We just finished writing a new paper with my co-author, George Serafeim (HBS), titled “The Consequences of Mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting”, and I wanted to share it with you. In this paper, we set out to explore the impact that sustainability reporting has had in countries were mandatory reporting laws and regulations have been adopted.

We gathered data for about 58 countries, and we show that after the adoption of mandatory sustainability reporting laws and regulations, the social responsibility of business leaders increases. We also document that both sustainable development and employee training become a higher priority for companies, and an improvement in corporate governance. Furthermore, we find that companies implement more ethical practices, reduce bribery and corruption, and that managerial credibility increases. These effects are larger for countries with stronger law enforcement and more widespread assurance of sustainability reports.

We believe that this paper contributes significantly to the global debate about integrated reporting, and it also highlights that sustainability reporting not only increases transparency but can also change corporate behaviour and managerial practice. Disclosure of environmental, social and governance (ESG) information forces companies to manage these matters effectively in order to avoid having to disclose bad ESG performance to their multiple stakeholders.

Available at: The Consequences of Mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting", with George Serafeim (HBS), HBS Working Paper Series 11-100