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Article
Publication date: 1 January 2006

Felix N. Ubogu, Arthur Kekana and Charl Roberts

To examine and discuss the features of library portals and suggest further development of these research tools.

2924

Abstract

Purpose

To examine and discuss the features of library portals and suggest further development of these research tools.

Design/methodology/approach

The two categories of library portals (horizontal or public, and vertical) were examined to establish the characteristics of some of the portal software available in the marketplace. The study involved carrying out a literature search and visiting demonstration sites. Some library sites that have implemented this software were subsequently examined in order to establish features of their sites, and to see how these sites have handled the information literacy/research process.

Findings

Suggests that a well‐structured subject portal should be based on the principles of the flow of scientific information, and an information literacy component should be embedded in the portal. Such a portal could assist learners to become familiar with the breadth and depth of information resources relevant to their discipline. It should also assist librarians and learning advisers to become familiar with the information literacy requirements of specific subjects and courses. In this way, libraries should achieve their objective of making the learner information‐literate with minimal effort, and thus contribute positively to student learning outcomes.

Practical implications

The paper is a useful source of information for librarians considering investing in one of the commercial software tools and for those embarking on the development of subject portals. A pilot version of the subject portal implemented at the University of the Witswatersrand is shown.

Originality/value

The novelty in this work is the intuitive subject portal that is put forward; the elements and content of the portals are suggested.

Details

Program, vol. 40 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0033-0337

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 2 October 2007

372

Abstract

Details

Program, vol. 41 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0033-0337

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Article
Publication date: 24 February 2022

Sanjaya Chinthana Kuruppu, Dinithi Dissanayake and Charl de Villiers

The purpose of this paper is to explore how blockchain and triple-entry accounting technologies may improve non-governmental organisation (NGO) accountability by amplifying the…

2173

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how blockchain and triple-entry accounting technologies may improve non-governmental organisation (NGO) accountability by amplifying the social and economic outcomes of aid. It also provides a critique of these technologies from an accountability perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

An in-depth case study of a large NGO, relying on semi-structured interviews, document analysis and non-participant observation, provides an understanding of current issues in existing NGO accountability and reporting systems. A novel case-conceptual critical analysis is then used to explore how blockchain and triple-entry accounting systems may potentially address some of the challenges identified with NGO accountability.

Findings

An empirical case study outlines the current processes which discharge accountability to a range of stakeholders, emphasising how “upward” accountability is privileged over other forms. This provides a foundation to illustrate how new technology can improve upward accountability to donors by enabling more efficient, accurate and auditable record-keeping and reporting, creating space for an NGO to focus on horizontal accountability to partner organisations and downward accountability to beneficiaries. Greater accountability exposes NGOs to diverse views from partner organisations and beneficiaries, potentially enhancing opportunities for learning and growth, i.e. greater impact. However, blockchain and triple-entry accounting can also create “over-accounting” and further entrench the power of upward stakeholders, such as donors, if not implemented carefully.

Research limitations/implications

A novel case-conceptual critical analysis furnishes new insights into how existing NGO accountability systems can be improved with technology. Despite the growing excitement about the possibilities of blockchain and triple-entry accounting systems, this paper offers a critical reflection on the limitations of these technologies and suggests avenues for future research.

Practical implications

Examples of how blockchain and triple-entry accounting systems can be integrated into NGO systems are presented. This research also raises the importance of creating a strong nexus between humans and technology, which ensures that “socialising” forms of accountability that empower vulnerable stakeholders, are embedded into international aid.

