Corporate Websites Research Articles

Dialogic framing in pharmaceutical corporate energy transition strategies

Abstract The study explores dialogical framing as an engagement device in the two genres of corporate reports and corporate websites, by focusing on the nature and extent of dialogicity between companies and stakeholders, crucial to corporate strategies. Today investors and stakeholders increasingly demand greater transparency in accounting for long-term climate risks and opportunities, consequently companies need to rapidly adjust to the global ‘energy transition’, i.e. the shift from fossil-based energy towards renewable energy sources. For this purpose, the study seeks to identify how firms frame their energy transition plans, through dialogical engagement. To do this, three sub-corpora of selected texts were created from two pharmaceutical company websites, which were then comparatively analysed adopting corpus retrieval principles of analysis.

The effect of third-party certifications on corporate social responsibility communication authenticity and credibility

PurposeAccusations of greenwashing and corporate scandals have increased individuals’ skepticism of companies and their CSR claims. As a result, corporations seek to improve individuals’ perceptions of the credibility and authenticity of their CSR communication. Using signaling theory, this study tested to what extent external certifications from a non-profit organization act as a signal to affect individuals’ skepticism toward CSR, which, in turn, could influence individuals’ perceptions of CSR communication authenticity and credibility.Design/methodology/approachWe conducted a one-factorial (CSR communication with or without CSR certification) between-subjects online experiment, surveying 184 individuals. Mediation analyses were performed to test our hypotheses. Participants were randomly assigned to a made-up corporate website text in which corporate efforts were either certified with the B Corporation Certification, one of the most established non-profit organization’s certifications of CSR or in which no certification was indicated.FindingsThe results demonstrate that external CSR certifications decrease individuals’ CSR skepticism and increase the perceived authenticity and credibility of CSR communication. CSR skepticism partially mediated the effect between the certification condition and CSR communication authenticity and credibility.Originality/valueThe study advances CSR communication research by providing empirical evidence of the positive effect of CSR certifications on the perceived authenticity and credibility of CSR communication. Businesses can signal the veracity of their CSR claims by obtaining a CSR certification, which decreases individuals’ skepticism toward CSR.

Retail Businesses’ Commitment to Public Health: Lessons From the COVID-19 Pandemic

This study investigates how essential retailers responded to the COVID-19 pandemic through stakeholder communications. Based on a comprehensive text analysis of the corporate websites of the 20 largest U.S. essential retailers during the first 19 months of the crisis, we categorize the public health measures communicated by these retailers and assess how these retailers adapted their messaging to address the concerns of different stakeholders over time. This analysis allowed us to create a framework for understanding the flow of retailer/stakeholder communication during a health crisis, highlighting the important role businesses can play in alleviating stakeholder concerns when public health is on the line. We discuss the implications of our findings for retailers and public policy, aiming to enhance preparedness and response for future health emergencies.

Determinant of online purchase intention and corporate website contextual relevance

Determinant of online purchase intention and corporate website contextual relevance

Sentiment Analysis in Green Finance with LLMs

Green finance has gained global significance as governments and financial institutions emphasize sustainable investment. Understanding the sentiment of green finance reports can provide valuable insights into public perception, investor sentiment, and policy reception. This study uses three different models FinBERT, GPT-3.5 Turbo, and GPT-4o -- to perform sentiment analysis on over 1000 reports obtained from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) website. To assess the accuracy of the models, this paper manually labeled the sentiment of the reports into three categories: Positive, Negative, and Neutral. We compared the models outputs using standard metrics such as F1-score, Accuracy, Precision, and Recall. The findings indicate that GPT-3.5 Turbo outperforms the other models in terms of accuracy. GPT-4o shows superior performance compared to Finbert which trained on financial texts in extracting sentiment from general text. Even though FinBERT and GPT-4 have stronger financial text processing capabilities, GPT-3.5 Turbo can often capture the true intent and sentiment of the text more quickly and clearly, especially when trained on a relatively small text corpus. Its generalization and speed make it efficient for less complex financial tasks.

