...A critical review of the trade-offs between the concepts of relevance and reliability in financial reporting Theme: Financial Accounting Classification: M41 Author: Prof D Coetsee Affiliation: Department of Accountancy, University of Johannesburg, South Africa Contact address: Department of Accountancy R-Ring 607 University of Johannesburg PO Box 524 Auckland Park Johannesburg South-Africa 2006 Telephone: +27-11-559-3047 Fax: +27-11-559-2777 E-Mail dcoetsee@uj.ac.za A critical review of the trade-offs between the concepts of relevance and reliability in financial reporting |Abstract | |In an information orientated system of financial reporting the move from historical cost to fair value | |accounting has created numerous debates surrounding the trade-offs of the concepts of relevance and | |reliability. This article contributes to the debate by critically reviewing the current developments of | |these trade-offs to determine whether current financial reporting guidelines are appropriate to deal with | |the difficulties and uncertainties of financial reporting. The article found that the proposals of the joint| |framework discussion paper goes a long way in resolving the issues around the trade-offs of relevance and | |reliability. Changing the concept of reliability to faithful representation...
Words: 6702 - Pages: 27
...Proposed Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts Issued: March 11, 2010 Comments Due: July 16, 2010 Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting: The Reporting Entity This Exposure Draft of a proposed Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts is issued by the Board for public comment. Written comments should be addressed to: Technical Director File Reference No. 1770-100 Responses from interested parties wishing to comment on the Exposure Draft must be received in writing by July 16, 2010. Interested parties should submit their comments by email to director@fasb.org, File Reference No. 1770-100. Those without email may send their comments to the “Technical Director, File Reference No. 1770-100, FASB, 401 Merritt 7, PO Box 5116, Norwalk, CT 06856-5116.” Do not send responses by fax. Please send only one comment letter to either the FASB or the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), which is also requesting comments on this jointly issued Exposure Draft. The FASB and the IASB will share and consider jointly all comment letters received. Comments are most helpful if they: a. b. c. Indicate the specific paragraph or paragraphs to which the comments relate Contain a clear rationale Include any alternative the Boards should consider. All comments received constitute part of the FASB’s public file. The FASB will make all comments publicly available by posting them to its website and by making them available in its public reference room in Norwalk, Connecticut. An...
Words: 4913 - Pages: 20
...Information Technology Acts Paper Mary Pickens BIS/220 September 6, 2012 Arthur Ward Information Technology Acts Paper There were many advances in the information technology industry that resulted in new ethical and legal issues deeming it necessary for the government to create and also implement Acts. The two that will be discussed in this paper are the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) of 1991. This paper will explain why these Acts were created and what they are to protect against. The Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 was created to promote accuracy, fairness, and the right to privacy of personal information assembled by Credit Reporting Agencies. These agencies create and compile information into reports on individuals and companies for businesses who may be issuing lines of credit or any other business dealing with lending money or receiving payments. Requesting these credit reports include organizations such as credit card companies, banks, employers, and in many cases landlords. What the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 does is provides important protection for consumer investigatory reports, credit reports, and employment background checks. The Act was created due to the growth of the Retail credit industry and their ability to buy many of the smaller credit reporting agencies that were now expanding their business to insurers and employers. This gave them the power to deny services and opportunities...
Words: 923 - Pages: 4
...Running head: XBRL: THE NEW REPORTING XBRL: The New Reporting Julie Mercer Strayer University Chapter One Introduction This chapter consists of research ideas relating to eXtensible Business Reporting Language or XBRL, also how the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are moving towards this type of reporting. The chapter consists of context of the problem, statement of the problem, research question and sub-questions, significance of the problem, research design and methodology, and organization of study. The chapter will also include a tentative reference list. Context of the Problem There is a time limit as to when an organization has to report financials to the SEC. There are several forms that are required to be filed to the SEC by public organization, for the purpose of this research paper we will focus on quarterly statements (10-Q) and yearly statements (10-K). For the 10-Q the organization has forty-five days, after each of the first three quarter ends to file the report with the SEC and ninety days, after the fiscal year end. (Yuille, n.d.) Given the time-frame organizations have to report the quarterly earnings, it would seem to be enough, but let us look at an organization that has an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, along with Hyperion Financial Manager (HFM). The ERP system captures data from all the locations, if the organization has more...
Words: 2115 - Pages: 9
...possible ways to improve the quality, relevance and value of auditor reporting by concerning the need of key users and other parties. There are two main issues affecting the usefulness of auditor reporting which are “expectations gap” and the “information gap”. Thus, possible options for change are necessary to diminish the “information gap” and improve the communicative value of the auditor’s report. Besides key users and other parties, IAASB is considering possible options to make audited financial statements of smaller entities useful and welcomes any additional suggestions of other options for not being addressed issues. Additional and relevant information about entities...
