Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Economics and Finance in the Digital Business Transformation (INCOSEF 2025)

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Do ESG-committed Firms Talk Less about Digital Transformation? Evidence from Australian Listed Companies

Authors
Van Ky Long Nguyen1, 2, *, Thi Tuyet Anh Nguyen3, Thi My Hanh Le1, An Hai Vo1
1FPT University, Hanoi, Vietnam
2Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
3Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia
*Corresponding author. Email: longnvk@fe.edu.vn
Corresponding Author
Van Ky Long Nguyen
Available Online 6 April 2026.
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6239-624-1_4How to use a DOI?
Keywords
ESG; digital transformation; corporate disclosure; sustainability; text analysis; Australia
Abstract

This study examines the relationship between firms’ environmental, social and governance performance and their disclosure of digital transformation in annual reports. Using a panel of 79 non-financial firms listed on the Australian Securities Exchange from 2014 to 2024, we construct a text-based digital transformation index and estimate two-way fixed effects models with Driscoll–Kraay robust standard errors. The results show a negative and statistically significant association between ESG performance and digital transformation disclosure, indicating that firms with stronger ESG commitment place less emphasis on communicating digital initiatives. This suggests a strategic substitution effect, where sustainability-oriented firms rely less on digital signaling in their corporate reporting. The study contributes to understanding how firms balance competing strategic domains in their disclosures, and provides insights for managers and policymakers regarding integrated approaches to sustainability and digital transformation disclosure.

Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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Volume Title
Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Economics and Finance in the Digital Business Transformation (INCOSEF 2025)
Series
Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research
Publication Date
6 April 2026
ISBN
978-94-6239-624-1
ISSN
2352-5428
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6239-624-1_4How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - CONF
AU  - Van Ky Long Nguyen
AU  - Thi Tuyet Anh Nguyen
AU  - Thi My Hanh Le
AU  - An Hai Vo
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/06
TI  - Do ESG-committed Firms Talk Less about Digital Transformation? Evidence from Australian Listed Companies
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Economics and Finance in the Digital Business Transformation (INCOSEF 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 36
EP  - 47
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-624-1_4
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-624-1_4
ID  - Nguyen2026
ER  -