ESG Reporting of the Most Valuable Brands: Unveiling Topics Significant for Sustainable Development
ESG izveštavanje najvrednijih brendova: Otkrivanje tema značajnih za održivi razvoj
Abstract
By popularizing the concept of sustainability, companies are increasingly incorporating sustainability principles into their business strategies. More efforts are being made in the processes of measuring, analyzing, driving, and communicating sustainable initiatives and efforts undertaken by companies in the areas of governance, environmental impact, and society. Stakeholders, particularly investors, are increasingly demanding the disclosure of non-financial information in addition to what is already published in financial reports. This study explores the ESG reports of the top five companies from the 2023 Interbrand list of the 100 Best Global Brands, covering the period from 2018 to 2022. The aim of the study is to identify the type and content of information disclosed in the ESG reports of companies with most valuable brands, analyze them, and draw conclusions about ESG reporting. Although ESG reporting provides many business benefits, and more companies have been publishing these reports in recent years, there is no unified standard for ESG reporting, as evidenced by the research findings. The analysis identified the topics addressed by companies with most valuable brands in their reports, particularly during the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. It can be concluded that the environmental impact segment remains the most prominent in the ESG reports of the mentioned companies.
Apstrakt
Popularizacijom koncepta održivosti kompanije sve više uključuju principe održivosti u svoju poslovnu strategiju. Više napora se ulaže u procese za merenje, analizu, vođenje i komunikaciju održivih napora i inicijativa koje kompanije sprovode u domenu upravljanja, uticaja na životnu sredinu i društvo. Stejkholderi, posebno investitori, sve više zahtevaju objavljivanje nefinansijskih informacija pored onih koje su već objavljene u finansijskim izveštajima. Rad istražuje ESG izveštaje prvih pet kompanija sa Interbrand liste 100 najboljih globalnih brendova iz 2023. godine u periodu od 2018. do 2022. godine. Cilj rada je utvrđivanje tipa i sadržaja informacija koje se objavljuju u ovim izveštajima kompanija koje imaju najviše vrednosti brenda, njihova analiza i definisanje zaključaka o ESG izveštavanju. Iako ESG izveštavanje pruža mnoge koristi u poslovanju i poslednjih godina sve više kompanija objavljuje ove izveštaje, ne postoji jedinstven standard za njihovu pripremu, što su pokazali i rezultati istraživanja. Analizom su identifikovane teme kojima se kompanije sa najvrednijim brendovima bave u izveštajima, posebno u periodu krize izazvane pandemijom virusa COVID-19. Može se zaključiti da je segment uticaja na životnu sredinu i dalje najzastupljeniji u ESG izveštajima navedenih kompanija.
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