PENGARUH JUMLAH KOMITE AUDIT, UKURAN PERUSAHAAN DAN OPINI AUDIT TERHADAP AUDIT DELAY

The study aims to analyze the impact of the number of audit committees, company size, and audit opinions on Audit Delay. The research was carried out by analyzing the financial statements of companies listed in the LQ45 index on the Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX) during the period from 2018 to 2022. The sample used in this study was 23 companies that were listed consistently in the Index of LQ45, on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, for the period 2018 to 2022 using purposive sampling techniques. The data used for the sample research is secondary data from financial statements and annual reports that can be accessed through the IDX website and several corporate websites. The variables used in this study are Number of Audit Committees (X1) as the first free variable, the Company Size (X2) as the second free variabel, and Audit Opinion as the third free variables and the Audit Delay (Y) as the bound variable. The methodology used in this study is a panel data regression method. Analysis of research results using EViews 12 software. Research shows that the best model is Random Effect Model (REM). The results of this study showed that the number of audit committees partially had no influence on the audi delayt, the size of the company partially influenced the delays in the audits, the opinion of the audit partially did not influence the Audit Delay, and simultaneously the number of audit committees, the company size, and the audit opinion had an influence upon the Audit Delay. Keywords: Number of Audit Committees; Company Size; Audit Opinion; Audit Delay

Unveiling the blackbox withinESGratings' blackbox: Toward a framework for analyzing AI adoption and its impacts

AbstractArtificial intelligence (AI) is transforming entire industries at an unprecedented pace. Yet, established technology adoption theories offer limited tools for characterizing business AI integration and analyzing its effects. These primarily focus on the factors facilitating or hindering adoption, rather than on adoption patterns and impacts. This paper introduces a novel conceptual framework to address this key gap and applies it to the case of the ESG rating industry. ESG raters play a pivotal role in sustainable finance, providing metrics that guide investment decisions globally. However, little is known about the extent and nature of their AI usage and its implications. Through a mixed‐methods approach combining the analysis of job postings, patent filings, research publications, and corporate websites, we examine AI adoption among major ESG raters. Our investigation explores the specific AI technologies employed, their functional applications, the innovations developed, the intensity of AI integration, and the potential impacts of raters' AI adoption. Our results reveal widespread and growing AI adoption across the industry. Our findings show that raters extensively leverage Natural Language Processing to streamline data collection, processing, and analysis. Furthermore, they have pioneered Machine Learning innovations that significantly expand their sustainability assessment capabilities in various domains. These findings mark a considerable departure from prior academic and gray literature that characterized major ESG raters as having minimal AI use, prompting critical questions regarding the implications of this technological transformation for ESG ratings' reliability, transparency, and potential biases.

ONLINE PRESS RELEASES IN DIGITAL PUBLIC RELATIONS: A REVIEW OF AIRLINES' PRESS RELEASES

Press releases, typically prepared by public relations departments to notify the public and the press about important developments, continue to be frequently utilized tools. Press releases are essential in public relations for announcing newsworthy items, such as product launches, quarterly earnings, mergers, or important updates. As in various fields, digitalisation has changed and transformed some tools and methods in public relations. However, press releases, one of the oldest public relations tools, are still used by organisations' communication departments for the same purposes. Due to digitalisation, press releases are now posted on businesses' websites and social media pages. For this reason, the press releases published by the four airlines on their corporate websites were analysed in this study. The main objective of the research is to identify the message content in press releases and how it aligns with public relations objectives. For this purpose, all press releases issued by four airline companies in 2023 were analysed using content analysis. In this context, it was determined that airline companies issued press releases in a total of nine different categories. These categories are press releases named Public Announcement, New Route, Corporate Social Responsibility, Financial - Earnings, Innovation & Technology, New Partnership, Award Announcement, Product - Service Launch, and Sponsorship. As a result, it was concluded that these press releases also serve airlines' marketing and public relations purposes.

HR revolution: screen people not paper - Case study of AkzoNobel, Unilever and Cathay Pacific

The recruitment of highly experienced professionals is a crucial undertaking as it creates the talent pool for the organisation. Although the development and implementation of electronic recruiting applications in MNCs have been highly effective, they not only contribute to reducing candidate screening time but also effectively support employer’s productivity. In other words, E-HRM is the practice of integrating HRM strategies, policies, and practices in a company through the use of web-based technology. Yet, the raising concern is how organisations in Vietnam could effectively learn and utilise e-recruitment since most companies continue to employ manually with pricey recruitment methods. The study aims to identify the fundamental concept of e-recruitment and intends to collect information regarding e-recruitment methods such as emails, corporate websites, and commercial job boards, among others, through the story of AkzoNobel, Unilever and Cathay Pacific in installing the e-recruitment system in Vietnam and in ASEAN. It covers the advantages and disadvantages of e-recruitment, as well as how local Vietnamese businesses might efficiently use it.

