Impact of ESG performance on the quality of CSR reporting

The research aims to analyze the role of the three pillars of sustainability, namely social, environmental and governance (ESG), in the quality of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting and how sustainability reporting increases the perceived importance of transparency, relevance and consistency of CSR communication. The research methodology consists of applying a questionnaire on a sample of 141 respondents, employees of companies in Romania, whose answers were analyzed by a multiple linear regression model. The results indicate that all three ESG dimensions have a positive impact and contribute to the improvement of CSR quality, with the most marginal effect being the environmental dimension (β = 0.294, p < 0.01), followed by the social dimension (β = 0.275, p < 0.01) and governance (β = 0.189, p < 0.05). The model explains about 49.7% of the variance in the quality of reporting (R² = 0.497), and statistical validity tests confirm the robustness of the estimates. The study's novelty lies in highlighting the impact of each ESG dimension on CSR quality in the context of Romanian firms, where research is limited, providing an empirical framework adapted to the specific Romanian legal and cultural context. The research results emphasize the importance of the balanced integration of environmental, social and governance practices in communication policies to meet stakeholder expectations and increase the transparency, quality and credibility of corporate reporting.