Sustainability in the German economy – A comparison of understanding, measures and reporting between SMEs and large companies

Andreas Horn, Ruth Berkmüller, Monika Bokelmann, Alexander-Michael Gerk, Jan Heldmann, Miriam Knauer, Fatah Naji, Simon Rath, Franziska Sperling and Johanna Wagner

No 2025-01, Bayreuth Working Papers on Finance, Accounting and Taxation (FAcT-Papers) from University of Bayreuth, Chair of Finance and Banking

Abstract: Sustainability and non-financial risk management are becoming increasingly im-portant for German companies due to climate change and new regulations. However, it is un-clear how well companies of varying sizes are prepared to handle the increasing pressure to adapt. While large companies are obliged to publish a sustainability report due to regulatory requirements such as the CSRD, there is no direct obligation for SMEs. Nevertheless, due to external pressure from stakeholders and information requirements of large companies, SMEs increasingly have to address the issue of sustainability. This raises the question as to how far large companies and SMEs have progressed in implementing sustainability, how the costs and benefits of this adaptation process can be compared and what differences can be identified be-tween the two company sizes. Our study is based on a June 2023 survey of 120 companies and provides an overview of the current state of sustainability management in German companies. Further, our results show that large companies have a broader understanding of sustainability than SMEs. In addition, most large companies already implement and report on sustainability measures. Overall, we observe that there is a link between understanding sustainability, imple-menting sustainability measures and sustainability reporting.

Keywords: Sustainability; ESG Risk; Understanding of Sustainability; Sustainability Measures; Sustainability Reporting; Cost-Benefit Analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C83 M14 M41 P28 Q01 Y1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ent and nep-eur
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