Titel: Implementering av GRI-standarder och riktlinjer: Fördelar och Utmaningar i Hållbarhetsredovisningen. Nivå: Examensarbete på grundnivå (kandidatexamen) i ämnet företagsekonomi. Författare: Sofia Ivarsson och Sofie Skalberg. Handledare: Jean Claude Mutiganda. Datum: 2024 - januari. Syfte: Skandinavien intar en framstående position i världen när det gäller att redovisa hållbarhet. Flertalet företag i Sverige har börjat implementera GRI som ett verktyg för att förstärka hållbarhetsredovisningen och förbättra kommunikationen med intressenterna. Studien avser att undersöka fördelar och utmaningar som svenska statliga företag upplever vid implementeringen och användningen av GRI-riktlinjerna i hållbarhetsredovisningen. Metod: I denna studie har en kvalitativ metod med en induktiv forskningsansats tillämpats, som innefattar empirisk datainsamling från sju semistrukturerade intervjuer med svenska statliga bolag i olika branscher. Efter kodning och tematisering av det empiriska materialet har resultatet sedan analyserats och tolkats mot tidigare forskning. Resultat och analys samt slutsats: Trots frånvaron av exakt lagstiftning väljer företagofta att anpassa sig till externa riktlinjer såsom GRI. GRI-ramverket ökar transparensen och förbättrar företagens trovärdighet och legitimitet. Däremot inkluderar utmaningarna resurskrävande rapportering och risk för att fokusera för mycket på kriterier i stället för på verkliga förbättringar, vilket kräver anpassning för att möta företagens specifika behov inför CSRD. Studiens bidrag: Studien bidrar till att redogöra för hur företag upplevt implementeringen och användningen av GRI som ramverk. Dessutom ger studien konkreta slutsatser och rekommendationer baserat på erfarenheter och insikter som företagen erhållit genom användningen av GRI i hållbarhetsredovisningen. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: För att få en bredare förståelse av GRI hade det varit intressant att undersöka andra företag, som inte är statliga och verksamma i Sverige. Det hade även varit intressant att undersöka de fördelar och utmaningar företag upplever med CSRD. / Title: Implementation of GRI Standards and Guidelines: Benefits and Challenges in Sustainability Reporting. Level: Student thesis, final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration. Author: Sofia Ivarsson and Sofie Skalberg. Supervisor: Jean Claude Mutiganda. Date: 2024 - january. Aim: Scandinavia occupies a prominent position globally in sustainability reporting. Many companies in Sweden have started to implement GRI as a tool to strengthen their sustainability reporting and improve communication with their stakeholders. The study aims to examine benefits and challenges that Swedish state-owned companies experience when implementing and using the GRI guidelines in sustainability reporting. Method: In this study, a qualitative method with an inductive research approach has been applied, which includes empirical data collection from seven semi-structured interviews with Swedish state-owned companies in various industries. After coding and thematizing the empirical material, the results have been analyzed and interpreted against previous research. Results and analysis and conclusion: Despite the absence of precise legislation, companies often choose to adapt to external guidelines such as GRI. The GRI framework increases transparency, improves companies' credibility and legitimacy. However, challenges include resource-intensive reporting and the risk of focusing too much on criteria instead of real improvements, requiring adaptation to meet the specific needs of companies ahead of CSRD. Contribution of the thesis: The study contributes to an account of how companies experienced the implementation and use of GRI as a framework. In addition, the study provides concrete conclusions and recommendations based on the experiences and insights that companies have gained through the use of GRI in sustainability reporting. Suggestions for future research: In order to gain a broader understanding of GRI, it would have been interesting to explore other companies, beyond state-owned and active companies in Sweden. It would also have been interesting to examine the benefits and challenges companies experience with CSRD.

