This study examines how CSRD adoption shapes sustainability leadership and organizational capabilities among ICT firms operating in Finland through a qualitative document analysis of publicly available sustainability and integrated reporting disclosures.
Abstract
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is commonly framed as a reporting mandate; however, early implementation suggests that its effects extend beyond disclosure compliance and into broader organizational transformation. This study examines how CSRD adoption shapes sustainability leadership and organizational capabilities among ICT firms operating in Finland through a qualitative document analysis of publicly available sustainability and integrated reporting disclosures. Drawing on institutional theory, the study analyses how coercive regulatory pressures interact with normative expectations concerning assurance, data credibility, and stakeholder accountability, alongside mimetic pressures associated with emerging European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The findings identify five interrelated mechanisms through which CSRD influences organizational sustainability practices: the formalization of governance and compliance structures, the adoption of assurance as an indicator of reporting maturity, the institutionalization of double materiality and stakeholder engagement processes, the development of sustainability data infrastructures and internal control systems supported by digital reporting capabilities, and the emergence of compliance as an organizational learning process. These mechanisms reflect distinct preparation pathways and varying levels of sustainability leadership across firms. The study conceptualizes CSRD compliance as a socio-technical process through which digitally intensive firms strengthen sustainability governance, reporting capability, and strategic organizational learning.
Organizations face growing pressure to produce credible sustainability disclosures while navigating a fragmented reporting landscape. Although the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Integrated Reporting (IR), and Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Standards are widely used, they embody different approaches to accountability, legitimacy, materiality, and stakeholder orientation.
Building on a prior systematic comparison, this brief offers a practical framework for selecting and implementing sustainability reporting standards. Selecting among these standards is therefore a governance decision that reflects whose interests an organization prioritizes. The framework considers five factors: primary stakeholders; desired legitimacy and transparency; industry disclosure expectations; geographic and regulatory context; and implementation capacity and resources. It links GRI to broad stakeholder accountability, SASB to investor-focused and industry-specific disclosure, and IR to strategic integration and long-term value creation.
This brief offers practical guidance to managers and sustainability professionals seeking to align sustainability reporting with organizational strategy and meet evolving ESG disclosure expectations.
Unknown authors· Journal of Applied Business...· 0 citations
Although sustainability reporting has gained prominence as a mechanism for corporate responsibility, the transparency, and credibility of disclosed sustainability information remain inadequate, especially in emerging nations where technology adoption is uneven. This study examines the influence of digital governance (DG) on corporate sustainability reporting transparency (CSRT), taking into account the mediating effect of digital technologies (DTs) and the moderating effect of external assurance (EA). This study is grounded in stakeholder and institutional theory. Primary data were collected from 350 participants from various firms in Ghana using structured survey questionnaires. A purposive sampling approach was used to select participant firms. The data were analyzed using SmartPLS 4, following the partial least squares structural equation model (PLS‐SEM) approach. The study results showed that DG positively and significantly influences CSRT. Moreover, DT significantly mediates the relationship between DG and CSRT, and EA significantly moderates this relationship. The study's insights guide policymakers to promote enabling digital regulatory regimes, as well as business managers investing in technological infrastructure and assurance practices, and to enhance sustainability reporting quality and stakeholder confidence.
Yuxuan Du, Maalisuo Bismark Sakpiti, Inusah Sulemana· Business Strategy and the En...· 0 citations
In an era marked by intensifying regulatory scrutiny and stakeholder activism, corporate compliance is no
longer a peripheral legal obligation but a core strategic function. This study examines how organizations can
transform compliance from a cost center into a value-creating mechanism that enhances corporate accountability
and drives sustainable growth. Drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives from corporate law and strategic
management, the paper develops a conceptual framework linking legal compliance, governance quality, risk
management, and organizational performance.
The research adopts a doctrinal–analytical methodology, synthesizing statutory provisions, governance codes,
and contemporary management theories. It integrates agency theory, stakeholder theory, and risk-based
compliance models to explain how robust compliance systems reduce legal uncertainty, mitigate regulatory risk,
and strengthen stakeholder trust. The study also explores the role of board oversight, compliance culture, and
digital governance tools in embedding compliance within strategic decision-making.
