Environmental, Social and Governance Information Disclosure Strategy of the Ten Main Spanish Listed Companies

Herenia Gutierrez Ponce, Nuria Arimany Serrat, Julian Chamizo Gonzalez

Abstract

Purpose: This article aims to investigate the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) disclosure strategy and its impact on the financial performance of the top ten companies in terms of operating income/turnover volume.


Methodology/Approach: The study methods used include parametric correlations and logistic regression analysis focusing on data from Spanish listed companies in 2019-2020.


Findings: The findings show that IBEX35 companies need to improve web transparency in ESG reporting and a significant relationship was found between financial indicators and ESG transparency. Companies with the best positions in liquidity and return on assets rank first in non-financial indicators. Finally, it was found that the sector of the company was a significant variable.


Research Limitation/Implication: The findings of this research will help define the ESG strategy and understand the relationship between ESG and financial results. One limitation is that the information on the websites changes frequently. However, the results may contribute to being a point of reference for future studies.


Originality/Value of paper: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous research has been conducted to assess the ESG information disclosure strategy based on its web transparency and the financial performance of major Spanish companies.

References

Adams, C.A., 2015. The international integrated reporting council: A call to action. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, [e-journal] 27, pp.23-28. DOI: 10.1016/j.cpa.2014.07.001.
Agyapong, D., 2021. Analyzing financial risks in small and medium enterprises: evidence from the food processing firms in selected cities in Ghana. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, [e-journal] 27(1), pp.45-77. DOI: 10.1108/IJEBR-05-2020-0269.
Arjoon, S., 2017. Virtues, Compliance, and Integrity: A Corporate Governance Perspective. In: A.J.G. Sison, G.R. Beabout and I. Ferrero, eds. Handbook of Virtue Ethics in Business and Management. Dordrecht: Springer. Pp.995-1002. DOI: 10.1007/978-94-007-6510-8_103.
Asociación Española de Contabilidad y Administración de Empresas (AICA), 2021. Modelo AECA de información integrada para la elaboración del Estado de Información No Financiera Guía ilustrativa del Modelo Ponencia de AECA.
Becht, M., Bolton, P. and Roell, A., 2003. Corporate governance and control. In: G. Constantinides, M. Harris and R. Stulz, eds. Handbook of the Economics of Finance. Elsevier. Pp.1-109.
Betz, J., 2015. Corporate social responsibility and emerging powers. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, [e-journal] 10(3–4), pp.230-247. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2015.074352.
Brown, L.D. and Caylor, M.L., 2006. Corporate governance and firm valuation. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, [e-journal] 25(4), pp.409-434. DOI: 10.1017/9781316979716.010.
Bureau Van Dijk, 2021. Sistema de Analisis de Balances Iberico (SABI). Available at: < https://login.bvdinfo.com/R0/SabiNeo/SSO/rediris?fimtoken=cF9ysLVz3TltNotJyY31u99WW2xHOKVailVGntHtfo > [Accessed 25 June 2021].
Campanella, F., Serino, L., Crisci, A. and D’Ambra, A., 2020. The role of corporate governance in environmental policy disclosure and sustainable development. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, [e-journal] 28(1), pp.474-484. DOI: 10.1002/csr.2062.
Churet, C. and Eccles, R.G., 2014. Integrated Reporting, Quality of Management, and Financial Performance. Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, [e-journal] 26(1), pp.56-64. DOI: 10.1111/jacf.12054.
CNMV (Código del Buen Gobierno de las Sociedades Cotizadas), 2015. Corporate Governance Code of Listed Companies (_gobierno) [pdf] Madrid: Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores. Available at: < https://www.cnmv.es/docportal/publicaciones/codigogov/codigo_buen_gobierno.pdf > [Accessed 07 February 2022].
Escamilla-Solano, S., Plaza-Casado, P. and Flores-Ureba, S., 2016. Análisis de la divulgación de la información sobre la responsabilidad social corporativa en las empresas de transporte público urbano en España. Spanish Acounting Review/Revista de Contabilidad, [e-journal] 19(2), pp.195-203. DOI: 10.1016/j.rcsar.2015.05.002.
European Commission, 2014. Directive 2014/95/EU of the European parliament and of 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 (Text with EEA relevance).
Fernández-Gago, R., Cabeza-García, L. and Godos-Díez, J.L., 2020. How significant is corporate social responsibility to business research? Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, [e-journal] 27(4), pp.1809-1817. DOI: 10.1002/csr.1927.
Fernández-García, R., 2013. La dimensión económica del desarrollo sostenible San Vicente. Alicante: Editorial Club Universitario.
