Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka vilka likheter och skillnader som finns i onoterade företags hållbarhetsredovisning mellan detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. Studien ämnar även förstå dessa likheter och skillnader med hjälp av intressentteorin och institutionell teori. Studien kommer att bidra till en ökad kunskap om likheter och skillnader i onoterade företags hållbarhetsredovisning mellan detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. Metod: En kvalitativ innehållsanalys genomfördes på hållbarhetsredovisningar upprättade för räkenskapsåret 2021. Urvalet bestod av 15 svenska onoterade företag fördelat på detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. Den kvalitativa innehållsanalysen tillämpades deduktivt eftersom begrepp från Triple Bottom Line (TBL) låg till grund för studiens kodschema som tillämpades på studiens empiriska datamaterial. Slutsats: Denna studie visar att det finns likheter och skillnader i onoterade företags hållbarhetsredovisning mellan detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. Studien finner att det finns likheter i vilka hållbarhetsområden som de onoterade företagen mellan branscherna redovisar om. Studien visar även att det finns likheter och skillnader i vilka underkategorier inom dessa hållbarhetsområden som de onoterade företagen mellan branscherna redovisar om på ett framträdande sätt. Denna studie visar att likheterna främst kan förstås av tvingande och mimetisk isomorfism, men även av den normativa inriktningen inom intressentteorin. Studien visar även att skillnaderna främst kan förstås av tvingande och mimetisk isomorfism, men även av den positiva inriktningen inom intressentteorin. Originalitet/värde: Tidigare studier som har studerat företags hållbarhetsredovisning mellan olika branscher har främst studerat börsnoterade företag. Dessutom finns det en avsaknad av studier som har undersökt likheter och skillnader mellan detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. Denna studie har bidragit till en ökad kunskap om likheter och skillnader i onoterade företags hållbarhetsredovisning mellan detaljhandels-, energi- och fastighetsbranschen. / Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate what similarities and differences exist in unlisted companies' sustainability reporting between the retail, energy, and real estate industries. The study also intends to understand these similarities and differences with the help of stakeholder theory and institutional theory. The study will contribute to an increased knowledge of similarities and differences in unlisted companies' sustainability reporting between the retail, energy, and real estate industries.  Methodology: A qualitative content analysis was conducted on sustainability reports prepared for the fiscal year 2021. The sample consisted of 15 Swedish unlisted companies divided into the retail, energy, and real estate industries. The qualitative content analysis was applied deductively because concepts from the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) was the basis of the study's coding scheme that was applied to the study's empirical data material.  Findings: This study shows that there are similarities and differences in unlisted companies' sustainability reporting between the retail, energy, and real estate industries. The study finds that there are similarities in the sustainability areas that the unlisted companies between the industries report on. The study also shows that there are similarities and differences in which subcategories within these sustainability areas that the unlisted companies between industries report on in a prominent way. This study shows that the similarities can mainly be understood by coercive and mimetic isomorphism, but also by the normative branch within stakeholder theory. The study also shows that the differences can mainly be understood by coercive and mimetic isomorphism, but also by the positive branch within the stakeholder theory.  Originality/value: Previous studies that have studied companies' sustainability reporting between different industries have mainly studied listed companies. In addition, there is a lack of studies that have examined similarities and differences between the retail, energy, and real estate industries. This study has contributed to an increased knowledge of similarities and differences in unlisted companies' corporate sustainability reporting between the retail, energy, and real estate industries. This thesis is written in Swedish.

Background: On the 21st of April 2021, the EU Commission declared the adoption of Directive (EU) 2022/2464. This directive will significantly increase reporting requirements for companies within its scope. To this date, these sustainability standards are the most comprehensive yet and they aim to foster sustainability reporting quality. However, the concept of quality is multidimensional and empirical evidence related to SRQ and mandatory reporting standards are ambiguous. However, this new directive has not yet been researched thoroughly. Considering it will disrupt the way companies conduct their sustainability reporting, it would foster a research contribution to explore the effects the directive will have on SRQ.  Purpose: This thesis seeks to measure the compliance with, and quality of, the cross- cutting and topical standards derived from Directive (EU) 2022/2464 in large Swedish companies.  Method: The applied research method is quantitative with a deductive approach, where a hypothesis was generated based on existing literature on sustainability reporting quality. Data was collected from annual and sustainability reports of 45 companies. To measure CSRD compliance and the quality index, content analysis has been used. This facilitates transposition of qualitative information to quantitative data. The data was analysed using the statistical program SPSS.  Results: The results from the study show a significant positive relationship between compliance with CSRD and all the dependent variables of measuring the quality of sustainability reporting. Furthermore, the study shows that the average degree of compliance with CSRD requirements is currently 34% in the population, where the highest achieved score was 58% and the lowest achieved score was 7%.

