Year 11 Business Management - Guest Presenter Brendan Howard

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In our third series of guest lectures to articulate the new IB Business Management syllabus, our Year 11 Business Management students were introduced to concepts such as 'Ethical Accounting practices', 'Creativity in Financial Reporting' and 'Triple Bottom Line Accounting' in Week 6 of Term 3. They had the privilege of having Mr Brendan Howard from Bond Business School in their individual Business classes. Through case studies, Mr Howard explored 'Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Reporting' in great detail.

The evolving nature of financial reporting is exacerbated by significant changes in financial reporting standards, in turn, informing a company's strategy and overall performance. Today, the Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) reporting is influencing how companies disclose their overall performance to key stakeholders. This aligns very well with the topic of 'Ethical financial and accounting practices as a form of sustainable business behaviour', a new addition in the IB Business Management syllabus. Mr Howard related through examples how cost and revenue management could ensure sustainability. He also addressed how Triple Bottom Line accounting can support the shift towards more ethical business practices.

Students explored implications of ESG reporting from the lens of:

• Will ESG practices affect the profitability of business?
• Will ESG reporting lead to corporate behaviour change?
  
• How will ESG reporting impact investors and consumers?
• Should ESG reporting be compulsory for all businesses regardless of size?

As our Year 11s embark on formulating their Internal Assessment topics in Term 4, these series of guest lectures are aimed at helping students make explicit connections between the four key concepts (change, creativity, ethics, sustainability) and their chosen 'real' business issue or problem under investigation.

A special thanks to Mr Howard for kindly offering individual guest lectures to each of the three Year 11 Business classes, on three separate occasions.

​Leena Palekar
Business Management faculty