Sustainable development goals in the hospitality industry: a dream or reality?
Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change
ISSN: 1832-5912
Article publication date: 15 December 2023
Issue publication date: 12 November 2024
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how effectively leading sustainable hotels have integrated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into their reporting. The main aim is to pinpoint areas for improvement concerning SDG reporting which can help the hospitality industry to achieve a transformation in a more SDG-aligned global tourism system.
Design/methodology/approach
For this study, a content analysis technique was used to extract the information regarding strategic consistency of SDG reporting. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were applied to the analysis of this information. This paper seeks to assess the extent to which the materiality analysis, corporate targets and performance indicators defined by the world’s top sustainable hotels in their sustainability reports are consistent with those SDGs linked to the business. To that end, the authors have selected the most sustainable hotels according to the SAM Corporate Sustainability Assessment in 2020.
Findings
The results of this study show that the most sustainable hotel companies did not take a strategic consistency approach when reporting the SDGs. These findings identify four areas for improvement concerning reporting, which may promote the adoption of a strategic and consistent approach in SDG reporting.
Practical implications
This study includes a set of recommendations to provide the market with complete, coherent and comparable information on their contribution to the SDGs and, therefore, foster collective learning to bring about sustainable tourism transformation.
Originality/value
This paper represents a contribution to the discussion on the strategic or symbolic implementation of SDGs at a corporate level. In addition, this paper reflects a deeper understanding of how hotel companies could improve their reporting and management system to contribute to SDGs.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This paper is supported by the project “Propuesta de Marco de Rendición de Cuentas e Implementación estratégica de la sostenibilidad basado en los ODS: Una aplicación a la industria Hotelera y de Restauración (UJI-B2021-72)” from Universitat Jaume I and by the project “Laboratorio de ODS de la Generalitat Valenciana: Desarrollo de Indicadores para evaluar la Implantación de los ODS en las empresas valencianas y desarrollo de acciones de fomento para la transformación social de las empresas” from Conselleria de Economía Sostenible, Sectores Productivos, Comercio y Trabajo de la Generalitat Valenciana.
Citation
Ferrero-Ferrero, I., Muñoz-Torres, M.J., Rivera-Lirio, J.M., Escrig-Olmedo, E. and Fernández-Izquierdo, M.Á. (2024), "Sustainable development goals in the hospitality industry: a dream or reality?", Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, Vol. 20 No. 5, pp. 773-796. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAOC-09-2022-0146
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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