Risk is an unavoidable fact of human life, and nowhere is this more evident than in financial matters. Without risk there can be no trade or commerce, as all commercial ventures depend on a certain degree of risk: and very often the riskiest venture returns the greatest profit. For any manager, the primary goal of…
DetailsWill this lead to a big four audit market dominance? External auditing (hereafter referred to as auditing) has evolved from a routine checking of the books of account to a vital part of the governance process of companies. Factors such as the volume of transactions, information technology, globalisation and the constant increase in the complexity…
DetailsDit is alweer meer as ’n jaar gelede dat die ekonomie ’n belangrike waterskeiding bereik het. Die sikliese opswaaifase wat middel 1999 begin het, het in laat 2007 tot ’n einde gekom. ’n Afswaai fase het begin, en veral gedurende 2H2008 spoed opgetel. Tog het verwagtinge gedurende 2008 redelik positief gebly. Na jare van vinnige…
DetailsTransnet Freight Rail (TFR) is South Africa’s sole provider of railway freight services. The company moves about 180 million tonnes of goods over its 17,000km of track every year and has an annual turnover of R16.5bn (£1bn). It has successfully developed what I have termed a network activity-based costing system (NABC) from scratch over the…
DetailsWho was it that said “the first step to wisdom is admitting what you don’t know”? I really have no idea – and of course I feel wiser for saying so – but I do wish that this old chestnut could be more commonly observed in business. I am often amazed at how a few…
DetailsAccountants appear to regard the use of spreadsheets to consolidate the financial statements of listed companies as unusual and somewhat unsophisticated. It is also generally considered that companies, whether listed or unlisted, that use spreadsheets to perform the consolidation, are behind the times. This article will explore some of these sentiments and examine empirical evidence…
DetailsLeadership 101: knowing, accepting and being Having the ability to lead yourself independently and authentically (self leadership) regardless of your career or position in the company is an essential quality that each New Gen should develop in order to become an effective team leader. To lead yourself you need to know yourself, accept yourself and…
DetailsFROM THE PEN Exodus revisited… The new year has started with quite a resurgence of obligations, especially amongst our world leaders. US President Obama is committed to overhauling the management of the Troubled Asset Relief Programme, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek (representing the European Union [EU] presidency) has been hard at work negotiating and managing…
DetailsI recently had the privilege of attending an International Federation of Accountants Council (IFAC) meeting where we discussed the credit crisis, its impact on different countries’ economies and the profession’s reaction to the crisis including professionals in practice and professional accountants in business. IFAC’s main purpose is the development of auditing, ethics and education standards…
DetailsTEACHERS AND PERCEPTIONS “In your report here it says that you are an extremely dull person. Our experts describe you as an appalling dull fellow, unimaginative, timid, lacking in initiative, spineless, easily dominated… Whereas in most professions these would be considerable drawbacks, in Accountancy they are a positive boon” (Bougen, 1994, quoting a Monty Python…
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