Professor M. Azizul Islam
PhD, CA
Chair in Accountancy
- About
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- Email Address
- azizul.islam@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 272710
- Office Address
- School/Department
- Business School
Biography
Muhammad Azizul (Aziz) Islam, PhD, is a Professor in Sustainability Accounting & Transparency, Chair in Accountancy, and the Director of Research for the Accounting Discipline at the University of Aberdeen Business School. He is a Chartered Accountant (CAANZ). In 2025, he was conferred the Fellowship of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS) and featured as a leading social scientist by the Academy in recognition of his outstanding research impact.
Aziz has widespread experience in various leadership roles in academia. He won the School's Award for Excellence in Administration and Support and the Dean's Award for Team Teaching Excellence in 2011.
Aziz is widely recognised internationally as a leading sustainability accounting researcher. He investigates sustainability accounting and transparency issues including human rights disclosures, modern slavery disclosures, social audits, climate change accounting and anti-bribery measures. His research has been funded by ACCA, CPA (Australia), CAANZ, UKRI-AHRC, and GCRF-SFC among others. He has received two prestigious grants for studies on corporate accountability in relation to modern slavery in global fashion chains, which support social movements advocating for Fashion Watchdog in the UK.
Aziz has received two Vice-Chancellor Excellence Awards: Research Project of the Year 2022 and Research Impact 2023 among others. He was a finalist for the Green Gown Award in association with UKRI twice (2022, 2023), and he was a finalist for the Project of The Year category at the Times Higher Education Awards in 2023. He was honoured to receive the Scottish Fair-Trade Award in 2022.
Aziz’s research appears in high-impact journals (ABDC A*/A, ABS 4*/3*, FT's top 50), attracting widespread media attention and influencing policy changes. His research and opinions appear in the BBC, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, The Times, Raconteur, Sunday Post, Conversation, Sydney Morning Herald, Prothom Alo, IFAC-Gateway, AccountingWeb, among many others.
Professor M Azizul Islam's blog
Professor Islam writes blogs for the University of Aberdeen based on his research
Internal Memberships
Member of the Senate at the University of Aberdeen, representing the Business School
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
BU5850:Accounting Profession
BU5574/75: Financial Analysis
BU5847/48: Studies in Accounting/Finance
AC4033: Accounting Theory
- Publications
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Page 1 of 2 Results 1 to 50 of 67
Social Movements and Country-by-Country Reporting: A Study of Multinational Companies
British Accounting Review, 101724Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bar.2025.101724
Corporate Social Impact and Exploitation of Workers on the Ground
Academy of Management Proceedings, vol. 2025, no. 1, 17304Contributions to Journals: AbstractsStigma power, race and public accountability: an exploration of the hard lockdown of public housing in Melbourne
European Accounting ReviewContributions to Journals: ArticlesLabour Rights Movements and Modern Slavery Audit Disclosures within Global Supply Chains: A Political Mediation Perspective
European Accounting ReviewContributions to Journals: ArticlesNGO Activism and Anti-corruption Disclosures: An Empirical Study of Emerging Economy Multinational Companies
British Journal of Management, vol. 36, no. 1, pp. 443-460Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA Crisis of Accountability and Corporate Immunity for Unfair Purchasing Practices: A Survey of Global Fashion Retailers’ Production Factories in a Global South Country
Contributions to Conferences: PapersA Metaphorical Analysis of Modern Slavery Disclosures: A Study of Global Retailers’ Cotton Supply Chain
Contributions to Conferences: PapersShadow Accounts on Corporate Social Impacts and Exploitation of Workers on the Ground: Evidence from Bangladeshi Factories for Global Fashion Retailers during Covid-19
Contributions to Conferences: PapersModern slavery disclosure regulations in the global supply Chain: A world-systems perspective
Critical Perspectives On Accounting, vol. 99, 102677Contributions to Journals: ArticlesEnvironmental Accounting
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22767-8
Modern slavery and the accounting profession
British Accounting Review, vol. 55, no. 3, 101174Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bar.2023.101174
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Rana Plaza: ten years after the Bangladesh factory collapse, we are no closer to fixing modern slavery
The ConversationContributions to Specialist Publications: ArticlesImpact of Global Clothing Retailers' Unfair Practices on Bangladeshi Suppliers During Covid-19
Aberdeen: University of Aberdeen. 21 pagesBooks and Reports: Other ReportsModern Slavery Disclosure Regulation and Global Supply Chains: Insights from Stakeholder Narratives on the UK Modern Slavery Act
Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 180, pp. 455–479Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSocial Contagion and the Institutionalisation of GRI-based Sustainability Reporting Practices
Meditari Accountancy Research, vol. 30, no. 5, pp. 1291-1308Contributions to Journals: ArticlesCovid-19 and global clothing retailers’ responsibility to vulnerable workers: NGO counter-rhetoric
Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 216-228Contributions to Journals: ArticlesMoral versus pragmatic legitimacy and corporate anti-bribery disclosure: Evidence from Australia
Accounting Forum, vol. 46, no. 1, pp. 30-56Contributions to Journals: ArticlesCivil liberties and social and environmental information transparency: A global investigation of financial institutions
The British Accounting Review, vol. 54, no. 1, 101018Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTackling modern slavery: a sustainability accounting perspective
Futurum, vol. 12, pp. 20-23Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe impact of Covid-19 on women workers in the Bangladesh garment industry
London: University of Aberdeen & Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre. 22 pagesBooks and Reports: Other ReportsFeedback on a legislative response to Modern Slavery and Worker Exploitation, Forced Labour, People Trafficking and Slavery both in New Zealand and internationally: a submission to Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, New Zealand Government
Working Papers: Working PapersToward the Development of Post Covid-19 Gender Policy and Accountability Measures to End Modern Slavery in the Bangladeshi Garment Sector: A Policy Brief for the UK Government and Stakeholders
