SR is a reflection of corporate culture, including basic values, beliefs, norms and principles

Corporate culture influences the type of SR and the topics included

Changes in corporate culture lead to changes in SR

SR positively influences beliefs, values and norms of the organization

SR increases the awareness for sustainability issues among employees and top management

SR changes the attitude and behavior towards sustainability-related topics among employees

SR leads to increased pride for sustainability engagement of the company and consequently to more commitment to and identification with the company

Voices not suggesting influence: Corporate culture should not be able to be changed by SR; awareness-raising via SR cannot work

Strategic direction influences SR

New goals lead to changes in the content of reporting

Voices not suggesting influence: SR is only a summary of corporate or sustainability goals

SR has an impact on goal setting

SR is used as a communication and control instrument for goal implementation

Voices not suggesting influence: Strategic decisions are influenced by sustainability management as a whole, but not by SR itself

Existing accounting data is used for SR

Used KPIs influence the content of SR

SR leads to the collection of additional data and evaluations

Because of SR, specific indices, rankings and indicators are becoming more relevant

SR leads to the use of new information systems

Only few companies have linked reward systems to SR

Voices not suggesting influence: It is explicitly stated several times that no effects of the incentive and reward systems on SR are identified

Target agreements are defined in the course of SR

Departments, responsible employees or teams influence the content of SR

Engaging internal and external stakeholders affects SR

Internal communication has an impact on SR

Management or decision-makers of a company influence SR

The commitment of the board of directors has a major influence on SR

SR contributes to changes or optimizations in the company, including organizational systems, processes, structures and responsibilities

SR leads to establishing sustainability departments or sustainability committees

SR has an effect on the contents of company meetings

SR is used as an internal communication tool

Voices not suggesting influence: SR cannot serve as an internal communication tool, because the primary target group are external stakeholders