Challenges on how to approach global sustainability issues are increasing along with the growing global warming. This entails an increasing pressure on firms to manage sustainability- related issues, both deriving from governance regulations as well as a from a growing consciousness from public institutions. Sustainability reporting is further both required within EU legislation and also expected from current societal values. However, sustainability reporting has been criticised for lacking comparability, reliability and thus legitimacy. Legitimation is a necessity for organisations to gain social acceptance. The field of sustainability reporting is rapidly developing which highlights the importance for organisations to stay updated on coming regulations and trends. The overarching aim of this thesis is to explore, advance and compile the understanding of challenges with current sustainability reporting methods. A further aim is to conduct a qualitative forecast analysis of what sustainability reporting will require in the future to gain legitimacy and identify potential upcoming challenges connected to this forecast. Literature within the sustainability reporting and accounting field have been reviewed as well as legitimacy and institutional theory. Interviews with experts within the studied field have been conducted, along with participant observations through a case company study. The study has concluded several challenges with sustainability reporting methods, among others that voluntary disclosure requirements contribute to the lack of standardisation, comparability, and reliability, and therefore also a lack of legitimacy. For the future, the new CSR directive is expected as new legislation for sustainability reporting within a few years and is expected to entail more extensive regulations and requirements on external auditing. The most commonly used reporting standard currently, the GRI, will not completely cover the future requirements and more focus of the entire supply chain can be expected. This study has contributed to the existing research field of sustainability reporting and accounting by compiling, exploring and analysing challenges from the papers´ perspective, which lead to a lack of legitimacy in sustainability reports. The study has, besides this, contributed to knowledge on the potential future of sustainability reporting based on statements and opinions from insightful interviewees together with the identified current challenges. / Utmaningarna kring hur man ska förhålla sig till globala hållbarhetsfrågor ökar i takt med den växande globala uppvärmningen. Detta innebär ett ökande tryck på företag att hantera hållbarhetsrelaterade frågor, som inte bara härrör från lagstiftning utan också har fått ett växande intresse från offentliga institutioner. Hållbarhetsrapportering krävs både inom EU lagstiftning, men är även förväntat utifrån nuvarande samhällsvärderingar. Hållbarhetsredovisningen har dock kritiserats för att sakna jämförbarhet, tillförlitlighet och därmed legitimitet. Legitimitet är en nödvändighet för organisationer för att hålla sig konkurrenskraftiga och även för att få acceptans från samhället. Hållbarhetsrapportering området utvecklas snabbt, vilket understryker vikten av att organisationer håller sig uppdaterade kring kommande regelverk och trender. Det övergripande syftet med denna studie är att utforska, utveckla och sammanställa förståelsen kring utmaningar med nuvarande hållbarhetsredovisningsmetoder. Ett vidare syfte är att göra en kvalitativ framtidsprognos av vad hållbarhetsredovisning kommer att kräva i framtiden för att uppnå legitimitet och identifiera potentiella kommande utmaningar kopplade till denna prognos. Litteratur inom hållbarhetsrapportering och redovisning har granskats, samt legitimitet och institutionell teori. Intervjuer med experter inom det studerade området har genomförts, även "Participant Observations" har gjorts genom en fallstudie på ett företag. Den här studien har sammanställt flera utmaningar med hållbarhetsrapporteringsmetoder, bland annat att frivilliga innehållskrav bidrar till bristen på standardisering, jämförbarhet och tillförlitlighet och därför också bristande legitimitet. För framtiden väntas det nya CSR-direktivetsom ny lagstiftning för hållbarhetsredovisning inom några år och förväntas innebära mer omfattande regelverk och krav på extern revision. Den vanligaste rapporteringsstandarden för närvarande, GRI, kommer inte helt att täcka de framtida kraven och mer fokus på hela leveranskedjan kan förväntas. Denna studie har bidragit till det befintliga forskningsfältet för hållbarhetsrapportering och redovisning genom att sammanställa, utforska och analysera utmaningar från utförarnas perspektiv, vilket leder till bristande legitimitet i hållbarhetsrapporter. Studien har utöver detta bidragit till kunskap om hållbarhetsredovisningens potentiella framtid baserat på uttalanden och åsikter från insiktsfulla intervjupersoner tillsammans med de identifierade aktuella utmaningarna.

