Integrated Reporting as a Model for Sustainability Management Reporting: The Case of Northeastern European Airports

Abstract

In their annual and sustainability reports, many companies assert their adherence to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. The validity of such claims might be questioned if they are not substantiated with financial information and descriptions of value-creation projections. One framework that can show how SDGs are achieved is integrated reporting (<IR>). In contrast to traditional sustainability reports, <IR> encourages the integrated analysis of financial and non-financial information for six capital types within the company’s business model, which enables measuring the achievement of sustainability targets. Among many advantages of <IR> related to sustainability is also the analysis of value creation processes in the long term, which generates evidence-based projections of future performance, not merely a reflection on past activities. The aim of this research was to determine if Northeastern European airports apply the <IR> framework to their annual sustainability communications with stakeholders. The major research finding indicates that these airports do not use the <IR> framework in their annual sustainability reporting. However, given the inclusion of <IR> features in their reports and a recent tendency of other airports to adopt <IR>, this finding can be a sign of transition to <IR> for annual sustainability reporting.