Findings suggest that firms that internalize compliance as a strategic capability achieve superior outcomes in
terms of risk mitigation, reputational capital, and long-term sustainability. Conversely, reactive or minimalist
compliance approaches increase exposure to legal sanctions and erode organizational legitimacy. The paper
highlights emerging trends such as ESG-linked compliance, data protection regimes, and technology-enabled
monitoring, which are reshaping the compliance landscape.
The study concludes that integrating legal compliance into corporate strategy is essential for achieving resilient
and responsible business performance. It recommends policy and managerial interventions to strengthen
compliance governance and align legal frameworks with sustainable development goals.
Partha Priya Das, Moni Deepa Das, Utpal Chakraborty et al.· International Journal of Dru...· 0 citations
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting has moved from voluntary communication to regulated corporate accountability, yet the quality of adoption varies sharply. Many organisations, particularly in emerging economies, produce disclosures that satisfy formal requirements without altering strategy, governance or resource allocation, a pattern described as symbolic reporting. This concept paper asks how organisations with mature ESG practice couple reporting to management, and what that implies for firms entering mandatory regimes such as Malaysia's National Sustainability Reporting Framework. Guided by stakeholder, legitimacy and institutional theory, the study adopts a qualitative multiple-case design based on documentary analysis of Ørsted (Denmark), Microsoft (United States), Unilever (United Kingdom) and SD Guthrie, formerly Sime Darby Plantation (Malaysia), compared across seven dimensions spanning strategy, reporting design, environmental and social practice, governance, challenges and impact. The comparison yields a framework in which five integration mechanisms, namely board ownership, materiality discipline, target architecture, internal economic linkage and verification, determine whether disclosure becomes consequential or remains ceremonial. The Malaysian case is analytically distinctive because a foreign enforcement agency adjudicated both the initial failure and its remediation, supplying external verification that voluntary disclosure settings rarely provide. The paper contributes a mechanism-level account of when ESG reporting produces accountability, with guidance for boards, preparers and regulators moving to ISSB-aligned reporting.
Z. Sanusi, Nur Aima Shafie, A. Ghazali et al.· International journal of res...· 0 citations
Organizations increasingly face the challenge of integrating sustainability into strategic planning and governance systems while ensuring stakeholder participation, accountability, and long-term value creation. This study develops a stakeholder-based governance model by examining how strategic planning processes contribute to the integration of sustainability within organizational management. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining documentary analysis of institutional planning instruments, surveys administered to students, professors, and administrative staff, and semi-structured interviews with seven senior institutional leaders responsible for strategic decision-making. The empirical evidence was obtained from an Ecuadorian higher education institution operating in the context of an emerging economy. The results revealed high levels of stakeholder support for sustainability integration, with positive perceptions reported by professors (89.8%), students (83.6%), and administrative staff (74.0%). The findings also highlighted the importance of leadership commitment, stakeholder engagement, governance mechanisms, performance indicators, monitoring, and continuous improvement in supporting long-term institutional sustainability. Based on these results, a stakeholder-based governance model is proposed that integrates Strategic Planning, Stakeholder Theory, Sustainable Governance, and Organizational Sustainability into a unified management framework. The study concludes that sustainability can be strengthened when governance structures and strategic planning processes operate as interconnected mechanisms that guide organizational decision-making, performance evaluation, and long-term institutional development. This study proposes an evidence-informed governance model derived from a mixed-methods case study conducted at a private technological university in Ecuador.
Patricia Alexandra Albuja Mariño· Sustainability· 0 citations
A Systematic Literature Review that analyzed 61 primary studies selected from 126 initial records reveals a clear association between cost reduction and increased productivity within the economic dimension; waste reduction reflects progress in the environmental dimension; and the improvement of quality and value delivered to stakeholders aligns with the social dimension.