La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo general diseñar un modelo de balance social frente a los Indicadores Global Reporting Initiative en transportes Olmos Tours, Lambayeque 2022. Asimismo, se bosquejó una matriz en responsabilidad social según las memorias de sostenibilidad de los Indicadores Global Reporting Initiative, con el fin de que la empresa elabore su propia memoria de responsabilidad sostenible. Dicha investigación contó con un enfoque mixto, de tipo aplicada, de nivel descriptivo - transversal, de diseño no experimental, teniendo como técnica a la entrevista y el análisis documental. En la investigación se presenta una visión general sobre la responsabilidad social empresarial, las ventajas que tiene para Olmos Tours adoptar una conducta socialmente responsable y las exigencias que se originan como contrapartida. Se desarrolló la idea de responsabilidad social como valor estratégico, para fomentar un compromiso ético empresarial y promover practicas responsables dentro de la organización; de tal manera que fortalezca su reputación corporativa, genere confianza y credibilidad entre los clientes, proveedores y otras partes interesadas. Finalmente, los resultados obtenidos demostraron que la empresa de transportes Olmos Tours, desde su creación no realiza informes de sostenibilidad, al medir su grado de responsabilidad social empresarial, se evidencia que se encuentra parcialmente comprometida tanto así que el apoyo a la comunidad es de 1.07 % lo cual debería ser de mayor involucramiento. Asimismo, ejecuta acciones relacionadas a aspectos ambientales y económicos que no cumplen con las expectativas de la RSE, sin embargo, el 1.71% es el mayor porcentaje el cual está enfocado en las oportunidades de mejorar por atender. / The general objective of this research was to design a social balance model against the Global Reporting Initiative Indicators in transport Olmos Tours, Lambayeque 2022. Likewise, a social responsibility matrix was outlined according to the sustainability reports of the Global Reporting Initiative Indicators, with in order for the company to prepare its own sustainable responsibility report. This research had a mixed approach, applied, descriptive-cross-sectional level, non-experimental design, using interview and documentary analysis as a technique. The research presents a general vision of corporate social responsibility, the advantages that Olmos Tours has for adopting socially responsible behavior and the demands that arise as a counterpart. The idea of social responsibility as a strategic value was developed to foster a business ethical commitment and promote responsible practices within the organization; in such a way that it strengthens its corporate reputation, generates trust and credibility among customers, suppliers and other interested parties. Finally, the results obtained demonstrated that the transport company Olmos Tours, since its creation, has not made sustainability reports. When measuring its degree of corporate social responsibility, it is evident that it is partially committed so much so that community support is 1.07. % which should be more involving. Likewise, it executes actions related to environmental and economic aspects that do not meet CSR expectations; however, 1.71% is the highest percentage which is focused on the opportunities for improvement to be addressed.