Originality/value

This research provides insight into present challenges with NGO accountability, using empirical evidence, furnishing potential solutions using novel blockchain and triple-entry accounting systems. Greater accountability to partner organisations and beneficiaries is important, as it potentially enables NGOs to learn how to be more impactful. Therefore, this paper introduces rich, contextually embedded perspectives on how NGO managers can exploit such technologies to enhance accountability and impact.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 35 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 20 May 2022

Charl de Villiers, Pei-Chi Kelly Hsiao, Stefano Zambon and Elisabetta Magnaghi

This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for extended external reporting (EER) influences (EERI), including sustainability, non-financial, integrated and value reporting…

1471

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for extended external reporting (EER) influences (EERI), including sustainability, non-financial, integrated and value reporting. Using the Environmental Legitimacy, Accountability, and Proactivity (ELAP) framework as the base, we modify its proposed concepts and linkages using relevant conceptual models, prior reviews and findings of recent studies on EER. This paper presents contributions of the special issue on “non-financial and integrated reporting, governance and value creation” and avenues for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on relevant conceptual models, prior reviews and recent EER studies, we reframed the ELAP framework into a framework that theorises the factors that affects, or are affected by, EER.

Findings

The EERI framework poses relationships between and within proactivity, external verification, accountability and legitimacy. It also consolidates possible determinants and consequences of EER. The papers published in this special issue contribute further insights on factors that influence reporting practices, processes and suggestions for capturing and communicating value creation information, and the value of integrated reports and assurance to capital providers.

Originality/value

Along with the insights provided by papers in this special issue, the conceptual framework can be used to theorise influences of EER and guide future research.

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Article
Publication date: 24 May 2021

Rosa Lombardi, Charl de Villiers, Nicola Moscariello and Michele Pizzo

This paper presents a systematic literature review, including content and bibliometric analyses, of the impact of blockchain technology (BT) in auditing, to identify trends…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper presents a systematic literature review, including content and bibliometric analyses, of the impact of blockchain technology (BT) in auditing, to identify trends, research areas and construct an agenda for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors include studies from 2010 to 2020 in their structured literature review (SLR), using accounting journals on the Scopus database, which yielded 40 articles with blockchain and auditing at its core.

Findings

One of the contributions of the authors’ analyses is to group the prior research, and therefore also the agenda for future research, into three main research areas: (1) Blockchain as a tool for auditing professionals to improve business information systems to save time and prevent fraud; (2) Smart contracts enabling Audit 4.0 efficiency, reporting, disclosure and transparency; (3) Cryptocurrency and initial coin offerings (ICOs) as a springboard for corporate governance and new venture financing. The authors’ findings have several important implications for practice and theory.

Practical implications

The results of this study emphasise that (1) the disruption of blockchain in auditing is in a nascent phase and there is a need for compelling empirical studies and potential for the involvement of practitioners; (2) there may be a need to reconsider audit procedures especially suited for digitalisation and BT adoption; (3) standards, guidelines and training are required to pivot towards and confront the challenge BT will represent for auditing; and (4) there are two sides to the BT coin for auditing, enthusiasm about the potential and risk upon implementation. These practical implications can also be seen as a template for future research in a quest to align theory and practice.

Originality/value

The authors’ SLR facilitates the identification of research areas and implications, forming a useful baseline for practitioners, professionals and academics, as they draft the state of the art on the disruption of blockchain in auditing, highlighting how BT is changing auditing activities and traditions.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 35 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 December 2024

Valentina Beretta, Maria Chiara Demartini and Charl de Villiers

Integrated reporting (IR) provides a joint overview of an organisation’s financial and sustainability performance and strategies. While the prior literature often critiques IR’s…

396

Abstract

Purpose

Integrated reporting (IR) provides a joint overview of an organisation’s financial and sustainability performance and strategies. While the prior literature often critiques IR’s potential to entrench injustice, a systematic approach has not been followed. Therefore, this paper provides a systematic literature review, uncovering IR injustices, informing the development of an IR injustice assessment framework to identify injustices and a research agenda.

Design/methodology/approach

Combining Flyvbjerg’s phronetic social science and the phases of the IR idea journey to focus on injustice, this paper reviews published IR articles to inform a critique of IR. As a result, we identify specific injustice(s), the actors responsible for them, as well as the victims, as a basis for recommendations for praxis through the development of an IR injustice assessment framework and a research agenda.

