Abstract
Universities are increasingly being asked to contribute to addressing the significant local and global challenges, such as those identified in the 2030 Agenda. Set in this framework, universities need to account for the social value they generate through their activities, particularly from the perspective of their contribution to different stakeholders. This approach requires, first of all, that the main stakeholders are identified. Relationship and dialogue mechanisms then need to be established which can help guide universities to choose activities which can better meet the needs of their stakeholders. The current paper analyses the potential of integrated reports, and triple bottom line reports, as an instrument for reporting on aspects that go beyond the financial sphere, including economic, social and environmental aspects. Specifically, the paper focuses on studying the viability of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for reporting the value that European universities generate for their stakeholders. The results show, firstly, that the universities in the sample do not sufficiently address these questions in their reports. Internal stakeholders are prominent in their reports, with the interaction between them and the universities being generally unidirectional. References to value generated are limited, and usually refer to the economic value. However, some examples of good practices are identified that could be used to improve standards of reporting, especially in universities committed to integrated reporting initiatives, in order to better reflect the social value.
Highlights
Challenges, such as the increase in social inequalities or the worsening of the ongoing environmental crisis, are prompting society to look to the social role of universities to address these problems
The following research questions are derived to guide this empirical study: which stakeholders do the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) take into account in their reports and how do they interact with them? How do they address the generation of value in their reports and how do they relate it to stakeholders and their demands? The review highlights that universities have begun to use different integrated reporting models, introducing them into their management processes, the model most used, which emerged in recent years and which continues to gain strength, is the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards model
Of the 10 universities in the sample studied, only 3 of them (Torino, Cádiz and IUNR-ZHAW) define what they consider to be stakeholders in their activity. Their definitions agree in considering a stakeholder as being exposed to the factor of influence, either to the extent that they influence the activity of the university or that they are influenced by it
Summary
Challenges, such as the increase in social inequalities or the worsening of the ongoing environmental crisis, are prompting society to look to the social role of universities to address these problems Their involvement is considered essential in helping to find a solution to the significant local and global issues, such as those identified in the 2030 Agenda. The academic literature is beginning to identify the components of a new way of viewing a university’s activity in which the priority lies in generating value for the stakeholders involved (Tetteh et al, 2021). These debates are putting forward different proposals which advocate for the potential of universities to be at the service of society. This has given rise to academic reflections as well as practical advances in suggesting new models for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to use to be able to collate and communicate financial and non-financial information
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