Bakgrund och problem: Klimatförändringar har ökat allt mer med åren och är idag ett hot mot både individens hälsa och säkerhet. Tidigare forskning har studerat hur olika branscher, som bland annat material- och industribranschen, redovisar kring klimatrelaterade risker. Däremot har dessa studier inte fokuserat på hur endast en bransch redovisar kring klimatrelaterade risker. Dessutom finns det få studier som har fokuserat på hur redovisningen av klimatrelaterade risker påverkats av tvingande hållbarhetsrapportering.  Syftet: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur tre av Sveriges storbanker redovisar kring risker som är till följd av klimatförändringar i års- och hållbarhetsrapporter och hur det har utvecklats för de tre årtalen 2016, 2019 och 2022. Studien bidrar till att få en ökad förståelse på hur tvingande hållbarhetsrapportering och införandet av ramverket Task Force on Climate - related Financial Disclosure påverkar redovisningen av klimatrelaterade risker.  Frågeställning: Hur redovisar banker kring de risker som är till följd av klimatförändringar i års- och hållbarhetsrapporter och har tvingande hållbarhetsrapportering påverkat redovisningen? Hur påverkas innehållet av års- och hållbarhetsrapporten vid införandet av TCFD? Metod: Inom denna studie har en metodkombination, kvalitativ och kvantitativ forskningsstrategi, tillämpats i form av en komparativ forskningsdesign. En innehållsanalys har genomförts. En kodningsmanual och ett kodningsschema har utformats med hjälp av kvalitativa frågor och kvantitativ data.  Resultat och slutsats: Studiens resultat kan visa på att det har skett en utveckling kring bankernas redovisning av klimatrisker för år 2016, 2019 och 2022.  Studien påvisar att bankerna har utvecklats från ett allmänt förhållningssätt till en mer specifik redovisning av klimatrisker, vilket tyder på en positiv påverkan från införandet av tvingande hållbarhetsrapportering. Vidare påvisar studien att införandet av ramverket TCFD har bidragit till en mer omfattande och detaljerad redovisning av klimatrisker, vilket i sin tur även tyder på en positiv påverkan. / Background and Problem: Climate changes have progressively intensified over the years and are presently a menace to both individual well-being and security. Prior research has explored how various sectors, including materials and industrial sectors, disclose climate-related risks. However, these inquiries have not centered on the singular disclosure of climate-related risks within a single sector. Furthermore, a limited number of studies have concentrated on how the reporting of climate-related risks has been influenced by mandatory sustainability reporting. Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine how three of Sweden's major banks disclose risks resulting from climate change in their annual and sustainability reports, and how it has evolved for the three years 2016, 2019, and 2022. The study contributes to enhancing the understanding of how mandatory sustainability reporting and the implementation of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure framework influence the disclosure of climate-related risks. Research Question: How do banks disclose the risks resulting from climate change in annual and sustainability reports, and how has mandatory sustainability reporting affected the disclosure? How is the content of the annual and sustainability reports influenced by the implementation of TCFD (Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure)? Method: This study employs a mixed-methods research strategy, combining qualitative and quantitative approaches, in the form of a comparative research design. To examine the banks' annual and sustainability reports for the years 2016, 2019, and 2022, a content analysis has been conducted. A coding manual and coding scheme have been developed using qualitative questions and quantitative data. Results and Conclusion: The results of the study can indicate that there has been a progression in the disclosure of climate risks by banks for the years 2016, 2019, and 2022. The study demonstrates that banks have evolved from a general approach to a more specific disclosure of climate risks, implying a favorable impact stemming from the implementation of mandatory sustainability reporting. Furthermore, the study highlights that the adoption of the TCFD framework has contributed to a more comprehensive and intricate disclosure of climate risks, which, in turn, also suggests a positive influence.

