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Stakeholder reporting: the role of intermediaries

Stakeholder reporting: the role of intermediaries
Stakeholder reporting: the role of intermediaries
Corporate social responsibility encompasses a multiplicity of different concepts, such that its nature is confused, and it remains difficult to operationalize because opening dialogue with and responding to the various expectations of diverse stakeholders is beyond the capacity of many companies. This paper adapts Mayston's normative “information beneficiaries” framework and focuses on intermediaries who might potentially use published financial information to open a restricted form of dialogue with companies, which might benefit unsophisticated stakeholders. The paper examines the Mayston framework using interviews conducted in organizations that might act on behalf of three stakeholder groups associated with gas and electricity suppliers in the United Kingdom, these being: consumers, employees, and the environment. While a long chain of communication exists between utility company and stakeholder, and many organizations do not fulfill their full potential as information intermediaries, there is some evidence that Mayston's framework might well operate in practice.

0045-3609
183-216
Stapleton, Pamela
e668ec56-f1af-4e00-bd03-dc654131cc91
Woodward, David
9d2e5339-0477-488c-aad0-0244e63e4736
Stapleton, Pamela
e668ec56-f1af-4e00-bd03-dc654131cc91
Woodward, David
9d2e5339-0477-488c-aad0-0244e63e4736

Stapleton, Pamela and Woodward, David (2009) Stakeholder reporting: the role of intermediaries. Business and Society Review, 114 (2), 183-216. (doi:10.1111/j.1467-8594.2009.00340.x).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility encompasses a multiplicity of different concepts, such that its nature is confused, and it remains difficult to operationalize because opening dialogue with and responding to the various expectations of diverse stakeholders is beyond the capacity of many companies. This paper adapts Mayston's normative “information beneficiaries” framework and focuses on intermediaries who might potentially use published financial information to open a restricted form of dialogue with companies, which might benefit unsophisticated stakeholders. The paper examines the Mayston framework using interviews conducted in organizations that might act on behalf of three stakeholder groups associated with gas and electricity suppliers in the United Kingdom, these being: consumers, employees, and the environment. While a long chain of communication exists between utility company and stakeholder, and many organizations do not fulfill their full potential as information intermediaries, there is some evidence that Mayston's framework might well operate in practice.

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Published date: May 2009

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 36618
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/36618
ISSN: 0045-3609
PURE UUID: 31a6e52b-fe81-4152-9ca1-ee53812408af

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Date deposited: 19 May 2006
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 07:57

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Contributors

Author: Pamela Stapleton
Author: David Woodward

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