The Role of IIRC in Value Creation
Present analysis of some of the role played by IIRC based on the IIRC guiding principles.
The report aims to present analysis of some of the role played by IIRC based on the IIRC guiding principles. The report also presents analysis of some of the role of integrated reporting as provided by CPA report based on provision of relevant information to the stakeholders, enhancement of stakeholders’ engagement, quality of reporting, users of the reporting, usefulness of the reporting, quality of the reporting as well as comparability of the reporting. Also the report presents comparison and contrast of the CPA report findings and the IIRC guiding principles on shareholders’ relationship, materiality, reliability and completeness as well as comparability and consistency. The paper is then wrapped up with analysis of four companies listed in ASX based on their materiality, shareholders’ relationship, and so forth.
According to IIRC (2017), IIRC is the global coalition of the potential and existing investors, standard setters, regulators, NGOs, organizations and accounting profession (de Villiers, Rinaldi and Unerman 2014). In other words, IIRC is the global non-profit making firm incorporated in Wales and England. It embodies common, shared interest of the global coalition of different firms in adoption of the IR framework on international basis as the means of improving communication on creation of value, advance evolution of the corporate reporting as well as in making lasting contribution of the sustainable development as well as financial stability (IIRC 2017). It comprises of different firms drawn from the wider global communities including firms and other reporting organizations, financial providers, regulators and policy makers, accounting profession, standard setters and reporting framework developers. IIRC usually recognizes that numerous firms assist in supporting the global adoption of the IR framework via endorsement, profile-raising and advocacy in their networks. To be more specific, IIRC brings together different representatives from investment, regulatory, corporate, accounting, academic, securities, as well as standard setters (García-Sánchez and Noguera-Gámez 2017).
This coalition is said to play a crucial role in endorsing announcement on creating value. Furthermore, IIRC play a crucial role in establishing integrated thinking and reporting in mainstream business operations as norm in private and public sectors (IIRC 2017). Besides, the IIRC helps in aligning corporate behaviours and capital allocation to the wider objectives of the sustainable development and financial stability through integrated thinking and reporting. Additionally, IIRC is said to play a significant function in creation of IR framework and in the market testing to timely implementation and expansion of firms across the globe. This helps the coalition to accomplish eloquent move towards the timely enactment of IR structure. In other words, the main role of IIRC is to develop an internationally recognized IR framework which is aimed at creating foundation for new reporting technique to enhance firms in offering concise communication on value creation (Brown and Dillard, 2014).
What is Integrated Reporting?
IR is the procedure based on the integrated thinking which brings about intervallic report by specific firm on value creation and related communication on some of the facets of the value creation. Besides, integrated reporting is the abridged communication on how a given firm’s governance, prospects, strategy and performance results in value creation in the long, short and medium term (Brown and Dillard, 2014).
Providing information to stakeholders
Different stakeholders look for relevant information to work they do and therefore have extensive needs which are not sufficiently or necessarily addressed by static, annual and single integrated report. According to CPA Australia (2017), integrated reporting offers relevant information to different stakeholders. For instance, IR offers information to investors. Basically, integrated reporting improves quality of the information available to the financial providers in enabling more productive and efficient allocation of the resources. It provides relevant information on value creation as well as resources utilized by an organization in creating value, contributing towards more financially efficient global economy. In efficient, integrated reporting is said to help in provision of quality information readily available to stakeholders such as financial providers to enable them enhance more productive and efficient allocation of the resource and to promote more efficient and cohesive technique to the corporate reporting, enhance stewardship and accountability, supporting integrated thinking which is said to mostly focus on value creation.
Stakeholder engagement;
The IR is said to benefits the different stakeholders who are interested in an entity’s capacity on value creation including suppliers, local communities, regulators, employees, supplier, legislators, policy-makers and business partners (CPA Australia 2017). The IR plays a crucial role since it provides some insights into quality and nature of a company’s relationship with the stakeholders.
Comparability of reporting;
IR enhances stewardship and accountability for wide base of financial, human, intellectual and social resources and promoting an understanding of interdependencies. Besides, integrated reporting enhances consistency over a given period, hence, enhancing comparison of the information with other firms to extent material to entity’s own capacity to value creation.
Quality of reporting;
The IR offer more efficient and cohesive methodology to the corporate reporting which attracts on numerous reporting components and links wide range of the aspects that affect materiality of a given firm on value creation (CPA Australia 2017). Besides, IR discloses information on matters which significantly affect an entity’s capacity on value creation in long, short and medium-term. It includes all information with all material substances both negative and positive in a more balanced manner and deprived of any material fault.
Benefits of Integrated Reporting
Usefulness of reporting
Integrated reporting applies concepts and principles which are mostly focused on bringing higher efficiency and cohesion to reporting processes and adopting the integrated thinking as the means of breaking down the internal silos as well as decreasing duplication.
Users of reporting
IR play a crucial role to various users of the report such as suppliers, local communities, regulators, employees, legislators, policy-makers and business partners by providing relevant data on organization’s performance over time (CPA Australia 2017). It offers sufficient content in understanding an entity’s governance, prospects and strategy without a burden of less significant information.