South Africa is facing a water crisis in terms of the scarcity and the quality of its water. Considering this water-constrained future it is evident that companies in South Africa should pay attention to the pristine management of this scarce resource. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the reporting and disclosure requirements of water of Socially Responsible Investment-indexed (SRI) JSE-listed companies. The disclosure requirements of the integrated report, King III, the Global Reporting Initiative and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, provided the theoretical background to develop a water disclosure index. Content analysis was used as the research method to analyse the integrated and sustainability reports of a selected group of SRI indexed JSE-listed companies. The results were analysed in terms of the disclosure on items such as materiality, governance, corporate policies, environmental management systems, risk assessments and key performance indicators. The findings of the study include that most of the companies illustrate commitment towards water stewardship by reporting on water-related aspects. The mining sector rated the highest on disclosure and reporting of water-related aspects by providing the most detailed descriptions by indicating that they clearly understand the context of their operations and the associated risks. In the process of analysing the integrated and sustainability reports with specific reference to the key performance indicators, it was evident that companies lack comparability and consistency in their disclosure. It is recommended that companies improve the relevance, depth and clarity of their disclosure on water. / MCom (Management Accountancy), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

South Africa is facing a water crisis in terms of the scarcity and the quality of its water. Considering this water-constrained future it is evident that companies in South Africa should pay attention to the pristine management of this scarce resource. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the reporting and disclosure requirements of water of Socially Responsible Investment-indexed (SRI) JSE-listed companies. The disclosure requirements of the integrated report, King III, the Global Reporting Initiative and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, provided the theoretical background to develop a water disclosure index. Content analysis was used as the research method to analyse the integrated and sustainability reports of a selected group of SRI indexed JSE-listed companies. The results were analysed in terms of the disclosure on items such as materiality, governance, corporate policies, environmental management systems, risk assessments and key performance indicators. The findings of the study include that most of the companies illustrate commitment towards water stewardship by reporting on water-related aspects. The mining sector rated the highest on disclosure and reporting of water-related aspects by providing the most detailed descriptions by indicating that they clearly understand the context of their operations and the associated risks. In the process of analysing the integrated and sustainability reports with specific reference to the key performance indicators, it was evident that companies lack comparability and consistency in their disclosure. It is recommended that companies improve the relevance, depth and clarity of their disclosure on water. / MCom (Management Accountancy), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The objective of the thesis is to analyse how stakeholder influence has transformed sustainability work from being primarily risk management into becoming an integral part of business conduct and even business identities of today. To detect this trend I gather theoretical information that elaborate on the meaning and drivers of sustainable business conduct, sustainability as corporate identity, relevant stakeholders and ways of communicating to stakeholders. A case study of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company is conducted, as an example of a market leader on sustainable business conduct. By demonstrating the extensive sustainability work that Ben & Jerry’s do, I argue that it has had a clear bottom-up influence on the trend for sustainable business conduct. Together with recent regulatory demands as a top-down influence in markets, I argue that there is evidence of a trend where sustainable business conduct and/or sustainability as business identity is becoming the new norm.

