This study contributes towards the ever-growing research field of sustainability reporting within the broader context of integrated reporting. Sustainability reporting is the integration of the environmental, social and economic aspects of an organisation in the communication with stakeholders. South Africa’s Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) has taken a leading role in the drive for integrated reporting. The aim of the study was to determine the quality of sustainability reporting for the JSE listed firms post the introduction of listing requirements for integrated reporting. Reports of good quality enable stakeholders to make sound decisions from the reported information. The study was limited to sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms. The theoretical lens for the study is the stakeholder theory developed by Freeman (1984). The study analyses perceptions of sustainability practitioners on quality of sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms for the period of 2009 to 2017. In this study, the focus was to gain rich insights from sustainability practitioners involved in the sustainability reporting value chain of JSE listed firms. This included report preparers, report assurance providers, report users and other report critical reviewers. The recordings of the semistructured interviews undertaken in this study were transcribed verbatim and analysed using a descriptive analysis technique called Tesch’s coding. The researcher reviewed the information, probed and summarised the main themes that emerged from the qualitative research. The study shows that there are no explicit mandatory requirements for integrated reporting and sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms, contrary to the perception of some scholars and practitioners. The publication of integrated and sustainability reports is, however, now business best practice for firms on the JSE. Admittedly, this is partly because of King Codes recommendations of South Africa that promotes integrated reporting. Sustainability reporting has been improving over a nine-year period, but this cannot be solely attributed to the listing requirements. Basic interventions such as listing requirements for integrated reporting on the JSE and the shareholder compacts on South Africa’s State-owned companies, although not explicitly mandatory, have contributed in promoting integrated and sustainability reporting in South Africa. There are many drivers of sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms. These can be categorised as internal and external drivers. The internal drivers can also be regarded as critical success factors for sustainability reporting quality for JSE listed firms. The study revealed the dominance of the two drivers of sustainability reporting, namely stakeholder demands and the role of leadership in shaping sustainability reporting in the South African context. The combination of the two drivers on sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms confirms the assumptions of the stakeholder theory. In the process of determining the trends in reporting and the actual drivers for improved quality in reporting, the cross-cutting theme that emerged was that different organisations are in different stages of their reporting journey. There are early adopters and late adopters. Organisations that choose to be involved in integrated reporting and sustainability reporting experience a real journey of reporting, hence various organisations are at different stages depending when and how they commenced their reporting journey. The researcher coined that process “sustainability reporting life stages”. The study further found that there are many determinants for quality of sustainability reporting for JSE listed firms. The sustainability practitioners perceive quality from the view of the Global Reporting Initiative and Integrated Reporting Council frameworks, thus confirming the entrenchment of the two frameworks in the South African context. The best option assurance mechanism in the form of the Combined Assurance Model was observable in the better reporting sectors on the JSE and State-owned companies. The critical paths for sustainability reporting have been provided, indicating the need for sustainability leadership and stakeholder inclusiveness. / Business Management / D.B.L.

