Innovation in managing sustainability: a tentative integration of accounting for employee health and safety

Purpose of the paper: This study analyses the implementation and integration of an accounting instrument for employee health and safety. It discusses whether and how the device and related financial information support employee health and safety decision making. Methodology: The framework focuses on the technical, organisational and cognitive factors that may operate as enabling or hindering factors during the implementation and integration process of an accounting instrument. A multiple case analysis of two medium-sized Italian waste management companies was carried out following an interventionist research approach lasted two years. Findings: The analysis reveals that none of the two companies integrated the instrument despite the positive outputs revealed during the implementation phase. A set of interrelated technical, organisational and cognitive barriers emerged. In particular, the difficulty of generating corporate interest in the instrument prevented its integration. Cognitive ...