The accounting profession, especially in the US, has lost credibility and this has serious implications for environmental reporting. As a number of papers in this volume attest, the amount of environmental reporting has increased in the period from the 1980s-mid 1990s. However, the value of those disclosures is open to serious question. The research for most of the papers in this volume was completed prior to the Enron scandal, but the findings indicate a need to re-evaluate what is reported about the firm's relationship to the physical environment.

Recently, financial crimes have increased exponentially in many regions of the world. Considering that these crimes are usually due to accounting fraud, more sensitive and effective approaches to accounting fraud and corruption have started developing. In this context, regulations have been put into practice in many countries for measures to be taken against fraud and corruption. It is not possible to take measures against and fight financial crimes by using old traditional methods. Instead, the field of Forensic Accounting has arisen to directly tackle these issues. In the 18 chapters in this volume of Contemporary Studies in Economic and Financial Analysis, expert contributors gather together to examine the extent and characteristics of forensic accounting, a field which has been practiced for many years, but is still not internationally regulated yet.

As the monetary cost of fraud escalates globally, and the ensuing confidence in financial markets deteriorates, the international demand for quality in financial statements intensifies. But what constitutes quality in financial statements? This book examines financial statement fraud, a topical and increasingly challenging area for financial accounting, business, and the law. Evidence shows that accounting anomalies in an organization's financial statements diminish the quality and serviceability of financial information. However, an anomaly does not necessarily signal fraud. Financial statement fraud is intended to mislead shareholders and other stakeholders. In this book, elements that underpin diversity of accounting anomalies likely found in fraudulent financial accounting statements are revealed. Multiple research methods are used in the analysis of selected international fraud cases, each illustrating examples of financial statement fraud, including: revenue recognition, overstatement and/or misappropriation of assets, understatement of expenses and liabilities, disclosure fraud, bribery and corruption. Additionally, the phoenix phenomenon with regard to fraud in financial accounting is investigated. Drawing on documented observations of commercial and legal cases globally this study highlights the necessity for continued development of financial audit practices and other audit services.

In the new economy where value drivers are shifting from tangible to intangibles resources, brands are the most familiar asset. They are well known by consumers, perceived as a critical component of enterprise value and often motivate large mergers and acquisitions. Yet, brands are a complex intangible asset, and their valuation is a difficult task requiring a variety of expertise: legal, economic, financial, sector-specific and marketing. Using rigorous methodologies, an analysis of the world of the new economy and an inquiry into the limits of modern valuation technics, this book offers empirical and theoretical background to the key issue of brand valuation. It provides answers to the many questions that arise when attempting to value a brand: How to understand the origin of brand value? How to assess its value objectively? Why valuations of some brands by consulting firms differ so widely? How to understand that some brands are valued millions of euros when the companies that own them are losing money? Brand Valuation explains the economics and finance factors explaining the value and volatility of brands and presents the most commonly used methodologies to value brands such as the cost methods, the excess earnings approach, the relief-from-royalty method or the excess revenue approach. The methodologies covered are illustrated with numerous examples allowing the reader to grasp the advantages and limits of each valuation techniques. The book presents the relevant context of brand valuation including the applicable existing accounting and valuation standards and also discusses the models developed by consulting firms.

To date, there has been little consideration of the many different ways in which accounting and risk intersect, despite organisations being more determined than ever to build resilience against potential risks. This comprehensive volume overcomes this gap by providing an overview of the field, drawing together current knowledge of risk in a wide range of different accounting contexts. Key themes such as corporate governance, trust, uncertainty and climate change are covered by a global array of contributing scholars. These contributions are divided into four areas: The broader aspects of risk and risk management Risk in financial reporting Risk in management accounting Risk monitoring The book is supported by a series of illustrative case studies which help to bring together theory and practice. With its wealth of examples and analyses, this volume provides essential reading for students, scholars and practitioners charged with understanding diverse facets of risk in the context of accounting in the business world.

This volume covers such topics as prior evidence on corporate annual reports, research methodology and the demographics of the corporate shareholder, investors' investment objectives and their information sources, and the readership and usefulness of corporate financial statements.

An inherently interdisciplinary subject, tax avoidance has attracted growing interest of scholars in many fields. No longer limited to law and accounting, research increasingly has been conducted from other perspectives, such as anthropology, business ethics, corporate social responsibility, and economic psychology. This was -recently stimulated by politicians, mass media, and the public focussing on tax avoidance after the global financial and economic crisis put a squeeze on private and public finances. New challenges were posed by changing definitions and controversies in the interpretation of tax avoidance concept, as well as a host of new rules and policies that need to be fully understood. This collection provides a comprehensive guide to students and academics on the subjects of tax avoidance from an interdisciplinary perspective, exploring the areas of accounting, law, economics, psychology, and sociology. It covers global as well as regional issues, presents a discussion of the definition, legality, morality, and psychology of tax avoidance, and provides guidance on measurement of economic effect of tax avoidance activities. With a truly international selection of authors from the UK, North America, Africa, Asia, Australasia, Middle East, and continental Europe, with well-known experts and rising stars of the field, the contributors cover the entire terrain of this important topic. The Routledge Companion to Tax Avoidance Research is a ground-breaking attempt to bring together scholarly research in tax avoidance, offering rigorous academic analysis of an important and hotly debated issue in a structured and balanced way.

