EU non-financial reporting research – insights, gaps, patterns and future agenda
Abstract
This study approaches the fresh perspective of non-financial reporting (NFR) promoted through the Directive 2014/95/EU (EUD) by providing a state of knowledge, initiatives and approaches on this topic and also by identifying the main patterns developed within this research stream.
Based on a structured literature review and statistical methods as Principal Component and cluster analysis, it investigates the progress of scientific research and design undertaken within NFR topic and discloses insights and critical issues for future research agenda.
The results reveal the focus of the literature on general issues related to EUD, as well as throughout its specific requirements, using GRI or other national/international frameworks. From a methodological point of view, even though empirical studies prevailed, there are also conceptual studies that analyse the new EUD either on sampled countries or across Europe.
First published online 21 December 2020
Keyword : non-financial reporting, Directive 2014/95/EU, structured literature review, research patterns, insights and gaps, future research agenda
How to Cite
Ştefănescu, C. A., Tiron-Tudor, A., & Moise, E. M. (2021). EU non-financial reporting research – insights, gaps, patterns and future agenda. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 22(1), 257-276. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2020.13479
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
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Aureli, S., Magnaghi, E., & Salvatori, F. (2018). The Transposition of the non-financial reporting Directive in the UK, France and Italy. SYMPHONYA Emerging Issues in Management, 1, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.4468/2018.1.04aureli.magnaghi.salvatori
Aureli, S., Magnaghi, E., & Salvatori, F. (2019). The role of existing regulation and discretion in harmonising non-financial disclosure. Accounting in Europe, 16(3), 290–312. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449480.2019.1637529
Buhmann, K. (2018). Neglecting the proactive aspect of human rights due diligence? A critical appraisal of the EU’s Non-Financial reporting directive as a pillar one avenue for promoting pillar two action. Business and Human Rights Journal, 3(1), 23–45. https://doi.org/10.1017/bhj.2017.24
Burns, R. P., & Burns, R. (2008). Business research methods and statistics using SPSS. Sage.
Camilleri, M. A. (2018). The corporate governance reporting in the European Union. In C. Cooper (Ed.), Driving productivity in uncertain and challenging times. University of the West of England, British Academy of Management, UK.
Caputo, F., Leopizzi, R., Pizzi, S., & Milone, V. (2020). The non-financial reporting harmonization in Europe: Evolutionary pathways related to the transposition of the Directive 95/2014/EU within the Italian context. Sustainability, 12, 92. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12010092
Carini, C., Rocca, L., Veneziani, M., & Teodori, C. (2018). Ex-ante impact assessment of sustainability information – the Directive 2014/95. Sustainability, 10(2), 560. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020560
Cheng, M., Green, W., Conradie, P., Konishi, N., &Romi, A. (2014). The international integrated reporting framework: Key issues and future research opportunities. Journal of International Financial Management & Accounting, 25(1), 90–119. https://doi.org/10.1111/jifm.12015
Coluccia, D., Fontana, S., & Solimene, S. (2018). Does institutional context affect CSR disclosure? A study on Eurostoxx 50. Sustainability, 10(8), 2823. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10082823
CSR Europe and GRI. (2017). Member State implementation of Directive 2014/95/EU.