Findings

We find that different approaches are needed in each phase of the IR idea journey. In the (re)generation phase, a pluralistic approach to IR is needed from the very beginning of the decision-making process. In the elaboration phase, the motivations and the features of IR are assessed. In the championing phase, IR champions support radical innovation, whereas IR opponents are obstructing its spread. In the production phase, the extent to which IR and integrated thinking are linked to the business model is assessed. Finally, we find that IR’s impact is often limited by the symbolic implementation of its tenets.

Practical implications

The findings suggest a need for companies to rethink the ways in which IR is implemented and used to analyse the ways in which IR is supported and disseminated within and outside the organisation, to focus on internal processes and to reflect on the expected impact of IR on the company’s stakeholders.

Originality/value

This study represents the first systematic approach to identifying IR-related injustices, involving how IR adoption might create injustices and marginalise certain stakeholder groups, and offering recommendations for praxis. Furthermore, the paper details the role of IR in either mitigating or amplifying these injustices and develops a research agenda.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 30 October 2018

Desi Adhariani and Charl de Villiers

This paper aims to explore the perspectives of corporate report preparers and other stakeholders on integrated reporting (IR) in a major Southeast Asian economy.

3552

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore the perspectives of corporate report preparers and other stakeholders on integrated reporting (IR) in a major Southeast Asian economy.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey is used to explore perspectives on IR.

Findings

There is a limited level of knowledge regarding IR, but a high level of interest. Corporate report preparers paradoxically state that they can see the benefits of IR, yet they are reluctant to implement it.

Practical implications

Changes to university curricula, training sessions, seminars and conferences may be needed to disseminate information regarding IR.

Social implications

IR implementation may be stymied by the low levels of knowledge in Southeast Asia and hence lack of demand from stakeholders. High-quality reporting generally supports capital flows into a region and thus influences economic and social well-being. The integrated financial and non-financial information needs of stakeholders thus have an indirect impact on society.

Originality/value

Southeast Asia is an economic powerhouse and home to hundreds of millions of people. It is important to understand the potential for IR in this region. This is the first survey of its kind to explore these matters.

Details

Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, vol. 10 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8021

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 16 June 2021

Pei-Chi Kelly Hsiao, Charl de Villiers and Tom Scott

This paper aims to examine the type of firms that voluntarily adopt the International Integrated Reporting Framework (IIRF) and how markets respond to voluntary IIRF adherence.

1134

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the type of firms that voluntarily adopt the International Integrated Reporting Framework (IIRF) and how markets respond to voluntary IIRF adherence.

Design/methodology/approach

Analysis of a matched global sample of listed firms that voluntarily adopt the IIRF (IIRF firms) and those that do not (non-IIRF firms). The samples range from 188 to 436 observations as alternative research designs, different matched samples and regression specifications, and several sensitivity analyses were conducted.

Findings

In markets where integrated reporting (IR) is not mainstream, voluntary IIRF adoption is more likely for firms with established sustainability practices. Such findings suggest that the IIRF is an incremental innovation for sustainability rather than an innovation that radically changes management and reporting practices. In Japan, where IR is mainstream, results show no observable differences between IIRF firms and non-IIRF firms. Consistent with the determinants results, this paper finds no evidence of associations between voluntary IIRF adoption and the information environment, the cost of equity or firm value. However, the additional analysis provides preliminary evidence suggesting capital market effects may differ for IIRF firms with higher sustainability or market performance.

Practical implications

This study offers useful insights into the current global debate on whether there is value in adopting the IIRF.

Originality/value

This study adds to the limited body of research on the determinants and consequences of voluntary IIRF adoption, offering insights for regulators, practitioners and proponents of IR. This study is the first to provide quantitative evidence of the influence sustainability practices have on voluntary IIRF adoption. Further, the results add to the current global debate on whether there is value in adopting the IIRF. This paper finds that voluntary IIRF adoption has no clear and distinct influence on disclosure practices and capital markets, suggesting there are no additional benefits from prioritising the promotion or adoption of the IIRF over other disclosure forms. Unless there are advancements supporting the implementation of integrated thinking and information connectivity, the potential for the IIRF to improve information quality may be limited to encouraging more non-financial disclosure and transparency in countries where integrated disclosures are not trending.

