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On the question whether the assurance provides reliability or relevance in non-financial information, we should look into CSR. There are companies which tend to pick specific CSR issues, such as those related to health, safety, and environment that they consider strategic to be included in their CSR reports. They focus on these to differentiate themselves from other socially responsible competitors in order to increase the sustainability of acquired advantages (Perrini, 2006). However, it is the opposite from another point of view; companies that lead in the area of CSR 'invariably encourage their less responsible competitors to emulate their behavior'. As companies tend to converge on a limited set of CSR main themes and relations with stakeholders, diversification does not apply directly to behavior or areas of social responsibility, but rather to the level of corporate involvement within each single area of CSR.

All companies should integrate social and environmental responsibilities in their relations with stakeholders and at the same time, they should look for strategic diversification in terms of specific modes of exploitation. Since the interactions with stakeholders are simultaneously imperfectly imitable and non-substitutable, they can be managed strategically. These interactions also represent valuable sources of competitive advantage. Thus, reporting of CSR performance would actually be of relevant and material information that is material to the company's key stakeholders and decision makers.

Accountants provide a mechanism for the holding corporations to be accountable for their actions related to the management of the companies. CSR covers a variety of issue including ethics, governance, social activities such as philanthropy and community involvement, product safety, equal opportunities, human rights and environmental activities. Based on a survey conducted by Simnett, Vanstraelen and Wai (2006), it is found out that out of 1,700 individuals representing employees, academics, NGOs and other interest groups, most of them agreed that external formal verification and honesty in declaring negative aspects are the key elements to produce a successful Corporate Sustainability Report (CSR).

According to the Directorate General for The Internal Market And Services in the European Commission (2011), respondents which include a majority of users, NGOs and other organizations, and accountants and auditors, generally expressed that there is value in getting the non-financial reports assessed by independent, qualified experts in order to improve accuracy, completeness and comparability. This is also done to enhance confidence amongst the stakeholders. Those respondents also indicated that external assurance on non-financial information involves activities and qualifications significantly different than those required for auditing financial statements.

Geoff and Nonna (2010) had conducted interviews with assurance providers and preparers of non-financial information on the likely future direction of assurance of non-financial information. Based on the interviews, it was discovered by the two scholars that the audit and assurance field has been viewed as a critical component of a quality reporting framework. Within the field of environmental management, compliance audits were initially undertaken as part of the organizations' responses within the regul