Syfte: Företagens miljömässiga ansvar har blivit en allt mer central fråga för företagets intressenter. Tidigare studier som har behandlat relationen mellan Corporate Environmental Performance CEP och Financial Performance FP har resulterat i varierande utfall. Två faktorer som anses påverka denna relation är olikheter mellan branscher och brister i det interna organisationsarbetet. För att få en tydligare bild av relationen mellan CEP och FP behöver forskningen utvecklas för företag som agerar i en ur miljösynpunkt tung bransch. Syftet med studien är att förklara om det finns ett samband mellan CEP och FP i fossila bränsleintensiva företag och se om sambandet är starkare eller svagare om företaget använder en CSR-kommitté. Metod: Studien utgår från en positivistisk forskningsfilosofi med en deduktiv ansats. Studien har en kvantitativ strategi och har formats av en longitudinell design, där sekundärdata har inhämtats för åren 2014-2017 från databasen Thomson Reuters Datastream. Detta har genererat ett urval bestående av 827 publika bolag från hela världen vars data har analyserats i statistikprogrammet SPSS och presenteras i tabeller. Resultat & slutsats: Studiens resultat visar att det finns ett positivt samband mellan miljödimensionen CEP och den finansiella prestationen mätt utifrån både redovisningsmåttet ROE och marknadsmåttet Tobins Q för fossila bränsleintensiva företag. För de fossila bränsleintensiva företagen med en CSR-kommitté visade även resultatet ett starkare samband mellan CEP och FP än för företag utan CSR-kommitté. En jämförelse mellan olika sektorer visade en tydlig variation mellan resultaten, där vissa sektorer hade ett negativt samband mellan CEP och FP. Examensarbetets bidrag: Studien bidrar till den empiriska forskningen och utökar förståelsen för relationen mellan CEP och FP genom att studera fossila bränsleintensiva företag, som är en miljömässigt tung bransch. Studien bidrar även med teoretisk information om huruvida kontinuerligt arbete via CSR-kommittéer påverkar denna relation. Vidare ger studien ett praktiskt bidrag genom att uppmuntra företag att engagera sig i CEP-aktiviteter, istället för uppkomsten av tvingande miljöregleringar, för att nå lönsamhet. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Ett förslag till fortsatt forskning är att gå djupare ner bland fler sektorer för att kunna se skillnader mellan branscher och göra djupare analyser mellan dessa för att få en större förståelse om relationen mellan CEP och FP. Det kan också finnas skillnader mellan företag av olika storlek, därför är ett andra förslag att dela upp och jämföra resultaten mellan stora och små företag. / Aim: The company's environmental responsibility has become an increasingly central issue for the company's stakeholders. Earlier studies that have addressed the relationship between Corporate Environmental Performance CEP and Financial Performance FP have resulted in varying outcomes. Two factors that are considered to affect this relationship are differences between industries and shortcomings in internal organization work. In order to get a clearer picture of the relationship between CEP and FP, research needs to be developed for companies acting in an environmentally heavy industry. The purpose of the study is to explain if there is a connection between CEP and FP in fossil fuel firms and see if the association is stronger or weaker if the company uses a CSR committée. Method: This study is based on a positivistic research philosophy with a deductive approach. The study has a quantitative strategy and has been formed of a longitudinal design, where secondary data has been collected for the years 2014-2017 from the Thomson Reuters Datastream database. This has generated a sample of 827 public companies worldwide whose data has been analyzed in the SPSS statistics program and presented in tables. Result & Conclusions: The result of the study shows that there is a positive correlation between the environmental dimension CEP and the financial performance, measured based on both the accounting measure ROE and the market measure Tobins Q for fossil fuel firms. For the fossil fuel firms with a CSR committée, the result also showed a stronger relationship between CEP and FP than for companies without a CSR committée. A comparison between sectors showed a clear variation between the results, where some sectors had a negative link between CEP and FP. Contribution of the thesis: The study contributes to empirical research and understanding of the relationship between CEP and FP by studying fossil fuel firms, which is an environmentally heavy industry. The study also contributes with theoretical information about whether continuous work through CSR committees affects this relationship. The study also provides a practical contribution by encouraging companies to engage in CEP activities, instead of the emergence of compelling environmental regulations, to achieve profitability. Suggestions for future research: A proposal for further research is to go deeper into more sectors to see differences between industries and to make deeper analyzes between them to gain a better understanding of the relationship between CEP and FP. There may also be differences between companies of different sizes, so a second proposal is to divide and compare the results between large and small companies.