Titel: Hållbarhetsrapportering - En kvantitativ studie om företag som påverkas av de nya direktiven i årsredovisningslagen väljer att presentera sin hållbarhetsrapport i årsredovisningen eller i en separat publikation. Nivå: Kandidatuppsats i företagsekonomi, 15 HP Författare: Kristoffer Saglind & Egzon Selimi Handledare: Fredrik Hartwig Datum: 2019 – Januari Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka om de svenska företag som påverkas av den nya reformen (SFS 2016:947) väljer att presentera sin hållbarhetsrapport i årsredovisningen eller i en separat publikation. Studien undersöker även om branschtillhörighet, antalet kvinnor i styrelsen och skuldsättningsgrad kan förklara om hållbarhetsrapporten presenteras i årsredovisningen eller i en separat publikation. Metod: Undersökningen utgår från den positivistiska traditionen och tillämpar en deduktiv ansats. För att besvara syftet har en kvantitativ forskningsstrategi tillämpats genom en innehållsanalys samt att hypoteser har utformats för att sedan testas i en regressionsanalys. Datainsamlingen för undersökningen har inhämtats från databasen Retriever där alla aktiebolag som påverkas av den nya lagstiftningen undersöks. Resultat & slutsats: Studiens resultat visar att 45,42% av alla de undersökta företagen väljer att placera sin hållbarhetsrapport i årsredovisningen medan 54,58% presenterar den i ett separat dokument. Vidare så finner studien ett positivt signifikant samband mellan 2 av de 28 undersökta branscherna och att integrera hållbarhetsrapporten i årsredovisningen. Studien finner även ett positivt signifikant samband mellan antalet kvinnor i styrelsen och att ha en integrerad hållbarhetsrapport. Skuldsättningsgrad visar inget signifikant samband i undersökningen. Examensarbetets bidrag: Studiens praktiska bidrag är att sannolikheten är högre att ett företag inkluderar hållbarhetsrapporten i årsredovisningen ju fler kvinnor som finns i styrelsen. Vidare så tenderar företag verksamma inom branscherna ”företagstjänster” och ”fastighetsverksamhet” att placera hållbarhetsrapporten i årsredovisningen. Det teoretiska bidraget är att det finns ett positivt signifikant samband mellan antalet kvinnor i styrelsen, och till viss del branschtillhörighet med att integrera hållbarhetsrapporten i årsredovisningen. Vidare fann faktorerna skuldsättningsgrad och företagsstorlek inte något signifikant samband och kan därför inte förklara något. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Vi föreslår att vidare forskning bör undersöka huruvida andra faktorer kan förklara var ett företag väljer att placera sin hållbarhetsrapport. Vidare föreslår vi att vidare forskning bör undersöka hur det skiljer sig mellan olika länder där en liknande reglering finns. Denna undersökning bör då använda samma oberoende variabler för att studien skall bli jämförbar. / Title: Sustainability reporting - A quantitative study on how companies affected by the new directives regarding the annual report choose to present their sustainability report either in the annual report or in a separate document. Level: Bachelor thesis in Business Administration, 15 HP Author: Kristoffer Saglind & Egzon Selimi Supervisor: Fredrik Hartwig Date: 2019 – Januari Aim: The aim of the study is to investigate whether Swedish companies affected by the new reform (SFS 2016: 947) choose to present their sustainability report in the annual report or in a separate publication. The study also investigates whether industry affiliation, the number of women on the board and leverage can explain if the sustainability report is presented in the annual report or in a separate publication. Method: The study is based on a positivist philosophy and applies a deductive approach. In order to respond to the aim of the study a quantitative research strategy has been applied through a content analysis. Thus, hypothesis has been designed to then be tested in a regression analysis. Data collection for the survey has been retrieved from the database Retriever where all companies affected by the new legislation are being investigated. Result & Conclusions: The results of the study shows that 45.42% of all the companies investigated choose to place their sustainability report in their annual report, while 54.58% present it in a separate document. Furthermore, the study finds a positive significant correlation between 2 of the 28 investigated industries and integrating the sustainability report into the annual report. The study also finds a positive significant correlation between the number of women on the board and an integrated sustainability report. Finally, leverage show no significant correlation in the study. Contribution of the thesis: The practical contribution of the study is that the probability is higher that more women present on the board makes the probability higher that the sustainability report is included in the annual report. Furthermore, companies active in the sectors of "business services" and "real estate activities" tend to place the sustainability report in the annual report. The theoretical contribution is that there is a positive significant correlation between the factors number of women on the board, and to some extent the industry of the company in integrating the sustainability report in the annual report. Furthermore, the factors leverage and company size did not find any significant correlation and therefore can not explain anything. Suggestions for future research:  We propose that further research should investigate whether other factors can explain where a company chooses to place its sustainability report. Furthermore, we suggest that further research should investigate how it differs between different countries where a similar regulation exists. This study should then use the same independent variables to make the study comparable.