The Evolution of Real Estate: Digital Marketing's Influence

Digital marketing has become an essential trend for real estate firms in India, driven by improved network infrastructure and the widespread use of smart phones. This research examines the various digital marketing strategies employed by real estate companies and evaluates their effectiveness. With potential clients increasingly conducting their own research online, digital marketing has become a vital component of overall marketing efforts. Enhancing brand image and facilitating efficient customer communication are imperative for real estate organizations, and this requires fortifying their online presence on search engines, corporate websites, and social media platforms. Digital marketing, particularly through social media platforms, has a significant influence on the real estate industry, just like it does on many other sectors. In today's real estate marketing, websites, Face book, Integra, and YouTube have become indispensable resources. There is little study that focuses especially on social media management within India's real estate business, despite the fact that economic growth and population increase are the driving forces behind Indonesia's real estate market. Major segments in the real estate market include land, residential, commercial, and industrial properties, as well as real estate investment trusts, undeveloped land, and vacation homes. In the fiercely competitive real estate landscape, agents must do more than merely acquire a license—they need to embrace the digital innovations reshaping property transactions. Integrating digital marketing fully into real estate services is imperative. To meet the increasing demand for sustainability, real estate firms must develop digital expertise and skills to deliver impactful and efficient digital marketing solutions.

The role of the corporate ethical virtues model in sustainability reporting

AbstractFrom the perspective of virtue ethics, ethical organizational cultures prompt employees to act ethically. According to Kaptein's Corporate Ethical Virtues (CEV) model, this organizational ability is favored by the development of seven key corporate virtues (Clarity, Congruency, Feasibility, Supportability, Transparency, Discussability, and Sanctionability). The paper intends to connect the CEV model with sustainability reporting, which is taking on increasing relevance today due to factors such as the European Union's recent Directives on corporate non‐financial communication. In particular, the paper's objective is to examine to what extent and the way in which the virtues of the model have a role in sustainability reporting. Furthermore, this goal is enriched with an added focus, which is attention paid to actions taken by companies, and expressed in their sustainability reporting, in implementing virtuous behavior amidst the difficulties triggered by the COVID‐19 crisis. To achieve its aim, the paper presents and discusses a study of the role of the CEV model within two large companies in the logistics sector, through a content analysis of their sustainability reports covering the period 2018–2020 complemented by information from their corporate websites. The results of the analysis highlight both an overall relevance of the virtues included in the CEV model and the role of measures adopted by organizations to cope with COVID‐19 as a significant component of their sustainability performance in the pandemic period. Finally, the paper elaborates on several theoretical and practical implications stemming from the study.

Fairness in E-Recruitment: Examining Procedural Justice Perceptions and Job Seekers’ Intentions

Corporate websites are crucial in recruitment, as the prospective applicants’ experiences in digital recruitment may influence their intentions. Therefore, understanding how opportunity-to-perform perceptions (OPP) integral to procedural justice experienced by potential applicants while visiting a corporate recruitment website impact their reactions towards the company can be key. This study aims to elucidate the influence of OPP on applicants’ intentions to apply (ITA) via corporate websites. Specifically, it explores the indirect relationship between OPP during recruitment and ITA one month after visiting a company website, mediated by organizational attractiveness and ITA measured immediately after and one week after the website visit. This multi-wave study collected 260 cases from master’s students in psychology who completed a questionnaire across waves. Hypotheses were tested using the PROCESS macro in SPSS. The findings highlighted a serial mediation pathway, wherein the indirect connection between OPP and ITA after one month was mediated through organizational attractiveness, ITA immediately after, and one week after website visits. The results highlight the importance of enhancing procedural justice corporate websites to influence applicants’ perceptions and intentions positively and improve recruitment outcomes. Future research should explore the effect of long-term justice perceptions as a basis for a sustainable employee–employer relationship.