Hållbarhet och hållbar utveckling är något som betraktas som högaktuellt i samhället i stort och är något som även fått ett stort fokus inom den svenska fastighetssektorn. Denna uppsats syftar till att utforska, skapa en bild av och jämföra hur företag i den svenska fastighetssektorn presenterar och kommunicerar sitt hållbarhetsarbete genom sin hållbarhetsredovisning. Jämförelsen och analysen kommer genomföras med grund i den teoretiska referensramen som består av ett antal teorier som behandlar legitimitet, intressenter, signalering och verksamhetsstyrning. Metoden som används består av en deduktiv ansats och en kvalitativ bruktextsanalys. Resultatet tyder på att det återfinns en övergripande likhet i vad som presenteras och kommuniceras bland de företag som utgjort en del i urvalet. Vilket troligen grundar sig i användningen av likartade eller samma standards som grund för respektive företagsredovisning, vissa standard används i sådan utsträckning att de i princip utgör praxis för hur hållbarhetsredovisning bör genomföras och vad den bör innehålla. Vidare finns lagkrav i form av till exempel ESRS och dess vidareutveckling i form av CSRD som sätter ytterligare krav på vad som ska finns med i företagens hållbarhetsredovisning. De mindre skillnader som identifierats inbegriper bland annat en viss skillnad i hur ingående och omfattande respektive företag i urvalet behandlar varje hållbarhetsaspekt, samt att det återfinns mindre skillnader i de nyckelintressenter som identifierats i vissa av företagen. / Sustainability and sustainable development are a highly discussed and prevalent topic in society as a whole, and something that has gained a large focus within the Swedish real estate sector as well. This bachelor thesis aims to compare, explore and create a picture of how companies within the Swedish real estate sector communicate their work with sustainability, and what they are presenting in their sustainability reporting. The comparison and analysis are made possible by the use of a framework based on theories dealing with legitimacy, stakeholders, signaling and management control systems. The scientific method used consists of a deductive approach and a qualitative content analysis of the companies’ sustainability reports.  The result of the study indicates that there to a large extent exists a similarity in what is presented and communicated by the companies that formed part of the sample. This is probably based on similar or the same standards being used as the basis for the respective company’s accounting, some standards are used to such an extent that they basically constitute practice for how sustainability accounting should be carried out and what it should contain. Furthermore, there are legal requirements in the form of e.g. ESRS and its further development in the form of CSRD as additional requirements for what must be included in the companies' sustainability reports. The minor differences identified include, among other things, a certain difference in how thoroughly and comprehensively each company in the sample treats each sustainability aspect, and that there are minor differences in key stakeholders identified in some of the companies.

