The first Social Report of Perlage

December 2018: Perlage publishes its first social report, consciously moving towards a non-financial reporting path.

Traditionally, it is customary to refer to the financial statements exclusively in economic terms by preparing annual reports about company financial, equity and economic data. However, it is clear that nowadays, in everyday life, it does not exclusively play an economic role, but also a social one. Furthermore, this is one of the pillars of Corporate Social Responsibility.

In more specific terms, what does it mean to produce “a social report”? Why should each company be encouraged to do that?

Producing a social report means disclosing to the outside world, the impact that the company has on its stakeholders, on the company and, in particular, on the environment.

And what are the stakeholders? In the social report, they cover a fundamental role. In fact, they are all those individuals with whom the company deals everyday: employees, customers, suppliers, public administration, shareholders, consumers, the environment … Each stakeholder can have a certain level of interest and influence towards the company.

This is why it is important to identify the key or strategic stakeholders. This explains why it is necessary to involve them in business processes (from the choice of a product to events).

The company enters directly in contact with the stakeholders, in order to ask them for feedback regarding its operations. In fact, we could call the social report also “Stakeholder Report”;

Transparency and accountability, not only from a financial point of view, but also from a social and environmental one. Basically, we show how the money resulting from the company profits is used for the key stakeholders.

Which are the benefits? The social report is an opportunity for discussion and involvement of its stakeholders. Moreover, it is a collection of useful elements to focus on the company mission, the promotion of internal/external communication, and show transparency.