The Manner in Which Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting Is Followed by Petroleum Refining Companies - Research Paper Example

The paper "The Manner in Which Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting Is Followed by Petroleum Refining Companies" is an excellent example of a research paper on management. A majority of the study pertaining to CSR reporting is being carried out in developed economies especially in North America & Europe (Frynas, 2006). This has been matched by the growth and adoption of social and environmental performance and reporting from different emerging economies as they are slowly starting to adopt the same. The manner and quality of reporting which emerging economies follow are unknown especially while considering the petroleum industry in isolation. Therefore the research looks to find out the manner in which CSR reporting is done in emerging economies and the impact it has been able to create on the different dimensions of social and environmental performance.

1.1. Research Background

The concept of CSR is being discussed and the topic is still debatable on the front that whether a business should look towards social good or it is the responsibility of the government to improve the social conditions. A large number of companies in the United States & Europe adopted the concept of corporate governance and looked at identifying, measuring, monitoring, and reporting the different activities and the social impact it has on society (Kolk, 2006). In the late 1980’s the concept of corporate governance re-emerged and the focus was on environmental issues, accountability, and disclosures (Kolk, 2006). Environmental reporting was given more importance due to increased pollution which was taking place from different industries and was impacting the overall society in a negative manner. In 1997, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) process was launched which focused on corporate governance and looked to cover reporting on areas like economic, environmental, and social performance. The goal was to improve the concept of social reporting in the same manner as financial reporting is done so that the steps which organizations take towards the sustainability of the society can be better identified (KPMG & UNEP, 2005).