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Although the need to expand the boundaries of financial reporting has been discussed since the mid-1990s, little consideration has been given to the evolution and discourses of integrated reporting of non-financial aspects. Yet by investigating how and why an organisation defines and its reporting boundaries, it is possible to understand what is truly "valued" (or not) in its business model.
This innovative book reviews the guidelines and frameworks from the major relevant international organisations including: the International Accounting Standards Board, Global Reporting Initiative, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, International Integrated Reporting Council, Carbon Disclosure Standards Board, and the World Intellectual Capital Initiative, and analyses their development and impact on the boundaries of financial and non-financial reporting.
Illustrated with case studies and interviews with representatives of these organisations, this concise volume makes a significant contribution to the future of reporting theory and practice. It will be of great interest to advanced students, researchers, practitioners and policy makers.
List of contents
List of Figures; List of Tables; Foreword by Prof. Stefano Zambon; Chapter 1 Introduction; Chapter 2 Boundaries in Financial Reporting; Chapter 3 Boundaries in Non-Financial Reporting; Chapter 4 From theory to practice: reporting boundaries from financial to integrated reporting and their professional implications; Chapter 5 The Boundaries in Financial and Non-Financial Reporting: A Colossus Built on Shaky Foundations?
About the author
Laura Girella works with the IIRC where her responsibilities include strengthening the business case for IR and supporting the Italian market on its journey towards adopting IR. Since 2009 she has been organizing the "CFO Executive Master Programme" jointly run by the Department of Economics and Management, University of Ferrara and the National Association for CFO’s (ANDAF).
Summary
How an organisation defines its reporting boundaries, reveals much about what is actually valued in its business model. This concise book reviews the guidelines and frameworks from the major relevant international organisations: the IASB, GRI, SASB, IIRC, Carbon Disclosure Standards Board, and the World Intellectual Capital Initiative, and
Report
The boundaries that are set in all forms of corporate reporting not only demark the scope of information provided but represent the conjunction of accounting, economic concepts. Boundaries in reporting are concomitant with the boundaries of professional accountant, statutory auditors and assurance providers. As part of the neo-liberal narrative the boundary signifies the limits of the entity's responsibilities and the externalities left for governments and societies to deal with. In this insightful and though-provoking study, Dr Girella challenges the boundaries we imagine to exist in reporting and demonstrates that they are increasingly being redrawn and becoming more permeable.
Mario Abela, Director, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
