Strategic Financial Management

Sustainability reporting has gained momentum in recent years, especially with the enhanced attention paid by market participants and regulators to environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices. This chapter discusses the interconnected link between sustainability reporting and ESG and helps readers comprehend how businesses evaluate and communicate their social performance (i.e.ESG) and financial performance (i.e. economic) to businesses' key stakeholders. This chapter also reviews the inclusion of corporate governance into the presumably simple yet certainly complex sustainability reporting–ESG–corporate governance mix that provides businesses with the opportunities to do good in the pursuit of financial success and sustainable growth. Additionally, sustainability reporting that reports authentic ESG practices in the presence of effective corporate governance also helps to enhance a company's public image, attract investors, reduce risks and contribute to environmental and societal well-being. The successful integration of sustainability reporting and ESG with traditional financial reports, thus, is in the hands of managers who are expected to lead in the best interest of the company's shareholders and other stakeholders. Effective corporate governance, therefore, is seen as crucial for this convergence to create value, promote economic growth and address environmental and social concerns for long-term growth and sustainability.

In the modern financial landscape, the integration of sustainability and ESG has emerged as an imperative part for managers. Amid growing pressure and demand from multiple stakeholders, managers are confronted with diverse challenges in the integration of sustainability and ESG into the financial system. This chapter scrutinizes the evolving financial system due to sustainability and ESG, elucidating the challenges it presents for managers. Before discussing the challenges, authors delve into related theories namely stakeholder theory and legitimacy theory, followed by a conceptual review and how researchers measure sustainability and ESG. This provides an overview of current research findings and directions to establish a common understanding of the topic discussed. The challenges faced by managers were discussed based on four salient areas. It includes the business case for sustainability, ESG metrics and reporting standards, sustainable investment criteria and stakeholder engagement for sustainability. At the end of this chapter, actionable recommendations were provided to the managers to navigate the challenges faced in the modern financial landscape. Authors recommended high quality audit, disclosure of accurate and consistent information and adoption of a comprehensive ESG matrix that integrates paramount business cases for the company to delineate the challenges faced by them. It further discusses additional techniques and tools that managers can incorporate to manage sustainability and ESG integration effectively.

This research looks at the difficulties managers have in adapting to the modern financial environment in the context of globalization. It looks at several topics related to international financial strategy, such as managing multinational teams, managing market entrance strategies, managing currency risk, adapting managerial style to a global workplace, adhering to international rules and assessing geopolitical risk. The study focuses special attention on the complexity involved in the decision-making process in terms of market entry tactics and currency risk management, drawing on an extensive literature review and real-world examples. It emphasizes the significance of effective communication and leadership styles when managing global teams, as well as the necessity of intercultural competency for managers to function in various cultural contexts. The study also looks at the significance of regulatory compliance for global corporate operations and how geopolitical risk affects investment choices. This report uses critical analysis to pinpoint the opportunities and problems brought about by globalization while offering managers practical advice on how to adapt to the shifting financial landscape.

The financial industry is becoming more intelligent and digital, and the adoption of new technologies is promoting financial innovation while making financial security subject to disruption. Internet finance, as a product of the rapid development of information technology and the financial industry, has ushered in major changes in the development of the financial industry. The application of new technologies in the financial sector will bring about the development of intelligent investment consulting businesses for financial institutions The development of such a business reduces the threshold at which a customer can obtain financial services and improves the convenience and accessibility of financial services. Under the complex domestic and international economic situation, enterprises need to pay attention to financial risks and reasonably control financial risks. Applying blockchain technology to supply chain financial risk management has a natural match for solving the traditional difficulties in supply chain risk. This chapter mainly describes the types, assessment methods and existing problems of financial risks, as well as the prevention and control of network security risk management and Internet financial risk management arising therefrom, and also involves stress testing and scenario planning, blockchain-based financial risk management and risk culture, among which financial risk assessment and Internet financial risk management are mainly the content. With the help of information technology, we can effectively identify and prevent all kinds of risks and effectively promote the sustainable and healthy development of the financial industry.

Corporate governance is one of the most important topics available in the literature related to large-sized companies. However, the topic has rarely been discussed in the case of SMEs. However, the importance of the topic and mechanism has been in the limelight for more than one and a half decades. Although lack of knowledge especially regarding theoretical implications, literature and implications is still required to optimize the mechanism as well as its implications for SMEs. Therefore, this chapter has been formulated specifically concerning corporate governance mechanisms and their implications for SMEs. Hence, the scope of this study is much broader than those studies that focused on quantitative examination of variables of interest. Thus, the significance of this study has multiple folds as it is not only important for academicians and researchers but also for managers, entrepreneurs and policymakers.

Organizations need to strategically manage talent and enhance leadership in this challenging modern business landscape. This chapter provides an in-depth analysis of the complexities faced by financial talent management in the competitive modern business environment and discusses the need for organizations to align their human resource (HR) strategies for growth. It covers the evolution of human resource management (HRM), focuses on the key elements that make up a talent strategy, such as recruitment, selection, employee development and performance appraisal and highlights the application of these elements in finance, in addition to analyzing the importance of the challenges posed by leadership and the need for cross-functional collaboration.

This chapter aims to provide readers with the tools to nurture a diverse-skilled and innovative finance talent that can effectively respond to the complexities of today's business environment and provide the organization with a good supply of excellent financial management talent for future growth.

