Governance Processes Research Articles

Do internationally operating companies act in a socially sustainable manner? An empirical comparison of disclosure regarding employee matters and human rights matters

Although employee matters and human rights matters directly affect the corporate environment, research in this area remains nascent. To obtain evidence on the extent of corporate compliance with due diligence obligations, sustainability reporting has been analyzed. Grounded in institutional theory, this study examines the effects of regulation, the degree of professionalization, and sector-specific variations. The research employs a qualitative-interpretative content analysis, focusing on the reporting behaviour of 12 listed companies in Germany from both high-risk and low-risk sectors. The reporting periods selected are 2017 and 2021, chosen to examine the impact of regulations under the Non-Financial Reporting Directive 2014/95/EU (NFRD) and the Second Shareholder Rights Directive. The results show that regulation influences the disclosure of employee matters and human rights matters. Furthermore, there is a difference in the level of specificity regarding these matters, as well as in terms of opportunities and risks. The intensity of regulation also has an impact on the comparability and quality of reporting. By analyzing the reporting behaviour concerning two central social matters, this study compares the disclosure of employee matters and human rights matters, thereby contributing to the broader understanding of corporate social responsibility as well as gaining knowledge regarding sustainable corporate governance processes fostering the transformation towards sustainability-related actions across different sectors. In addition, the study examines both existing (NFRD) and forthcoming Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) EU reporting obligations within a unified research framework, thus contributing to the advancement of sustainability reporting from an institutional theoretical perspective.

Marketing of Indonesian International Tourism from the Perspective of Collaborative Governance

Tourism is a series of multi-sector activities and involves various stakeholders. The diversity of stakeholders, shared vision and goals, and bounded resources have led to the need for collaborative governance in Indonesian tourism marketing. This study will analyze the conditions of input, process and output of collaborative governance of Indonesian tourism marketing. Bounded marketing resources of Indonesian tourism marketing is the main trigger for the collaborative governance. The motive and objective of collaborative governance of Indonesian tourism marketing is to synergize resources between the government and various stakeholders to improve Indonesia's tourism marketing program. Based on the research results, it was found that most of the conditions of the key elements of collaboration were progressing quite well, but there were still various conditions that needed to be improved. The output results of collaborative objectives related to efficiency, efficacy and equity have been obtained by collaboration participants. The collaborative governance of Indonesian tourism marketing does not yet have standard implementation procedures as guidelines for the MoTCE marketing team. This study suggests a pre-model (initial model) of Indonesian tourism marketing collaborative governance, for further testing and development, to strengthen Indonesian tourism marketing governance.

Student contributions to quality assurance in higher education: a systematic literature review

This article presents the results of a systematic literature review on student contributions to quality assurance processes in higher education. The research had three main outcomes: the first identified relevant studies on the subject under investigation. The second, more innovative, analysed the main issues related to student participation, involvement/engagement and commitment as a stakeholder in QA processes. The analysis revealed that students participate in QA processes, both internally and externally, in three distinct dimensions: – Participation: the importance of student participation associated with the teaching and learning process is recognised, emphasising aspects such as feedback, assessment, satisfaction and partnerships. – Involvement: centred on governance and partnerships, with students acting as partners in governance and decision-making processes, in an active and involved participation in QA processes. – Commitment: refers to the deepest level of involvement, where students demonstrate a commitment to QA. The third outcome focused on the results of the three research questions posed, which made it possible to analyse and characterise the selected studies, define a comprehensive framework of student contributions in the field of QA and point out areas requiring further investigation that could guide future research.