De Villiers, C., & Sharma, U. (2017). A critical reflection on the future of financial, intellectual capital, sustainability and integrated reporting. Critical Perspectives on Accounting. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2017.05.003
Di Vaio, A., Palladino, R., Hassan, R., & Alvino, F. (2020). Human resources disclosure in the EU Directive 2014/95/EU perspective: A systematic literature review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 257, 120509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.120509
Dienes, D., Sassen, R., & Fischer, J. (2016). What are the drivers of sustainability reporting? A systematic review. Sustainability Accounting. Management and Policy Journal, 7(2), 154–189. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-08-2014-0050
Dumay, J., La Torre, M., & Farneti, F. (2019). Developing trust through stewardship: Implications for intellectual capital, integrated reporting, and the EU Directive 2014/95/EU. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 20(1), 11–39. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-06-2018-0097
Dumay, J., Bernardi, C., Guthrie, J., & Demartini, P. (2016). Integrated reporting: A structured literature review.Accounting Forum, 40(3), 166–185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.001
Dumitru, M., Dyduch, J., Gușe, R. G., & Krasodomska, J. (2017). Corporate reporting practices in Poland and Romania – An ex-ante study to the new non-financial reporting European Directive. Accounting in Europe, 14(3), 279–304. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449480.2017.1378427
Dyduch, J., & Krasodomska, J. (2017). Determinants of corporate social responsibility disclosure: An empirical study of Polish listed companies. Sustainability, 9(11), 1934. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9111934
Eccles, R. G., & Spiesshofer, B. (2015). Integrated reporting for a re-imagined capitalism (Working Paper 16-032). Harvard Business School General Management Unit. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2665737
European Parliament and the Council. (2014). Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as Regards Disclosure of Non-Financial and Diversity Information by Certain large Undertakings and Groups. EU Commission, Brussels, Belgium.
Fijałkowska, J. (2016). New regulation of non-financial disclosure in business reporting.Entrepreneurship and Management, 17(1.1), 27–39.
Flower, J. (2015). The international integrated reporting council: A story of failure. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 27, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2014.07.002
Grewal, J., Riedl, E. J., & Serafeim, G. (2018). Market reaction to mandatory nonfinancial disclosure. Management Science, 65(7), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2018.3099
Guthrie, J., & Murthy, V. (2009). Past, present and possible future developments in human capital accounting: a tribute to Jan-Erik Gröjer. Journal of Human Resource Costing & Accounting, 13(2), 125–142. https://doi.org/10.1108/14013380910968647
Guthrie, J., Ricceri, F., & Dumay, J. (2012). Reflections and projections: a decade of intellectual capital accounting research. The British Accounting Review, 44(2), 68–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bar.2012.03.004
Kamiński, R. (2018). Non-financial reporting in the light of international regulations and EU Directives. Adam Mickiewicz University Law Review, 8(1), 167–184. https://doi.org/10.14746/ppuam.2018.8.12
Kinderman, D. P. (2015). The struggle over the eu non-financial disclosure. WSI-Mitteilungen, 8, 613–621. https://doi.org/10.5771/0342-300X-2015-8-613
Kinderman, D. (2019). The challenges of upward regulatory harmonization: The case of sustainability reporting in the European Union. Regulation & Governance. https://doi.org/10.1111/rego.12240
Krippendorff, K. (2013). Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology. Sage.
Kristofik, P., Lament, M., & Musa, H. (2016). The reporting of non-financial information and the rationale for its standardisation. E+ M Ekonomie a Management, 19(2), 157. https://doi.org/10.15240/tul/001/2016-2-011
La Torre, M., Sabelfeld, S., Blomkvist, M., Tarquinio, L., &Dumay, J. (2018). Harmonising non-financial reporting regulation in Europe: Practical forces and projections for future research. Meditari Accountancy Research, 26(4), 598–621. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEDAR-02-2018-0290
Lament, M. (2017). Quality of non-financial information reported by financial institutions. The example of Poland and Greece. Central European Review of Economics & Finance, 22(6), 5–16. https://doi.org/10.24136/ceref.2017.023
Luque-Vílchez, M., & Larrinaga, C. (2016). La regulación de la información no financiera en España a través de la Ley de Economía Sostenible y la Directiva 2014/95/UE. Revista contable, (49), 102–107.
Maj, J. (2016). The social dimension of reporting in Polish Companies from the basic materials and oil & gas sectors listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. In Political Sciences, Law, Finance, Economics & Turism, Proceedings of the SGEM.
Makarenko, I., & Sirkovska, N. (2017). Transition to sustainability reporting: Evidence from EU and Ukraine. Business Ethics and Leadership, 1(1), 16–24. https://doi.org/10.21272/bel.2017.1-02
Manes-Rossi, F., Tiron-Tudor, A., Nicolò, G., & Zanellato, G. (2018). Ensuring more sustainable reporting in Europe using non-financial disclosure – De facto and de jure evidence. Sustainability, 10(4), 1162. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10041162
Markota-Vukić, N., Vuković, R., & Calace, D. (2017). Non-financial reporting as a new trend in sustainability accounting. Journal of Accounting and Management, 7(2), 13–26.