I dagsläget pågår reglering gällande hållbarhetsrapportering inom redovisningsområdet i syfte att uppnå harmonisering och jämförbarhet. Tidigare forskning visar att det finns problem med att uppnå jämförbarhet då det finns en flexibilitet i regleringen gällande innehållet i rapporterna som lämnar möjligheter att tillämpa cherry picking. Syftet med denna studie är därmed att öka förståelsen för vilken inverkan lagstiftning kan ha på företags hållbarhetsrapportering. I syftet ingår att särskilt granska potentiella effekter av reglerad hållbarhetsrapportering med avseende på jämförbarhet och cherry picking. Studien klassificeras som tolkande forskning där forskningsansatsen växlar mellan deduktiv och induktiv ansats. Studien kan i huvudsak kategoriseras som en kvalitativ dokumentstudie eftersom empirisk datainsamling sker genom innehållsanalys av remissvar. Även juridisk metod tillämpas då förstudie av lagstiftning presenteras.Teorin består av en allmän referensram, en teoretisk referensram samt tidigare forskning. Den empiriska sammanställningen bygger på kategorier i form av frågeställningar och i analysen ställs teori mot empiri med hjälp av en analysmodell. Både teori och empiri tyder på att det finns begränsningar med att reglera hållbarhetsrapportering som kan ha negativ inverkan på transparens och jämförbarhet i hållbarhetsrapporterna. Det uppmärksammas att flexibilitet i lagstiftning är nödvändig, men att företags möjligheter att välja ut (cherry pick) innehåll i hållbarhetsrapporter bör begränsas, vilket aktualiserar behov av övervakning. Ur ett teoretiskt perspektiv belyser denna studie behovet av att reglera kvalitetssäkring av hållbarhetsrapporter som en övervakningsmekanism. Ur ett praktiskt perspektiv visar studien att företag som omfattas av lag om hållbarhetsrapportering fortfarande kommer att kunna välja vad som lyfts fram i hållbarhetsrapporterna, men att det kan ha negativ inverkan på jämförbarhet. Då studien endast kan bidra med potentiella effekter av lagstiftning kan det vara intressant att i framtida studier utvärdera vilka faktiska effekter som reglerad hållbarhetsrapportering haft på jämförbarhet och cherry picking. / Currently there is an ongoing regulation process of sustainability reporting in order to achieve harmonization and comparability of non-financial information. Previous research indicates that there is a problem with achieving comparability when there is a regulatory flexibility regarding the content in the sustainability reports. The aim of this study is therefore to increase understanding of what impact regulation may have on sustainability reporting. The aim is particularly to review the potential impact of regulated sustainability reporting in terms of comparability and cherry picking. The study is classified as interpretive research and the research approach alternates between deductive and inductive approach. Qualitative document analysis is applied, where the empirical data is collected using content analysis of consultation responses. A pilot study based on legislation has been carried out, which makes legal methodology applicable. The theoretical framework consists of general concepts and notions, established theory formations and previous research. The empirical compilation is based on categories composed as questions and the empirical results are analyzed using an analytical model. Both previous research and empirical results suggest that when it comes to regulation of sustainability reporting there are limitations which can result in a negative impact on transparency and comparability. It has been noted that flexibility in legislation is necessary, but the opportunities for companies to choose (cherry pick) content of sustainability reports should be limited, which raises the need for monitoring mechanisms. From a theoretical perspective, this study highlights the need to legislate quality assurance of sustainability reports as a monitoring mechanism. From a practical point of view, the study shows that companies subject to the legislation of sustainability reporting still will be able to choose what content to emphasize. However, this may result in difficulties considering the comparability between reports.  As the study only can highlight potential effects of legislation, it may be interesting in future studies to evaluate the actual impact of regulated sustainability reporting in terms of comparability and cherry picking.