Traditionalism in China’s State Governance: Regional Specificity

Introduction. The relevance of the study is due to the increasing importance and influence of global and, at the same time, regional processes on the process of governance. The purpose of the article is to identify the regional specifics of traditionalism as a systemic phenomenon in the processes of state governance in China; in this case, we consider China as a region participating in global and transregional relations. Materials and Methods. The study is based on sociologist R. Redfield’s concept of social organization tradition, which distinguished between “big” and “small” traditions, and the adaptation of this concept in Chinese sociology. In order to identify the relationship between traditionalism and Chinese specificity of public administration in their historical aspect and to determine the current region-specific trends of traditionalism’s influence on public administration, scientific studies of Chinese sociologists were analyzed. Results. In particular, the systemic characteristics of traditionalism are examined along two interrelated dimensions: philosophical, which determines the value orientations of society, and practical, which aims to ensure stable social interaction. Special attention is paid to the “great state tradition”, which in modern Asia with China as an example manifests itself in the adaptation of traditional management concepts to modern conditions. The processes of penetration of traditional values into political discourse and ideology are studied, emphasizing that modern traditionalism is not a return to the past, but a tool for searching for arguments in the past to actualize modern managment concepts. Discussion and conclusion. The regional specificity of state governance is largely determined by the “big state tradition”, which remains a significant factor of the governance system in China, influences the “little tradition” and seeks ways to adapt to it. The practical significance of the article lies in the possibility of using its results in planning interaction with administrative departments and public structures of the PRC.

Exploring new dimensions of urban governance: The development of administrative systems in Trieste and Fiume (Rijeka) during the final decades of the Habsburg Empire (1850–1918)

Urban governance is often perceived as a concept that has emerged over the past half-century, evolving from the policy of urban government. The analysis of this shift, known as the “transformation thesis,” has been criticized by recent studies in the field, which focus on the theory of metagovernance. However, both branches of urban governance literature heavily rely on knowledge of American cities, hindering a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon. There is a growing demand to broaden the temporal and geographical scope of case studies and conduct more comparative research to better understand the roots and current processes of urban governance. While the fundamental driving forces behind the emergence of modern municipal administration during the 19th century have been adequately explored, various characteristics of different geographical locations might add new dimensions and approaches to understanding urban governance. This study offers a comprehensive insight into the birth and early formation of urban governance systems in the free ports of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, namely Trieste and Fiume (Rijeka in Croatian). By analyzing legal documents and applying a mixed-method approach, this study unravels the institutional structures, electoral systems, and municipal authorities of Trieste and Fiume from the 1848 Revolution until the end of the First World War. In addition to the historical and Central European perspectives, this paper aims to explore rarely considered contextual factors of urban governance, such as legal-administrative, socio-economic, and political elements. The comparative analysis of Trieste and Fiume demonstrates that even within the same empire, a wide range of diverse influences could shape urban governance systems. Despite these varied factors and significantly different administrative contexts, surprisingly similar governance practices could also emerge.

Scales of governance, polycentricity and the case of active travel infrastructure in West London

In the context of net zero targets, the Bloomington School raises vital questions for public administration about the suitability and inter-relationships between different scales of governance for addressing this complex challenge. The extant empirically orientated literature exploring different examples of polycentric climate governance can gain from a closer focus on Elinor Ostrom’s conjecture that large scale externality problems can be most effectively addressed through decentralised governance processes. There is significant need and scope for applying Ostrom’s Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework to urban governance contexts. This paper applies the IAD framework to a case study of urban governance in London, focusing on sustainable transport targets and the task of delivering active travel infrastructure. The case confirms the pertinence of Bloomington insights into the importance of local knowledge and collaborative and entrepreneurial approaches to governance. The study also demonstrates that the Bloomington case for decentralised processes of institutional adaptation needs to be qualified where externalities cut across multiple jurisdictions, and in the case of reducing CO2 emissions are global in scale. Enabling active travel is found to require national and city-level governance initiating policy coordination across multiple local jurisdictions.

Education as policy: Museums’ relationships to food governance in New York City

ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to propose an exploration on how museums, as places of education and training on issues related to sustainability and the food system, can and are currently involved in food governance processes and ultimately become themselves, or more specifically their education or training programs, part of food policies. The present study maps the activities undertaken by museums in the field of sustainability and food. In order to gain insight into the meaning and impact of current museum activities, we conducted interviews with various actors working on food and sustainability issues in New York City. These actors were selected to represent both the museum world and the food system. Through semi-structured interviews, we discussed with these actors how museums, through their interface with local communities and visitors, can become actors capable of developing new narratives, forms of communication, and actions on food sustainability, targeting not only “internal” (local) actors, but also “external” actors (people who do not live in New York City). The results demonstrate a notable increase in the interest of museums in engaging with food-related practices and activities and highlights the potential of these spaces to contribute to transformative change in food systems.

Costing the intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) process.

The Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) was established to draft and negotiate a pandemic instrument to strengthen pandemic preparedness and response (PPR). This has been carried out under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO), and has to date involved 15 sessions in Geneva, plus countless hours both in informal working groups, and in capitals working on government positions on each substantive issue. This all comes at a cost, both in terms of human resource and travel costs associated with the development of an international treaty and its associated process. We begin to quantify the cost of this process as approximately US$ 201,343,032. If we also consider estimated costs for the parallel WGIHR process to be US$56,024,830, we estimate the total cost of this combined governance development to be US$257,367,862. We position this in the context of how much pandemic preparedness is thought to cost on an annual basis, and the opportunity costs of investing in this governance process instead of more operational areas of health security. Moreover, in doing so, we offer one of the first financial estimates of the cost of developing and negotiating multilateral treaties.

Navigating ‘deterioration in mental state’ – from recognition to response in general hospitals to satisfy ‘National Standards’: a discussion paper

Background The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care ‘National Standards’ require general hospitals to have systems for clinicians to recognise and respond to patients’ deteriorating mental state. The lack of an evidence-based operational definition and clear guidance challenges this requirement. Objective To review governance mechanisms and assessment processes for deteriorating mental state in a metropolitan general hospital and propose an organisational framework. Methods A qualitative document analysis using the READ approach systematically reviewed hospital committee reports, health district policies, and training programs to identify and synthesise key assessment points and processes. Findings The study mapped assessment points for recognising and responding to deteriorating mental state across patient journey stages. An organisational systems infographic provides a blueprint for meeting National Standards accreditation criteria. Conclusions Hospitals should establish comprehensive systems to observe, monitor, assess, and refer individuals with deteriorating mental state, involving multiple governance processes and frameworks. Impact statement Our paper maps governance and assessment processes to enhance deteriorating mental state recognition in general hospitals, aligning with National Standards. Plain English Summary General Hospital staff often need to recognise and respond to patients whose mental health is getting worse. This problem is serious because a worsening mental state can lead to harmful behaviours, such as self-harm or violence, and can result in poor healthcare experiences for patients. Our paper aimed to find ways to help hospital staff better identify and manage these situations. We looked at the systems and processes currently in place in hospitals to see how they could be used to meet national healthcare standards for mental health care. We created a detailed plan that hospitals can follow to improve their mental health responses. This plan includes steps for governance, assessment, and clinical pathways, ensuring that all parts of the hospital system work together to support patients with deteriorating mental states. Our findings suggest that using existing hospital processes, rather than creating new tools, can help staff more effectively recognise and respond to mental health issues. This approach not only meets accreditation requirements but also enhances patient safety and care quality. This paper provides valuable insights for healthcare practitioners and policymakers, showing that with the right systems in place, general hospitals can better manage mental health care, ultimately leading to better outcomes for patients.

Exploration of International Climate Governance Mechanisms from the Perspective of Social Dialogue

The global climate issue has become increasingly severe, and relying solely on a single entity for governance is insufficient to achieve ideal outcomes. Various international organizations are on the rise, and diversification and decentralization have become inevitable results in the evolution of international climate governance mechanisms. Social dialogue, as a mechanism involving multiple stakeholders, information sharing, and collaborative decision-making, can effectively address the collective action dilemma in climate governance. Therefore, this paper explores and analyzes the evolution of international climate mechanisms and the impact of diversified governance models through the lens of social dialogue. From this perspective, multiple stakeholders enhance democratic participation in international climate governance, which, to some extent, increases governance motivation. However, it also inevitably leads to a fragmented and decentralized global climate governance mechanism, characterized by a lack of international leadership and low governance efficiency. To address this issue and advance the climate governance process, it is necessary to acknowledge that a diversified governance mechanism has become a established fact, and subsequently, to establish a collaborative mechanism among multiple stakeholders, facilitating multi-faceted and multi-level dialogues to promote active and orderly participation from all parties, rather than pursuing a singular centralized leadership governance mechanism.

