IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/bstrat/v16y2007i7p474-486.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Paving the way for sustainability communication: evidence from a Swiss study

Author

Listed:
  • Ylva Stiller
  • Claus‐Heinrich Daub

Abstract

This paper presents and compares the outcomes of an annually repeated project, assessing the corporate reporting practice in the 250 largest Swiss companies, over a time frame of three years (2003–2005). Focusing on the quantitative and qualitative corporate sustainability disclosure, the study attempts a review of the Swiss corporate reporting practice by using a benchmark approach, as an alternative to content analysis, in order to supply best‐practice examples for companies and open the door towards a more dialogical approach. Supported by the findings of Kolk, Gray, Unerman etc. as well as critique aired by Thomson and Bebbington and by Solomon and Darby, the study and its results are discussed and reflected upon in a conceptual and practical context. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Ylva Stiller & Claus‐Heinrich Daub, 2007. "Paving the way for sustainability communication: evidence from a Swiss study," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(7), pages 474-486, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:16:y:2007:i:7:p:474-486
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.599
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.599
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/bse.599?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Carl‐Johan Hedberg & Fredrik von Malmborg, 2003. "The Global Reporting Initiative and corporate sustainability reporting in Swedish companies," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 10(3), pages 153-164, September.
    2. Barbara Pirchegger & Alfred Wagenhofer, 1999. "Financial information on the Internet: a survey of the homepages of Austrian companies," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 383-395.
    3. Ralf Isenmann & Christian Lenz, 2002. "Internet use for corporate environmental reporting: current challenges—technical benefits—practical guidance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(3), pages 181-202, May.
    4. B. M. Craven & C. L. Marston, 1999. "Financial reporting on the Internet by leading UK companies," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 321-333.
    5. Pontus Hedlin, 1999. "The Internet as a vehicle for investor relations: the Swedish case," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 373-381.
    6. Jill F. Solomon & Lauren Darby, 2005. "Is private social, ethical and environmental reporting mythicizing or demythologizing reality?," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 27-47, March.
    7. Kim Hammond & Samantha Miles, 2004. "Assessing quality assessment of corporate social reporting: UK perspectives," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(1), pages 61-79, March.
    8. J. Emil Morhardt & Sarah Baird & Kelly Freeman, 2002. "Scoring corporate environmental and sustainability reports using GRI 2000, ISO 14031 and other criteria," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 9(4), pages 215-233, December.
    9. Ans Kolk, 2003. "Trends in sustainability reporting by the Fortune Global 250," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(5), pages 279-291, September.
    10. Andrew Lymer, 1999. "Internet and the future of reporting in Europe," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 289-301.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Azlan Amran & Say Keat Ooi & Riduan Toani Mydin & S. Susela Devi, 2015. "The Impact of Business Strategies on Online Sustainability Disclosures," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(6), pages 551-564, September.
    2. Ivana First & Deepali Sinha Khetriwal, 2010. "Exploring the relationship between environmental orientation and brand value: is there fire or only smoke?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(2), pages 90-103, February.
    3. Alexander Bergmann & Peter Posch, 2018. "Mandatory Sustainability Reporting in Germany: Does Size Matter?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-20, October.
    4. J. Emil Morhardt, 2010. "Corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting on the Internet," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(7), pages 436-452, November.
    5. Despina Galani & Efthymios Gravas & Antonios Stavropoulos, 2012. "Company Characteristics and Environmental Policy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(4), pages 236-247, May.
    6. J. Emil Morhardt, 2009. "General Disregard for Details of GRI Human Rights Reporting by Large Corporations," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 10(2), pages 141-158, July.
    7. Theofanis Karagiorgos, 2010. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance: An Empirical Analysis on Greek Companies," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(4), pages 85-108.
    8. Matthias S. Fifka, 2013. "Corporate Responsibility Reporting and its Determinants in Comparative Perspective – a Review of the Empirical Literature and a Meta‐analysis," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(1), pages 1-35, January.
    9. Azlan Amran & Roszaini Haniffa, 2011. "Evidence in development of sustainability reporting: a case of a developing country," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(3), pages 141-156, March.
    10. Peter Seele & Lucia Gatti, 2017. "Greenwashing Revisited: In Search of a Typology and Accusation‐Based Definition Incorporating Legitimacy Strategies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 239-252, February.
    11. Wei Li & Weining Li & Veikko Seppänen & Timo Koivumäki, 2022. "How and when does perceived greenwashing affect employees' job performance? Evidence from China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1722-1735, September.
    12. Sylvie Berthelot & Michel Coulmont & Kim Thibault, 2013. "Sustainability Content on Oil and Gas Company Websites," Business and Management Research, Business and Management Research, Sciedu Press, vol. 2(1), pages 94-103, March.
    13. Wei Li & Weining Li & Veikko Seppänen & Timo Koivumäki, 2023. "Effects of greenwashing on financial performance: Moderation through local environmental regulation and media coverage," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1), pages 820-841, January.
