Sustainability as a driver of digitalization: a Czech study

sustainability and digitalization. However, the impact of the EU
Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which
mandates extensive data disclosure, on corporate digitalization
remains underexplored. This paper examines whether the CSRD acts
as a driver of digitalization through correlation analysis and
multivariate regression on a sample of Czech energy sector
companies likely to fall under the CSRD in 2025. Due to the chosen
selection criteria, the sample also includes companies with ties to the
energy sector, such as representatives from the metallurgical and
mining industries. Sustainability is represented by the quality of nonfinancial information (NFI) disclosed, assessed through the lens of
the CSRD, while the level of digitalization is assessed through
digitization indexes constructed based on the textual analysis of the
annual reports and the asset-based approach. The findings show a
weak but positive correlation between the quality of NFI and the level
of digitalization, although this correlation is not statistically
significant, which does not fully support previous researchers'
findings. Thus, the methodological limitations are discussed in detail,
and further research is recommended. Alternative methods of
assessment of the level of digitalization, such as questionnaire
surveys, can help provide a more comprehensive understanding of
the sustainability-digitalization nexus. The theoretical contribution of
this paper lies in offering a new perspective on methods for
evaluating digitalization levels and linking digitalization progress to
CSR development within the EU context. Practically, this paper
highlights the relationship between digitalization and CSRD,
providing valuable insights for companies and policymakers.