Development of a Data Portal System for Governance in Berau

The development of a Data Portal System for Berau Governance addresses the need for an integrated platform to effectively manage and disseminate government data. This system aims to enhance transparency, accountability, and public access to diverse datasets in alignment with the One Data Indonesia initiative. The portal consolidates various data categories, including news, announcements, agendas, publications, downloads, infographics, and visualizations, into a single platform, streamlining data access for both government agencies and the public. The system was developed using the Rapid Application Development (RAD) methodology, enabling iterative prototyping and quick adjustments based on feedback from key stakeholders. This approach ensured the system could meet the dynamic requirements of the government while remaining adaptable to future needs. The Laravel framework was chosen for its flexibility, scalability, and security features, allowing the system to provide a responsive, user-friendly experience while maintaining high levels of data integrity.The Data Portal System significantly improves the local government’s ability to manage and share information, fostering greater civic engagement and enhancing public trust in governance processes. Furthermore, the system facilitates more efficient public service delivery by making key data accessible in a structured and intuitive format. Regular assessments and updates are recommended to ensure the system continues to align with evolving user needs and governmental policies, further advancing data governance in Berau Regency.

Diverse Effects of Corporate Governance and Intellectual Capital on Audit Quality: A Quantile Regression Technique in Pakistan

In a world that has seen increased emphasis being placed on Corporate Governance (CG) and Intellectual Capital (IC) to determine the credibility of firms, this research seeks to establish the interrelation between CG, IC, and Audit Quality (AQ) of non-financial firms operating in the PSX. This study incorporates quantile regression to investigate the effects of the CG factors – Board Size (BS), Board Independence (BI), and Ownership Concentration (OC) – and the IC dimensions, including Research and Development (RD), Employee Training (ET), and Relational Capital (RC), on AQ. Interestingly, results indicate that solid board features and specific IC spending significantly boost AQ, which is more so at greater AQ. The positive increase in both BI and OC complements enhanced governance and oversight processes; good relational capital and adequate training of employees further speak to the need for strategic investment in improving sound audit practices.

The complexity of addressing equity in COVID-19-related global health governance and population health research priorities in Canada: a multilevel qualitative study

BackgroundSince COVID-19 emerged in 2020, the promotion of health equity, including in research, has further been challenged worldwide by both global health governance (GHG) processes and decisions, and national public health control measures. These global and national decisions have also led to the ‘covidization’ of health research agendas where resources have been massively channelled to address COVID-19, especially during the first years of the pandemic. This situation could potentially result in current and future population health research priorities not explicitly tackling equity as a central tenet. The study objective examined how and to what extent the COVID-19-related GHG architecture is affecting population health research priorities in Canada.MethodsWe conducted a multilevel qualitative study informed by the intersectionality-based policy analysis and multiple streams frameworks. We collected and thematically analysed data from four groups of respondents (n = 35: researchers, research funders and global and public health research institutes in Canada, and WHO/international actors) and an interactive feedback workshop (n = 40 participants).ResultsStudy findings generated four main themes. First, both global and national COVID-19 responses failed to address equity considerations, especially among populations in situations of vulnerability and marginalisation. Second, the integrated examination of funding, equity, and accountability was judged as necessary determinants of GHG and population health research priorities in Canada. Third, contrary to common beliefs about COVID-19, the consequences were not all negative, but they were also positive and unintended, and lessons can be learned. Fourth, study respondents proposed multiple recommendations to address inequities in the complex intersection between COVID-19-related GHG and population health research in Canada.ConclusionThis study provides substantial evidence of the multilayered and complex intersection between COVID-19-related GHG and population health research priorities in Canada. Although the window of opportunity was slim according to study respondents, there was still a unique collective effort to address COVID-19-related socioeconomic and health inequities by considering the numerous recommendations proposed by the four groups of study respondents. These recommendations can directly contribute to improving knowledge of global and national population health and equity research strategies in the context of an evolving pandemic and for policy- and decision-makers to adjust and rectify the course of global and public health governance.

The Impact of Support in Collective Entrepreneurship: The Case of the SISMIC Program in Québec

In recent years, interest of the positive impact of collective entrepreneurship has been growing. Launched by the Chantier de l’économie sociale, SISMIC is one example of an entrepreneurial support program designed to capitalize on this potential. This article assesses the program’s outcomes based on a qualitative analysis of data gathered through interviews with participating entrepreneurs. The results show that entrepreneurial support promotes strategic thinking, builds confidence, and strengthens reputations. The program enhanced entrepreneurs’ knowledge, resources, and operational structure. The incubator has also provided new insights into the unique participatory governance processes and legal structures that define the social economy. Furthermore, the authors found that the synergy between coaching and financing support enables entrepreneurs to fully focus on their projects, easing their mental burden.