    14. Matthias S. Fifka & Maria Drabble, 2012. "Focus and Standardization of Sustainability Reporting – A Comparative Study of the United Kingdom and Finland," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(7), pages 455-474, November.
    15. Alberto Romolini & Silvia Fissi & Elena Gori, 2014. "Scoring CSR Reporting in Listed Companies – Evidence from Italian Best Practices," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(2), pages 65-81, March.
    16. Olivier Boiral & Yves Gendron, 2011. "Sustainable Development and Certification Practices: Lessons Learned and Prospects," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(5), pages 331-347, July.
    17. Daniel C. Matisoff & Douglas S. Noonan & John J. O'Brien, 2013. "Convergence in Environmental Reporting: Assessing the Carbon Disclosure Project," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(5), pages 285-305, July.
    18. Meyer, Judith, 2014. "Corporate Social Responsibility Communication im Kontext globaler Markenstrategien: Ein systematischer Literaturüberblick zum aktuellen Stand der verhaltenswissenschaftlichen Forschung," Research Papers on Marketing Strategy 9/2014, Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg, Lehrstuhl für BWL und Marketing.
    19. Cory Searcy & Ruvena Buslovich, 2014. "Corporate Perspectives on the Development and Use of Sustainability Reports," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(2), pages 149-169, May.
    20. Dan Beare & Ruvena Buslovich & Cory Searcy, 2014. "Linkages between Corporate Sustainability Reporting and Public Policy," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(6), pages 336-350, November.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Turel, Asli, 2010. "The Expectation Gap in Internet Financial Reporting: Evidence from an Emerging Capital Market," MPRA Paper 29800, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Paola Ramassa & Costanza Di Fabio, 2016. "Web-Based Financial Reporting: An Interpretative Model for Corporate Communications on Social Media," FINANCIAL REPORTING, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2016(2), pages 79-112.
    3. Wendy Stubbs & Colin Higgins & Markus Milne, 2013. "Why Do Companies Not Produce Sustainability Reports?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(7), pages 456-470, November.
    4. Bruno Oxibar, 2002. "La Diffusion D'Informations Financieres , Sur Les Sites Internet Des Societes Cotees : Evaluation Des Positions De La Cob," Post-Print halshs-00584517, HAL.
    5. Bruno Oxibar, 2010. "Communication Financiere Sur Les Sites Internet Des Groupes Cotes Francais," Post-Print hal-00479489, HAL.
    6. Sarra Elleuch Hamza & Mouna Ben Ahmed Hedrich, 2008. "Les déterminants de la divulgation des informations financières via Internet adoptée par les entreprises tunisiennes : une démarche qualitative et quantitative," Post-Print halshs-00524888, HAL.
    7. Dr. Mohd Noor Azli bin Ali Khan & Professor Dr. Noor Azizi bin Ismail, 2011. "The Use Of Disclosure Indices In Internet Financial Reporting Research," Journal of Global Business and Economics, Global Research Agency, vol. 3(1), pages 157-173, July.
    8. Matthias S. Fifka, 2013. "Corporate Responsibility Reporting and its Determinants in Comparative Perspective – a Review of the Empirical Literature and a Meta‐analysis," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(1), pages 1-35, January.
    9. Geerlings,Jorn & Bollen,Laury & Hassink,Harold, 2002. "Investor Relations on the Internet: A Survey of the Euronext Zone," Research Memorandum 085, Maastricht University, Maastricht Research School of Economics of Technology and Organization (METEOR).
    10. Breeda Comyns & Frank Figge & Tobias Hahn & Ralf Barkemeyer, 2013. "Sustainability reporting: The role of “Search”, “Experience” and “Credence” information," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(3), pages 231-243, September.
    11. Sumit K. Lodhia & Amir Allam & Andrew Lymer, 2004. "Corporate Reporting on the Internet in Australia: An Exploratory Study," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 14(34), pages 64-71, November.
    12. Concetta Carnevale & Maria Mazzuca & Sergio Venturini, 2012. "Corporate Social Reporting in European Banks: The Effects on a Firm's Market Value," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 19(3), pages 159-177, May.
    13. Markus Milne & Rob Gray, 2013. "W(h)ither Ecology? The Triple Bottom Line, the Global Reporting Initiative, and Corporate Sustainability Reporting," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(1), pages 13-29, November.
    14. Francesca Borga & Annalisa Citterio & Giuliano Noci & Emanuele Pizzurno, 2009. "Sustainability report in small enterprises: case studies in Italian furniture companies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(3), pages 162-176, March.
    15. Dr. Mohd Noor Azli bin Ali Khan Author_Email: & Professor Dr. Noor Azizi bin Ismail, 2011. "The Use Of Disclosure Indices In Internet Financial Reporting Research," 2nd International Conference on Business and Economic Research (2nd ICBER 2011) Proceeding 2011-462, Conference Master Resources.
    16. J. Geerings & L. H. H. Bollen & H. F. D. Hassink, 2003. "Investor relations on the Internet: a survey of the Euronext zone," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 567-579.
    17. repec:dau:papers:123456789/576 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Matthias S. Fifka & Maria Drabble, 2012. "Focus and Standardization of Sustainability Reporting – A Comparative Study of the United Kingdom and Finland," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(7), pages 455-474, November.
    19. Isabel‐María García Sánchez & Luis Rodríguez Domínguez & Isabel Gallego Álvarez, 2011. "Corporate governance and strategic information on the internet," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 24(4), pages 471-501, May.
    20. Ivica Pervan, 2006. "Voluntary financial reporting on the internet – analysis of the practice of Croatian and Slovene listed joint stock companies," Financial Theory and Practice, Institute of Public Finance, vol. 30(1), pages 1-27.
    21. Siti Rosmaini Bt Mohd Hanafi & Mohd Ariff Bin Kasim & Muhd Kamil Bin Ibrahim & Dawson R. Hancock, 2009. "Business Reporting on the Internet: Development of a Disclosure Quality Index," International Journal of Business and Economics, School of Management Development, Feng Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan, vol. 8(1), pages 55-79, April.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:16:y:2007:i:7:p:474-486. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0836 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.