Employment brand equity and corporate’s job growth and reputation

PurposeThis research aimed to explore the commonalities and differences in the type of information provided on corporate websites in relation to their employment brand equity.Design/methodology/approachMixed methods of content analysis, ANOVA and regression analyses were employed to answer the research questions. The data were collected from multiple sources, including the websites of a sample of forty companies listed as the US Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work in 2012 and information presented on Fortune’s website as well.FindingsEmployment brand equity hardly showed any significant impact on either company’s job growth or reputation in the ranking as an “employer of choice”.Practical implicationsThe results indicated some practices to make a company’s employment brand outstanding and how its web presence reflected its “brand” and presence for potential employees. They are useful for HR practitioners concerned with building an employee brand. For example, the more highly ranked companies in the Fortune 100 tend to provide more forms of online support related to employment opportunities.Originality/valueUsing brand equity theory from the marketing arena and applying this within the human resources management area, this study suggests that “employment brand equity” became a major factor that many companies and organizations should focus on to enhance their standing with job seekers, particularly talented ones. Nearly a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic, the best companies to work for in the US had paid attention to digitalization via websites and social media, to attract talent (and support employees).

Gender-inclusive language analysis framework (GILAF)

The use of (gender-)inclusive language is increasingly gaining attention in all spheres of society, including corporate communication. The main aim of this paper is to present GILAF, an evaluation framework to analyze and describe Spanish (gender-) inclusive language in corporate websites. For such a purpose, the elaboration process of the analysis framework is described, quantitatively validated, and applied to a sample of corporate websites from Spanish SMEs. The validation process proved that the GILAF framework is suitable for analyzing and describing (gender)-inclusive language strategies in corporate websites. In addition, the extracted results from the analysis of the sample showed that the application of (gender-)inclusive language is scarce in the analyzed websites, except for Graphic and visual language strategies and Presence of sexist stereotypes. The GILAF analysis framework has a great potential to be used as well as a guide for companies willing to apply (gender-)inclusive language strategies to their corporate web content.

Official visits and stock price crash risk

Against the backdrop of continuous stock price crashes, preventing stock price crash risk has become an increasingly important item on the Chinese government's agenda in recent years. Using a unique dataset on official visits manually collected from news reports posted on corporate websites during the 2010–2020 period, we examine the impact of official visits on the stock price crash risk of visited companies. We find that official visits contribute to a reduction in stock price crash risk. This effect is more pronounced among privately controlled companies, information-opaque companies, and financially constrained companies. Taking the political rankings of visiting officials into consideration, we find that municipal officials have a more significant influence on stock price crash risk. We further establish the underlying mechanisms and find that official visits reduce crash risk through the provision of more preferential resources, such as government subsidies and bank loans, and by attracting more public attention, such as media and analyst coverage. Overall, our research provides evidence on how officials can prevent stock price crash risk.

Digital Marketing and the Presentation of Corporate Financial Statements: An Analysis of the Literature on Transformation and Impact

This study aims to analyze the integration of digital marketing with corporate financial reporting, focusing on its impact on transparency, accountability, and the challenges associated with its implementation. The research adopts a qualitative approach through an extensive literature review, systematically examining scholarly articles, industry reports, and case studies from reputable sources. The analysis uses thematic coding to identify trends, challenges, and the implications of integrating digital marketing data into financial reporting. The findings reveal that digital marketing significantly enhances financial transparency and accountability by providing real-time data and facilitating dynamic stakeholder engagement. Platforms such as social media and corporate websites are pivotal in disseminating financial information and receiving real-time feedback, improving financial reports' accuracy. However, integrating digital marketing data poses challenges, including data security, regulatory compliance, and the need for new skills among financial professionals. Companies that effectively harness AI and big data analytics in their financial reporting demonstrate improved forecasting and decision-making capabilities. This integration offers transformative opportunities for businesses to enhance their financial reporting's accuracy and timeliness. Nevertheless, addressing the challenges of data integration and security, as well as bridging the skills gap, is crucial for realizing the full potential of digital marketing in financial reporting.

Strategic Marketing for Sustainable Development: Promoting Environmental Responsibility and Corporate Social Responsibility