Massaro, M., Dumay, J., & Guthrie, J. (2016). On the shoulders of giants: undertaking a structured literature review in accounting. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 29(5), 767–801. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-01-2015-1939
Matuszak, Ł., & Rózanska, E. (2017). CSR disclosure in Polish-listed companies in the light of Directive 2014/95/EU requirements: Empirical evidence. Sustainability, 9, 2304. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9122304
Monciardini, D., Dumay, J., & Biondi, L. (2017). Integrated reporting and EU Law. Competing, converging or complementary regulatory frameworks? (University of Oslo Faculty of Law Research Paper, no. 2017-23). SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2981674
Müller, S., Stawinoga, M., & Velte, P. (2015). Stakeholder expectations on CSR management and current regulatory developments in Europe and Germany. Corporate Ownership and Control, 12, 505–512. https://doi.org/10.22495/cocv12i4c4p8
Parker, L. D. (2005). Social and environmental accountability research: A view from the commentary box. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 18(6), 842–860. https://doi.org/10.1108/09513570510627739
Peršić, M., Janković, S., & Krivačić, D. (2017). Sustainability accounting: upgrading corporate social responsibility. In M. Aluchna, & S. Idowu (Eds.), The dynamics of corporate social responsibility. CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance (pp. 285–303). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39089-5_15
Saenger, I. (2017). Disclosure and auditing of corporate social responsibility standards: the impact of Directive 2014/95/EU on the German companies act and the German Corporate Governance Code. In Corporate governance codes for the 21st century (pp. 261–273). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51868-8_12
Sierra-Garcia, L., Garcia-Benau, M., & Bollas-Araya, H. (2018). Empirical analysis of non-financial reporting by Spanish companies. Administrative Sciences, 8(3), 29. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci8030029
Tiron-Tudor, A., Martin, D. L., & Farcas, T. V. (2019). Corporate reporting practices concerning nonfinancial aspects: A possible prolix?. In S. Idowu & M. Del Baldo (Eds.), Integrated reporting. CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01719-4_13
Venturelli, A., Caputo, F., Cosma, S., Leopizzi, R., & Pizzi, S. (2017). Directive 2014/95/EU: Are Italian companies already compliant? Sustainability, 9(8), 1385. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9081385
Verma, J. P. (2013). Data analysis in management with SPSS. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-0786-3
Alvesson, M., & Deetz, S. (2000). Doing critical management research. Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781849208918
Aureli, S., Magnaghi, E., & Salvatori, F. (2018). The Transposition of the non-financial reporting Directive in the UK, France and Italy. SYMPHONYA Emerging Issues in Management, 1, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.4468/2018.1.04aureli.magnaghi.salvatori
Aureli, S., Magnaghi, E., & Salvatori, F. (2019). The role of existing regulation and discretion in harmonising non-financial disclosure. Accounting in Europe, 16(3), 290–312. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449480.2019.1637529
Buhmann, K. (2018). Neglecting the proactive aspect of human rights due diligence? A critical appraisal of the EU’s Non-Financial reporting directive as a pillar one avenue for promoting pillar two action. Business and Human Rights Journal, 3(1), 23–45. https://doi.org/10.1017/bhj.2017.24
Burns, R. P., & Burns, R. (2008). Business research methods and statistics using SPSS. Sage.
Camilleri, M. A. (2018). The corporate governance reporting in the European Union. In C. Cooper (Ed.), Driving productivity in uncertain and challenging times. University of the West of England, British Academy of Management, UK.