Cultivating temporal attunement: Unfolding the seasonalities of an unsettled river landscape

This article argues for the importance of cultivating temporal attunement through experimental tools and methods aimed at instigating reflective conversations on variegated temporalities within participatory processes. It contributes to, and develops on, research on seasons as rhythmic phenomena, temporal conflicts and efforts to make temporalities visible for reflections in participatory contexts. Drawing on this research, I develop ‘the Rhythmical Calendar’— a tool which foregrounds temporal, and with it seasonal, mismatches and conflicts in a case of participatory planning for the Danish River landscape of Gudenå. From here, I draw out three analytical themes from the Rhythmical Calendar: 1) embodied mismatches, 2) interpersonal mismatches and 3) more-than-human mismatches. In the first theme, I highlight how temporal mismatches in coordination can become embodied as affect in the shape of e.g., anxiety, stress and loss. In the second theme, I unfold the multiple seasons connected to human practices and the discrepancies between them. And in the third theme, I focus on relations to more-than-human actors through experiences with environmental mismatches in timing and coordination and reflections on the co-constructing of seasonal rhythms. I conclude that tools, such as the Rhythmical Calendar, are important prerequisites for attuning people to questions around time and temporality and that it is pivotal to include this knowledge in collaborative governance processes to realign rhythms in efforts to navigate in and manage conflicts.

The Scenario Quality Assessment Method: A New Technique for Verifying the Quality of Scenarios

ABSTRACTIn a modern world faced by increasing uncertainty and crises, the importance of scenarios to inform the strategic decision‐making processes of governments and corporations has become paramount. This necessitates that those scenarios are rigorous and of high quality. A challenge is that research articulating how to classify and ensure the quality of a scenario is not prolific. This paper addresses this challenge by developing a framework of criteria for assessing scenario quality based on the futures and foresight literature and then using this to offer a new method for specifically assessing the quality of scenarios in the context of crisis management. The Scenario Quality Assessment Method infuses both the critical thinking and creativity required to develop quality scenarios. The method was empirically verified with scholars and practitioners in the industry to determine inter‐rater reliability before its intended use in the analysis of a data set for a scenario planning research project in the context of crisis management. This paper contributes theoretically to future and foresight research by including the concept of creativity when assessing the quality of scenarios and offers practitioners in crisis management an effective technique to assess the quality of their own scenarios.

Land: Governance, Digitization and Human Rights – a Comparative Study

The digitization of land records is being promoted by the World Bank at scale, especially in developing countries. Efficiently maintaining land records can improve tenure safety and food security, reduce poverty, and aid democratic urbanization. While the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development encourages the use of new technology to administer land, it also forewarns that such initiatives ought to factor in digital divide. These evolving processes tend to have a detrimental impact on the tenure rights of marginalized people who are devoid of both access and understanding of such modernization efforts. Through this paper, we examine digitization and associated land governance processes from a human rights perspective. To bring them to light, we compare digitization initiatives in both India and South Africa and draw lessons from them to address issues of equity, inclusion, and good governance in an increasingly digital world.