Stakeholder relationships;
Integrated reporting according to the CPA report is found to enhance timely communication o future and current evidence to be utilized by stakeholder in policymaking and in enhancing connectivity of information and improved presentation hence increasing shareholders understanding of the information to match their increasingly information needs. Basically, CPA report shows that IR enables different firms to effectively communicate with different stakeholders, providing them with comprehensive information, responding and analysing to chief stakeholder’s information desires and provision of better access to relevant information to relevant stakeholders hence offering some insights to quality and nature of an entity’s relationship with its. The findings of CPA report are in line with those of IIRC (Brown and Dillard, 2014). This is based on the fact that IIRC guiding principles indicates that IR provides some insights on the quality and nature of the firm’s relationship with chief stakeholders.
Materiality;
As per the section c and d in question 2 above, IR enhances stewardship and accountability for wide base of financial, human, intellectual and social resources and promoting an understanding of interdependencies (CPA Australia 2017). Besides, integrated reporting enhances consistency over a given period, hence, enhancing comparison of the information with other firms to extent material to entity’s own capacity to value creation. Furthermore, IR offer more efficient and cohesive approach to the corporate reporting which draws on numerous reporting strands and IR discloses information on matters which significantly affect an entity’s capacity on value creation over long, short and medium-term. The findings are in consistent with IIRC guiding principles that indicate that IR discloses information on matters which significantly affect a company’s capacity in value creation.
Conciseness;
Section 2d shows that IR offer more efficient and cohesive methodology to the corporate reporting which brings into play numerous reporting aspects and links wide range of the aspects that affect materiality of a given firm on value creation (CPA Australia 2017). In addition, the IR is said to strive in ensuring that information provided in the report is transparent and enhances stewardship and accountability for wide base of financial, human, intellectual and social resources and promoting an understanding of interdependencies. This concedes with IIRC guiding principles which indicate that the IR should offer sufficient content in comprehending an entity’s prospects, governance and strategy without being overburdened by relatively less significant information (Adams and Simnett, 2011).
Comparison of CPA Report and IIRC Guiding Principles
Reliability and completeness; and
From the section d and e in part 2 above, IR is said to discloses information on matters which significantly affect an entity’s capacity on value creation over long, short and medium-term (CPA Australia 2017). It is also said to apply concepts and principles which are mostly focused on bringing higher efficiency and cohesion to reporting processes and adopting the integrated thinking as the means of breaking down the internal silos as well as decreasing duplication. The findings concede with the IIRC guiding principles that indicate that IR should contains all the material substances both negative and positive in the balanced manner and deprived of any material fault.
Consistency and comparability
From section f and section c, IR play a crucial role to various users of the report such as suppliers, local communities, regulators, employees, legislators, policy-makers and business partners by providing relevant data on organization’s performance over time (CPA Australia 2017). It offers sufficient content in understanding an entity’s governance, prospects and strategy without a burden of less significant information. The findings are in line with IIRC guiding principles that IR ensure consistency over a given time and enable comparison of one firm with the other to extent of the material to its own capacity to create some values (Adams and Simnett, 2011).
Objectives and Description of IIR Framework versus GPFRs
IR framework is the process which results in communication on value creation within a given firm. In other words, International IR framework is the concise communication tool on how an entity’s governance, prospects, strategy and performance result in value creation over time (Adams and Simnett, 2011). The framework offer greater setting for the performance information, illuminates how valuable information fits in the business operation as well as how it might assist in decision-making regarding an organization’s performance in the long-term. In addition, the framework assists in completion of sustainability and financial reports. Besides, IR framework helps in solving some of the reporting issues by promoting more efficient, decision-relevant and cohesive technique to the corporate reporting which focuses on value creation. It also assists in improving quality of the information to the financial providers in enhancing more productive and efficient allocation of resources.
On the other hand, GPFRs are the key components of and in support of transparent financial reporting by the general government as well as other public listed firms. In other words, the GPFRs are the financial reports which are aimed at meeting information needs of the financial users who are usually unable to need preparation of the financial reports that is tailored in meeting their particular information needs (Lodhia and Stone 2017). The GPFRs can report relevant information on the present, future and past which is important to financial users including non-financial and financial qualitative and quantitative information on accomplishment of the service and financial delivery objectives in present reporting period as well as projected future service delivery resource needs and activities. The GPFRs is important for decision-making as well as accountability purposes since it provide relevant information on matters like whether an organization is utilizing its resources efficiently, economically and more effectively, the current levels of the taxes or information on whether the charges are adequate in maintaining quality and volume of the services presently provided. It provide non-financial and financial information on matters such as the government performance or information on financial position of general government and other public listed firms at their reporting date as well as their cash flows, financial performance and variation in their net assets (Stubbs and Higgins 2014).
