Performance disclosure on the web: an exploration of the impact of managers’ perceptions of stakeholder concerns

Aerts,; Cormier,; Гордон,; Magnan,

doi:10.4192/1577-8517-v6_6

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(73 reference statements)

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“…To date, few empirical studies have focused on the multinational corporate reporting policy of social or environmental information or, as in the case of this paper, the analysis of differences in social reporting for different audiences (Meek et al, 1995;Kolk et al, 2001;Ite, 2004;McMurtrie, 2005;van der Laan Smith et al, 2005;Aerts et al, 2006;Hartman et al, 2007;Kolk, 2008;Chen and Bouvain, 2009). Since the way in which MNCs communicate their social and environmental issues may have a -Country or region of origin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Kolk (2008) points out that stakeholders' interests vary according to institutional contexts. Moreover, Aerts et al (2006) conclude in their research that different types of disclosures are aimed at different stakeholders. Therefore, one might expect the social information reported by MNCs for international or global audiences to be different and of a greater degree than for domestic or local ones, because local stakeholders are likely to be fewer in number and scope and will generate less pressure than worldwide stakeholders.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Corporate social reporting for different audiences: the case of multinational corporations in Spain

Sotorrío

Sánchez

2009

Corp Soc Responsibility Env

101

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The objective of this research is twofold: fi rst, to analyze descriptively the type of social information disclosed and the degree to which multinational corporations (MNCs) disclose it, and second, to empirically test whether there are differences in the reporting policy of this type of company according to the audience (global or local), and to discover the factors that explain these differences. A sample of 26 non-Spanish MNCs operating in Spain was selected from the Spanish Merco reputation index in the period 2004-2007. The results show that there are very signifi cant differences in the degree of disclosure and the type of social information reported by MNCs for each audience, and that a company's visibility and resources, in this order, are relevant factors in explaining these differences. crucial impact on society as well as a potential impact on other fi rms (Kolk et al., 2001), its study would be of great interest to academics.Consequently, the objective of this research is twofold: fi rst, to analyze descriptively the type of social information disclosed and the degree to which MNCs report it, and secondly, to empirically test whether there are differences in the reporting policies of this type of company according to the audience (global or local), and to discover the factors that may explain these differences. The structure of this study is as follows: fi rst of all, there is a theoretical analysis concerning the concept of social information and the factors for its disclosure, in which the research question and hypotheses used to test it are established; the methodology used for the research is then presented; and fi nally, the results are analyzed and the main conclusions of this research are drawn. Corporate Social Reporting: Defi nition and Disclosure FactorsAccording to Gray et al. (1987), social reporting can be defi ned as the process of communicating the social and environmental effects of an organization's economic actions to particular interest groups within society or to society at large. Moreover, corporate social disclosure refers to information provided by companies relating to their activities, aspirations and public image with regard to environmental, community, employee, and consumer issues . Thus, corporate social disclosure or reporting covers a broad and diverse array of matters including product information, environmental impact of corporate operations, employment practices and relations, and supplier and customer interactions.Although a number of governments have directly or indirectly encouraged this type of disclosure, corporate social reporting has mostly been a voluntary activity oriented at being accountable to stakeholders (Kolk, 2008). In search of the reasons behind social or environmental disclosures, the theoretical literature suggests a number of explanations. Gray et al. (1995) classify explanations of social and environmental disclosure into three groups:(1) those focusing on decision-usefulness (corporate disclosures are attempts to remove informational asymmetrie...

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

Corporate social reporting for different audiences: the case of multinational corporations in Spain

Sotorrío

Sánchez

2009

Corp Soc Responsibility Env

101

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“…For example, Campbell & Slack (2008) find that sustainability disclosures are the least read section of the Annual Report by analysts whilst Dawkins & Lewis (2003) find that 43% of analysts and 54% of investors believed corporate sustainability information to be of poor quality. Surveys indicate that employees expect to view sustainability information (Dawkins & Lewis, 2003) Knox et al (2005) find that online sustainability information disseminated by smaller companies within the FTSE 4Good index is targeted at customers and Aerts et al (2006) note that executives perceive their target audience as the general public. In contrast, Cooper (2003) finds online sustainability information in the electricity industry is focused mainly on shareholders and prospective employees.…”

Section: Online Corporate Sustainability Reportingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the use of online corporate sustainability information

Rowbottom¹,

Lymer²

2009

Accounting Forum

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Whilst the supply, exclusivity and prominence of online corporate sustainability information has increased in recent years, comparatively little is known about what information is used by whom. This paper explores which user groups access online corporate sustainability information, and assesses the relative use of sustainability reports and other forms of social and environmental information disseminated on corporate Websites.To collect the necessary empirical data, the paper analyses 4,652,471 successful requests for information made by the users of 10 UK FTSE 350 corporate Websites.The paper finds that the majority of requests for online sustainability information originate from the reporting company indicative of an inward focus to sustainability reporting. In examining access to different online information sets, distinct profiles of corporate Website users begin to emerge. Requests from employees, private individuals, ISPs and consultants represent the vast majority of the online sustainability reporting audience and the corporate Website in general. Contrastingly, a professional financially-orientated profile of users characterised by professional investors, creditors, accounting firms and lawyers make significantly more use of the Annual Report but significantly less use of sustainability reporting information and other online disclosures.Although prior literature notes how companies have yet to utilise the potential of the online medium in disseminating corporate sustainability information, disclosures are found to attract approximately a tenth of all corporate Website requests. Environmental and ethical disclosures outside the Annual Report are the most popular sources of online corporate sustainability information whilst 'standalone' Sustainability and/or Ethics Reports attract very few requests.

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“…These studies point to conflicting findings with regard to the publication of corporate social reports by MNC subsidiaries in terms of their content and the audiences for which they are intended. For example, according to Aerts et al (2006) MNCs tend to use different types of social disclosures which are aimed towards different stakeholders as part of their CSRep practices.…”

Section: Mncs and Csrepmentioning

confidence: 99%

Corporate social reporting by MNCs’ subsidiaries in Sri Lanka

Beddewela

Herzig

2013

Accounting Forum

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This study examines the pressures, barriers and enablers which subsidiaries of multinational companies encounter when engaging in corporate social reporting within a developing country context. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews with eighteen managers across ten subsidiaries in Sri Lanka. The findings show that the subsidiaries are overwhelmingly driven by their need to attain internal legitimacy and conform to formal institutionalised processes for reporting on CSR which act as a barrier against publishing separate social reports in Sri Lanka. The study uncovers a tension between head office reporting requirements and demonstrating accountability for the needs of local stakeholders.

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Performance disclosure on the web: an exploration of the impact of managers’ perceptions of stakeholder concerns

Cited by 15 publications

References 46 publications

Corporate social reporting for different audiences: the case of multinational corporations in Spain

Corporate social reporting for different audiences: the case of multinational corporations in Spain

Exploring the use of online corporate sustainability information

Corporate social reporting by MNCs’ subsidiaries in Sri Lanka

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