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Article
Publication date: 27 August 2014

Koen van Bommel

The purpose of this paper is to examine the multiplicity of views on integrated reporting and to consider the possibility of, and impediments to, reconciling these multiple…

5506

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the multiplicity of views on integrated reporting and to consider the possibility of, and impediments to, reconciling these multiple rationales (“orders of worth”) and thus gain legitimacy through a compromise. This sheds light on the understanding of integrated reporting as such, as well as shows how legitimacy struggles are resolved in practice around complex accounting practices in heterogeneous environments.

Design/methodology/approach

This explorative paper empirically applies Boltanski and Thévenot's sociology of worth (SOW) framework to analyse integrated reporting in the Dutch reporting field. Data were collected using multiple methods, including 64 semi-structured in-depth interviews with a wide range of relevant actors, and documentary analysis. Data were coded for the presence of orders of worth and legitimating compromise mechanisms.

Findings

The author's analysis suggests that integrated reporting combines the disparate domains of industrial, market, civic and green order of worth. These different logics of valuation need to be reconciled in a compromise in order for integrated reporting to become a legitimate practice. Such a compromise requires a common interest, avoidance of clarification and maintenance of ambiguity. The author's analysis suggests these mechanisms are violated though, with the risk that integrated reporting gets captured by investors and accountants, leading to local private arrangements rather than durable legitimate compromise.

Research limitations/implications

First, SOW informs the understanding of integrated reporting. It highlights in particular its fragility as fundamentally different rationales need to be reconciled, which is a challenge yet also gives rise to creative frictions. Second, the SOW framework creates the possibility for scholars to look closer at the dynamics of legitimacy and at the possible mechanisms to attain legitimacy in fragmented and heterogeneous environment.

Practical implications

The SOW framework offers tools for practitioners, in particular those working within a pluralistic context. The various mechanisms of compromise discussed in this paper provide practical guidelines for how to manage this complexity and gain or maintain legitimacy.

Originality/value

This rich empirical study combines a novel theoretical approach (the SOW framework) with an analysis of the relatively unexplored topic of integrated reporting. At the same time it introduces a conceptualisation of legitimacy that highlights communicative and constitutive dialogue and goes beyond fit and compliance.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 27 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 27 August 2014

Colin Higgins, Wendy Stubbs and Tyron Love

– The purpose of this paper is to explore how the managers of early adopting Australian firms contribute to the institutionalisation of integrated reporting (IR).

5488

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how the managers of early adopting Australian firms contribute to the institutionalisation of integrated reporting (IR).

Design/methodology/approach

This study is situated within institutional theory. The authors undertook semi-structured interviews with 23 Australian managers. The authors drew on Gabriel's (2000) poetic analytics to show how the sensemaking activities of the early adopters contribute to the institutionalisation process.

Findings

Two main narratives dominate our managers’ experience: IR as story-telling and IR as meeting expectations. These two narratives are constructed simultaneously and theyset up contrasting plots regarding salient events, responsibilities and characters that are resolved through one or more of three “inter-narratives” that background these tensions. The inter-narratives suggest time, the company's strategy, and talking and engagement can solve problems.

Research limitations/implications

The authors argue that the managers of early adopting firms are important in the institutionalisation process. Even though they may not necessarily be institutional entrepreneurs they do engage in important “institutional work”. The study is limited by its predominant focus on only one participant to the institutionalisation process, and it is may be the case that the institutionalisation of IR is not ultimately successful.

Originality/value

Provides in-depth insights into an under-researched participant in an institutional field contributes to institutionalisation. Additionally, it sheds light on the conditions under which firms will engage with IR.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 27 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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