Purpose: The aim of the study was to examine the Strategic Marketing for Sustainable Development: Promoting Environmental Responsibility and Corporate Social Responsibility. Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. Findings: The study found that strategic marketing plays a crucial role in promoting environmental responsibility and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) within organizations. The studies reviewed highlight the effectiveness of various marketing initiatives, such as green marketing strategies, cause-related marketing campaigns, and integrated communication approaches, in fostering positive consumer perceptions, enhancing brand reputation, and driving sustainable business practices. By prioritizing credible and transparent communication about CSR initiatives, businesses can strengthen stakeholder relationships, build trust, and differentiate themselves in the marketplace. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Stakeholder Theory, Relationship Marketing Theory & Diffusion of Innovation Theory may be used to anchor future studies on Strategic Marketing for Sustainable Development: Promoting Environmental Responsibility and Corporate Social Responsibility. Integrated marketing communication (IMC) that incorporates sustainability messages across all touchpoints is essential for promoting environmental responsibility and CSR effectively. Organizations should ensure that their communication strategies are consistent, transparent, and aligned with their sustainability goals. By integrating sustainability messages into marketing campaigns, product packaging, corporate websites, and social media channels, businesses can reinforce their commitment to sustainability and build trust with consumers. Businesses should actively engage in advocacy efforts to promote supportive policy frameworks that incentivize and reward sustainable practices. By collaborating with policymakers, industry associations, and non-governmental organizations, organizations can influence the development of policies that facilitate the transition towards a more sustainable economy.

Challenges in adopting and using online recruitment tools from employers’ perspective

Purpose This paper aims to contribute to the existing literature by providing a unique exploration of the challenges in the adoption and usage of corporate websites, job aggregators, digital job boards, professional social media and artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tools for recruitment. Design/methodology/approach In this exploratory study, interviews were conducted with 15 experts in digital companies with AI, recruitment or human eesources expertise. Findings The findings suggest three major themes, including technological, human–technology interaction and peripheral challenges. Moreover, seven sub-themes of challenges emerged from this study, namely, inefficient facilities and resources, inefficient data accumulation, resistance to change, distrust in technology, restricting regulations, toxic work culture and economic and social obstacles. Finally, this study proposes important implications and practical solutions to help professionals, companies and employers overcome challenges associated with adopting and using online recruitment tools. Originality/value Electronic human resource management has not studied the challenges associated with online recruitment tools in the context of Iranian digital organizations. This paper provides a unique exploration of the challenges in the adoption of AI in recruitment.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Website Reporting: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa’s Top-Ranked Companies

This study aims to examine how Sub-Saharan Africa’s top ranked companies themselves convey their role as social-economic development partners and/or agents in their corporate communications, and to what extent country- and industry-specific characteristics influence their reporting, i.e., via CSR websites reporting. Using Forbes’ 2,000 world-largest-corporations ranking, based on 2017 ranking list, we select the largest corporations. We then filter our search to select Africa-largest-corporations. A content analysis of the CSR reports and/or Websites of the sample companies was conducted to identify the motives for CSR practices, CSR managerial processes and stakeholder issues addressed in CSR reporting. Several of the “motives underlying CSR practices”, “CSR managerial processes” and “stakeholder issues addressed” in CSR reporting appear to converge around similar themes (or issues), given that all three sample companies operate in the financial services industry within the specificities of South Africa’s context. The findings suggest that the specificities of South Africa’s historical development and/or socio-cultural realities, legislation and industry charters are important factors that influence CSR (or sustainability) practices in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa. Although, studies that mainly focus on the contents of corporate website are uncommon, this study has limitations as we solely relied on publicly accessible CSR reporting, rather than, for example, interviewing employees, customers (or clients) and/or regulators to verify the claims by the sample companies. As this study examines CSR website reporting practices by organisations, it provides a useful insight for competitor benchmarking that can be used by organisations to imrpove their CSR website reporting practices. This study contributes to extant CSR research as its provides empirical evidence of the contextuality of CSR in Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as explores how country- and industry-specific characteristics may influence CSR website reporting.

Intentional Author as a Subject of Virtual Communication (Content of Corporate Websites News)

This study explores the “image of the virtual intentional author” in the news discourse of corporate websites. A comparative analysis of materials from corporate websites of Kemerovo State University and Siberian Coal and Energy Company is conducted. Subjective, predicate-actant, and locative-temporal components are identified. Typical and specific semantic components are named. The typical shared components include the following meanings: “I am a significant subject of the Russian space”; “I represent a collective of professionals”; “I engage in volunteer and charitable activities”. Each of the considered organizations’ intentional author image is characterized by specific features. The intentional author of the university’s news content realizes the following modal meanings: “I am not only a leading university in the region but also part of global rankings, serving as a center for scientific, social, volunteer activities, etc. in the region”, thus, the virtual author communicates the intention to present the university as a significant subject of the Russian educational space. The intentional author of the energy company’s news content conveys meanings such as: “I am the best production organization”; “I am competitive”; “I am socially oriented”; “I interact with authorities and public organizations”.