Abstract:

Currently, the financial and economic performance of companies is closely connected to the integration of sustainability strategies and climate change initiatives within their business framework. This research outlines the creation of a method for integrating the assessment of non-financial reporting within university courses centered on accounting and economics. The recent surge in non-financial reporting is a result of the adoption of Directive (EU) 2022/2464 in European and Spanish laws. The methodology outlined consists of three key phases: identifying material aspects from sustainability reports, assessing their significance across social, economic, and environmental categories, and comparing reports of companies within the same sector to identify similarities and differences. This analysis will be based on non-financial information reports from Spanish tourism firms in the IBEX 35 index for the last 3 years and the sample is composed by four companies in tourism sector listed on IBEX 35. The information was obtained from the 2020-2023 Non-Financial (or Sustainability) reports. An analysis of the relevant aspects of materiality was carried out, where the materiality aspects contained in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) were identified and classified according to their relevance, both for stakeholders and for the companies' strategy.

During this research, certain limitations were encountered in the process of searching for data on materiality aspects in sustainability reports available from Spanish companies in the tourism sector that make up the IBEX 35. The quality of the information is very uneven among these companies due to the disparity of their business models. All the companies, except IAG, apply the concept of dual materiality in their sustainability reports, which implies that the rest of the companies in the sector will have to redesign and adapt their processes for identifying material aspects in order to integrate a dual materiality analysis (impact on the effects of the company on its environment and vice versa in financial matters). This work has relevance as an innovative technique in the classroom to analyze real sustainability reports in the subjects of university careers by showing real cases of the IBEX 35 and being a small sample of analysis in class. Although academic programs touch upon theoretical concepts regarding sustainability reports, they often lack methodologies for analyzing their substance. Thus, this study can serve as an initial step towards developing practical tools for evaluating the financial materiality and impact aspects that should be present in such reports.

Keywords:

Analysis of non-financial information, sustainability reporting, materiality mapping, stakeholder matrixes, Spanish tourism firms, IBEX 35.