Date: 2018-06-04
Level: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr
Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University
Authors: Emma Lindholm Mikaela Lundqvist Gabriella Söderström (94/03/01) (95/11/06) (94/09/03)
Title: CSR – How do the best communicate? A rhetorical text analysis of annual reports and sustainability reports
Tutor: Magnus Linderström
Keywords: CSR, Communication, Stakeholders
Research questions: Which of the chosen theories support companies in their annual reports and sustainability reports to communicate their CSR work in order to create credibility?
How do companies use rhetoric in their annual reports and sustainability reports to capture the attention of the recipient and to create credibility?
Purpose: The purpose of the study is to contribute to increased understanding and knowledge about what communicative strategies companies use in their annual and sustainability reports to convey their sustainability efforts.
Method: A rhetorical text analysis is used to analyze the companies' annual reports and sustainability reports with the intention of identifying similarities and differences in companies' ways of communicating their CSR work.
Conclusion: The most important components of a credible report are to
highlight stakeholders' role, two-way communication, Stakeholder Involvement Strategy, Logos argumentation, proactive approaches, fulfilling Carroll's CSR pyramid, and using words that are linked to the brand and reinforce the associations. This is due to that these theories and rhetorical tools are the ones most used and most commonly found in both the companies’ annual reports and the sustainability reports.
2018.