Financial Management (UK) articles from July 2003

Financial Management (UK) archives from July 2003

Editorial comment.(Editorial)
July 1, 2003... Summer's here, but some of us won't be spending the traditional fortnight on a beach with a bucket and spade behind the wind-breaker. Instead, a third of small business owners will be sweating it out in the office without a day's break. And a...

Higgs contradicts FRC on code. (News Round-Up).(Financial Reporting Council)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A revised Combined Code will be published in "weeks, not months", according to Derek Higgs, author of the controversial report on the role of non-executive directors. His comments contradict indications from the Financial Reporting Council...

Non-execs uncovered. (News Round-Up).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... At a time when non-executive directors (Neds) are set to assume further duties and be held accountable under the new Combined Code, fewer than half have personal indemnity insurance, according to the Top Pay Research Group and accountancy firm...

PFI consortium in risky head start: Cathy Hayward reports on unfinished business at a Mancunian housing project. (Private Finance Initiative).(private finance initiative)
July 1, 2003... Manchester City Council's private finance initiative housing deal faces uncertainty after starting without having reached financial close. Contracts for the 90 million [pounds sterling], 30-year deal were signed on 25 March by the...

Financial stability nearly impossible, say experts. (Risk Management).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Corporate scandals and plummeting share values may have prompted louder calls for regulation and transparency, but financial stability is exceptionally difficult, if not impossible, to achieve, according to speakers at the 20th Symposium on...

Pension safeguards under fire: government plans have been deemed counterproductive. (Final-Salary Schemes).
July 1, 2003... New measures issued by the Department for Work and Pensions to boost confidence in occupational pensions will lead more employers to abandon final-salary schemes and could even force some firms into insolvency, according to Deloitte & Touche....

Business down the tube. (News Round-Up).(London's transportation problems)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Poor transport is crippling London and adversely affecting almost 60 per cent of employers, according to a CIMA survey of London's financial managers. More than 40 per cent of respondents said that improving the capital's transport system would...

Companies Act under review. (News Round-Up).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Firms will be able to use more transparent practices when accounting for instruments such as debt securities under new proposals by the government, which wants to change the Companies Act 1985 and implement an EU directive on fair-value...

EC fails to convince auditors: despite improvements, its accounts are still unreliable. (Financial Reporting).
July 1, 2003... Poor financial management in the European Commission has led the European Court of Auditors to qualify its opinion on the reliability of the EC's accounts for the eighth successive year. Ongoing weaknesses in the commission's accounting...

Pitman defends CEO pay-offs: firms should take more care when drafting contracts. (Executive Rewarding).(Interview)
July 1, 2003... Sir Brian Pitman, former chairman of Lloyds TSB, has backed the practice of rewarding chief executives handsomely even if they have failed. In an exclusive interview, Pitman told Financial Management that senior executives were often...

IASB issues inaugural standard. (News Round-Up).(International Accounting Standards Board)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A new reporting era dawned last month when the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) published the first international financial reporting standard. IFRS1: First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards, explains...

On-line self-service imminent. (News Round-Up).(Chartered Institute of Management Accountants)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... CIMA members will soon be able to pay their annual subscriptions and change their contact details online. As part of the drive to improve customer service, the institute has updated its computer system and business processes. From 4 August...

FM articles available via e-mail. (News Round-Up).
July 1, 2003... Electronic copies of stories in Financial Management and CIMA Insider are available in PDF format. Contact: Esther Boateng at financial.management@cimaglobal.com (020 8849 2313).

Seven local authorities across the north of England have saved 660,000 [pounds sterling] by forming a consortium to buy new financial systems from Agresso. (Technology News In Brief).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Seven local authorities across the north of England have saved 660,000 [pounds sterling] by forming a consortium to buy new financial systems from Agresso. The authorities, including Durham City Council and Tynedale District Council, will have...

Firms are struggling to get the best out of activity-based costing (ABC) models, according to a survey by ALG Software. (Technology News In Brief).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Firms are struggling to get the best out of activity-based costing (ABC) models, according to a survey by ALG Software. A third of respondents found the process too time-consuming, a quarter said the administration costs were too high and...

CPM system makes Life much easier. (IT News Round-Up).(corporate performance management)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Corporate performance management (CPM) is at last delivering real business benefits, according to a leading pensions provider. Standard Life has used Hyperion's CPM solution to make more informed decisions for its multi-million-pound...

System developers look up to 'verticals' for inspiration. (IT News Round-Up).(industry-specific products)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Software companies are pinning their hopes on industry-specific products ("verticals") to boost their flagging profits. "Lots of products aimed at vertical markets are archaic. They fit lots of people, but they are old-fashioned and ugly,...

Lucre again. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Further to the article "Filthy lucre" (May), I am concerned that members could misinterpret comments that "the main direct impact of the regulations will be on members in practice", and that CIMA has "a responsibility to ensure that they know...

