Identifying Dimensions and Components of Business Model Disclosure in Annual Reports

Disclosure of the business model in annual reports by companies is a method for improving the usefulness of information and transferring information related to the performance of the company's strategy and its effects on the stakeholders, so the purpose of this research is to identify the dimensions and components of the disclosure of the business model in annual reports.

This research in 2022 has evaluated and systematically analyzed the results and findings of previous researches with a qualitative approach and a metasynthesis tool. In this research, a total of 166 articles were extracted and analyzed, and after analyzing the desired components, 45 articles were finalized. Using the Shannon entropy quantitative method, based on the content analysis approach, the effect coefficients of the components identified in the finalized studies were determined.

The findings indicate that the business model disclosure in annual reports is classified into 20 components and 88 codes. Among the identified components, the point of differentiation of the company, financial and non-financial performance are more important than other components.

Finally, the business model disclosure model in annual reports has high reliability and can be used in order to be accountable to the stakeholders.

Contribution: 

This research, by comprehensively examining the factors affecting the disclosure of the business model, provides a new perspective in examining the drivers of annual reports to the users of the research results and improves the awareness of the stakeholders in identifying the drivers and factors affecting this type of reporting.