weaknesses prevalent in the sustainability reports.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Findings and Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Sustainability Reporting In the Real Estate Sectormentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Content Analysis Process and Coding Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainability Reporting in the Nordic Real Estate Companies: Empirical Evidence From Finland

Rashidfarokhi

Toivonen

Viitanen

2018

International Journal of Strategic Property Management

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“…Chong et al's study of sustainability in the construction industry [34] identified a strong level of conservatism in the civil engineering sector and recommended broadening the knowledge in sustainability, making sustainability more relevant and necessary to the professionals and their organizations, and providing platforms for communication and sharing ideas. In 2011, Willetts et al [37] found that, while sustainability is acknowledged as important to engineering firms, the engineering consultancy sector was behind other sectors such as mining, oil and gas, and financial services in terms of sustainability performance and reporting. Vaillancourt et al [38] (p. 3189) suggest that civil engineers "need to change from technicians to agents which promote sustainability, specifically sustainable infrastructure."…”

Section: State Of Progress-infrastructure Industrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the Certification Badge—How Infrastructure Sustainability Rating Tools Impact on Individual, Organizational, and Industry Practice

2018

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Sustainability consideration in designing, constructing, and operating civil infrastructure requires substantive action and yet progress is slow. This research examines the impact third-party infrastructure sustainability rating tools-specifically CEEQUAL, Envision, Greenroads, and Infrastructure Sustainability-have beyond individual project certification and considers their role in driving wider industry change. In this empirical study, engineering and sustainability professionals (n = 63) assess and describe their experience in using rating tools outside of formal certification and also the impact of tool use on their own practice and the practices of their home organizations. The study found that 77% of experienced users and 59% of infrastructure owners used the tools for purposes other than formal project certification. The research attests that rating tool use and indeed their very existence has a strong influence on sustainability awareness and practice within the infrastructure industry, providing interpretation of sustainability matters in ways that resonate with industry norms. The rating tools impact on individuals and their professional and personal practice, on the policies and practices of infrastructure-related organizations, and more widely on other industry stakeholders. The findings can be used to increase the value gained from sustainability rating tool use and to better understand the role such tools play in creating cultural change within the industry.

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