Data basis. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I agree wholeheartedly with the points made by David Allen in his article on non-executive directors ("Turning Neds", June). CIMA members certainly have the edge in respect of business management and can make major contributions as Neds. I...

Bank accounts. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I have been working on a study of management accounting systems in Jordan, and I agree with many of the issues in "The state they're in" (June) relating to socioeconomic and geopolitical factors affecting management accounting practices in less...

Bias cuts. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Mike Howe (Letters, June) rightly points out that the good of the people of Britain must prevail when deciding on euro membership. Yet on page 6 of the same issue there is another case of FM's biased business view in the article "UK business...

Pound signs. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Your article "UK business gets behind euro" is a report on a conference organised by Britain in Europe, so it's hardly surprising that most of the text supports substituting the euro for the pound, since Britain in Europe advocates that. What...

Heart of the matter. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I was heartened by a number of letters in June's FM. Too often the vocabulary of commerce is limited to economic and financial jargon. Mike Howe's letter on putting people first was a welcome rarity. Merrill Cassell's letter on administrative...

Presidential engagements. (Institute News).(Calendar)
July 1, 2003... Presidential engagements 2 July CIMA executive committee 3 July CIMA council strategy day, head office, London 4 July CIMA council, London 9 July New members' celebration, London 11...

CIMA Sri Lanka elects president. (Institute News).(Pravir Samarasinghe)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... CIMA Sri Lanka division's new president, Pravir Samarasinghe holds a masters degree in business administration and is a fellow of CIMA and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka. His is currently a director of Richard Pieris & Co,...

CIMA welcomes new president. (Institute News).(Claire Ighodaro)
July 1, 2003... Claire Ighodaro, finance director, broadband, at BT, became president of CIMA worldwide on 14 June at the AGM. As a UK trade ambassador, Ighodaro has led successful overseas trade missions on behalf of the UK Department of Trade and Industry...

Professor G Roland Kaye FCMA Deputy president. (Institute News).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Roland Kaye began his career as a management trainee at the English Electric Co in 1967. He subsequently worked for several major food manufacturers before becoming a lecturer at Grimsby College of Technology in 1976. After holding academic...

Ian Christison FCMA Vice-president. (Institute News).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Ian Christison started his career in industry and progressed to senior management before taking a career break to achieve an MSc degree in computing. This led to a new career as an academic. Christison started out as a trainee accountant at...

Malaysia talks 21st-century strategy. (Institute News).(CIMA international speaker series programme)
July 1, 2003... Being responsible for strategic direction in a company has probably never been as challenging. Since the start of the 21st century firms have had to cope with the aftermath of 11 September, the Iraqi war, recession, global terrorism and Sars....

Annual business leader award. (Institute News).(bestowed on Professor M T A Furkhan, chairman of the Confifi Group by CIMA Sri Lanka )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The first business leader award was recently bestowed on Professor M T A Furkhan, chairman of the Confifi Group, by CIMA Sri Lanka in recognition of his achievements in the fields of tourism, trading and finance. The award was presented by...

Disciplinary report response. (Institute News).(Chartered Institute of Management Accountants)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... CIMA has responded to the Accountancy Foundation Review Board's complaints and disciplinary procedures report. This was sent to all six accountancy bodies in November 2002. It was one of the board's first major tasks following its report...

Mips guidance on-line. (Institute News).(members in practice )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... New information for members in practice (Mips) is now available. Members can sign up for Mips e-mails at www.cimaglobal.com/mailinglist/subscribeall.htm. Registration packs, which include information on issues such as council regulation 12, the...

All for one and one for all: keeping your company's commitment to meeting the needs of each of its stakeholder groups demands a conscious effort. David Allen describes an integrated approach to corporate culture. (Management).
July 1, 2003... A few years ago the board of one of the companies I worked with called all the employees together in a series of meetings to debate the nature of the company's culture. To start the discussion we posed the question: "If your neighbour asked you...

Take a wane check: it's been seven decades since deflation was the scourge of the world economy. Could it be about to rear its ugly head again? David Ross scans the warning signs and and finds a clear risk. (Economics).
July 1, 2003... Deflation--a general fall in prices--is a word that had almost disappeared from the economic lexicon. But a combination of sluggish growth, rapid technological change and, most recently, sharp exchange rate movements, have helped it to make a...

Silicon tally: the fact that hardware and software prices are so much lower than they were 10 years ago has actually made it harder for firms to keep tabs on their IT costs. Stephen Moriarty explains why. (Technology).
July 1, 2003... Over the past decade or so the cost of buying hardware and software has dropped dramatically. Computers that used to require an outlay of tens of thousands of pounds can now be bought for a fraction of that cost. Software that had to be...

Keep them off balance: although it's a commendable idea in theory, treating people as assets is ultimately misguided. A more empowering approach, argues Michael Gering, is to see them is as a source of income (People Management).
July 1, 2003... Perhaps the most widely used accounting metaphor in business is that people are assets. Unfortunately, although it's ubiquitous, this metaphor has proved neither apt nor useful. The cost of employing people is one of the biggest items on...