Flórez-Parra, J.M., Martín, G.R. and Serrano, C.R., 2020. Corporate social responsibility and crowdfunding: The experience of the colectual platform in empowering economic and sustainable projects. Sustainability, [e-journal] 12(13), 5251. DOI: 10.3390/su12135251.
García-Sánchez, I.M., Aibar-Guzman, B. and Aibar-Guzman, C., 2021. What sustainability assurance services do institutional investors demand and what value do they give them? Sustainability accounting. Management and Policy Journal, 13(1), pp.152-194. DOI: 10.1108/SAMPJ-06- 2020-0199.
Global Alliance for Banking on Values, 2016. Real Economy - Real Returns: The Business Case for Sustainability Focused Banking. [pdf] Available at: < https://www.gabv.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/2016-Research-Report-final.pdf > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
González-Ramos, M.I., Donate-Manzanares, M.J. and Guadamillas-Gómez, F., 2014. Propuesta de una escala para la medición de la responsabilidad social corporativa = A proposal for the measurement of corporate social responsibility. Pecvnia: Revista de La Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales, Universidad de León, [e-journal] 18(enero-junio), pp.1-18. DOI: 10.18002/pec. v0i18.1641.
Gutiérrez-Ponce, H., Arimany-Serrat, N. and Chamizo-González, J., 2022a. Comunicación web de información no financiera en las empresas de cuatro índices bursátiles europeos. Revista Española de Documentación Científica, [e-journal] 45(3), e329. DOI: 10.3989/redc.2022.3.1883.
Gutiérrez-Ponce, H., Chamizo-Gonzalez, J. and Arimany-Serrat, N., 2021. Spanish companies’ website communication of environmental, social, and governance information. Communication and Society, [e-journal] 34(4), pp.117-133. DOI: 10.15581/003.34.4.117-133.
Gutierrez-Ponce, H., Chamizo-Gonzalez, J. and Arimany-Serrat, N., 2022b. Transparencia de la información no financiera en las empresas del IBEX-35 y del DAX30: El nuevo Reporting Integrado. Contaduría y Administración, [e-journal] 67(1), pp.305-331. DOI: 10.22201/fca.24488410e.2022.2937.
Gutiérrez-Ponce, H., Creixans-Tenas, J. and Arimany-Serrat, N., 2019. Calidad web y Buen Gobierno Corporativo en los hospitales privados de Andalucía y Cataluña. Revista Española de Documentación Científica, [e-journal] 41(1), e194 DOI: 10.3989/redc.2018.1.1465.
Haller, A., Link, M. and Groß, T., 2017. The Term ‘Non-financial Information’ – A Semantic Analysis of a Key Feature of Current and Future Corporate Reporting. Accounting in Europe, [e-journal] 14(3), pp.407-429. DOI: 10.1080/17449480.2017.1374548.
IOS, 2018a. ISO 9001:2015(en). Quality management systems — Requirements. Geneva: International Organization for Standardization.
IOS, 2018b. ISO 45001:2018 - Occupational health and safety management systems -- Requirements with guidance for use. Geneva: International Organization for Standardization.
IOS, 2019. ISO 14001:2015 - Environmental management systems -- Requirements with guidance for use. Geneva: International Organization for Standardization.
IQNet, 2015. IQNet SR 10 Social Responsibility Management Systems Requirements. [pdf] Association - The International Certification Network. Available at: < https://www.iqnet-ltd.com/bausteine.net/f/8255/SR10_IQNet_2015_EN.pdf?fd=0 > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
Janssen, C., Sen, S. and Bhattacharya, C.B., 2015. Corporate crises in the age of corporate social responsibility. Business Horizons, [e-journal] 58(2), pp.183-192. DOI: 10.1016/j.bushor.2014.11.002.
KPMG, 2020. The KPMG survey of corporate responsibility reporting 2020. KPMG, London, UK. Available at: < https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/insights/2020/11/the-time-has-come-survey-of-sustainability-reporting.html > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
Krasodomska, J. and Cho, C.H., 2017. Corporate social responsibility disclosure: Perspectives from sell-side and buy-side financial analysts. Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, [e-journal] 8(1), pp.2-19. DOI: 10.1108/SAMPJ-02-2016-0006.
Law 11/2018. Ley 11/2018, de 28 de diciembre, por la que se modifica el Código de Comercio, el texto refundido de la Ley de Sociedades de Capital aprobado por el Real Decreto Legislativo 1/2010, de 2 de julio, y la Ley 22/2015, de 20 de julio, de Auditoría de Cuentas.
McKinsey Board Services, 2016. The Board Perspective: A collection of McKinsey insights focusing on boards of directors. [pdf] Available at: < https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/featured%20insights/leadership/the%20board%20perspective/the-board-perspective.ashx > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
Melé, D., Argandoña, A. and Sanchez-Runde, C., 2011. Facing the crisis: Toward a new humanistic synthesis for business. Journal of Business Ethics, [e-journal] 99(1), pp.1-4. DOI: 10.1007/s10551-011-0743-y.
Moure, R.C., 2019. CSR communication in Spanish quoted firms. European Research on Management and Business Economics, [e-journal] 25(2), pp.93-98. DOI: 10.1016/j.iedeen.2019.02.002.