The chapters emphasise the importance of data management from the perspective of the business management process, where big data is the most crucial and pressing technical and business issue in the modern realm of technology. The same data has a significant influence on the current financial environment. Organisations are facing challenges in explicating complicated financial data manually and using it to drive their decision-making processes. Data-driven decision-making is a dominant tool for any professional. It enhances precision, alleviates risk, improves efficacy, aids financial management, offers customer insights, provides a competitive edge, supports strategic planning, enables performance tracking, fosters innovation and has predictive capabilities. The power of data makes the organisation more prosperous and resilient in the face of change. By making informed decisions based on data and analytics, organisations can unlock their full potential and achieve sustainable growth. The chapter suggests a data-driven culture in the organisation with the help of strategising in terms of data collection, analytics and data management by establishing governance and regulatory practices to ensure data security and integrity. The latter part covers the forecasting and transformative ability of data by integrating machine learning and deep learning models. The chapter also covers the visualisation perspective of the data by transforming the information into a visual setting, illuminating the hidden insights and making them tangible and relatable. The chapter closes with a suggestion for managers to stay competitive, make more reasoned and sound decisions and adapt to the evolving business environment.

This chapter delves into the intricate evolution and challenges of regulatory frameworks within the global financial sector, spotlighting the dynamic interplay between technological advancements, globalization and the imperative for stringent regulatory compliance. Initially, it traces the historical lineage of financial regulation from its nascent stages, through pivotal transformations aimed at enhancing market stability and integrity, to contemporary paradigms that balance efficiency with systemic safety. The discourse navigates through various regulatory models – ranging from institutional and functional frameworks to the innovative “Twin Peaks” model – and their respective merits and challenges in aligning with the evolving financial landscape. Furthermore, the paper scrutinizes the multifaceted role of managerial accountability in fostering a culture of compliance, emphasizing proactive risk assessment, regulatory reporting and the integration of ethical considerations into corporate governance. Through an analytical lens, it explores how financial institutions can navigate the complexities of adherence to diverse regulatory mandates, thereby safeguarding financial stability while promoting growth and innovation. The narrative concludes by projecting future trajectories of regulatory frameworks, advocating for a harmonious blend of regulatory rigor and flexibility to accommodate the rapid pace of financial innovation and global interconnectedness.

Financial communication refers to the strategies and practices employed by companies to share financial information and engage with investors, stakeholders and the broader financial community. At its core lies investor relations management (IRM), focused on achieving effective two-way communication between the company and these groups for fair valuation of securities. Key financial communication activities include investor meetings, earnings calls, roadshows, annual reports, market analysis and crisis communication. Moreover. stakeholder theory emphasizes identifying and managing relationships with all individuals and entities that can affect or be affected by the company's operations. Stakeholders include shareholders, employees, creditors, suppliers, communities, regulators etc., classified as primary (essential) or secondary (indirectly involved). Proactive stakeholder engagement is crucial for achieving corporate objectives. Additionally, investor relations (IR) specifically deal with managing interactions with shareholders, creditors and potential investors through information dissemination, utilizing finance, marketing and communication techniques. Implementation channels include regulated disclosures, shareholder meetings, media engagement and forums. Other covered aspects include crisis communication strategies, corporate reputation management, internal communication practices, transparency and disclosure guidelines and legal/ethical considerations surrounding corporate communication. Overall, robust financial communication capabilities are vital for corporate success, reputation building and sustainable growth in today's competitive landscape.

The purpose of this study is to explore the financial decision-making process under the uncertain market environment. Through in-depth analysis of market volatility and its driving factors, behavioral finance considerations, investment decision-making framework, risk and return trade-off, management investment strategy and emergency plan in uncertain period, this study puts forward a series of management suggestions for different fields. It is pointed out that understanding macroeconomic information and nonlinear effects is very important for better forecasting market fluctuations. In addition, through the understanding of investors' bias, the decision-making process of investors can be improved, thus reducing investment mistakes. In investment decision-making, the understanding of institutional conflict and the alignment of management objectives and shareholders' interests through governance structure are emphasized. The balance between risk and reward reveals the challenges faced by management in decision-making, while the investment strategy of management discusses the advantages and disadvantages of active and passive management strategies. Finally, the formulation of emergency plan is a key strategy to fight against uncertainty, which requires managers to conduct careful environmental analysis and build an effective communication and cooperation network. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive framework to help understand and deal with the challenges of financial decision-making in uncertain markets.

This study is one of the premier ones that is written to highlight the significance of corporate governance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The purpose of writing this chapter is to increase knowledge and understanding of SMEs and their management. Thus, the scope of this study is much broader as compared to the previous studies. Other than scope, this chapter also bridges the research gaps and tries to relate literature with shortcomings and relatively unexplored areas associated with SMEs and their governance. For these reasons elements, claims, reasons and pieces of evidence were collected from diverse literature and presented in a scholarly way to address readers' interest and provide scope for further studies and research. Overall, this chapter is a form of descriptive study which his purposively conducted to induce more research work on corporate governance practices and their significance for SMEs.

Academic research is now moving toward understanding best practices that may be coped up by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to increase their performance. However, the implementation of CG is not free from cost and other prevalent issues that create hindrances in the implementation of CG practices in SMEs. However, there is a lack of literature related to these issues and costs that may hinder in implementation of effective CG practices. There is also a need to incorporate new theory with the literature of corporate governance to define cost, issues and hindrances in the process of corporate governance of SMEs. Hence, this chapter is written purposively to describe these limiting factors concerning SMEs to increase research and improve policymaking. Therefore, the significance of this study has several folds, and with epistemology as the base of the study, this work is a rare study that tends to improve academia, research and policy-making.