Using Sustainability Reporting as a Business Communication Tool to Reshape Social Relations in Times of Turmoil

Muhammad Al Mahameed and Ahmad Abras

Business Strategy and the Environment, 2025, vol. 34, issue 5, 5624-5643

Abstract: This paper investigates the adaptation of sustainability reporting (SR) amidst turbulent political and social environments, shaping novel social dynamics. We employ a critical hermeneutic framework to longitudinally analyse SR across three corporations, spanning periods before and after a significant socio‐political upheaval, notably the Egyptian revolution. Through a comprehensive examination comprising 29 sustainability and management reports, interviews with eight key stakeholders, analysis of 488 corporate social media posts (Facebook and Twitter) and scrutiny of 213 news media articles spanning 6 years (2009–2014), we uncover the role of SR in constructing and navigating social relations amid instability. Our findings reveal that SR functions to construct social connections during periods of uncertainty by crafting narratives that symbolically link corporations to newly empowered communities. Consequently, SR becomes a mechanism for reshaping corporate identity, portraying corporations as courageous and aligned with youthful aspirations, aligning their operations with the evolving socio‐political landscape. This study offers a nuanced understanding of how SR serves as a tool for corporate communication, enabling corporations to manage their image and relationships with emerging stakeholders while (re)shaping a political identity that signifies continuity and stability. Grounded in the context of the pre‐ and post‐Egyptian revolution, our analysis highlights the adaptive nature of corporate communication amidst shifting social and political landscapes.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.4262

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:34:y:2025:i:5:p:5624-5643

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://onlinelibrary ... 1002/(ISSN)1099-0836

Access Statistics for this article

Business Strategy and the Environment is currently edited by Richard Welford

More articles in Business Strategy and the Environment from Wiley Blackwell
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Wiley Content Delivery ().