ACCG 950: Analysis & Evaluation of Woolworths & Westfield Reports

This report provides a comparative analysis of Woolworths and Westfield's sustainability reporting practices, focusing on their adherence to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. It discusses each company's purpose for providing GRI reports, identifies key stakeholders and their interests, and analyzes the similarities and differences between the two reports. The report critically evaluates the quality of information, consistency with standards, and how well stakeholder needs are addressed, highlighting the importance of sustainability reporting for these major Australian retail organizations. The analysis reveals that both companies follow GRI guidelines but differ in their reporting of sustainability performance and disclosure of information regarding the importance of sustainability reporting.

Running head: SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF WOOLWORTHS AND WESFIELD
Sustainbility Reporting of Westfield and Woolworths
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1SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF WOOLWORTHS AND WESFIELD
Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................2
Company Purpose for Offering GRI or IR..........................................................................2
Major Stakeholders Having Interest in Report....................................................................3
Differences and Similarities in Company Reports..............................................................4
Critical Analysis of Sustainability Reports..........................................................................5
Information Quality.........................................................................................................5
Relevant Standards and Framework Consistency............................................................6
Information Addressing Stakeholder Needs....................................................................6
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................7
References............................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
In a highly competitive environment, the objective of business sustainability along with
integrated reporting is high in all the business sectors (De Villiers, Rinaldi and Unerman 2014).
In compliance with the sustainability reporting, important information can be collected regarding
economic, social, environmental along with governance performance of selected companies. The
current paper will focus on explaining the sustainability reports of two major organizations such
as Westfield and Woolworths those are renowned retail organizations of Australia. It is also
gathered that these two companies are developed their sustainability reports through abiding by
the guidelines explained within the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards (Flower 2015).
Company Purpose for Offering GRI or IR
Woolworths and Westfield companies are observed to publish the sustainability reports
for some objectives that are explained below:
 Woolworths Company offers important information to all its external as well as internal
stakeholders concerning several sustainability actions through abiding by the GRI
standards (Jain and Winner 2016). Additionally, the company also makes sure that the
success of its consumers on an international level. Through implementing GRI
sustainability standards, the company has the opportunity or carrying out sustainable
operation in a responsible and safe manner. Woolworths Company’s management
considers sustainable reporting as an important and influential aspect that supports in
development of extended term values for the internal and external stakeholders. Lastly,

3SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF WOOLWORTHS AND WESFIELD
the company also abides by GRI reporting because of the reason that it needs to develop
values associated with safety, trust, respect, excellence and reliability (James 2015).
 Westfield Company is associated with offering GRI reports with an intention of attaining
exceptional standards in the areas of safety, environment management, rigidness,
effectiveness, governance and safety. In addition, the company offers GRI reporting to
offer affirmative community and environmental results (Kaspereit and Lopatta 2016). For
this reason, it intends to consider numerous sustainability concerns of business in
accordance with four important segments. This encompass responsible business conducts,
economic development along with safety maintenance in the organization.
Major Stakeholders Having Interest in Report
Woolworths is observed to have an important stakeholder group that are explained within
the sustainability report of the company in the year 2017. The major stakeholder group includes
the contractors and the staff and they require following sustainability report in attaining a
viewpoint of leadership framework and its management performance as well as the overall
growth opportunities (Kräusche and Pilz 2018). Another stakeholder group of Woolworths
includes its consumers as well as clients. For this stakeholder group sustainability report is vital
as they focus on attaining necessary data regarding costs, performance as well as sustainability of
organizational products. Shareholders and the investment communities are another important
stakeholder group of Woolworths as they focus on attaining information concerning business
performance, strategy implementation and company governance. The local residents and the
society are otherf stakeholders those desire to attain relevant information on employment
opportunity, business operation effects along with economic and social along with economic
contributions (Manetti and Bellucci 2016). Lastly, government is another vital stakeholder for

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Westfield and Woolworths and these companies have the responsibility of making sure that they
are aligned with GRI framework for research and development. The companies also deal with
the issues in dealt by local community.
Westfield has a distinct group of stakeholders those have vital importance for the
company. The first stakeholder group includes employees and the demand information regarding
health and safety measures and concerns related with sustainability and training (Shoaf,
Jermakowicz and Epstein 2018). Consumers are another important stakeholder as they desire to
understand features of the products and service quality for taking future purchase decisions. The
suppliers and the contractors are another important stakeholder group as their interest is
organizations make sure of open product and practice needs. Another stakeholder group
encompass local communities and they seek information regarding business operation effects on
the society. The government and the regulators are another stakeholder group those intend to
attain information regarding economic and environmental impacts of business conducts (Talbot
and Boiral 2018). Finally, shareholders are another stakeholder group as they seek to attain
insight regarding the company’s economic performance.
Differences and Similarities in Company Reports
 Similarities in reports of Woolworths and Westfield- One of the biggest similarity that
has been gathered from the sustainability reports of these two companies is that they
abided by the standards set by GRI for generating their sustainability reports (Tschopp
and Huefner 2015). In addition, detailed elaborations regarding vital sustainability
concerns are disclosed on these two reports that might have material impact on the