Analysis of Australian Companies
Users of IR versus Users of the GPFRs
The main users of the IR include suppliers, local communities, regulators, employees, supplier, legislators, policy-makers and business partners (Brown and Dillard, 2014). On the other hand, the chief users of the GPFRs include the general government as well as other public listed firms who raise their resources from donors, taxpayers and lenders. These firms are usually accountable for the management and utilization of the resources to individuals that offer them with relevant resources and to individuals that rely on them in utilizing these resources in delivering necessary services. The members of the parliament and legislatures are the key financial users of the GPFRs while acting in capacities as the chief representatives of interests of the resource providers and service recipients. With these notions, the recipients and representatives as well as resource providers are the key users of the GPFRs. Basically, the citizens who are the service recipients and providers of the resources to their government and the other public listed firms are the chief users of the GPFRs. Other users of the GPFRs include creditors, lenders and donors (Stubbs and Higgins 2014).
Concept of Materiality in Integrated Report versus IASB CF
The concept of the materiality in integrated reporting entails that the report should discloses information on matters which significantly affect a company’s capacity in value creation. On the other hand, materiality in the IASB CF is evidenced in that the information contained in the GPFRs could influence discharge of the accountability within the firm or decisions which financial users make based on organization’s GPFRs prepared for a specific period. The GPFRS encompasses the quantitative and qualitative information on service delivery accomplishment within the period and projections on financial outcomes and service delivery in future.
Concepts of Reliability, Completeness, Consistency and Comparability under IR versus IASB CF
Reliability and completeness under IR indicates that a report has to include all the material substances both negative and positive in the balanced manner and deprived of any material fault. Further, the concept of comparability and consistency under the IR states that the IR has to ensure consistency over a given time and enable comparison of one firm with the other to extent of the material to its own capacity to create some values. On the other hand, according to the AISB CF, non-financial and financial information is reliable in it is relatively capable of making some difference in accomplishing specific objectives of reporting. The information is usually able to make some difference whenever it has some confirmatory value or predictive value. This makes the information capable of making some different and therefore reliable. Further, the information in the GPFRs should have completeness feature of the phenomena and economic aspect it intends to represents. Further, it should have comparability and consistency feature where the information in the GPFRs should enable users identify differences and similarities between different phenomena contained in the report. The GPFR information is not necessarily enhanced by making the unlike something look similar.
Conclusion
Integrated Reports of Four Companies
The AXA is said to concisely link all its material issues to organization’s opportunities and risks as indicated in the organization’s integrated report. Besides, material risks are originally plotted in accordance with the level of importance and relevance of opportunity and risks to both the AXA external stakeholders and respondents. Such indicates compliance with the IR framework that discusses stakeholders’ role in provision of insights to risk management. The report also outlines the major issues in relation to organization’s capacity to create values where each of the issue is discussed based on the risk it poses or the opportunity the company has undertaken.
Gold Fields report presents the stakeholders engagement that provides extra information on connectivity. After stakeholders are identified, matrix is usually introduced where identified stakeholders are usually overlaid with strategic components. Here, each stakeholder’s opportunity and risks is identified with related measures.
John Keells Holdings report present review of the stakeholders’ material issues and engagement as the chief components of showing how capitals are integrated. The company originally outlines engagement process that the company undertakes in determining material issues as it is determined by its stakeholders which is in turn followed by explanation of who the company considers as chief stakeholders. On graphic presentation, the report mapped impact every issue could have on the firm against the impact it could have on chief stakeholders. Such material issues are mapped to performance sign of the firm.
Vodacom offers insight in the report in its chief stakeholders who maintain it in operations. The report also continue discussing why it is crucial to engage with the every stakeholder, the way to engage with them and what matters most on how the firm ensure stakeholders inclusiveness. It also offers feedback from stakeholders on what the stakeholders’ would like to view from the company which offer transparent and interesting insights.
Factors That Might Explain Similarities of Differences in Part 5
Based on section or part 5 above, the most important factors which could be used in explaining differences and similarities include business activities or operation differences in a given company. Another important factor include overall financial performance or profitability of different firms. Besides, the total capital or resources also play a significant role in the similarities and differences in materiality, conciseness, reliability, completeness and comparability concepts (Tweedie, Nielsen and Martinov-Bennie 2017).
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be stated that IIRC brings together different representatives from investment, regulatory, corporate, accounting, academic, securities, as well as standard setters. Furthermore, IIRC was found to play a crucial role in promoting communication on creating and in establishing integrated thinking and reporting in mainstream business operations as norm in private and public sectors. This helps the coalition to accomplish eloquent move to the timely implementation of IR framework. In other words, the main role of IIRC is to develop an internationally recognized IR plays a crucial role since it provides some insights into quality and nature of a company’s relationship with the stakeholders. In addition, it was found that IR enhances stewardship and accountability for wide base of financial, human, intellectual and social resources and promoting an understanding of interdependencies. It also offer more efficient and cohesive methodology to the corporate reporting which draws on numerous reporting components and links wide range of the aspects that affect materiality of a given firm on value. On overall, the CPA findings and IIRC guiding principles are said to have similar opinion on the role of IR
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