Mapping stakeholder expectations in a digital business : case Pinja Group

Abstract

Corporate sustainability has emerged as an essential topic in the business world and academic discussion. Nowadays, companies from different industries pay more vigorous attention to their social, economic, and environmental impacts. At the same time, a shareholder-centric approach shifted towards a stakeholder-oriented approach, requiring businesses to listen and respond to stakeholder expectations. Despite the increasing importance of corporate sustainability and the role stakeholders play in it, there is limited research in this field in the context of the digital industry.

This thesis attempts to understand stakeholder expectations regarding material sustainability aspects and corporate sustainability management process relevant for Pinja Group - a case company operating in the digital sector. In addition, this thesis seeks to compare the expectations of different stakeholder groups. Thus, the theoretical framework of this study consists of prior research related to corporate sustainability in the Information Technology (IT) sector, sustainability reporting, and materiality approach, as well as stakeholder theory and stakeholder engagement.

The research methodology strategy used in this research is the case study, while the data collection method is semi-structured interviews. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the company’s primary stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers, and top management stakeholder groups. The qualitative data received from the semi-structured interviews were analyzed by using the thematic analysis method. This study identified the following six material sustainability themes expected by stakeholders: (i) corporate social performance, (ii) sustainable services and solutions, (iii) internal environmental performance, (iv) partner and third-party sustainability, (v) economic stability and growth, and (vi) corporate compliance. Furthermore, the results showed that stakeholders expect the case company to manage its corporate sustainability by creating a sustainability program consisting of (i) sustainability strategy, (ii) sustainability measurement system, (iii) stakeholder engagement, and (iv) practical guidelines, as well as develop sustainability communication including (i) sustainability awareness creation, (ii) sustainability performance communication (iii) marketing communication. In addition, the study results showed the differences in stakeholder expectations across various stakeholder groups.