Nunes, C.S., 2017. Social responsibility and ethical decisions - A presentation of elements contained in ISO 26000:2010, guidance on social responsibility. Quality - Access to Success, 18(158), pp.42-44.
Oladimeji, M.S. and Udosen, I., 2019. The Effect of Diversification Strategy on Organizational Performance. Journal of Competitiveness, [e-journal] 11(4), pp.120-131. DOI: 10.7441/joc.2019.04.08.
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), 2018. Consejos de Administración de empresas cotizadas. [pdf] Available at: < https://www.pwc.es/es/publicaciones/consejos-y-buen-gobierno/consejos-administracion-2018.pdf > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
Rajeev, P.N. and Kalagnanam, S., 2017. India’s mandatory CSR policy: Implications and implementation challenges. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, [e-journal] 12(1), pp.90-106. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2017.085240.
Redor, E., 2018. Gender diversity on corporate boards: Does critical mass matter to investors? International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, [e-journal] 13(2), pp.199-216. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2018.097385.
Rodríguez-Cala, A., Calle-Rodríguez, C., Durán-García, N., Zöller, B. and Pons-Rodríguez, A., 2019. Corporate social responsibility in the centers of the public hospital network of Catalonia (Spain). Gaceta Sanitaria, [e-journal] 35(1), pp.67-71. DOI: 10.1016/j.gaceta.2019.06.001.
Sierra-Garcia, L., Garcia-Benau, M. and Bollas-Araya, H., 2018. Empirical Analysis of Non-Financial Reporting by Spanish Companies. Administrative Sciences, [e-journal] 8(3), 29. DOI: 10.3390/admsci8030029.
Simas, C.A., Slater, D.J. and Miller, K., 2018. Individualism and corporate social responsibility reporting. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, [e-journal] 13(2), pp.107-120. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2018.097382.
Sitnikov, C.S. and Bocean, C.G., 2013. Relationships among Social and Environmental Responsibility and Business. Amfiteatru Economic, [e-journal] 15(7), pp.759-768. DOI: 10.1007/s10964-014-0222-8.
Taliento, M., Favino, C. and Netti, A., 2019. Impact of environmental, social, and governance information on economic performance: Evidence of a corporate “sustainability advantage” from Europe. Sustainability, [e-journal] 11(6), 1738. DOI: 10.3390/su11061738.
Tserng, H.P., Chen, P.C., Huang, W.H., Lei, M.C., and Tran, Q.H., 2014. Prediction of default probability for construction firms using the logit model. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management, [e-journal] 20(2), pp.247-255. DOI: 10.3846/13923730.2013.801886.
United Nations, 2015. Adoption of the Paris Agreement. In: COP (Conference of the Parties), 21 Session Conference of the Parties. Paris, France. 30 November - 11 December 2015. Conference of the Parties on Its Twenty-First Session. United Nations. Available at: < https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2015/cop21/eng/l09r01.pdf > [Accessed 14 November 2022].
Warhurst, A., 2005. Future roles of business in society: The expanding boundaries of corporate responsibility and a compelling case for partnership. Futures, [e-journal] 37(2–3), pp.151-168. DOI: 10.1016/j.futures.2004.03.033.
Wuerges, A.F.E. and Borba, J.A., 2014. Fraudes contábeis: Uma estimativa da probabilidade de detecção. Revista Brasileira de Gestao de Negocios, [e-journal] 16(52), pp.466-483. DOI: 10.7819/rbgn. v16i52.1555.
Yekini, K., Li, H., Ohalehi, P. and Chijoke-Mgbame, A.M., 2019. CSR disclosure and corporate sustainability: Evidence from the shenzhen stock exchange. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 13(3), pp.300-322. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2019.099370.
Yusoff, H., Darus, F. and Rahman, S.A.A., 2015. Do corporate governance mechanisms influence environmental reporting practices? Evidence from an emerging country. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, [e-journal] 10(1), pp.76-96. DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2015.068686.

Authors

Herenia Gutierrez Ponce
herenia.gutierrez@uam.es (Primary Contact)
Nuria Arimany Serrat
Julian Chamizo Gonzalez
Author Biographies

Herenia Gutierrez Ponce, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Department of Accounting

Faculty of Business and Economics

Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Spain

Nuria Arimany Serrat, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Department of Accounting

Faculty of Business and Economics

Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Spain

Julian Chamizo Gonzalez, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Department of Accounting

Faculty of Business and Economics

Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Spain

Gutierrez Ponce, H., Arimany Serrat, N., & Chamizo Gonzalez, J. (2022). Environmental, Social and Governance Information Disclosure Strategy of the Ten Main Spanish Listed Companies. Quality Innovation Prosperity, 26(3), 88–111. https://doi.org/10.12776/qip.v26i3.1766

Article Details