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companies such as Woolworths and Westfield. In addition, elaborated account of
stakeholders might be revealed from these organizations published sustainability reports.
 Differences in reports of Woolworths and Westfield- There are certain differences
present within the sustainability reports of Woolworths and Westfield. Woolworths has
reported its sustainability performance situation that is not observed in case of Westfield
(Westfield.com.au. 2018). In addition, a sustainability scorecard might be observed in the
sustainability report of Westfield. Lastly, one more difference is seen in Woolworths that
has decided to disclose all its vital information regarding the importance of sustainability
reporting while nothing has been explained in the year 2017 regarding the case of
Westfield.
Critical Analysis of Sustainability Reports
Information Quality
There are major three aspects which impacts the quality of information and these are
relevance, comparability as well as reliability. For these two companies it has been gathered that
they follow GRI guidelines, it implies that they have offered all important data concerning the
sustainability concerns (Woolworthsgroup.com.au. 2018). This makes sure that the external and
internal stakeholders of these two companies that the information offered is important. In
addition to that, the main sustainability areas encompass social, rights, social rights along with
safety. Woolworths Company offers important information to all its external as well as internal
stakeholders concerning several sustainability actions through abiding by the GRI standards. The
Woolworths and the Westfield has disclosed important information concerning risk management
initiative that considers to deal with concerns regarding climate change along with sustaining

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safe and healthy work surrounding (Jain and Winner 2016). For this reason, the sustainability
report is prepared in an efficient manner for the stakeholders. For this reason, the formats of the
sustainability reports are easy for the users to realsie that makes sure of the comparability feature
of such reports.
Relevant Standards and Framework Consistency
For recognizing the materiality concerns, the GRI standards that are followed by
Woolworths and Westfield encompass G4-17 to G4-23 (Kräusche and Pills 2018). In addition,
for offering better governance-based information, the company comply with the GRI standards
set within the G4-34 to G4-52 (Manetti and Bellucci 2016). To maintain environmental
disclosures, both of these organizations abide by G4-DMA based standards.
Following such standards, both the Woolworths and Westfield focus on maintaining
healthy lives along with promoting well being for all ages. The companies also consider making
inclusive as well as equitable quality information regarding offering unlimited access to reliable,
affordable, sustainable as well as modern energy for all its consumers (Manetti and Bellucci
2016). In abiding by the GRI standards of sustainability, both the companies focus on promoting
the inclusive and peaceful communities for sustainable development. This also offers access to
justice for all its consumers along with developing efficient, responsible as well as inclusive
institutions at every level. Certain aspects of this sustainability guideline ensure that these
organizations strengthen the means of implementation along with revitalizing international
partnerships with sustainable development of Woolworths and Westfield (Jain and Winner
2016).

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Information Addressing Stakeholder Needs
Every kind of stakeholders that these companies have focus on attaining an understanding
regarding sustainability performances of Woolworths and Westfield (Tschopp and Huefner
2015). For such causes, important information is also needed in consideration to these companies
social and environmental performances, corporate governance as well as measures in making
sure of workforce safety. In consideration to the evaluation carried out, it has been gathered that
both of the companies such as Woolworths and Westfield offer certain important information
concerning the above indicated sustainability features through abiding by the standards set by
GRI (Tschopp and Huefner 2015). For this reason, it can also be explained that stakeholders
belonging to both of these retail companies might gather numerous sustainability data through
sustainability report evaluation of Woolworths and Westfield.
Conclusion
The explanation of GRI implementation in the organizations such as Woolworths and
Westfield, it is gathered that they have confirmed to the GRI guidelines in order to report
important information related with sustainability performance. It is also gathered that important
stakeholders of these companies include employees, consumers, creditors, shareholders,
government and society. One of the biggest similarity that has been gathered from the
sustainability reports of these two companies is that they abided by the standards set by GRI for
generating their sustainability reports. In addition, detailed elaborations regarding vital
sustainability concerns are disclosed on these two reports that might have material impact on the
companies such as Woolworths and Westfield. The paper also revealed that Woolworths and
Westfield have abided by the necessary GRI guidelines in developing their sustainability reports
for addressing its stakeholder information requirements.

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9SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF WOOLWORTHS AND WESFIELD
References
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group.com.au/icms_docs/189425_corporate-responsibility-report-2017.pdf
Woolworthsgroup.com.au., 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018, from
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