President’s Column: Inside SPE Governance

Editor’s Note: This is a summary of the December episode of the President’s vodcast. We encourage you to watch the episode to see the full conversation. This month’s column covers SPE’s governance, with a particular focus on the SPE Board of Directors and the way its members are selected. It revisits the 2022 controversy of the SPE-AAPG merger project and the Board petitions that followed. It is concluded with a proposed to-do list to improve our governance processes and increase membership communication and interaction. I will start with an explanation of our current process: In early November 2024, SPE announced the opening of the nomination cycle for the SPE International Board of Directors. A third of the SPE Board positions are open this year with the 2027 President, two regional directors (RD), and three technical directors (TD) to be selected. The process always starts with our members, who are expected to nominate the candidates. It may finish with members’ votes, but this is only in case of petition(s). Candidates must be nominated before 25 January 2025. Explanations are given here: https://www.spe.org/en/about/nominate/. Nomination forms are available here: https://www.spe.org/en/forms/bod/. This year the Nominating Committee is chaired by the 2024 President Terry Palisch. The Nominating Committee will select from qualified candidates, and the new slate of recommended nominees will be approved by the Board and communicated to the membership in the April 2025 edition of JPT. Members who object to any of these nominations will have 45 days to initiate a petition for an alternate candidate from at least 1% of the membership for the position of President and 2% of the concerned members for any other director position. Nominees who are not subject to a successful petition will be confirmed. Successful petitions, if any, will trigger a membership vote between the Board nominee and the petitioners’ nominee. Whatever the outcome, all new members will join the Board for 3 years, commencing at the 2025 SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition (ATCE). Petitions are rare, but we had a memorable set of three in 2022 in the wake of the (failed) attempt at an SPE-AAPG merger. Two TD and one RD nominations were challenged. All three petitions were successful, and three votes took place. The Board nominees (Hamad Al-Marri, Robert Martinez, and Robin Macmillan) were confirmed against petitioners’ nominees with scores ranging between 53% and 57%. Time flies, and this year they are outgoing Board directors and members of the new Nominating Committee. I was an at-large member of the Nominating Committee in 2022 when the petitions were initiated, and I took an active part in the online debate that followed. It was heated at times, with occasional accusations of corruption, collusion, irreversible loss of credibility, a bit of ad hominem trolling, etc. It was tense but also (I confess) entertaining. I was relieved to see our choices approved by the membership, but with an average score of 45% the petitioners turned out to be very relevant candidates. However, the low participation (15%) was a signal that neither side should celebrate: we were royally ignored by 85% of our membership, and with this level of participation, it could have gone either way. As an aside, this 15% turnout is consistent with other professional societies that elect their leadership directly by membership vote.

Place-based climate commissions: embracing messy governmentality

The role of the ‘place’ in delivering climate action is vital, however much action on climate change locally is fragmented. Independent place-based climate commissions are a novel structure of climate governance developing at the subnational level across cities, regions and counties in the UK. Little is known about these emerging forms of local climate governance and their experiences of navigating ‘mess’ in governance practices and processes. Building on Castán Broto’s framework of messy governmentalities, this paper seeks to assess the capacity of climate commissions to affect meaningful climate mitigation and adaptation action, to understand how they interact with existing climate governance structures and to consider their longer-term sustainability. This paper examines the nature and impact climate commissions have had on local climate action, drawing on qualitative interviews with chairs, commissioners, members of the secretariat and associated local authorities of the Edinburgh, Belfast, Leeds, Surrey, Yorkshire and Humber, and Lincoln commissions in the UK. Analysing the journeys of the commissions through a lens of messy governmentalities, and a focus on bodies, strategies and knowledges within them, we draw out insights on how climate commissions came about, their function and role, their impact and influence, and how they have evolved.

Enhancing integrated development planning in South African local government: The critical role of youth engagement in planning and implementation

This paper examines the critical role of youth participation in planning and implementation with the purpose of improving the Integrated Development Plan (IDP). Local governments in South Africa are legally mandated to foster participatory development through IDP, which aim to address imbalances from the predemocratic era and improve socioeconomic conditions. Despite the democratic foundation of these policies, youth participation in IDP formulation remains markedly low. This discrepancy is particularly troubling given the substantial role that youth played in achieving democracy and the proverb that today's youth are tomorrow's leaders. The paper argues that the absence of effective mechanisms for youth participation has led to significant social deficiencies. The paper is conceptual and is grounded in social capital theory. The study uses a qualitative desktop research method, relying on existing literature. The findings reveal that the lack of youth participation in IDP contributes to various problems, including inadequate service delivery, violent protests, substance abuse, and social delinquency. It recommends the establishment of practical and inclusive mechanisms to better engage young people in the IDP process, thus addressing the current gaps and promoting more equitable development outcomes. Young people's ignorance and the lack of efficient and inclusive mechanisms to promote participation of youth have produced numerous social deficiencies. These problems hinder community development and social transformation. Therefore, this paper concludes that training programs, youth dialogues, and political education should be developed to improve youth understanding of local government processes.