Abstract
The chapter provides an insight into stakeholder engagement (SE) processes of universities’ Sustainability Reports (SRs) and analyses the extent to which universities comply with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G4 Guidelines.
After introducing strategic stakeholder theory and neo-institutionalism for identifying arguments for an interpretation of the findings, the results of a systematic literature review are presented.
The empirical findings are based on the recent G4 SRs worldwide and show that universities document their main stakeholders and main communication topics. However, the importance of the identified topics is not mirrored in the GRI coverage rates.
This is a clear sign that SRs of universities are far from comprehensive stakeholder accountability. The reporting behaviour is more in line with the expectations of neo-institutionalism than with strategic stakeholder theory.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alonso-Almeida, M. D. M., Marimon, F., & Casani, F. (2015). Diffusion of Sustainability Reporting in Universities: Current Situation and Future Perspectives. Journal of Cleaner Production, 106(12), 144–154.
Baker, M. (2010). Re-conceiving Managerial Capture. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 23(7), 847–867.
Bebbington, J., Higgins, C., & Frame, B. (2009). Initiating Sustainable Development Reporting: Evidence from New Zealand. Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 22(4), 588–625.
Bice, S., & Coates, H. (2016). University Sustainability Reporting: Taking Stock of Transparency. Tertiary Education and Management, 22(1), 1–18.
Blanco-Portela, N., Benayas, J., Pertierra, L. R., & Lozano, R. (2017). Towards the Integration of Sustainability in Higher Education Institutions: A Review of Drivers of and Barriers to Organizational Change and Their Comparison Against Those Found of Companies. Journal of Cleaner Production, 166, 563–578.
Brusca, I., Labrador, M., & Larran, M. (2018). The Challenge of Sustainability and Integrated Reporting at Universities: A Case Study. Journal of Cleaner Production, 188, 347–354.
Burrell, N. E., & Roberts, R. E. (2014). The Public Interest Imperative in Corporate Sustainability Reporting Research. Accounting and The Public Interest, 14, 79–86.
Burritt, R. L., & Schaltegger, S. (2010). Sustainability Accounting and Reporting: Fad or Trend? Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 23(7), 829–846.
Ceulemans, K., Lozano, R., & Alonso-Almeida, M. D. M. (2015). Sustainability Reporting in Higher Education: Interconnecting the Reporting Process and Organisational Change Management for Sustainability. Sustainability, 7(7), 8881–8903.
Cho, C. H., Laine, M., Roberts, R. W., & Rodrigue, M. (2015). Organized Hypocrisy, Organizational Façades, and Sustainability Reporting. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 40, 78–94.
Dagilienė, L., & Mykolaitienė, V. (2016). Sustainability Reporting in the Higher Education Sector – Case Study of Lithuania. ZögU/Journal for Public and Nonprofit Services, 39(1–2), 163–174.
DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1991). The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality. In W. W. Powell & P. J. DiMaggio (Eds.), The New Institutionalism in Organizational Analysis (pp. 63–82). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Disterheft, A., Caeiro, S., Azeiteiro, U. M., & Leal Filho, W. (2015). Sustainable Universities – A Study of Critical Success Factors for Participatory Approaches. Journal of Cleaner Production, 106, 11–21.
Ferrero-Ferrero, I., Fernández-Izquierdo, M. Á., Muñoz-Torres, M. J., & Bellés-Colomer, L. (2017). Stakeholder Engagement in Sustainability Reporting in Higher Education, an Analysis of Key Internal Stakeholders’ Expectations. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 19(2), 313–336.
Fonseca, A., Macdonald, A., Dandy, E., & Valenti, P. (2011). The State of Sustainability Reporting at Canadian Universities. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 12(1), 22–40.
Freeman, R. E. (1984). Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Freeman, R. E., Wicks, A. C., & Pramar, P. (2004). Stakeholder Theory and “The Corporate Objective Revisited”. Organization Science, 15(3), 364–369.
Gamage, P., & Sciulli, N. (2017). Sustainability Reporting by Australian Universities. Australian Journal of Public Administration, 76(2), 187–203.
Global Reporting Initiative GRI. (2013). G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. https://www.globalreporting.org/. Accessed 9 Jan 2019.
Gray, R. (2010). Is Accounting for Sustainability Actually Accounting for Sustainability and How Would We Know? An Exploration of Narratives of Organisations and the Planet. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 35(1), 47–62.
Guthrie, J., & Farneti, F. (2008). GRI Sustainability Reporting by Australian Public Sector Organizations. Public Money & Management, 28(6), 361–366.
Harrison, J. S., Bosse, D. A., & Phillips, R. A. (2010). Managing for Stakeholders, Stakeholder Utility Function and Competitive Advantage. Strategic Management Journal, 31(1), 58–74.
Higgins, C., & Larrinaga, C. (2014). Sustainability Reporting. Insights from Institutional Theory. In J. Bebbington, J. Unerman, & B. O’Dwyer (Eds.), Sustainability Accounting and Accountability (pp. 273–289). London: Routledge.