A Quick, Compact, and Easy-to-Understand Resource for Non-Accountants! The perfect financial accounting guide for beginners! Accounting for Non-Accountants is the must-have guide for all of us who have never taken an accounting class, are mystified by accounting jargon, and have no clue about balance sheets, income statements, payroll management, corporate taxes, or statements of cash flows. This simple to use accounting book is bookmaking made simple. Whether you own a business, plan on starting one, or just want to control your own assets, you'll find everything you need to know: How to prepare and use financial statements How to control cash flows How to manage budgets How to use accounting ratios How to deal with audits and auditors interpret financial statementsLet this book help you like it helped these readers: "Dr. Labels explanations are simple and straightforward. " "This will help me a lot as I set up my own business. " "I have worked in accounting for over twenty-five years, and this is the best book I have seen to help people with the basics of accounting." For entrepreneurs or anyone who needs to brush up on accounting fast, this book will have you up and running in no time.

Called to Account traces the evolution of the global public accounting profession through a series of scandals leading to voluntary or mandated reforms. Ever entertaining and educational, the book describes 16 of the most audacious accounting frauds of the last 80 years, and identifies the accounting standards and legislation adopted as a direct consequence of each scandal. This third edition offers expanded coverage of the Global Financial Crisis and international auditing. While retaining favorite chapters exposing the schemes of "Crazy Eddie" Antar, "Chainsaw Al" Dunlap, and Barry "the Boy Wonder" Minkow, new chapters describe the accounting problems at Lehman Brothers, Colonial Bank, and Olympus. Students will learn that financial fraud is a global problem, and that accounting reform is heavily influenced by politics. With discussion questions and a chart mapping each chapter to topics covered in popular auditing textbooks, Called to Account is the ideal companion for classes in auditing, fraud examination, advanced accounting, or professional responsibilities.

The consumer financial services market has seen the increasing use and proliferation of mobile technology to access financial services and manage personal finances. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Office of Financial Empowerment issued a Request for Information (RFI) to find out more about mobile financial services and how low-income and economically vulnerable consumers are using them. This book provides a description of mobile financial services, a discussion of the opportunities and risks, and key takeaways from the comments. Furthermore, this book considers the ability of mobile financial services to increase financial inclusion among the underserved by providing them access to the banking system, retaining them in safe and sustainable account relationships, and fostering financial empowerment to improve financial stability and fulfill financial goals.

Updated with the latest developments in the accounting and hospitality fields, "Hospitality Financial Accounting, Second Edition" covers the basics of financial accounting and then walks you through analyzing financial statements and dealing with the daily issues you'll face on the job. In this "Second Edition," the authors have provided engaging new coverage and features that includes new case studies, an expanded section on ethics, new "Accounting in Action" vignettes, applied exercises, and new coverage of casinos, spas, and purveyors.

An indispensable hands-on guide to financial accounting

In light of recent accounting scandals, it is critical that all financial practitioners understand and play by the rules of the accounting field. Starting from the assumption that the reader is not familiar with any accounting jargon, "Mastering Financial Accounting Essentials" presents material in a way that explains the key features of modern accounting step by step and helps you develop an intuitive understanding of accounting. Each chapter presents important accounting concepts, from inventory valuation methods and the timing of erosion of productive assets to how internal managers calculate ratios and trends to evaluate business efficiency.

For those who need to understand the language and law of this discipline in order to communicate effectively with accountants and clients," Mastering Financial Accounting Essentials" will be an indispensable guide.

The audit profession is at a tipping point. Without significant innovation in its business model, staff recruitment strategies and audit execution processes, the audit profession may not remain relevant in the 21st century. The number of claims against auditors has significantly increased over the past twenty years due to the spate of corporate and audit failures early in the 21st century (Enron, Worldcom, Parmalat, etc.). Regulation to monitor professional and ethical standards has increased, leading audit firms to feel under even more financial pressure. In addition, the investor community is calling for greater insight and foresight from auditors. These challenges, coupled with the unlimited liability regime of auditors still applicable in many jurisdictions, are making audit firms and regulators nervous as to the systemic risk of another one of the Big 4 failing.

And yet, the audit profession is in place to protect businesses, their wider stakeholder groups, including clients and investors, and society at large. Therefore, this book asks the important question about the profession’s future and engages a broad readership in the discussion of audit failure and reform.

