Creating value: sustainability and accounting for non-financial matters in the pre- and post-corona environment

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to introduce the special issue on “sustainability and accounting for non-financial matters: qualitative and quantitative research approaches”. This special issue was organised at the time when the entire globe was affected by the Coronavirus and accordingly, this paper has taken this opportunity to discuss the implications of this pandemic on accounting for non-financial issues, especially in relation to sustainability accounting research and practice. Design/methodology/approach An analysis of public documents and limited academic research on the Coronavirus was undertaken in this paper to highlight how life as it existed has fundamentally changed. The authors also review the papers published in this special issue and identifies research opportunities arising from the current environment. Findings The onslaught of the Coronavirus provides both challenges and opportunities for the practice of, and research into, accounting for non-financial matters, such as sustainability. The papers published in this special issue promote understanding and linking of sustainability reporting practices, to creating firm values, as well as identifying current and emerging challenges. The special issue explores criteria for the construction of accounting technology that is consistent with agnostic-based critical accounting and accountability, a business case for managers and practitioners to formulate strategic and management control systems in response to climate change issues, legitimacy and the use of photographs in sustainability reporting to create value, effective disclosures of business and sustainability ethics practiced by the firm for reputation building and value creation, indigenous accounting in mining companies, public sector policy framing of non-financial value, the barriers to sustainability reporting because of lack of awareness and knowledge and inadequate regulatory support in developing countries and the significance of sustainability accounting education to improve sustainability reporting practices in developing countries. Research limitations/implications Future research opportunities in relation to the impact of the Coronavirus on accounting for non-financial value are identified. Given that COVID-19 is a societal matter, the practical implications of the Coronavirus in accounting for non-financial value creation are highlighted. The Coronavirus has challenged the existing economic paradigm and non-financial issues will capture the attention of corporations, other institutions, civil society and governments. Practical implications The Coronavirus has challenged the existing economic paradigm and non-financial issues will capture the attention of corporations, other institutions, civil society and governments. Social implications Given that COVID-19 is a societal matter, the practical implications of the Coronavirus in accounting for non-financial value creation are highlighted. Originality/value This study, to the knowledge, is one of the pioneer academic studies that has explored the implications of the Coronavirus on accounting for non-financial value. In addition, this special issue includes papers that highlight how non-financial reporting matters are increasingly being given attention by companies to enhance business practices on sustainability through different perspectives.

Were we prepared to face a pandemic? Exploring companies' CSR disclosure on social media before COVID-19 outbreak

“…This result suggests how, despite the CSR practices having been developed in a context not interested in relevant social issues (Crane and Matten, 2021), they result resilient to great changes as the pandemic ones. Moreover, the analysis of the CSR tweets produced by the different environments reveals how companies are approaching CSR communication with different strategies when meeting stakeholders on social media and during the COVID-19 outbreak (Lodhia et al. , 2021).…”

“…Such insight emerges, also, from the study of Rinaldi (2022), who clarifies that in the field of accounting practices, it is relevant to understand how the current communication and disclosure channels of the companies have reacted or have been impacted by the effects of the COVID-10 pandemic. Finally, a clear direction is traced by Lodhia et al. (2021) who reveal how the singular crisis has made necessary the exploration of the disclosed CSR information through the use of alternative platforms as in the case of the social media report operated by companies.…”

Exploring the Effectiveness of Sustainability Measurement: Which ESG Metrics Will Survive COVID-19?

“…The motivations of this study are linked to the primary and urgent need to assess the current state of corporate reporting practices affected by the pandemic crisis by identifying and highlighting possibilities for changing some sustainability disclosure practices that could be useful for preparers, users, regulators and policymakers. As some previous studies confirmed, this unexpected and very critical situation may benefit the business context by pushing some changes on ESG issues to improve the corporate reporting transparency and to move toward more accountability based reporting practices by satisfying new information needs (Crovini et al, 2022 ; Hassan et al, 2021 ; Leoni et al, 2021 ; Lodhia et al, 2021 ; Rinaldi, 2022 ).…”

Theoretical frameworks applied in integrated reporting and sustainability reporting research

“…As the world moved into 2020, there was a gradual understanding that life, as we knew it, was changing forever. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the lives of individuals and how organisations operate, and there has been an increased call for non-financial reporting by organisations, due to the significant social impact of the pandemic, and the the origin of the disease apparently linked to climate change (Lodhia, Sharma & Low 2021). Before the pandemic, the nature of sustainability-related disclosures communicating the economic, environmental and social impact of an organisation's activities to its stakeholders had already been evolving (Hahn & Kühnen 2013).…”

“…This study aims to address the identified gap in the literature by using a broad approach to identifying which theories are used in papers addressing IR and SR in the literature during the last decade, using a systematic review design and comparing and contrasting these two forms of reporting at a granular level. It also provides a starting point to study the changing reporting behaviour of organisations due to COVID-19, as called for by Lodhia et al (2021), and other changes in the reporting landscape, most notably the attempts to converge the reporting requirements for organisations. The objective of this study is to investigate any notable trends in the utilisation and prevalence of different theoretical perspectives and the reasons for these trends.…”