Improving fraud detection, financial reporting quality, investor confidence and market returns by using specialist auditors. As investors, managers and auditors grapple with the global financial crisis effects, this project's findings will help them by showing how and when auditor specialisation contributes to greater financial statement quality and returns. Investors will benefit from lower audit costs, increased audit quality and more credible financial statements.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160101369
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Improving the Effectiveness of Corporate Disclosure in Australia. This project aims to investigate the issue of voluntary corporate governance disclosure. Voluntary disclosure by way of earnings guidance is critical to protecting investors’ interests and building confidence in the Australian corporate governance regime. This project seeks to provide evidence about the effect of performance review frequency on managers’ disclosure choice, whether investors can effectively use guidance, and the po ....Improving the Effectiveness of Corporate Disclosure in Australia. This project aims to investigate the issue of voluntary corporate governance disclosure. Voluntary disclosure by way of earnings guidance is critical to protecting investors’ interests and building confidence in the Australian corporate governance regime. This project seeks to provide evidence about the effect of performance review frequency on managers’ disclosure choice, whether investors can effectively use guidance, and the possible negative impact of guidance and the change in auditors’ reports on audit quality and managers' strategic decisions. By addressing these issues, this project aims to inform the development of effective corporate disclosure policies that provide benefits for investors without negatively affecting corporate effectiveness.Read moreRead less
Extended reporting and assurance for not-for-profit organisations. This project aims to improve the relevance and reliability of extended reporting now being required of not-for-profit organisations (NFPOs). Society is increasingly demanding that NFPOs disclose additional information beyond financial information, as evidenced by the service performance reporting and integrated reporting initiatives. These reporting initiatives better align the reporting with the mission of NFPOs: to achieve outc ....Extended reporting and assurance for not-for-profit organisations. This project aims to improve the relevance and reliability of extended reporting now being required of not-for-profit organisations (NFPOs). Society is increasingly demanding that NFPOs disclose additional information beyond financial information, as evidenced by the service performance reporting and integrated reporting initiatives. These reporting initiatives better align the reporting with the mission of NFPOs: to achieve outcomes that are beyond financial returns. This project aims to evaluate and to aid the development and implementation of these extended reporting responsibilities and mechanisms that increase the quality and credibility of the information. This would improve the relevance of the information produced by NFPOs and increase confidence in extended reporting.Read moreRead less
Ensuring audit quality through regulation: modelling how regulation can change audit partner behaviour. This project will develop a model of how characteristics of regulation can change audit partner behaviour. Guidelines to incorporate the model into regulators’ decision-making will be developed. These guidelines will provide regulators with a unique tool to ensure Australian audit regulation achieves its intended aim of improving audit quality.
Improving auditors? Risk assessments and detection of financial statement frauds. Auditor teams are required, as part of the planning process, to discuss potential financial statement frauds. By carrying out a series of experiments on audit discussion group teams, this study will help improve the performance of audit teams to ultimately reduce the occurrence and increase the detection of financial statement fraud.
Serious workplace fraud: How it is sustained and how organisations respond. This project aims to develop knowledge on how serious workplace fraud is sustained by offenders, particularly through thinking patterns and coping mechanisms, and responded to by organisations that are dealing with offenders and modifying control system deficiencies. The project will be a qualitative study, drawing evidence from interviews, with offenders, and with victim organisation representatives, and triangulated wi ....Serious workplace fraud: How it is sustained and how organisations respond. This project aims to develop knowledge on how serious workplace fraud is sustained by offenders, particularly through thinking patterns and coping mechanisms, and responded to by organisations that are dealing with offenders and modifying control system deficiencies. The project will be a qualitative study, drawing evidence from interviews, with offenders, and with victim organisation representatives, and triangulated with available secondary materials such as court reports, media coverage, and internal memoranda and presentations. The project will add to expert knowledge in forensic accounting by developing new typologies of fraud enablers and management control responses, which aim to advance best practice in mitigating serious workplace fraud. The knowledge generated will advance anti-fraud training, forensic accounting, management control system design and standard setting.Read moreRead less
Development, implementation and private and public sector adoption of Standard Business Reporting in Australia. Standard Business Reporting is a government response to the business regulatory burden and streamlines business to government reporting, but involves some cost to business in its initial uptake. This project examines the adoption decisions made and their consequences for business entities choosing to use this voluntary reporting channel.
Self-defined measures of financial performance and CEO pay. This project aims to investigate measures of financial performance used to reward executives that do not comply with accounting standards. Such measures are sometimes presented as performance measures to external stakeholders and this can have important implications for organisational governance. This project expects to generate new knowledge by identifying the way decision about performance and its measurement are linked, and the inf ....Self-defined measures of financial performance and CEO pay. This project aims to investigate measures of financial performance used to reward executives that do not comply with accounting standards. Such measures are sometimes presented as performance measures to external stakeholders and this can have important implications for organisational governance. This project expects to generate new knowledge by identifying the way decision about performance and its measurement are linked, and the influence of external auditors in this process. The expected outcomes from this project will will include empirical evidence that significantly improves our understanding of the choices firms make in reporting to stakeholders, as well as determining executive compensation.Read moreRead less
Financial performance, uncertainty and corporate investment decisions. It is well understood that the provision of financial reports to external stakeholders impacts their decision making. Yet the extent to which externally reported financial measures such as earnings can resolve uncertainty, and their influence on corporate investment decisions is largely unknown. This project identifies how disaggregation of earnings into market-, industry- and firm-specific components explains differences in ....Financial performance, uncertainty and corporate investment decisions. It is well understood that the provision of financial reports to external stakeholders impacts their decision making. Yet the extent to which externally reported financial measures such as earnings can resolve uncertainty, and their influence on corporate investment decisions is largely unknown. This project identifies how disaggregation of earnings into market-, industry- and firm-specific components explains differences in the quality of financial information, and the implication for accounting standards regulating the reporting of periodic performance. It applies the resulting insights to identify an uncertainty reduction role for financial reporting, and the way in which information contained in earnings impacts investment decisions. Read moreRead less
Evaluating and enhancing the composition and functioning of multidisciplinary greenhouse gas assurance engagement teams. The purpose of this research is to understand and improve the functioning of multidisciplinary greenhouse gas assurance teams. A combination of archival and behavioural experiment research methods will be used to gain insights into current practice and techniques for optimising greenhouse gas assurance team performance.