Rapportering av hållbarhet blir allt vanligare bland företag och enligt lag måste offentliga företag i Sverige hållbarhetsrapportera. Lagkravet gälller däremot inte universitet och högskolor och det är därför intressant att studera deras frivilliga hållbarhetsrapportering. Den svenska populationen ansågs liten därför studerades även de nordiska grannländerna. Utifrån detta formades syftet, Studiens syfte är att analysera orsaker till svenska universitets rapportering med avseende på hållbarhet. Studien skall även belysa vad och hur svenska universitet hållbarhetsrapporterar och jämföra mot övriga nordiska universitet. Utifrån syftet växte två forskningsfrågor fram, Varför väljer svenska universitet att rapportera hållbarhet eller varför väljer de att inte göra det? Hållbarhetsrapporterar svenska och andra nordiska universitet, i så fall hur och vad rapporterar de om sin hållbarhet?   För att besvara forskningsfrågorna genomfördes en dokumentanalys och en enkätundersökning. Den insamlade empirin kopplades sedan ihop med teorier och tidigare forskning. Studien visar att universiteten och högskolorna rapporterar liknande information inom hållbarhet. Att hållbarhetsrapporteringen inte är utbyggd beror delvis på att det inte finns något krav på att rapportera den. För att utveckla denna studie skulle en noggrannare undersökning bland de nordiska grannländerna kunna göras. Tidigare forskning har konstaterat att hållbarhetsrapportering är under uppbyggnad men behöver utvecklas för att passa universitetens verksamhet. Denna studie har därför tagit fram relevanta indikatorer anpassade för universitetens rapportering av hållbarhet och som kan vara till nytta för uppbyggnaden av den. / As reporting sustainability is becoming increasingly common among corporations and by law Swedish public sector companies has to sustainability report. However this does not apply for universities, which makes it interesting to study their voluntary sustainability reporting. The Swedish population was considered small so the study was expanded to the neighboring Nordic countries. From this the aim was formed, This study aims to analyze the causes of Swedish universities reporting with respect to sustainability. The study will also shed light on what and how Swedish universities sustainability reports and compare with the neighboring Nordic countries. From this two research questions was developed Why do Swedish universities choose to report sustainability or why do they choose not to? Do Swedish and the other Nordic countries report on sustainability, if so how and what do they report on their sustainability? To answer the research questions a document analysis and survey was conducted. Theory and earlier research was then applied to the empirical findings. This study shows that universities sustainability reporting produces similar information. The reason why sustainability reporting isn’t developed is in part due to the fact that there is no requirement to do it. To develop this study further a closer analysis of the neighboring Nordic countries could be conducted. Earlier research has found that sustainability reporting is developing but need to be further developed to suit universities operations. This study has therefore developed relevant indicators adapted for universities sustainability reporting that can be of useful in future development.

Inledning. Stora klimatförändringar och ekonomiska kriser har allt tydligare börjat peka mot att det behövs ett nytt hållbart tankesätt i hur vi lever, driver företag och vad vi lämnar efter oss till nästa generation. I Sverige har framförallt miljödebatten tillsammans med ett förändrat samhällsklimat skiftat synen på långsiktighet, till att idag utgöra en viktig del i de flesta företags långsiktiga strategier. Emellertid har tidigare forskning visat att utan en statlig hänsyn kommer de mer avancerade utmaningar som företagen ställs inför att förbli underutvecklade. Den svenska staten som är en betydlig företagsägare har sökt hålla sig i framkant genom att tidigt främja sådant arbete inom sina företag. 2008 infördes en obligatorisk redovisning av hållbarhetsansvar förstatliga bolag enligt en internationell standard, -GRI. Ett av syftena med detta var även att främja transparens i de statliga bolagens arbete med hållbarhet samt en transparent redovisning av detta arbete. Enligt den tidigare forskningen är transparens ett vitalt villkor för hållbarhetsarbete och utgör ett krav för de statliga bolagen. Syfte. Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka vilken betydelse kravet på transparens har för utvecklingen av hållbarhetsarbetet i de statligt ägda bolagen samt hur väl bolagens och statens uppfattning av begreppet transparens stämmer överens. Metod. Det är en kvalitativ flerfallstudie som baserar sig på sex djupa intervjuer, varav fem av dem avser de statliga bolagen och en intervju med näringsdepartement. Även en genomgång avde års-och hållbarhetsredovisningar som är tillgängliga på bolagens hemsidor har gjorts för att se hur redovisning av hållbarhetsansvaret har förändrats under åren. Slutsatser. Transparens är en av grundpelarna i allt hållbarhetsarbete. Transparens innebär att vara öppna och ärliga, redovisa sina resultat oavsett utfall, samt våga tala om sina risker och hur dessa hanteras. Uppfattningen som den svenska staten och de statliga bolagen har angående transparens och dess betydelse för hållbarhetsarbete stämmer till en hög grad överens och skiljer sig mest i den rollen som GRI:sriktlinjer spelar för transparens kvalité. Genom ett krav på extern granskning och en obligatorisk redovisning enligt GRI, ägardialoger samt statens egna hållbarhetsanalyser, säkerställer den svenska staten en god och jämn nivå på transparent hållbarhetsarbete hos de statliga bolagen. Tack vare GRI:s G4 fokus på väsentlighet och dialog med intressenter, säkerställer en