Caputo, F., Leopizzi, R., Pizzi, S., & Milone, V. (2020). The non-financial reporting harmonization in Europe: Evolutionary pathways related to the transposition of the Directive 95/2014/EU within the Italian context. Sustainability, 12, 92. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12010092
Carini, C., Rocca, L., Veneziani, M., & Teodori, C. (2018). Ex-ante impact assessment of sustainability information – the Directive 2014/95. Sustainability, 10(2), 560. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020560
Cheng, M., Green, W., Conradie, P., Konishi, N., &Romi, A. (2014). The international integrated reporting framework: Key issues and future research opportunities. Journal of International Financial Management & Accounting, 25(1), 90–119. https://doi.org/10.1111/jifm.12015
Coluccia, D., Fontana, S., & Solimene, S. (2018). Does institutional context affect CSR disclosure? A study on Eurostoxx 50. Sustainability, 10(8), 2823. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10082823
CSR Europe and GRI. (2017). Member State implementation of Directive 2014/95/EU.
De Villiers, C., & Sharma, U. (2017). A critical reflection on the future of financial, intellectual capital, sustainability and integrated reporting. Critical Perspectives on Accounting. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2017.05.003
Di Vaio, A., Palladino, R., Hassan, R., & Alvino, F. (2020). Human resources disclosure in the EU Directive 2014/95/EU perspective: A systematic literature review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 257, 120509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.120509
Dienes, D., Sassen, R., & Fischer, J. (2016). What are the drivers of sustainability reporting? A systematic review. Sustainability Accounting. Management and Policy Journal, 7(2), 154–189. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-08-2014-0050
Dumay, J., La Torre, M., & Farneti, F. (2019). Developing trust through stewardship: Implications for intellectual capital, integrated reporting, and the EU Directive 2014/95/EU. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 20(1), 11–39. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-06-2018-0097
Dumay, J., Bernardi, C., Guthrie, J., & Demartini, P. (2016). Integrated reporting: A structured literature review.Accounting Forum, 40(3), 166–185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.001
Dumitru, M., Dyduch, J., Gușe, R. G., & Krasodomska, J. (2017). Corporate reporting practices in Poland and Romania – An ex-ante study to the new non-financial reporting European Directive. Accounting in Europe, 14(3), 279–304. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449480.2017.1378427
Dyduch, J., & Krasodomska, J. (2017). Determinants of corporate social responsibility disclosure: An empirical study of Polish listed companies. Sustainability, 9(11), 1934. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9111934
Eccles, R. G., & Spiesshofer, B. (2015). Integrated reporting for a re-imagined capitalism (Working Paper 16-032). Harvard Business School General Management Unit. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2665737
European Parliament and the Council. (2014). Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as Regards Disclosure of Non-Financial and Diversity Information by Certain large Undertakings and Groups. EU Commission, Brussels, Belgium.
Fijałkowska, J. (2016). New regulation of non-financial disclosure in business reporting.Entrepreneurship and Management, 17(1.1), 27–39.
Flower, J. (2015). The international integrated reporting council: A story of failure. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 27, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2014.07.002
Grewal, J., Riedl, E. J., & Serafeim, G. (2018). Market reaction to mandatory nonfinancial disclosure. Management Science, 65(7), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2018.3099
Guthrie, J., & Murthy, V. (2009). Past, present and possible future developments in human capital accounting: a tribute to Jan-Erik Gröjer. Journal of Human Resource Costing & Accounting, 13(2), 125–142. https://doi.org/10.1108/14013380910968647
Guthrie, J., Ricceri, F., & Dumay, J. (2012). Reflections and projections: a decade of intellectual capital accounting research. The British Accounting Review, 44(2), 68–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bar.2012.03.004
Kamiński, R. (2018). Non-financial reporting in the light of international regulations and EU Directives. Adam Mickiewicz University Law Review, 8(1), 167–184. https://doi.org/10.14746/ppuam.2018.8.12
Kinderman, D. P. (2015). The struggle over the eu non-financial disclosure. WSI-Mitteilungen, 8, 613–621. https://doi.org/10.5771/0342-300X-2015-8-613
Kinderman, D. (2019). The challenges of upward regulatory harmonization: The case of sustainability reporting in the European Union. Regulation & Governance. https://doi.org/10.1111/rego.12240
Krippendorff, K. (2013). Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology. Sage.
