The aim of the EU Directive 2014/95/EU, requiring the mandatory disclosure of non-financial information (NFI) by large undertakings and groups, is to rebuild trust with stakeholders. This book aims to summarize the relevant literature about company information with particular reference to the voluntary vis a vis mandatory NFI.

The increasingly crucial role of companies’ non-financial disclosure (NFD) and integrated reporting (IR) has led to a lively debate among academics, practitioners, and regulators on the approaches, framework, contents, principles, and standards that should oversee these forms of reporting. Through several expert contributions, conducted both with qualitative and quantitative methodologies, this book provides an up-to-date portrait of the debate by exploring corporate NFD either in its mandated contents or voluntary information. Contributing authors provide studies that encompass the different lines of NFD, namely non-financial risk reporting, sustainability reporting, and intellectual capital reporting, as well as the integration of financial and non-financial information through IR, the assurance of the NFD and IR through auditing activities, and the role of management and CFOs in NFD and IR.

This book examines on an international basis how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) cope with the changing economic and social challenges, which are also reflected in financial and non-financial reporting. To this end, it presents six case studies from Germany, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Italy, and the United Kingdom, with a particular focus on integrated reporting (IR). The cases presented are drawn from collaborative research within the international network of INTEREST, an international project on integrated reporting for SME transparency. The book will be of interest to researchers and practitioners.

This book investigates the going-concern principle in the non-financial disclosure by companies in the international scenario proposing concepts and challenges to come. Following the main accounting literature, requirements and regulations, this book proposes the current state of the art in the non-financial disclosure, collecting main mandatory and voluntary frameworks and standards (e.g. European Directive 2014/95/UE on non-financial information, Global Reporting Initiative, International Integrated Reporting Council, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, Climate Disclosure Standard Board, Carbon Disclosure Project, AA1000). This is a useful proposition for the investigation of the presence versus absence of the going concern in the sustainability and non-financial reports and disclosure by companies. Through a qualitative methodology, this book is intended to show the incidence of the going-concern in the non-financial disclosure and to what content and meaning it is refereed. Several issues and characteristics of information provided to stakeholders are drafted.

This book provides a description of the state of the art on environmental disclosure, illustrating the key theoretical issues, the regulatory frameworks, and the main standards developed and reporting the results of an empirical analysis on the environmental disclosure released by listed firms. Luigi Lepore and Sabrina Pisano begin by analysing the origin and evolution of environmental disclosure. They go on to provide a description of the main theoretical frameworks used by scholars, explaining the conceptual basis of each theory and describing how the specific theory has been used to explain the company’s decision to release environmental disclosure. The second part of the book highlights the role and evolution of the European regulatory frameworks, emphasising the transition from voluntary to mandatory disclosure, and the major standards and guidance developed. The book ends by providing a picture of the evolution of sustainability reporting practices in European Union nations over the past two decades. This book investigates the critical issues and new directions in environmental disclosure, which are currently under examination by regulators and standard setters. It will therefore be of great interest to academics and students working in the areas of business and sustainability.

This book highlights the latest research on responsible business and its practical implications for the economy, society, academia, and politics. It presents selected contributions from respected scholars and experts who have conducted international research on corporate social responsibility, sustainability, ethics, corporate governance, finance, and responsible investing. The book examines the spreading and enhancement of CSR and sustainability at the micro, meso, and macro levels, especially in light of their increased relevance following the recent pandemic. Taken together, the results of the empirically and theoretically based contributions offer a unique and multi-faceted perspective on current global trends and expected developments in this area. They cover a wide range of contexts and situations, helping readers expand their knowledge and drive effective change to tap their organizations’ full potential.