The master's thesis deals with the question of how corporate sustainability in plant engineering can be presented transparently in order to meet the diverse requirements of stakeholders and the legal framework in Austria. In an increasingly complex and regulated business environment, companies are faced with the challenge of not only optimising their sustainability performance, but also communicating it clearly and comprehensibly. Against this backdrop, the aim of this study is to develop a practical method for collecting and presenting sustainability indicators that does justice to both internal and external stakeholders. The study is based on a combination of theoretical and empirical research. Firstly, a comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify the relevant concepts of sustainability management and the legal requirements in Austria. The focus was on international standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the requirements of the EU directives on sustainability reporting. Building on these theoretical foundations, a qualitative study was conducted using expert interviews. The aim of these interviews was to gain deeper insights into the current challenges and practices of sustainability reporting in the plant engineering industry. The results of the study show that the transparent presentation of sustainability in plant engineering depends heavily on the quality of the data collected and the integration of this data into existing management systems. It became clear that companies face considerable challenges, particularly when it comes to consolidating and validating the necessary data. Many of the experts interviewed emphasised the need for uniform standards and methods to ensure the comparability of sustainability indicators. It was also emphasised that the communication of sustainability performance to various stakeholder groups is a key element for the success of sustainability strategies. Based on the insights gained, an example of a framework for the collection and presentation of core process indicators (KPIs) was developed that is specifically tailored to the needs of the selected company. These KPIs cover environmental as well as economic and social dimensions of sustainability. Indicators such as energy consumption, CO2 emissions, resource efficiency and employee satisfaction were particularly emphasised. The study shows that the targeted visualisation of these key figures can not only improve the internal management of sustainability performance, but also increase the transparency of external communication with stakeholders. In conclusion, the paper concludes that the successful implementation of a sustainable reporting system in plant engineering not only contributes to the fulfilment of legal requirements, but also helps to secure the competitiveness of companies in the long term. The outlook emphasises the importance of continuously adapting and developing sustainability strategies in order to meet future challenges such as decarbonisation and the circular economy.
Transparente Darstellung unternehmerischer Nachhaltigkeit im Anlagenbau: Ein Fokus auf Stakeholder*innen-Anforderungen und gesetzlichen Rahmenbedingungen in Österreich
Berneder, M. (Author). 2024
Student thesis: Master's Thesis