The sustainability of the REIPPP programme was as yet unknown. Through this study control drivers critical for the sustainability of the REIPPP programme were identified and prioritised. As background sustainability was investigated on an international level and within the South African context. Control drivers are drivers that have a significant impact on the sustainability of the REIPPP programme and also have some level of controllability. These drivers were obtained and compiled based on appropriate literature. The Global Reporting Guideline (GRI) for sustainability was used as baseline for identifying control drivers. To further obtain and verify the relevant sustainability control drivers, input from the REIPPP programme’s key stakeholders were included in the research. The key stakeholders provided an impact and controllability rating via a questionnaire, which was used to prioritise the identified control drivers. Selected key stakeholder where requested to review control drivers that were identified and prioritised, providing the researcher a means of verifying the preliminary proposed control drivers. Obtaining a final list of prioritised control drivers critical for the sustainability of the REIPPP programme was achieved by integrating the drivers identified by the researcher, stakeholder selected alternative drivers and their self-suggested control drivers. The prioritised control drivers could be used to promote or control the sustainability of the REIPPP programme by addressing and/or supporting the control drivers having the most significant impact. The top 5 prioritised control drivers were selected to be used in an interview with high level key stakeholders. The interviewees provided their input on how these drivers could be supported or addressed to control or even promote the sustainability of the REIPPP programme. From the interview it was clear that the final list of prioritised control drivers was relevant and could influence the long-term sustainability of the REIPPP programme. Many insights were obtained which could provide significant role players, or even the South African Government, the guidance they need to take the REIPPP programme forward. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The sustainability of the REIPPP programme was as yet unknown. Through this study control drivers critical for the sustainability of the REIPPP programme were identified and prioritised. As background sustainability was investigated on an international level and within the South African context. Control drivers are drivers that have a significant impact on the sustainability of the REIPPP programme and also have some level of controllability. These drivers were obtained and compiled based on appropriate literature. The Global Reporting Guideline (GRI) for sustainability was used as baseline for identifying control drivers. To further obtain and verify the relevant sustainability control drivers, input from the REIPPP programme’s key stakeholders were included in the research. The key stakeholders provided an impact and controllability rating via a questionnaire, which was used to prioritise the identified control drivers. Selected key stakeholder where requested to review control drivers that were identified and prioritised, providing the researcher a means of verifying the preliminary proposed control drivers. Obtaining a final list of prioritised control drivers critical for the sustainability of the REIPPP programme was achieved by integrating the drivers identified by the researcher, stakeholder selected alternative drivers and their self-suggested control drivers. The prioritised control drivers could be used to promote or control the sustainability of the REIPPP programme by addressing and/or supporting the control drivers having the most significant impact. The top 5 prioritised control drivers were selected to be used in an interview with high level key stakeholders. The interviewees provided their input on how these drivers could be supported or addressed to control or even promote the sustainability of the REIPPP programme. From the interview it was clear that the final list of prioritised control drivers was relevant and could influence the long-term sustainability of the REIPPP programme. Many insights were obtained which could provide significant role players, or even the South African Government, the guidance they need to take the REIPPP programme forward. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

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.

對台灣企業來說，企業社會責任是近年才被重視的一個議題。在過去企業的唯一社會責任就是「增加利潤」。但到了今日，企業在經營上須對所有的利害關係人負責，也就是必需承擔更多的企業社會責任（CSR）。CSR的意涵是從稱為『三重盈餘』（Triple Bottom Line）的經濟、環境、社會等三大構面來展延，企業除了追求股東利潤的極大化外，也應同時兼顧員工、消費者、供應商、社區與環境等利害關係人（stakeholders）的福利。 本研究在研究方法上採的是比較研究法與深度訪談兩種。以標竿企業－美商奇異公司的兩個CSR專案：「企業公民」及「綠色創想」為比較基礎，並以GRI所制訂之G3綱領為比較項目，歸結出台灣企業與國外企業目前在CSR執行上的落差，並透過訪談兩家有正式發佈企業社會責任報告書的台灣廠商：友達、宏碁，找出台灣企業在短期、中期及長期的CSR策略規劃與執行作法。 / Corporate Social Responsibility is focused in Taiwan recent years. Profit is not only the index to evaluate a good company. As a multinational corporation, its strategy, operation, purchase and investment influence the local area. More and more stakeholders request company to reveal non-finance report about aspects of economy, sociality and environment. The transparence becomes important. It is applied comparative analysis research and in-depth interview to this paper. Compared General Electric’s Citizenship report and Ecomagination report with Acer and AUO’s CSR report and interview, it can be analyzed difference of CSR status and gap in International and Taiwan and then to develop strategic planning and executive way.