robust transparens förtroendet för företagen och utgör ramen för en bra hållbarhetsredovisning. Det finns dock en del svårigheter med transparens och GRI, förknippade till delvis bristfälliga indikatorer samt avsaknaden av utarbetad praxis och rutiner för hållbarhetsredovisning enligt GRI. / Background. Big climate change and economical crises have ever more clearly showed the need for a new sustainable way of thinking, on how we live our lives, run our companies and what we leave for the next generation. In Sweden the environmental debate has combined with a changed social atmosphere shifted public opinion in sustainability, to what is today an integral part inthe long term strategy of most companies. However, earlier research has shown that without government consideration, the more advanced challenges will remain unanswered. The Swedish government is a major shareholder and owner of several companies and has sought to remain in the advantaged by favoring that kind of work within there companies. In 2008 a law was passed which made obligatory thesustainability reporting inaccordanceto a international framework, -GRI. One of the primary purposes of this was toenforce transparency in the sustainability work of government owned companies and a transparent accountingof that work. According to theearlier research, transparency is a vital part of sustainability work and constitutes an absolute condition on the government owned companies. Purpose. The purpose of this thesis is to research what meaning the term transparency has for the development the sustainability work in governmentally owned companies as well as how well the interpretation of the term transparency correlate with that of the government. Methodology. This is a qualitative case study, based on six in depth interviews, five of whichare regarding government owned companies and one is with the ministry of enterprise and innovation. A study of the financial statements and sustainability reporting available on the company webpages has been made to determine how this sustainability reporting has changed over time. Conclusions. Transparency constitutes part of the foundation in all sustainability work.Transparency means to be open and honest, to report your results no matter the outcome, and to dare talk about risks and how they are managed. The perception that the Swedish government and state owned companies have regarding transparency and its importance for the sustainability work is in the same line and differ mostly in what role the GRI plays for transparency. Through the condition of external audit, a mandatory reporting in accordance to GRI, owners dialogue, and the governments own sustainability-analysis, ensures a high sustained level of transparent sustainability-work of the governmentally owned companies. Because of the focus of GRI:s G4 on the essential elements and dialogue with stakeholders, transparency create trust in the governmentally owned companies, and constitutes the framework for a good level of sustainability-reporting. There are however a few difficulties with transparency and GRI, associated with flawed indicators or the lack of a working precedence and any set of routine for sustainable reporting according to GRI.

Sustainability including the reporting requirements is one of the most relevant topics for companies. In recent years, many software providers have launched new software tools targeting companies committed to implementing sustainability reporting. But it’s not only companies willing to use their Business Intelligence (BI) solution, there are also basic principles such as the single source of truth and tendencies to combine sustainability reporting with the financial reporting (Integrated Reporting) The IT integration of sustainability reporting has received limited attention by scientific research and can be facilitated using BI systems. This has to be done both to anticipate the economic demand for integrated reporting from an IT perspective as well as for ensuring the reporting of revisable data. Through the adaption of BI systems, necessary environmental and social changes can be addressed rather than merely displaying sustainability data from additional, detached systems or generic spreadsheet applications. This thesis presents research in the two domains sustainability reporting and Business Intelligence and provides a method to support companies willing to implement sustainability reporting with BI. SureBI presented within this thesis is developed to address experts from both sustainability and BI. At first BI is researched from a IT and project perspective and a novel BI reporting process is developed. Then, sustainability reporting is researched focusing on the reporting content and a sustainability reporting process is derived. Based on these two reporting processes SureBI is developed, a step-by-step process method, aiming to guide companies through the process of implementing sustainability reporting using their BI environment. Concluding, an evaluation and implementation assesses the suitability and correctness of the process model and exemplarily implements crucial IT tasks of the process. The novel combination of these two topics indicates challenges from both fields. In case of BI, users face problems regarding historically grown systems and lacking implementation strategies. In case of sustainability, the mostly voluntary manner of this reporting leads to an uncertainty as to which indicators have to be reported. The resulting SureBI addresses and highlights these challenges and provides methods for the addressing and prioritization of new stakeholders, the prioritization of the reporting content and describes possibilities to integrate the high amount of estimation figures using BI. Results prove that sustainability reporting could and should be implemented using existing BI solutions.