Hållbarhetsredovisning i stålbranschen
Att börja hållbarhetsredovisa med intressenternas behov i fokus
Sustainability reportingCorporate Social ResponsibilitySteel industryGlobal Reporting InitiativeOvakoHållbarhetsredovisningHållbar utvecklingStålbranschenGlobal Reporting InitiativeOvako
Background: Following an increased awareness concerning social and environmental aspectsin society, more enterprises establish sustainability reports in order to inform theirstakeholders about the company?s sustainability duties. A previous study indicates that themetal sector is enjoying relatively limited increases in business opportunities and/or financialvalue of corporate responsibility. Another study suggests that there is a gap in expectationsbetween producers and users of sustainability reports due to an uncertainty regarding whatinformation such reports should contain and what audience such reports should target. Thequestion is whether or not a gap in expectations concerning sustainability reporting is acontributing factor to the limited increases in financial value in the metal sector?Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine how a sustainability report should becarried out by a company in the steel industry given what information the company and thestakeholders consider as essential in a sustainability report.Methodology: To accomplish the purpose of the study, a deductive approach was used due tothe availability of suitable theories. We conducted semi-structured interviews in order toenable a deeper analysis of the subject. Interviews were carried out with employees at thesteel company Ovako in order to investigate what information they aim to communicate, themotivations for sustainability reporting, to whom the information is addressed and howcommunication with stakeholders is carried out. Four interviews with different stakeholders inthe Swedish steel industry were also conducted in order to study what information theyrequire for. The purpose was to highlight potential differences between the company and thestakeholders.Results: The study indicates the importance of clarifying the motives behind sustainabilityreporting and to identify which stakeholders to target. The importance stems from the fact thatthese factors decide what information to include. The case company identifies thestakeholders' expectations as their main motive and these should therefore form the basis forthe sustainability report. Both internal stakeholders such as employees and externalstakeholders as investors, customers and society are identified as important stakeholders bythe case company. The study further indicates that financial stakeholders without specificsustainability criteria do not place emphasis on the content of sustainability reports. Financialstakeholders with such criteria on the other hand, demand in particular informationconcerning environmental aspects, while non-financial stakeholders also requests informationon social aspects such as employee responsibility and business ethics. The case companydoes, however, show skepticism on whether social aspects such as employee responsibilityare relevant to include in the report due to the information's subjective nature and narrowaudience. The study indicates that the lack of stakeholder dialogues results in a sustainabilityreport that excludes information requested by stakeholders to whom the report is addressed.For a company in the steel industry, information concerning impact on the environment mayseem more relevant, but given the non-financial stakeholders demand the company shouldalso report on their social impact.