Sustainability reporting in Norway – an assessment of performance in the context of legal demands and socio‐political drivers

This article explores the influence of societal, political and regulatory characteristics and developments on the quality of corporate sustainability disclosures in Norway. The paper presents an assessment both of mandatory reporting under the Norwegian Accounting Act, and of voluntary reporting in annual and separate non‐financial reports, by the 100 largest firms in Norway. Our results reveal that only 10% of the companies comply with the legal requirements on environmental reporting, while only half of the firms comply with the legal reporting provisions on working environment and gender equality. The vast majority of firms also report unsatisfactorily on non‐financial issues in the voluntary disclosures assessed. Analysing the causes of these results, we contend that the situation is characterized by (1) an apparent lack of political and social drivers for sustainability reporting in Norway and (2) an absence of sufficient monitoring and enforcement of the environmental reporting legislation on the part of Norwegian authorities. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.     

Modeling catastrophic deaths using EVT with a microsimulation approach to reinsurance pricing

Recently, a marked Poisson process (MPP) model for life catastrophe risk was proposed in Ekheden & Hössjer (2014). We provide a justification and further support for the model by considering more general Poisson point processes in the context of extreme value theory (EVT), and basing the choice of model on statistical tests and model comparisons. A case study examining accidental deaths in the Finnish population is provided. We further extend the applicability of the catastrophe risk model by considering small and big accidents separately; the resulting combined MPP model can flexibly capture the whole range of accidental death counts. Using the proposed model, we present a simulation framework for pricing (life) catastrophe reinsurance, based on modeling the underlying policies at individual contract level. The accidents are first simulated at population level, and their effect on a specific insurance company is then determined by explicitly simulating the resulting insured deaths. The proposed microsimulation approach can potentially lead to more accurate results than the traditional methods, and to a better view of risk, as it can make use of all the information available to the re/insurer and can explicitly accommodate even complex re/insurance terms and product features. As an example, we price several excess reinsurance contracts. The proposed simulation model is also suitable for solvency assessment.     

E-mentoring supporting female university managers＇ leadership development

Sharing international leadership experiences and professional development among female university managers in operational environments requiring new kinds of strategic leadership is a topical challenge e-mentoring can meet. This article examines perspectives of World Female University Presidents＇ Forum （China, 2009） participants on e-mentoring as support for female managers. No correlations between leadership profiles and mentoring needs were evident in this narrow sample, but responses indicated strategic business areas and support services emphasised in higher education management. The greatest mentoring need was in ＂Innovation work＂. One-to-one e-mentoring, peer mentoring and virtual mentoring communities interested respondents slightly more than group e-mentoring. Attitudes towards e-mentoring were positive, but unfamiliarity with virtual work methods and time issues were problematic in its application. An international e-mentoring programme＇s added value was acknowledged, but skilful management is essential for its successful integration into busy schedules. These results are used to outline the eMWL, e-mentoring promoting women leadership, model.     

Searching for e-mentoring practices for SME staff development

The objective of this article is to consider e-mentoring models applicable for SME staff development. The article examines a study conducted collaboratively between a university of applied sciences and entrepreneurial organisation, ascertaining organisation members’ interest in e-mentoring for professional development. In this Finnish case, entrepreneurs’ skill deficits and e-mentoring’s possibilities as a learning support are identified, and the practicality and meaningfulness of different e-mentoring forms examined. The results indicate e-mentoring is expected to facilitate support from experienced entrepreneurs in practical professional development. Peer mentoring online was slightly preferred over one-on-one expert e-mentoring.