Revisorsyrket utvecklas ständigt. Från att tidigare ha ansetts vara en räknande ensamvarg sittandes på sitt kontor är nu revisorn en fullfjädrad konsult med kommunikation som sin vardagliga huvudsyssla. Allteftersom revisorns arbetsuppgifter byts ut från att till största del bestå av revision till att bestå mer och mer av konsulttjänster, kan revisorns ställning som en oberoende granskare av företags räkenskaper ifrågasättas.Syftet med uppsatsen är att först utforska vilka konsulttjänster, eller Non-Audit Services (NAS), som erbjuds av en revisionsbyrå. Sedan tar studien reda på vad olika intressentgrupper tycker om att revisionsbyråer bistår sina revisionskunder med NAS. Avslutningsvis undersöks intressentgruppernas uppfattning om biståendet av NAS påverkan på oberoendet. Studien byggs upp av agentteorin och intressentteorin, där revisorn ses som en oberoende granskare som ska säkerställa att företagsledningen agerar optimalt för företagets ägare och intressenter.För att få reda på vilka tjänster som NAS innefattar görs först en pilotstudie med intervjuer av fyra revisorer med varierande erfarenhet. Sedan görs en enkätundersökning där frågorna tas fram utifrån informationen från pilotstudien. De intressenter som enkäten skickas ut till är Bankanställda, Investerare/Aktieägare, Revisor/Revisorsassistent/Redovisningskonsult, Skatteverket, Studenter och Andra företag.Resultatet av studien visar att samtliga intressentgrupper ställer sig positiva till att revisionsbyråer bistår sina revisionskunder med NAS, där gruppen Revisor var mest positiva och Studenter och Investerare/Aktieägare minst positiva. Vidare anser samtliga intressentgrupper att biståendet av NAS endast påverkar oberoendet i liten utsträckning, där Revisor anser att det påverkar minst och Investerare/Aktieägare anser att det påverkar mest. Slutsatserna är att intressenterna ser NAS som något positivt och att dess påverkan på oberoendet är lägre än dess positiva sida för företagare.

Background and Problem: Sustainability reporting is a growing interest in today’s organizations and it is essential to report on non-financial matters. Many of the existing frameworks have been criticized for being used only of symbolical reasons which is why the concept of integrated reporting and the <IR> framework have been developed. One of the cornerstones in the <IR> framework is human capital which is one of the most valuable assets in an organization. Traditionally, employee costs have only been treated as an expense and there have been limited disclosures in corporate reports. In the current business world it is instead seen as an investment in human resources. Since previous studies have shown an increase of human capital disclosures when corporate reports become integrated, integrated reporting might be the solution to this problem. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine if there are differences in human capital disclosures between integrated reports and separate annual and sustainability reports in companies listed at OMXS30. Delimitations: This study’s empirical examination is limited to include the companies listed at Stockholm OMX30. Only corporate reports issued for the year 2014 are treated. Methodology: For this study a self-constructed disclosure scoreboard with human capital- related items has been used to collect data from the companies’ corporate reports. Also additional information beyond the pre-determined items has been collected to extend the data collection. Empirical Results and Conclusion: The results show that human capital seems to be a subject that is relatively little reported about. The integrated reporting companies do not disclose more information compared to non-integrated reporting companies. However, the results show that integrated reporting companies seem to have a more future-oriented focus and that the disclosures are more dispersed throughout the reports. It can be concluded that company sector and size do not affect the amount or type of information.

Literature review about corporate social responsibility (CSR) suggests that there are organisational benefits to be gained from unintentional discretionary expenditure in laudable behaviour. With this in mind, the methodology integrates insights from the ‘stakeholder theory’ and the ‘resource-based view theory of the firm’ to sharpen the strategic base for CSR investment. Quantitative and qualitative research techniques have been used to discover how business organisations are creating shared value for themselves and for society. The main study was carried out amongst hotel enterprises in Malta. The quantitative analysis tested the relationship between Strategic CSR (in terms of the organisational benefits) against the firms’ commitment, behaviour and resources devoted to CSR. Secondly the qualitative phase of this study involved an analysis of interviews with owner-managers across the Maltese hospitality industry and with experts who are responsible for setting policies in the tourism regulatory context. The results have indicated that responsible behaviour led to the firms’ financial performance and market standing, effective human resources management and operational efficiencies. Following the empirical findings a model representing the ‘creation of shared value’ for business and society has been put forward.