Syfte: Rapporteringspliktens effekt på kontroversiella företags utgivande av hållbarhetsinformation inom den hållbarhetsdimension de anses agera negativt inom är i stort sett outforskad. Syftet med studien har därför varit att undersöka om det finns något samband mellan obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering och mängden social hållbarhetsinformation som ges ut av socialt kontroversiella företag. Syftet har också varit att undersöka om det finns något samband mellan obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering och mängden miljömässig hållbarhetsinformation som ges ut av miljömässigt kontroversiella företag.  Metod: Studien antar en positivistisk forskningsfilosofi med en deduktiv ansats och longitudinell design med data som omfattar fem år för 23 stycken svenska kontroversiella företag. Studien har genomförts med en kvantitativ metod där primärdata samlats in genom en innehållsanalys. Studien är också baserad på sekundärdata som inhämtats från databasen Retriever. Insamlad data har sedan analyserats i statistikprogrammet SPSS genom deskriptiv statistik, korrelationstest och regressionsanalyser för att testa studiens hypoteser.  Resultat och slutsats: Studiens resultat påvisar inget signifikant samband mellan obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering och mängden social hållbarhetsinformation som ges ut av socialt kontroversiella företag. Studiens resultat påvisade däremot att det fanns ett signifikant positivt samband mellan obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering och mängden miljömässig hållbarhetsinformation som ges ut av miljömässigt kontroversiella företag. Teoretisk och praktiskt resultat: Studiens teoretiska resultat bygger vidare på forskningen om eventuella samband mellan obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering och mängden rapportering inom två olika hållbarhetsdimensioner (miljö och social) för två olika grupper av kontroversiella företag (miljö och social). Genom ytterligare empirisk forskning inom området utökas litteraturen då studien funnit resultat som både motsäger och bekräftar tidigare forskning. Studiens praktiska resultat ger även en indikation på hur effektiv regleringen av hållbarhetsrapportering är för socialt och miljömässigt kontroversiella företag.  Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Studiens population består av svenska kontroversiella företag som omfattas av obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering. Ett bredare perspektiv skulle därför kunna antas där andra länder eller branscher inkluderas för att se om resultatet som denna studie framställer även gäller dem. Studien identifierar också tydliga skillnader mellan socialt och miljömässigt kontroversiella företag, något som vidare forskning kan undersöka. / Aim: The effect that mandatory sustainability reporting have on disclosures regarding the negative sustainability area for companies operating in controversial industry sectors are widely unexplored. The pupose of this study has therefore been to investigate whether there is a relationship between mandatory sustainability reporting and the amount of social sustainability information disclosed by socially controversial companies. The purpose has also been to investigate whether there is a relationship between mandatory sustainability reporting and the amount of environmental sustainability information disclosed by environmentally controversial companies.  Method: The study adopts a positivist research philosophy with a deductive approach and longitudinal design with data covering five years for 23 Swedish controversial companies. The study is carried out with a quantitative method where primary data has been collected through a content analysis. The study is also based on secondary data obtained from the Retriever database. The data was then analyzed in the statistical program SPSS, which carried out descriptive statistics, correlationstest and regressionanalysis to test the hypotheses of the study.  Result and conclusion: The results of the study showed no significant relationship between mandatory sustainability reporting and the amount of social sustainability information disclosed by socially controversial companies. On the contrary, the results showed a significant positive relationship between mandatory sustainability reporting and the amount of environmental sustainability information disclosed by environmentally controversial companies.  Theoretical and practical result: The theoretical results of the study are further based on research regarding possible connections between mandatory sustainability reporting and the amount of reporting within two different sustainability dimensions (environmental and social) for two different group of controversial companies (environmental and social). Through further empirical research in this area, the litterature is expanded as the study has found results that both contradict and confirm previous research. The practical results of the study also give an indication of how effective the regulation of sustainability reporting is for socially and environmentally controversial companies. Suggestion for future research: The population included in this study consist of Swedish controversial companies that are covered by mandatory sustainability reporting. Further reasearch could therefore adopt a broader perspective where other countries or industries are included to see if the results obtained in this study also holds for these countries or industries. The study also identifies differences between socially and environmentally controversial companies. What these differences are due to and whether they have any statistical significance is something that further research can investigate since it was not the pupose of this study to further investigate this.

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.