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2017-10-26T13:14:11Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Adriana Rodrigues Balardim.pdf: 1292351 bytes, checksum: 59ab448843dfdfdfe6be4c3be3e95d62 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-10-26T13:14:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Adriana Rodrigues Balardim.pdf: 1292351 bytes, checksum: 59ab448843dfdfdfe6be4c3be3e95d62 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-10-09 / Transparency and the commitment of organizations to the dissemination of their economic, social and environmental results are increasingly important to meet the needs of stakeholders. This study analyzed the integrated reports, also identified as an annual report or sustainability report, published by companies with the objective of verifying adherence to the GRI guidelines and presented a summary with the pillars of sustainability: economic, social and environmental. The database initially considered 34 companies, which are listed in B3's Business Sustainability Index (ISE). Of these, 18 companies were analyzed, considering those that published their reports in the period of 5 years (2012 to 2016). The scope of the analysis was based on the report released in 2016 and it was concluded that 14 companies declare that they comply with the GRI guidelines, which represents 41% of the total sample and 78% of the total companies that were analyzed. This was evidenced by the positive opinion of the Limited Assurance Report issued by independent bodies / A transparência e o comprometimento das organizações em relação à divulgação de seus resultados, econômicos, sociais e ambientais, são cada vez mais importantes para atender às necessidades dos stakeholders. Este estudo analisou os relatos integrados, também identificados como relatório anual ou relatório de sustentabilidade, divulgados pelas empresas com o objetivo de verificar se os Relatos Integrados estão de acordo com às diretrizes GRI, apresentou um resumo com os pilares da sustentabilidade: econômica, social e ambiental e identificou a aderência ao tipo de divulgação, Relato ou Relatório. A base de dados levou em conta inicialmente 34 empresas, as quais estão listadas no Índice de Sustentabilidade Empresarial (ISE) da B3. Dentre estas, 18 empresas foram analisadas, considerando aquelas que divulgaram seus relatórios no período de 5 anos (2012 a 2016). O escopo da análise foi com base no relatório divulgado em 2016 e concluiu-se que 14 empresas declararam que estão de acordo com as diretrizes GRI, o que representa 41% do total da amostra e 78% do total de empresas que foram analisadas. Isto foi constatado pelo parecer positivo do Relatório de Asseguração Limitada emitido por órgãos independentes e identificou o tipo de publicação, Relatório ou Relato descrevendo as características de cada um

As demandas por mudanças devem ser vistas como situações normais dentro do processo de gestão de uma organização. Nesta abordagem, dois elementos são fortes contribuintes como sistemáticas de apoio: a gestão (ou gerenciamento) das mudanças, que estabelece os processos e controles necessários para que os objetivos da mudança sejam alcançados de maneira organizada e a existência dos fatores críticos de sucesso para a mudança, que atuam como elementos de convergência em relação aos objetivos planejados. No mesmo contexto, as grandes empresas, principalmente aquelas de atuação global, têm tido demandas pelas diversas partes interessadas com as quais possuem interface, em demonstrar o seu desempenho na gestão da sustentabilidade, dentro das suas respectivas dimensões: ambiental, social e econômica. O objetivo geral do presente trabalho consiste em identificar quais fatores críticos de sucesso são determinantes no processo de mudança organizacional, em particular na abordagem da prática de gerenciamento de mudanças de uma empresa petroquímica brasileira, associados com inclusão da gestão proativa da sustentabilidade empresarial, através do diagnóstico do cenário atual em relação a este tema. A estrutura metodológica consistiu em macro etapas de revisão da literatura, seleção dos fatores críticos de sucesso e critérios de sustentabilidade, desenvolvimento de questionários e aplicação destes através de um estudo de caso, do tipo observação participante, em uma empresa petroquímica brasileira, viabilizando a subsequente análise dos dados obtidos e conclusões. Os principais resultados identificaram quarenta e cinco fatores críticos de sucesso relacionados ao processo de gestão da mudança organizacional e o modelo da GRI como o de maior aderência no meio empresarial mundial. Foram identificadas contribuições da literatura em fatores críticos de sucesso no processo de gerenciamento de mudanças vigente na organização, tais como comunicação constante e eficiente e recursos, de forma a agregar práticas ao modelo atual de gestão da mudança organizacional. As dimensões de fatores críticos de sucesso identificadas como mais relevantes no estudo de caso foram a liderança e recursos. Em relação à percepção sobre conceitos de sustentabilidade, particularmente quanto requisitos da GRI na