University of Aberdeen. 6 pagesBooks and Reports: Other ReportsCorporate disclosures on curbing bribery and the UK Bribery Act 2010: evidence from UK companies
Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 34, no. 8, pp. 1851-1882Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-05-2019-4017
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/88df51e6-8ffe-4eb8-820b-f6575080b003/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Toward the Development of Post Covid-19 Gender Policy and Accountability Measures to End Modern Slavery in the Bangladeshi Garment Sector: A Policy Brief for Bangladesh Government and Stakeholders
University of Aberdeen. 7 pagesBooks and Reports: Other ReportsSocial impact disclosure and symbolic power: Evidence from UK Fair Trade Organizations
Critical Perspectives On Accounting, vol. 79, 102182Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2020.102182
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/a1d2e668-6a16-46ad-b193-d2e51a1e916d/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Accountants’ Due Diligence for SDG Transparency in the Post-Covid-19 Era
IFACContributions to Journals: Comments and DebatesCorporate human rights performance and moral power: a study of retail MNCs’ supply chains in Bangladesh
Critical Perspectives On Accounting, vol. 74, 102163Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2020.102163
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/87b2de46-0428-4772-98bc-abefec68a13d/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
A submission to the IFRS Foundation's consultation paper on sustainability reporting standard
London: IFRS Foundation (PDF). 5 pages.Other Contributions: Other ContributionsCoronavirus measures give Bangladeshi workers for global clothing chains a stark choice: disease or starvation
The ConversationContributions to Specialist Publications: ArticlesRegulating Transparency and Disclosures on Modern Slavery in Global Supply Chains: A 'Conversation Starter' or a 'Tick-box excercises?
Commissioned by CPA AUSTRALIA. CPA Australia. 22 pagesBooks and Reports: Other ReportsMandated Social Disclosure: An Analysis of the Response to the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010
Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 152, pp. 827-841Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-016-3364-7
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/a78fba92-e202-4a1e-acc9-94be56c6e486/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
What is corporate social responsibility – and does it work?
The ConversationContributions to Specialist Publications: ArticlesCorporate Social Responsibility Disclosures, Traditionalism and Politics: A Story from a Traditional Setting
Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 151, no. 2, pp. 409-428Contributions to Journals: ArticlesEnvironmental Accounting
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Entries for Encyclopedias and Dictionaries- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23514-1_215-1
Tackling Modern Slavery: What Role Can Accountants Play?
Contributions to Specialist Publications: Featured ArticlesSocial compliance audits and multinational corporation supply chain: evidence from a study of the rituals of social audits
Accounting and Business Research, vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 190-224Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSocial movement NGOs and the comprehensiveness of conflict mineral disclosures: evidence from global companies
Accounting, Organizations and Society, vol. 65, pp. 1-19Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAnti-bribery disclosures: A response to networked governance
Accounting Forum, vol. 42, no. 1, pp. 3-16Contributions to Journals: ArticlesCorporate anti-corruption disclosure: An examination of the impact of media exposure and country-level press freedom
Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, vol. 30, no. 8, pp. 1746-1770Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-02-2015-1965
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstreams/6f4e3453-2986-41b0-8062-b58240f357e5/download
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Disclosures of Social Value Creation and Managing Legitimacy: A Case Study of Three Global Social Enterprises
Australian Accounting Review, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 297-314Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHuman Rights Performance Disclosure by Companies with Operations in High Risk Countries: Evidence from the Australian Minerals Sector
Australian Accounting Review, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 34-51Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAustralian Parliamentary Inquiry into Modern Slavery: Supply Chain Audit as a Clause of the Proposed Modern Slavery Act
Australian ParliamentBooks and Reports: Commissioned ReportsCSR Reporting and Legitimacy Theory: Some Thoughts on Future Research Agenda
The Dynamics of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Critical Approach to Theory and Practice. Aluchna, M., Idowu, S. O. (eds.). Springer, pp. 323-339, 17 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersFuture of Accounting Profession: Three Major Changes and Implications for Teaching and Research
Future of Accounting Profession: Three Major Changes and Implications for Teaching and Research. International Federation of Accountants (IFAC)Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersNFPOs and their anti-corruption disclosure practices
Public Money & Management, vol. 37, no. 6, pp. 443-450Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe accounting and accountability practices of Fairtrade International (FLO)
Social and Environmental Accountability Journal, vol. 36, no. 3, pp. 170-187Contributions to Journals: ArticlesDoes the global reporting initiative influence sustainability disclosures in Asia-Pacific banks?
Australasian Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 23, no. 3, pp. 298-313Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA Preliminary Analysis of the Impact of UN MDGs and RIO?+?20 on Corporate Social Accountability Practices
Sustainability After Rio. Crowther, D., Azizul Islam, M. (eds.). Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp. 81-102, 22 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersCorporate Disclosure in Relation to Combating Corporate Bribery: A Case Study of Two Chinese Telecommunications Companies
Australian Accounting Review, pp. 309-326Contributions to Journals: ArticlesDo stakeholders or social obligations drive corporate social and environmental responsibility reporting? Managerial views from a developing country
Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management. Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp. 287-314, 28 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