In recent years the fashion industry has experienced a high frequency of famous Creative Directors departing the companies for unknown reasons. The same problem does not seem to occur in the Scandinavian fashion industry. This study’s purpose is to explore why Scandinavia does not experience the same problem, contribute a deeper understanding of the leader-designer relationship in the Swedish fashion industry, and to examine how the Scandinavian Cooperative Advantage is applicable in the Swedish fashion industry. Three case studies were conducted at the Swedish fashion companies TRIWA, Baron and Weriseg where both leaders and designers were interviewed. The findings showed that the leaders view their designers as an essential part of the organisation but how they are prioritised depend on the situation. Further more, this study indicates that all of the studied companies have a stakeholder approach, uses a value creating strategy based on cooperation with their stakeholders, are aligned with a typical Swedish organizational culture, and has a Swedish Management Style. Thus this study indicates that the notion of Scandinavian Cooperative Advantage is applicable at the Swedish fashion industry and that this might be a factor for their success.

No description available.

Despite being a fairly new concept, sustainable development is gaining more attention from social actors. The demand on companies to incorporate sustainable development practices is therefore increasing. Previous research has emphasized that companies are influential drivers of sustainable development practices and many claim to work actively with the issue, yet few have implemented such practices to a sufficient extent. Many companies who claim to be working actively with sustainable development were found to be uncertain of what it implies. Moreover, manufacturing companies tend to be greatly dependent on the consumption of raw material, energy and waste disposals and are therefore often affected by changes associated with sustainable development. Thus, the purpose of this study is to identify what drives manufacturing companies to commit to sustainable development practices.   In the field Management of Sustainable Development, previous research has neglected drivers of sustainable development in relation to managers’ differing interpretations of the concept, constituting a research gap. It has also been suggested by previous research to investigate sustainable development from an organizational perspective, thus this study investigates individual managers’ interpretations and what drives companies to adopt sustainable development practices. The following research question has therefore guided this study:   What drives manufacturing companies to adopt sustainable development practices and how do these drivers vary depending on managers’ interpretations of the term?   In order to investigate this phenomenon and fulfill the purpose of our study, a qualitative approach was deemed most suitable. Six manufacturing companies in Västerbotten County were interviewed using a semi-structured approach. In addition, a triangulation method was used, where official and organizational documents were collected from each participating company to complement the interview data and decrease subjectivity. The analysis of our empirical data resulted in a compiled analysis of the key findings, where we found that manufacturing companies in Västerbotten perceive sustainable development as an ambiguous term and interpret it differently but consider environmental factors as a central feature of the term. Furthermore, we can conclude that the adoption of sustainable development practices is facilitated by establishing a separate sustainable development strategy or incorporating sustainable development into the company’s general business strategy.

