Companies disclosing nonfinancial information through sustainability reporting practices provide markets with data on their social, environmental, and governance performance. The quality of sustainability reporting is much discussed in the literature because this quality affects factors such as the credibility of accountability and building stakeholders’ trust in the company. Nonetheless, the concept of quality is multidimensional, and empirical evidence relating to the quality of sustainability reporting presents different findings. Regulations on mandatory nonfinancial disclosure (NFD) open new perspectives for research on sustainability reporting quality (SRQ). This study explored the effect of introducing mandatory NFD on SRQ by focusing on the effects of new legislation (Directive 2014/95/EU) introduced in Italy and Germany. The analysis was conducted through qualitative content analysis of the sustainability reporting practices of Italian and German companies in the top lists of stock exchanges. Sustainability reporting practices of one year before (2016) and one year after (2017) the implementation of Directive 2014/95/EU were compared. The results of 132 observations demonstrated that the quality of sustainability reporting increased after implementation of the law on mandatory NFD. Further, the effect of the law seemed to reduce the differences in SRQ of the two countries before the introduction of mandatory NFD. The results suggested that obligatoriness of NFD affects SRQ together with other relevant determinants focused on by previous research (e.g., company size and industry type).

This study aims to identify the sustainable business practices operationalized in the sustainable business models of manufacturing companies and highlights these companies' contributions to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The results outline that a clear sustainable value proposition is operationalized through a large and various range of sustainable practices that, although some of them are legally promoted, are mostly voluntarily adopted. Unlike previous studies, this research shows a widespread commitment not only to the economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability but also to the social one, above all to promote workers' well‐being, improve the workplaces, and engage the employees. Furthermore, the study reveals an across‐the‐board dimension of sustainability operationalized by the adoption of local embeddedness strategies, networking development, and creation of a sustainable ecosystem and contributes to extending—and improving all dimensions of—the triple bottom line framework. Finally, the companies investigated contribute to the achievement of 11 of the 17 SDGs by highlighting dimensions in which companies already have a strong impact and those in which they could enhance their practice. Based on these results, this research advances theoretical knowledge and offers practical implications to improve sustainable business management further.

Rethinking the traditional understanding of organizational purpose appears to be necessary. A teleological paradigm shift seems to be on its way, changing the focus of attention from considering business organizations as instruments used to generate profits toward a more comprehensive understanding of their purpose and of the benefit they can create for society. Recently, new organizational entities have emerged, accompanied by the renewal of institutional frameworks, among them are benefit corporations. Italy was the first European country to introduce a legal framework to define the benefit corporation as a particular legal entity. The Italian law on the benefit corporations proposes the promotion of firms that pursue the generation of benefit in a responsible, sustainable, and transparent way and considering diverse stakeholders. This paper explores and describes the multidimensional understanding of benefit and purpose of Italian benefit corporations, utilizing qualitative and quantitative content analysis of 94 Italian benefit corporations’ purpose declarations, and providing a deep insight into the purpose declared by benefit corporations. The research highlights a certain vagueness in public declarations of the purpose of benefit corporations, even though it is clear that they attempt to differentiate themselves from traditional businesses by focusing on social objectives more than on economic ones. Furthermore, normative compliance emerged, but further normative requirements seem to be needed to make more effective the transformative potentiality of benefit corporations and to avoid risks of opportunistic behaviors.

Purpose: This study aims to assess whether and how non-born-sustainable business incubators (BIs) – that is, BIs whose business model was not originally sustainability-oriented – promote sustainable entrepreneurship development.Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts a qualitative research design based on grounded theory and an interpretive approach. The analysis is developed by collecting interviews with ten Italian BIs, selected by purposive sampling and examining data using the Gioia methodology.Findings: The results show that BIs, using various specific tools, facilitate the creation of a sustainability-oriented ecosystem. In this context, BIs help start-ups develop a purpose, a cultural mindset and business models that enable them to face the challenges of today’s competitive environment, in which sustainability has become (and will increasingly be) an essential requirement for companies.Research limitations/implications: This study contributes to the literature by highlighting the active role of non-born-sustainable BIs in promoting the development of sustainable entrepreneurship.Practical implications: This research has practical implications related to the opportunities for embedding sustainability in BIs’ purpose and defining a framework of operations and practices that can boost innovativeness while having a positive impact on the community and on the environment. Finally, findings suggest that BIs can foster cost reduction when implementing sustainability in start-ups.Social implications: The study suggests that BIs, as drivers of social change, could be sustained by public assistance and help from well-established firms to promote the spread of sustainable entrepreneurship culture and the success of sustainability-oriented start-ups.Originality/value: BIs have the potential to promote sustainable entrepreneurship, but this topic is still under-researched. While existing studies have examined the role of born-sustainable BIs in specific business sectors, this research is one of the first attempts to explore the role of non-born-sustainable BIs in fostering sustainable entrepreneurship.