Words: 755 - Pages: 4
...Information Technology Act Paper Dannie Roettger BIS220 February 14, 2013 Paul Kirchner Information Technology Act Paper In the ever changing fast paced world of information technology where information is bought, sold and traded for financial gain. Our governments have had to invent laws to ensure that our personal information is safe and not being used improperly. Two of the laws or acts we will explore in this paper are the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970. We will look why these laws were enacted and the benefits that have come from these acts. The first act we are going to look at is the telephone consumer protection act. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act or the TCPA was passed on December 20, 1991 and went in to affect just one year later ("Telephone Consumer Protection Act (tcpa)", 2012). This act was put in place to stop the harassing telemarketers and regulate the selling of personal information. The TCPA was passed to regulate telemarketers and to add some ethical guidelines to their operating practices. Some of the benefits that came from the TCPA was telemarketers could only call residents between the hours of 8 AM and 9 PM. Another regulation that came from the telephone consumer protection act was the No Call List ("Telephone Consumer Protection Act (tcpa)", 2012). If a person requested to be on the no call list the telemarketer must place that consumer on the no call list and not call the consumer again....
Words: 638 - Pages: 3
...sustainability report 5 • Conclusion 6 • Recommendation 6 • Reference 8 Executive summary The purpose of this paper was to explain the reasons for which companies started to produce non-financial report and figure out the key features of sustainability report, and then evaluate the sustainability report of Onesteel in relation of the key features. This essay is based on academic journals and professional business websites, as well as information sourced from company’s sustainability report for the year of 2011. The paper discussed the key features of sustainability report mainly by the global reporting initiative sustainability reporting guidelines, such as the six principles (balance, comparability, accuracy, timeliness, clarity and reliability) and the core indicators (environmental factors, human rights, labor practices and decent work, society, product responsibility and economic factors). In conclusion, the company of Onesteel is a leading one of mining industry, it had done well in sustainability report according to the key features of sustainability report. However, Onesteel should include the information about opportunities and predictions for future in order to make the sustainability report more completed, besides this, Onesteel should turn some information stated by words into numbers so that it can be easier for stakeholders to read and use the report. Introduction With the rise of environmental and social care...
Words: 1593 - Pages: 7
...Financial Reporting Paper Name Team A ACC/ 290 Date Financial Reporting Problem Verizon Communications Incorporated is a multi-billion dollar company. In 2010, the net income for Verizon Communications Inc. and its subsidiaries was over $10 billion (Verizon, 2011). Verizon Communications Inc., like many reputable businesses, makes their financial statements publically available. Although the order of the information is stated as only a suggestion, many companies choose to list their assets in the order listed in the FASAB handbook to keep consistency and to ensure they report all required information. It is the case with Verizon Communications Inc. Verizon Communications Inc. lists its assets in many categories. According to the balance sheet listed on the Verizon Communications Inc. 2010 Annual Report (Verizon, 2011), the assets for Verizon Communications Inc. are classified in the following categories: Current Assets, Plant, property and equipment, Investments in unconsolidated businesses, Wireless licenses, Goodwill, Other intangible assets (net), and Other assets. The order listed by Verizon Communication Inc. is consistent with the Federal accounting Standards Advisory Board Cash Equivalents Verizon registers its assets in the proper order under their current assets. First, on the list are its cash and cash equivalents, which is anything that can immediately turn into cash. Some examples of cash and cash equivalents are money, paper checks...
Words: 1016 - Pages: 5
...Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 8 September 2010 Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting Chapter 1, The Objective of General Purpose Financial Reporting, and Chapter 3, Qualitative Characteristics of Useful Financial Information a replacement of FASB Concepts Statements No. 1 and No. 2 Copyright © 2010 by Financial Accounting Foundation. All rights reserved. Content copyrighted by Financial Accounting Foundation may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Financial Accounting Foundation. Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 8 September 2010 Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting Chapter 1, The Objective of General Purpose Financial Reporting, and Chapter 3, Qualitative Characteristics of Useful Financial Information a replacement of FASB Concepts Statements No. 1 and No. 2 Financial Accounting Standards Board of the Financial Accounting Foundation 401 MERRITT 7, PO BOX 5116, NORWALK, CONNECTICUT 06856-5116 Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts This Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (Concepts Statement) is one of a series of publications in the Board’s Conceptual Framework for financial accounting and reporting. Since the publication of the last Concepts Statement, the Board has undertaken a project with the International Accounting Standards...
Words: 12590 - Pages: 51
...Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 8 September 2010 Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting Chapter 1, The Objective of General Purpose Financial Reporting, and Chapter 3, Qualitative Characteristics of Useful Financial Information a replacement of FASB Concepts Statements No. 1 and No. 2 Copyright © 2010 by Financial Accounting Foundation. All rights reserved. Content copyrighted by Financial Accounting Foundation may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Financial Accounting Foundation. Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 8 September 2010 Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting Chapter 1, The Objective of General Purpose Financial Reporting, and Chapter 3, Qualitative Characteristics of Useful Financial Information a replacement of FASB Concepts Statements No. 1 and No. 2 Financial Accounting Standards Board of the Financial Accounting Foundation 401 MERRITT 7, PO BOX 5116, NORWALK, CONNECTICUT 06856-5116 Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts This Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (Concepts Statement) is one of a series of publications in the Board’s Conceptual Framework for financial accounting and reporting. Since the publication of the last Concepts Statement, the Board has undertaken a project with the International Accounting Standards...