Bakgrund Inför företagens bokslut år 2017 ska större företag även uppföra och presentera en hållbarhetsredovisning som komplement för de finansiella måtten. Företagen behöver dock inte följa regleringen om de förklarar varför. Undersökningar tyder ändå på brister i hållbarhetsredovisningen där informationen inte är komplett trots den nya regleringen. Genom systemorienterade teorier samt positiv redovisningsteori finns det förväntningar om hur företagens bolagsstyrningsmekanismer ska påverka hållbarhetsredovisningen. Syfte Syftet med studien är att förklara huruvida bolagsstyrningsmekanismer påverkar omfattningen av företags hållbarhetsredovisning. Metod Denna studie utgår från en deduktiv ansats med en kvantitativ metod. Hypoteser har formulerats utifrån systemorienterade teorier och positiv redovisningsteori kopplat till tidigare forskning om bolagsstyrning. Studien utgår från en tvärsnittsdesign där det empiriska materialet utgörs av sekundärdata och undersökts genom regressionsanalyser. Slutsats Studiens resultat visar att det finns ett signifikant samband mellan utländskt ägande och hållbarhetsredovisningens omfattning. Till skillnad från tidigare studier finns det även ett svagt negativt samband mellan en kvinnlig VD och omfattningen. Till sist visar studiens resultat att det finns positiva samband mellan kontrollvariablerna revisorns uttalande samt applicering av GRI och omfattningen, där GRI resulterade i starka samband. / Introduction Ahead of company´s annual account for year 2017, larger companies will also construct and present a sustainability report as a complement to the financial measures. However, the companies do not have to follow the regulations if they explain why. Surveys nevertheless indicate shortcomings in the sustainability report where the information is not complete despite the new regulation. Through system-oriented theories and positive accounting theory, there are expectations as to how companies' corporate governance mechanisms will affect the sustainability report. Purpose The purpose of this study is to explain whether corporate governance mechanisms affect the extent of corporate sustainability report. Method This study has a deductive approach with a quantitative method. Hypothesis has been formulated through system-oriented theories and positive accounting theory connect with earlier research about corporate governance. The study has a cross-sectional design where the empirical data consist of secondary data and then examined in regression analyzes. Conclusion The study's results show that there is a significant correlation between foreign ownership and the extent of the sustainability report. Contrary to previous studies, there is also a slight negative correlation between a female CEO and the extent. Finally, the study's results show that there are positive correlations between the control variables auditor's statement and the application of GRI and the extent, where GRI resulted in strong relationships.

[pt] O aumento dos custos sociais, ambientais, e humanos gerados pela atividade econômica vem suscitando um debate na sociedade com um todo, e na academia em particular, acerca da necessidade de uma ação integrada das corporações e dos demais constituintes da sociedade, na restauração dos danos ocorridos e, sobretudo, na prevenção dos potenciais danos futuros. A temática da racionalidade, imperiosa e inerente ao debate suscitado, não vem ocupando uma posição de destaque sendo, em muitos casos, ignorada, sobretudo aquela de natureza substantiva. No âmbito da Ética de Negócios vem ganhando reconhecimento, sobretudo a partir da década de 90, a Teoria dos Stakeholders, cujo ponto central reside na revisão e ampliação das obrigações corporativas, opondo-se à visão neoclássica, baseada no conceito de agência, que sustenta ser a única responsabilidade social dos gestores da companhia a maximização da riqueza dos acionistas. Destacam-se, no âmbito desta teoria, duas vertentes principais: instrumental e normativa. Ao passo que esta defende a revisão das obrigações corporativas incondicionalmente, aquela a sujeita à busca de uma performance superior. A potencial associação da vertente normativa com a racionalidade de natureza substantiva e da instrumental com a racionalidade homônima é um fator fundamental na estruturação desta pesquisa, a qual objetivou descrever, através de um estudo de caso, como se dá a co-existência das duas racionalidades acima em uma empresa cujos objetivos, missão e visão, revestem-se de valores manifestamente substantivos. / [en] The increase in social, environmental and human costs generated by economic activity has brought along a discussion within society as a whole, in the academic environment most particularly, regarding the urge for an integrated action coming from corporations and other society members in the direction of restoration of existing damage and, above all, in the prevention of potential future ones. The Rationality subject, predominant in and inherent to the proposed debate, has not been playing an important role, being in many cases simply ignored - mostly the one of Substantive nature. In the field of Business Ethics, mainly from the 90´s on, the Stakeholder Theory - which core lays on the revision and broadening of corporate obligations, as opposed to the neoclassical vision based on the Agency Theory, defending the maximization of stakeholders´ wealth as the only social responsibility of management - has been gaining acknowledgement. In the heart of this theory, two mainstreams can be highlighted: the Instrumental and the Normative. While the later stands for the unconditional revision of corporate obligations, the former subjects them to the search of a superior performance. The potential association of the Normative stream with the Substantive Rationality and of the Instrumental stream with the Rationality that goes under the same name is the fundamental basis for the structuring of this research, which intends to describe, based on a case study, how the two above mentioned Rationalities coexist in a company which mission and vision are based on typically Substantive values.