Browsing by Author "Fagerström, Pia Helena Kristina"

The main subjects of this research are corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability reporting. The aim of this study is to describe the contents and appearance of some of the most sustainable companies' sustainability reports. The leaders in CSR were selected from five well known global sustainability indices. A total of 29 companies' CSR reports from different industries and countries were selected for the study. Additional nine companies were included in the analysis of the best practices in CSR reporting but excluded from the content analysis. The purpose of this study is also to understand how the contents of the CSR reports have been defined. Content analysis is conducted in the four research areas: sustainability strategy or vision, materiality assessment, material topics, and sustainability targets. The study finds out how the four research areas are influenced by the company's operating environment and company-specific factors which form the contents of a CSR report. These factors are studied through stakeholder, legitimacy and other theories and concepts of CSR in its widest definition, such as creating shared value and corporate citizenship. The study also focuses on CSR reporting according to the Global Reporting Initiative. The results show that the leaders in CSR have many features that follow the most recent guidelines in CSR reporting and contain some of the most current topics concerning CSR, CSR reporting and global challenges. Most of the reporters recognize their role in the society and they are committed to tackle global challenges. The reporters emphasize the importance of sustainability and innovation which enables companies to create wellbeing and find solutions to global problems. The reports have certain similarities regarding their contents and appearance. Companies engage both external and internal stakeholders in the materiality assessment process. Companies' identified material topics represent the global challenges as well as the company-specific approach for creating shared value. Most of the best reports present a clear strategy and/or an ambitious vision that takes sustainability into account. Many companies have a credible sustainability program or plan which is visible throughout the report. Best reports focus only on topics that are most important for the company and stakeholders. In addition, an excellent report is reader-friendly with a clear structure, interesting graphics that simplify the complex matters of sustainability, is well-written and has case examples to enliven the story. The report is convincing and tells a distinctive story of the company's sustainability journey where sustainability seems to be well integrated into the business strategy. According to the subjective evaluation of the reports' appearance, the best reports belong to Adidas, Biogen, BMW, Henkel, IKEA, Johnson & Johnson, Natura Cosmeticos, Nestlé and Unilever. Other companies that were not included in the analysis but have excellent reports are: Air France-KLM, BG Group, LEGO, Outotec and Sodexo. Future research could be done in the field of sustainability targets and performance in CSR: how the leading companies in sustainable business measure the progress of their commitments for creating shared value and whether the progress is visible.