Title: From CSR and sustainability to integrated reporting

Authors: Samuel O. Idowu; Ioana-Maria Dragu; Adriana Tiron-Tudor; Teodora Viorica Farcas

Addresses: London Guildhall Faculty of Business and Law, London Metropolitan University, Electra House, 84 Moorgate, London EC2M 6SQ, UK ' Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Babes-Bolyai University, 58-60 Teodor Mihali Street, Cluj-Napoca, 400591, Romania ' Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Babes-Bolyai University, 58-60 Teodor Mihali Street, Cluj-Napoca, 400591, Romania ' Business Faculty, Babes-Bolyai University, 58-60 Teodor Mihali Street, Cluj-Napoca, 400591, Romania

Abstract: The current paper aims to emphasise the presence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability elements in the integrated reporting framework, focusing on the most relevant set of voluntary reporting initiatives in the CSR/sustainability/IR sphere. Based on the theoretical background of the IR framework, ISO 26000 and GRI G4, a comparison analysis has been developed that helped identifying whether IR is a new step in corporate reporting and could contribute to a common ground for the non-financial reporting frameworks and guidelines. The comparison analysis reveals that most of the terms and definitions, elements, and principles from ISO 26000 and GRI G4 are found in the IR framework, but in a much broader sense and providing a deeper understanding regarding what companies should report and how the disclosed information should be organised in the annual corporate report.

Keywords: integrated reporting; corporate social responsibility; CSR; sustainability; framework; guidelines; voluntary reporting; ISO 26000; GRI G4; corporate reporting; non-financial reporting; annual reports; voluntary disclosure.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSEI.2016.076687

International Journal of Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 2016 Vol.4 No.2, pp.134 - 151

Received: 28 Nov 2015
Accepted: 26 Dec 2015
Published online: 20 May 2016 *

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