Identify the components of sustainability reporting in the insurance industry

Abstract

The reporting approach is not limited to disclose financial events in accounting. Therefore, in response to stakeholder demand and increased accountability to society, many companies around the world publish their information about environmental, social, and governance performance, which are known as sustainability reporting. The purpose of this study is to identify the environmental, social, and governance components in the insurance industry. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify the components of sustainability. Twelve sustainability reports of foreign insurance companies with the highest environmental, social and Governance scores in the Thomson Reuters database were selected by purposive sampling method. Findings showed that the components of sustainability reporting include important general information of company, sustainable investment, sustainable insurance, environmental issues, customers and employees, Diversity, social inclusion and fair opportunities, risk management, education and development, health and Welfare, compliance management, climate change, supply chain, organization integrity, Leadership structure, corporate citizen activity, and information technology. The findings also suggest that insurance companies consider a wide range of stakeholders as the target audience for their sustainability reports. The results of this study can be used by Iranian insurance companies to prepare sustainability reports.