Did digitalization and GRI adoption improve ESG performance before ESRS? Evidence from European companies
Event Title
7th International Conference in Accounting and Finance Innovation
Year (definitive publication)
2026
Language
English
Country
Portugal
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Abstract
Companies have been integrating ESG practices into their strategies, supported by standards such as the GRI and encouraged by the European Directive 2014/95/EU. At the same time, investment in digital technologies has in-creased to enhance organizations’ responsiveness to current challenges. Much of the recent literature studying the impact of digital transformation on ESG performance focuses primarily on Asian companies, limiting its applicability to other contexts. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing the relationship be-tween digitalization and GRI adoption on the ESG performance of European companies, before and after the European Directive 2014/95/EU. Data were collected from European Union companies between 2014 and 2023, and multi-ple linear regression models were estimated. The results show that, although the literature suggests positive impacts from both GRI adoption and technology investment, no significant joint effect between the two variables was identified. In the most recent period (2021–2023), this interaction even showed a negative impact, possibly associated with regulatory uncertainty and the lack of maturi-ty in digitalization and green innovation.
Acknowledgements
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Keywords
ESG,GRI,ESG Performance,Technology Investment,European Directive 2014/95/EU
Português