Human resource reporting: Implications for corporate governance

Abstract

The major research question of this study is how boards of directors can monitor human resource reporting, especially with emerging reporting requirements from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for all domestic and foreign public companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges. Boards can develop advising and monitoring practices to help their companies meet the SEC’s human capital reporting requirements, as shown by the following topics discussed and analyzed in this paper: criticisms of the modernization of Regulation S-K by using principle-based versus rules-based disclosures; a way forward on the modernization of Regulation S-K; sustainability accounting standards; human resource accounting; board responsibility for white-collar crime risk; and collegiality conundrums. We find that a possible way forward in modernizing human capital reporting would be to combine a rules-based approach with a principles-based approach. We recommend boards to closely follow the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and create opportunities to steer their companies towards a sustainable future. We also research the newly developed accounting standards to address human resource risks and promote sustainable human capital reporting. In addition, we identify the strategies for boards to monitor the risk of white-collar crime and highlight the balance between collegiality and effectiveness in the boardroom. Future research could use case studies and interviews of company boards to investigate how they have developed strategies and procedures to facilitate human resource management and reporting