This e-mail covers three topics: (1) a new report on integrated guidance prepared by KKS Advisors for the Generation Foundation, (2) notification of some job openings at the PRI, and (3) my most recent blog on Forbes.com.

Integrated Guidance

“Implementing Integrated Guidance: Case studies in communicating value relevant information,” was written by Sakis Kotsantonis (sakis@kksadvisors.com) of KKS Advisors and Professor George Serafeim, with Daniela Saltzman (daniela.saltzman@generationim.com) and Shalini Rao of Generation Foundation. It is a follow up report to the study “Earnings Guidance—Part of the Future of the Past?” 

The report discusses how companies can move away from focusing on the short-term by issuing earnings guidance and increase the supply of long-term strategic information. Integrated Guidance is introduced as a corporate communications strategy that can replace traditional quarterly earnings guidance and support long-term investors by providing them with relevant and meaningful information. In order to provide specific examples, the report identifies for four sectors significant long-term strategic drivers that are relevant for investment decisions and then analyses the extent to which companies within each sector communicate this information, by collecting data from corporate reports and conference calls.

Two key findings of the report are:

1. Material issues identified by companies in their respective reports are either not mentioned, or are given far less priority during the company presentation section of quarterly earnings calls. Therefore, most companies can significantly improve the level and type of strategic information communicated to investors.

2. Analysts are driving the conversation around these material issues during the Q&A sections of the quarterly earnings calls. This result sheds light on the role of analysts as the primary investigator driving discussion around long-term issues and is in contrast to the popular rhetoric that companies release a wealth of information but investors do not care about it.

This is an excellent report which is a strong contribution to the integrated reporting movement, as well as giving practical guidance to companies.

PRI Job Openings

Here is an e-mail I received from Will Martindale (will.martindale@unpri.org), Head of Policy for the PRI:

Forbes.com

Last week I published a short piece on Forbes.com titled “How to Show Leadership in Corporate Sustainability.” It is about the Ceres report I told all of you about last week.