"This is the first book to provide a comparative and critical analysis of why and how corporate governance and corporate law have been or can be used to promote and protect sustainability in the four common law jurisdictions in Asia, i.e. Singapore, Hong Kong, India and Malaysia. Based on theoretical, doctrinal and empirical research, I critically evaluate the rationales for, and effectiveness of, six corporate mechanisms, namely (1) sustainability reporting; (2) gender diversity on board of directors; (3) constituency directors; (4) stewardship codes; (5) directors' duty to act in the best interests of the company; and (6) liability on companies, shareholders and directors. These six corporate mechanisms provide an analytic framework for understanding the role of corporate governance and corporate law in advancing (or thwarting) sustainability in jurisdictions other than those discussed in this book. 21 These six mechanisms will be evaluated in light of the distinctive contexts in the four common law Asian jurisdictions, specifically their ownership structures and institutional environment. This is because the majority of the listed companies there are dominated by controlling shareholders, particularly the government1 in state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which wield significant and substantial power.2 The pursuit of socioeconomic agendas and social objectives by the government through SOEs has facilitated sustainability, and the government plays an important role in advancing this goal. However, the government as the controlling shareholder of the SOEs poses two key problems, namely, conflicts of interest between the government as the controlling shareholder and as the corporate regulator, as well as political interference and extractions of benefits of control by the government. These problems may affect the corporate mechanisms for promoting sustainability. In short, a central challenge is whether and if so how the corporate mechanisms should be reconceptualised to promote sustainability in an environment that is characterised by controlling shareholders, governmental interference or state ownership of companies"--

This book critically examines how corporate law and governance can be and should be used to promote sustainability in Asia.

Get familiar with business sustainability in Asia Business Sustainability in Asia offers 12 chapters that cover different aspects of business sustainability with a keen focus on its implications in Asia. Anyone who is involved with business sustainability and corporate governance, the financial reporting process, investment decisions, legal and financial advising, assurance functions, and corporate governance education will be interested in this book. It examines business sustainability performance, reporting and assurance and their integration into strategy, governance, risk assessment, performance management, and the reporting process of disclosing governance, ethics, social, environmental, and economic sustainable performance. The book also highlights how people, businesses, and resources collaborate in a business sustainability and accountability model. • Develop an awareness and understanding of the main themes, perspectives, frameworks, and issues pertaining to corporate governance and business sustainability in Asia • Covers a variety of issues relevant to business sustainability in Asia • Authored by an expert who has written extensively on the subject • Understand why organizations worldwide recognize the importance of sustainability performance If you’re a business leader, executive, auditor, or student looking to familiarize yourself with this emerging subject, Business Sustainability in Asia has you covered.

Sustainability is a concept that unifies the environment, economy, and society, and has spread as a key concept in enterprise management. The United Nations adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, which require worldwide efforts to reach a sustainable society, and also applies to private enterprises.Sustainability should be developed in connection with management strategy, and Asia's role, including that of Japan, is important to improve global sustainability. This book addresses how sustainability management in the Asian context is currently practised and proposes practices for the future.Investigation of the effect of business domain characteristics on the integration of sustainability and management, and elucidation of the process and features of EMCS (Environmental Management Control System) inside and outside of companies have been indicated. The book points that companies need to use and design Sustainability Management Control Systems in order to implement a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) strategy and match employees' behavior to CSR activities.MFCA (Material Flow Cost Accounting) has started to expand rapidly into other Asian industries from Japan as a method of Environmental Management Control. The fundamental idea and procedure of MFCA and many case examples of Japanese MFCA have been reported. These findings help us to consider a policy for continuous use of MFCA. Moreover, the relationship between Toyota Production System and MFCA has been explained and 'Material Flow Time Costing' as a new management accounting concept is proposed.Based on the literature review, the study has made recommendations for Asian companies' strategic management and governmental policy-making to improve both quality and quantity of sustainability disclosure in Asia. One of the papers has identified the development and implementation of social and environmental accounting by Indonesian state-owned enterprises and their determining factors. In a Japanese manufacture, the effect of smoothed production has been analyzed as an example of environmental management. This led to an increase in production quality without additional capital spending.

This book presents a rich collection of research studies on the theory and practice of CSR in Asia. It includes valuable contributions of practice-oriented researchers from various Asian countries such as Brunei, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Singapore, and from several non-Asian countries, such as Australia, Canada and the USA. The book presents a comprehensive overview of the practice of CSR in Asia. Normally CSR is seen in the Western angles, but here, in this book, Asian philosophies and thoughts are also examined. Touted as the first of its kind, the book also compares Western and Asian perspectives on CSR and presents them in the light of Asian philosophies and thoughts, such as Confucian, Islamic (Koranic), Indian (Vedantic) and other Asian ways of looking at CSR in their own rights and perspectives.​

This book examines the challenges faced by seven multinational companies - Intel, Lenovo, Samsung Electronics, ZTE, BMW Hyundai Motor Company, Mahindra and Mahindra - in their endeavour to contribute to the economic, environmental and social development of Asia. The lessons learned from the examination of these business practices may directly contribute to an increase in the practice of sustainable management and may as such contribute to positive economic, environmental and social impact of companies in this region. The cases are highly relevant for management theoreticians seeking to deepen our understanding of corporate sustainability in an area where scholars, practitioners and policy-makers can expect new questions, problems and challenges in the years ahead. The book is also of high interest to policy review agencies, policy makers and welfare economists seeking to support the development of a comprehensive sustainability framework for managing social and environmental issues in the context of Asia.

This book advances the understanding of corporate sustainability and challenges and roles of sustainability accounting in the Asia-Pacific region. The Asia-Pacific region has shown fast economic growth for several decades which is expected to continue. In this context, Asia has become the “production engine” of the global economy. At the same time scientific reports reveal that some planetary boundaries are crossed, for example relating to biodiversity and climate change. Companies in the Asia-Pacific region are therefore increasingly challenged to reduce their environmental impacts, to document their social contribution and to contribute to sustainable development. Key approaches to identify sustainability problems and challenges, to support improvement processes and to back up sustainability contributions include accounting and reporting. In contrast to the high relevance of accounting and reporting for corporate sustainability for the Asia-Pacific region, academic research has so far been dominated by Western researchers and pre-dominantly dealt with Western and Japanese cases and approaches. It is thus time to take account of Asian perspectives on accounting and reporting for sustainability in the Asia-Pacific region.