During the past several months, the Global Economy has suffered a significant decline. Companies are falling like ninepins. Lehman Brothers is in administration. Northern Rock, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been bailed out and the list of vulnerable banks is growing. Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch have been sold at knockdown prices and HBOS…

With more scarce resources, we need to find creative ways to attract and retain good people, whilst maintaining appropriate governance and risk management principles. We should turn our obsession away from the financial components of reward and step up our efforts to understand a range of other non-financial opportunities. This article looks at a number…

Simon Cowell recognised the lucrative benefits of nurturing and encouraging talent when he launched “Britain’s got talent”. Talent… is the only sustainable competitive advantage a company can have in any economic climate. Human capital affects three core business imperatives: customer satisfaction, profitability and innovations. Successful talent management strategies deliver the benefits of lower production costs…

A thought leadership issue It pays to take advantage of knowledge and relationships when building your business – and your bottom line. In the 21st century, everyone has to be wealthy in Relationship Capital, a rich body of associates and contacts that you can bring to bear on any problem. Suddenly, with this asset, you…

An audit is not necessarily a guarantee that fraud will be detected. There is an inherent risk that fraud causing harm to third parties or the client itself may not be detected, regardless of the fact that the audit was conducted with due care and in compliance with auditing standards. This is so because fraud…

APB APPROVES TWO AC 500 INTERPRETATIONS AS STATEMENTS OF GAAP At its meeting held on 18 March 2009, the Accounting Practices Board (APB) approved the following South African Interpretations as Statements of Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP); AC 504 – IAS 19(AC 116) – The Limit on a Defined Benefit Asset, Minimum Funding Requirements and…

We all know the boiling frog story, which suggests that if you put a frog into boiling water it will struggle to get out, however, if you put a frog into cold water and heat it gradually the frog will remain there and eventually be boiled. This is probably a fallacy, but the story is…

SAICA was recently privileged to host Sir David Tweedie, chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), and two IASB members, Warren McGregor and Bob Garnett (a member of SAICA), along with representatives of the National Standard Setters (NSSs). Sir David has, of course, visited us previously; but this occasion was especially promising, given the…

Earlier this year, the SAICA Board and national structures identified key goals and focus areas for the next five to ten years. Our long-term vision is to develop leaders for business, government and communities; a vision underpinned by the three pillars built into the SAICA strategy – value, volume, and stakeholder management. Value means increased…