INTEGRATED REPORTING IN INDIA AND SINGAPORE THROUGH LENS OF SUSTAINABILITY PROFESSIONALS

Abstract

Traditionally, financial information has always been a key component of corporate reporting. As the awareness and stakeholder demand increased, companies started producing sustainability reports which demonstrated the company's social, environmental and economic impacts. However, in this century, it is not only essential to achieve sustainable development; we need to go beyond sustainability reports to adopt a new value-based integrated reporting. Keeping this in mind, the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) launched the International Integrated Reporting Framework (<IR> Framework) in 2013. This thesis seeks to demonstrate an awareness of integrated reporting and the <IR> Framework. Presently, research in this area has considered the views of accounting professionals and management committees on integrated reporting, but the opinions of the sustainability professionals are missing. Therefore, this research was focused on the sustainability professionals in India and Singapore as the IIRC has identified these countries as the priority markets for the <IR> Framework. The data on the views of these professionals were obtained through a survey questionnaire. A questionnaire was distributed to 150 organizations in India and Singapore that are listed on the GRI Sustainability Disclosure Database. The response rate for the survey was 43.8%. These responses were analyzed, and the statistical data are presented graphically in this thesis. The results show that the awareness of integrated reporting and the <IR> Framework is greater in India than in Singapore. Moreover, there is disparity amongst the sustainability professionals in the way they interpret integrated reporting. In India, it is viewed as an addendum to the annual reports whereas, in Singapore it is considered as a step ahead in sustainability reporting. This thesis not only identifies the factors inhibiting the adoption of the <IR> Framework but also serves as a guide to designing programs for the adoption of the framework in India and Singapore.