Hinson, R., Gyabea, A., & Ibrahim, M. (2015). Sustainability Reporting Among Ghanaian Universities. Communication, 41(1), 22–42.
Hopwood, A. G. (2009). Accounting and the Environment. Accounting, Organization and Society, 34(3), 433–439.
James, M. L. (2015). The Benefits of Sustainability and Integrated Reporting: An Investigation of Accounting Majors’ Perceptions. Journal of Legal, Ethical and Regulatory Issues, 18(1), 1–20.
Larrán, M. J., López Hernández, A., & Calzado Cejas, M. Y. (2012). Stakeholder Expectations in Spanish Public Universities: An Empirical Study. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 2(10), 1–13.
Larrán, M. J., Madueño, J. H., Calzado, Y., & Andrades, J. (2016). A Proposal for Measuring Sustainability in Universities: A Case Study of Spain. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 17(5), 671–697.
Larrán, M. J., Peña, F. J. A., & Madueño, J. H. (2019). An Analysis of University Sustainability Reports from the GRI Database: An Examination of Influential Variables. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 62(6), 1019–1044.
Lopatta, K., & Jaeschke, R. (2014). Sustainability Reporting at German and Austrian Universities. International Journal of Education Economics and Development, 5(1), 66–90.
Lozano, R. (2006). A Tool for a Graphical Assessment of Sustainability in Universities (GASU). Journal of Cleaner Production, 14(9–11), 963–972.
Lozano, R. (2011). The State of Sustainability Reporting in Universities. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 12(1), 67–78.
Lozano, R., Llobet, J., & Tideswell, G. (2013). The Process of Assessing and Reporting Sustainability at Universities: Preparing the Report of the University of Leeds. Revista Internacional de Tecnología, Sostenibilidad y Humanismo, 8, 85–112.
Lozano, R., Ceulemans, K., Alonso-Almeida, M., Huisingh, D., Lozano, F. J., Waas, T., & Hugé, J. (2015). A Review of Commitment and Implementation of Sustainable Development in Higher Education: Results from a Worldwide Survey. Journal of Cleaner Production, 108, 1–18.
Lucas, L. (2006). The Research Game in Academic Life. Maidenhead: Open University Press.
Mainardes, E., Raposo, M., & Alves, H. (2012). Public University Students’ Expectations: An Empirical Study Based on the Stakeholders Theory. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, 8(35), 173–196.
Malik, M. (2015). Value-Enhancing Capabilities of CSR: A Brief Review of Contemporary Literature. Journal of Business Ethics, 127(2), 419–438.
Manetti, G., & Toccafondi, S. (2014). Defining the Content of Sustainability Reports in Nonprofit Organizations: Do Stakeholders Really Matter? Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, 26(1), 35–61.
Ntim, C. G., Soobaroyon, T., & Broad, M. J. (2017). Governance Structures Voluntary Disclosures and Public Accountability: The Case of UK Higher Education Organisations. Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 20(1), 65–118.
Parker, L. (2011). University Corporatization: Driving Redefinition. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 22(3), 434–450.
Ralph, M., & Stubbs, W. (2014). Integrating Environmental Sustainability into Universities. Higher Education, 67(1), 71–90.
Romolini, A., Fissi, S., & Gori, E. (2015). Quality Disclosure in Sustainability Reporting: Evidence from Universities. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Science, 11(44), 196–218.
Sassen, R., & Azizi, L. (2018a). Voluntary Disclosure of Sustainability Reports by Canadian Universities. Journal of Business Economics, 88(1), 97–137.
Sassen, R., & Azizi, L. (2018b). Assessing Sustainability Reports of US Universities. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 19(7), 1158–1184.
Sassen, R., Dienes, D., & Beth, C. (2014). Nachhaltigkeitsberichterstattung deutscher Hochschulen. Zeitschrift für Umweltpolitik & Umweltrecht, 37(3), 258–277.
Secundo, G., Dumay, J., Schiuma, G., & Passiante, G. (2016). Managing Intellectual Capital Through a Collective Intelligence Approach. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 17(2), 298–319.
Shabana, K. M., Buchholtz, A. K., & Carroll, A. B. (2017). The Institutionalization of Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting. Business & Society, 56(8), 107–1135.
Siboni, B., Del Sordo, C., & Pazzi, S. (2013). Sustainability Reporting in State Universities: An Investigation of Italian Pioneering Practices. International Journal of Social Ecology and Sustainable Development, 4(2), 1–15.
Veltri, S., & Silvestri, A. (2015). The Free State University Integrated Reporting: A Critical Consideration. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 16(2), 443–462.
Zorio-Grima, A., Sierra-Gracía, L., & Garcia-Benau, M. A. (2018). Sustainability Reporting Experience by Universities: A Causal Configuration Approach. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 19(2), 337–352.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Frei, J., Lubinger, M., Greiling, D. (2020). Assessing Universities’ Global Reporting Initiative G4 Sustainability Reports in Concurrence with Stakeholder Inclusiveness. In: Manes-Rossi, F., Levy Orelli, R. (eds) New Trends in Public Sector Reporting. Public Sector Financial Management. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40056-9_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40056-9_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-40055-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-40056-9
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)