versão G4, foi verificada junto aos respondentes uma visão que enfatiza a dimensão ambiental, a despeito das dimensões social e econômica, associada a fragilidades em ambientação dos mesmos em relação a conceitos de sustentabilidade e conexão deste tema com fatores críticos de sucesso na mudança organizacional, trazendo elementos para a melhoria contínua das práticas de gestão, assim como do relato da sustentabilidade empresarial. / The demands for change should be seen as normal situations within the management process of an organization. In this approach, two elements are strong contributors as systematic support: change management, which establishes the necessary processes and controls for the objectives of the change to be achieved in an orderly manner, and the existence of critical success factors for change, which act as elements of convergence towards the planned objectives. In the same context, large companies, especially those with global operations, have been demanded by various stakeholders to demonstrate its performance in sustainability management within their respective dimensions: environmental, social and economic. The overall objective of this study is to identify, particularly in the practice of change management in a Brazilian petrochemical company, the proactive management of corporate sustainability and the critical success factors that are decisive in the organizational change process through the diagnosis of the current scenario regarding this topic. The methodological framework consisted of macro steps of literature review, selection of the critical success factors and criteria of sustainability, development and application of these questionnaires through a participant observation case study in a Brazilian petrochemical company, enabling the subsequent analysis of the obtained data and conclusions. Forty-five critical success factors related to the process of managing organizational change were identified and the GRI model was the most applied model in the global business environment. In order to add to the current practice model for managing organizational change, contributions from the literature were identified in critical success factors in the management of the current changes in the organization, such as constant and efficient communication process and resources. Leadership and resources were the most relevant dimensions of critical success factors identified in the case study. Regarding the understanding of sustainability concepts, particularly in relation to the requirements of GRI in a G4 version, it was verified that the respondents’ perceptions emphasize the environmental dimension over the social and economic dimensions. This was associated with the respondents` limited knowledge regarding concepts of sustainability and how this issue connects with critical success factors in organizational change, bringing elements to the continuous improvement of management practices, as well as the reporting of corporate sustainability.

More and more companies and organizations around the world are aiming towards a sustainable path for their businesses. Pressure from stakeholders and society pushes companies to report on their sustainability performance; however, companies are also seeing the opportunities which arise with these reports and especially large companies are embracing the sustainable path according to prior studies. With an increasing number of sustainability reports produced around the world, the need for measuring the performance indicators within these reports is increasing.With the expansion of sustainability reports among companies, the use of the Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) Guidelines becomes a popular framework for companies to adopt. GRI is widely used around the world, as their comprehensive framework includes many performance indicators for companies to report on.It has also been proved that the use of sustainability reports and the number of indicators disclosed in these reports are depending on several criteria among which the size of the company, its sector of activity, and its nationality.As master students studying in Sweden, we considered it would be interesting to know more about the sustainability reporting inside the country we are studying in. Large-size companies tend to disclose use more sustainability reporting and to disclose more information. Some sectors as the industrial sector are in need of sustainability reporting. As no prior studies were found in our search for showing which GRI indicators companies of the industrial sector preferably report on, we decided to embrace the challenge and fill the research gap by conducting a research of large Swedish companies within the industrial sector.This thesis adopted a quantitative approach. We collected data from 30 large Swedish companies within the industrial sector. We also conducted five hypotheses for our analysis in order to make conclusions on our work, and our main findings show that among the Swedish large-size companies belonging to the industrial sector, the largest report more on sustainability using the GRI. Besides, among the large companies which disclose on the GRI the largest disclose on more indicators than the smallest. Finally, we succeeded in identifying indicators of the GRI which are largely and poorly disclosed by the Swedish large-size companies belonging to the industrial sector.