Kristofik, P., Lament, M., & Musa, H. (2016). The reporting of non-financial information and the rationale for its standardisation. E+ M Ekonomie a Management, 19(2), 157. https://doi.org/10.15240/tul/001/2016-2-011
La Torre, M., Sabelfeld, S., Blomkvist, M., Tarquinio, L., &Dumay, J. (2018). Harmonising non-financial reporting regulation in Europe: Practical forces and projections for future research. Meditari Accountancy Research, 26(4), 598–621. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEDAR-02-2018-0290
Lament, M. (2017). Quality of non-financial information reported by financial institutions. The example of Poland and Greece. Central European Review of Economics & Finance, 22(6), 5–16. https://doi.org/10.24136/ceref.2017.023
Luque-Vílchez, M., & Larrinaga, C. (2016). La regulación de la información no financiera en España a través de la Ley de Economía Sostenible y la Directiva 2014/95/UE. Revista contable, (49), 102–107.
Maj, J. (2016). The social dimension of reporting in Polish Companies from the basic materials and oil & gas sectors listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. In Political Sciences, Law, Finance, Economics & Turism, Proceedings of the SGEM.
Makarenko, I., & Sirkovska, N. (2017). Transition to sustainability reporting: Evidence from EU and Ukraine. Business Ethics and Leadership, 1(1), 16–24. https://doi.org/10.21272/bel.2017.1-02
Manes-Rossi, F., Tiron-Tudor, A., Nicolò, G., & Zanellato, G. (2018). Ensuring more sustainable reporting in Europe using non-financial disclosure – De facto and de jure evidence. Sustainability, 10(4), 1162. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10041162
Markota-Vukić, N., Vuković, R., & Calace, D. (2017). Non-financial reporting as a new trend in sustainability accounting. Journal of Accounting and Management, 7(2), 13–26.
Massaro, M., Dumay, J., & Guthrie, J. (2016). On the shoulders of giants: undertaking a structured literature review in accounting. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 29(5), 767–801. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-01-2015-1939
Matuszak, Ł., & Rózanska, E. (2017). CSR disclosure in Polish-listed companies in the light of Directive 2014/95/EU requirements: Empirical evidence. Sustainability, 9, 2304. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9122304
Monciardini, D., Dumay, J., & Biondi, L. (2017). Integrated reporting and EU Law. Competing, converging or complementary regulatory frameworks? (University of Oslo Faculty of Law Research Paper, no. 2017-23). SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2981674
Müller, S., Stawinoga, M., & Velte, P. (2015). Stakeholder expectations on CSR management and current regulatory developments in Europe and Germany. Corporate Ownership and Control, 12, 505–512. https://doi.org/10.22495/cocv12i4c4p8
Parker, L. D. (2005). Social and environmental accountability research: A view from the commentary box. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 18(6), 842–860. https://doi.org/10.1108/09513570510627739
Peršić, M., Janković, S., & Krivačić, D. (2017). Sustainability accounting: upgrading corporate social responsibility. In M. Aluchna, & S. Idowu (Eds.), The dynamics of corporate social responsibility. CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance (pp. 285–303). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39089-5_15
Saenger, I. (2017). Disclosure and auditing of corporate social responsibility standards: the impact of Directive 2014/95/EU on the German companies act and the German Corporate Governance Code. In Corporate governance codes for the 21st century (pp. 261–273). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51868-8_12
Sierra-Garcia, L., Garcia-Benau, M., & Bollas-Araya, H. (2018). Empirical analysis of non-financial reporting by Spanish companies. Administrative Sciences, 8(3), 29. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci8030029
Tiron-Tudor, A., Martin, D. L., & Farcas, T. V. (2019). Corporate reporting practices concerning nonfinancial aspects: A possible prolix?. In S. Idowu & M. Del Baldo (Eds.), Integrated reporting. CSR, sustainability, ethics & governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01719-4_13
Venturelli, A., Caputo, F., Cosma, S., Leopizzi, R., & Pizzi, S. (2017). Directive 2014/95/EU: Are Italian companies already compliant? Sustainability, 9(8), 1385. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9081385
Verma, J. P. (2013). Data analysis in management with SPSS. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-0786-3