Intended to help readers to get up to speed with the issues and possible solutions quickly, this book assists directors, investors, business people and regulators, especially those with a non-financial background, to gain a greater understanding of the challenges and threats being faced by the audit profession, which in turn could disrupt the capital market and affect businesses across the globe. The book outlines the critical success factors needed for a sustainable audit profession.

This volume, More Accounting Changes, is a revised and updated edition of Herz's earlier work, reflecting: developments in financial reporting (including those relating to international convergence of accounting standards); global developments regarding the use of International Financial Reporting Standards; current efforts at disclosure modernization and simplification by the SEC and FASB; a discussion of whether the U.S. is falling behind in corporate reporting ; the rise of 'Integrated Reporting'; the work of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (chaired by Michael Bloomberg); and recent regulatory developments emanating from the financial crisis and their interrelationship with financial reporting.

The thoroughly updated and rewritten edition analyses and explains the applications of financial accounting. Divided into 15 chapters, the text elucidates, with the help of tables, boxes and practical examples, all basic accounting principles. Keeping the students without accounting background into consideration, the book highlights the use of jargon-free language in a student-friendly manner so that they can comprehend the subject with great ease. The book is intended primarily for the postgraduate students of management, and also, for the students preparing for CA, CS and ICWA. Besides, practising managers should find this book handy for analysing financial statements. Highlights Of The Fifth Edition Ind AS revised up to April 30, 2019 Schedule III of the Companies Act, 2013 Numerous illustrations and solved problems to enable students to master the concepts Chapter-wise Solutions to Assignments at the end of the book Adequate study material that is a must for the management students in their first course

FINANCIAL FINE PRINT "A must-read for any investor serious about knowing what they own. With the help of some of the best financial detectives, Michelle Leder provides a roadmap for delving beneath the surface where most investors dare not tread." Herb Greenberg, Columnist, TheStreet.com and Fortune magazine "Obfuscators beware! Michelle Leder has cracked the code. In this invaluable guide to combing the footnotes of financial statements for indicators of accounting tricks and attempts to hide the bad news needles in a haystack of numbers. This is a clear, sensible, and, above all, practical guide that will be indispensable for anyone who invests in, does business with, or works for a corporation." Nell Minow, Editor, The Corporate Library "Too many companies would prefer that you not read the footnotes," observes former SEC chairman Arthur Levitt. "That should be incentive enough to delve into them." In fact, not only do companies prefer you ignore the details they are required to report the pesky particulars on exactly how they account for those whopping earnings they take calculated steps to make this information as hard as possible to understand. But for those who know how to look, the facts that predict a company's true prospects are usually hidden in plain sight. Financial Fine Print gives you the tools you need to break down annual reports and SEC filings, make sense of the deliberately cryptic language of footnotes, and get the real goods on a potential investment. To make money in today's tough market, investors have to make eliberate, well-researched choices. To do this requires not only having the right information, but also knowing how to decode it. With their obscuring tactics, companies won't help you any. So be advised: those who would help themselves and expect to profit should get down to the nitty-gritty of Financial Fine Print.

This study contributes to an existing and growing body of literature in the field of management accounting and control concerned with implications from increased uncertainty on MCS design and use. It is found that the choice of MCS reflects the firm's risk profile, and that firms that choose MCS design and use better suited to their risk profile perform better than others. Using data from a survey of 362 Chief Executive Officers, this study yields a model of fit that enables the stimulation of selective improvements and helps to achieve a competitive advantage.

The SAGE Course Companion on Financial Accounting is an accessible introduction to the subject that will help readers to master key concepts and enhance their thinking skills in line with course requirements. It provides support on how to revise for exams and prepare for and write assessed pieces. Designed to compliment existing textbooks for the course, the companion provides: - Easy access to the key issues in Financial Accouting - Practice questions and sample answers to help you prepare for exams and assignments - Tips to help you remember key points and earn extra marks - Helpful summaries of the approach taken by the main course textbooks - Guidance on the essential study skills required to pass the course The SAGE Course Companion on Financial Accounting is much more than a revision guide for undergraduates; it is an essential tool that will help readers take their course understanding to new levels and help them achieve success in their undergraduate course.

This book discusses recent developments relating to ethical and sustainable issues in accounting & finance. Accounting is often seen as a technical discipline that records, classifies and reports financial transactions. However, since the financial information produced concerns all interest groups both within and outside the enterprise, accounting also has social characteristics and involves multi-faceted duties and responsibilities. As such, in addition to basic principles and accepted rules and standards in the field, this book focuses on the ethical aspects and fundamentals of this profession that accountants should also take into consideration, as this is the only way to build and preserve society's confidence in accounting and increase its social credibility.