Words: 12508 - Pages: 51
...Accounting Cycle Paper ACC/421 Accounting Cycle Paper In this paper I will outline the purpose of both accounting and financial reporting within an organization in general. I will also give a description of the people, processes, and systems that are a part of the accounting and financial reporting processes followed by a conclusion. Purpose of Accounting The purpose of accounting to gather and report on any financial information within the organization about things such as: the performance of the company, their financial position, and the cash flows of the company. With this information the company can then make business decisions about management of their business, investments to be made, or money they can lend. All of this information is known as the accounting records and accounting transactions and recorded as invoices for either suppliers or customers of the company. Once the financial information has been added to the accounting records it is all put together into financial statements to include the following: income statement, balance sheet, statement of cash flows, statement of retained earnings, and any disclosures. Purpose of Financial Reporting Documents, or the financial reports, are gathered in order to keep track of money going in or going out. Essentially, there is a record of how much money your business is making or losing. Anyone investing in the business has the right to know how their money is being used and can know this by looking at the financial...
Words: 741 - Pages: 3
...choices and future carrier and my professor Mr. Parmantier who helped me complete this dissertation. F inally, I would like to express my gratitude to Mrs. Jalabert, SBM MONACO Finance Director for her time spent answering my questionnaire. 2 MSC IS&BCFinancial SYSTEMS FUTURE Challenges in growing complex environment DISS Glossary BI: Business Intelligence BSC: Balanced Scorecard CFO: Chief Financial Officer CPI: Cost Performance Indicator CPM: Corporate Performance Management CR: Corporate Reporting CRM: Customer Relationship Management EPM: Enterprise Performance Management ERP: Enterprise Resource Planning FASB: Financial Accounting Standard Boards IASB: International Accounting Standard Board IFRS: International Financial Reporting Standards IIAA: International Institute for Analytics IIRC: International Integrated Reporting Council IT: Information Technology ICR: Integrated Corporate Reporting KPI: Key Performance Indicator ROI: Return On Investment SAP HANA: In-memory...
Words: 9593 - Pages: 39
...Qualification structure and syllabus CIMA Chartered Management Accounting Qualification 2010 December 2008 Contents CIMA now designs its qualifications in what we believe to be a unique way. Based on rigorous international primary research with all of our key stakeholders and involving the participation of over 6,000 individuals and organisations – members, students, employers (both existing and potential), CIMA tuition partners, universities and our examiner and marker team – we have designed a professional finance training and development solution that is second to none. I commend this revised CIMA Professional Qualification to you. It will be examined for the first time in 2010, so there is plenty of time to absorb the exciting changes contained in the pages that follow. A qualification focused on the future – fit for purpose, relevant and unique I am honoured to introduce the new 2010 Chartered Management Accounting Qualification to all of our stakeholders. With seismic shifts occurring in the world’s economy, coupled with accelerating concerns about the sustainability of our planet, never before has there been a greater need for organisations to train and develop their people to manage the impact of these changes. With this revised qualification CIMA remains true to its long and proud history of providing finance professionals with a difference – Chartered Management Accountants – who combine management and finance skills in a unique way and who fully understand...
Words: 22006 - Pages: 89
...due to the emphasis laid on businesses regarding environmental, social and ethical issues. The level of CSR activities of the firms is made known to public only through the disclosures. This paper reviews the literature on CSR disclosures and the effect of these disclosures. There are various factors which determine the extent of disclosures like the size of the firm, industry, high visibility, etc. Introduction Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is now prominent and evident more than ever due to the emphasis laid on businesses regarding environmental, social and ethical issues. This is because over the recent years, there have been social, political and economic pressures on corporate management to pay attention on social and environmental consequences of corporate activities. These pressures motivated the corporate management to actively participate in a wide range of social welfare activities. CSR now-a-days covers almost all issues like the use of child labor; inequality of employment; environmental impact; involvement in local community; products’ safety; company cultures; brand image and reputation. Apart from this, companies are now disclosing these activities in their annual reports, and one of the parameters to judge the performance of a company is CSR reporting. Corporate Social Responsibility CSR is defined by Naylor (1999) and mentioned in the work of Douglas et al. (2004) as “the obligation of managers to choose and act in ways that benefit...
Words: 4547 - Pages: 19
...described observational studies (Vandenbroucke et al., 2007). Too often, important information is left missing or unclear within these research reports (Elm et al., 2007). Consequently, this poor reporting means that the strengths and weaknesses of a study and the generalisability of its results are hindered; therefore, recommendations for the reporting of research may improve the quality of reporting (Elm et al., 2007). In an attempt to demonstrate ‘good reporting’, a research report will be evaluated using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) checklist (Elm et al., 2007). Research...
Words: 1207 - Pages: 5
