Change, vagueness and complexity: Integrated Reporting in the public sector

Accounting and reporting not only tangible but also intangible resources have become ever more popular. Integrated Reporting (IR) recognises that traditional manufactured and financial capitals are not sufficient indicators of sustainability and value creation opportunities. This is particularly so for public entities for whom accountability, legitimacy, transparency as well as value co-creation are crucial. This paper investigates the role of IR in the public sector by examining it in practice with a case study about the University of Udine in Italy, where IR galvanized internal stakeholders into action and ultimately led to some adaptation of its concept. The research sets out the case for IR and its potential to lead to sustainable change. The analysis revealed that the university management and community at large were engaged in the integrated process in order to contribute to the development of new forms of reporting to help ensure not only full disclosure of university assets, but also that the value creation and value delivery potential were uncovered. However, the intrinsic discrepancy between the IR concept and its operationalization brought the University to challenge and debate the IR approach, and, ultimately, to reconceptualize and implement its own version which better fitted its strategic aims, its intended audience and its status as a public entity.