Stand by your plan: the critical backlash that greeted Derek Higgs's report on the role of non-executive directors surprised even the author himself. Cathy Hayward finds that he's comfortable justifying his work, but somewhat weary of all the personal attention it has gained him.(Interview)(Cover Story)
July 1, 2003... For someone who has shaken up Britain's boardrooms with his sweeping review of corporate governance, Derek Higgs is almost reticent about the report that has made him a household name. The furore that his handiwork generated in corporate...

A sterner test: one of the weaknesses of the current body of research on how firms use EVA, the performance measurement system developed by Stern Stewart & Co, is that much of the practical evidence has come from Stern Stewart itself. Josie McLaren reports on a CIMA-sponsored study into the development of EVA in three firms in New Zealand. (Economic Value Added).
July 1, 2003... The increasingly popular philosophy of benefit-sharing is that the explicit recognition of secondary stakeholders such as employees, suppliers and customers maximises value to the primary stakeholders--ie, the shareholders. Economic value added...

The 'my way' code: a relatively modest investment in a strong set of corporate values can help a business to improve its productivity and profitability. Roisin Woolnough investigates how companies are developing their values--and ensuring that their people stick to them. (Corporate Values).
July 1, 2003... It seems that mere mission statements are no longer enough: an increasing number of organisations, particularly large companies, are issuing corporate values too. The idea is to define the business's core principles, its culture and the modus...

Precedent setter: although she's reluctant to draw attention to it, there's little doubt that CIMA's new president, Claire Ighodaro, is an inspiration to women and ethnic minorities in a profession battling hard to shed its 'male, pale and stale' image. She tells Cathy Hayward why she'll be happy to lose sleep over her new responsibilities. (Profile: Claire Ighodaro).
July 1, 2003... Claire Ighodaro represents a first for CIMA on two counts. Voted in at the AGM last month, she is both the institute's first female president and its first black president, but she's determined that this isn't how she'll be remembered. "I...

See you in court: commercial disputes are taking a heavy toll on UK business, but too many firms are still failing to take effective precautions. Kathryn Britten explains how to reduce the chances of a dispute--and, if one is inevitable, how to avoid its worst effects. (How To Manage Commercial Disputes).
July 1, 2003... From wrangles with late payers to contractual conflicts, commercial disputes are a fact of business life. BDO Stoy Hayward estimates that they have cost British business more than 10 billion [pounds sterling] since 2000. Although most UK...

Public image limited: most companies appreciate the importance of how the markets rate them on corporate social responsibility, but do the measures they report externally truly influence the decisions their managers make internally? John Innes and Gweneth Norris have their doubts. (Social Reporting).
July 1, 2003... What information can management accountants provide to managers to help them improve their organisations' social performance? In recent years research has focused overwhelmingly on the external reporting of social performance measures. The...

Benefit gigs: companies have spent billions on implementing ERP systems over the past five years. Mike Baker questions whether most of these firms gained the maximum advantage from their investment and considers case-study evidence about one particular example. (Enterprise Resource Planning).
July 1, 2003... The first wave of enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementations happened in the mid to late 1990s, prompted by the need to update systems for Y2K compliance. Attempts to measure their anticipated benefits were hampered by the pace at which...

Three-year glitch: much of the marketing froth that declared the new millenium as the e-procurement era has fallen decidedly flat. Despite this hiccup, the party's not over for electronic purchasing. (E-Commerce).
July 1, 2003... E-procurement will revolutionise purchasing. Orders will be handled in a seamless, automated process, freeing finance and purchasing professionals to work on strategic matters. Millions of pounds will be saved. That was the promise in 2000...

Perceive wisdom: Bernard Marr, Jan Mouritsen and Per Nikolaj Bukh describe the main guidelines produced by Danish-based research into how to improve the effectiveness of intellectual capital reporting. (Intellectual Capital).
July 1, 2003... One of the accepted cliches of recent years has been that knowledge and other intangibles are the engine of business performance. At the same time, though, intangibles are often wiped off the corporate agenda because they don't really fit into...

PFI in the sky: the private finance initiative has caused controversy in the NHS ever since it was first introduced. Jane Broadbent, Jas Gill and Richard Laughlin report the findings of their research into the changing justifications for PFI and ask whether we have evidence showing its success or failure. (PFI In The NHS).
July 1, 2003... The private finance initiative (PFI) in the NHS has always been a bone of contention and, if anything, the debate about its relevance has grown rather than subsided. One key question concerns the extent to which the initiative offers value for...

Institute diary: July.(listing of CIMA events)(Calendar)
July 1, 2003... Check the CIMA website and bookmark www.cimaglobal.com/main/about/local/europe for up-to-date event information in your area CENTRAL SOUTHERN ENGLAND Contact: Jennie Brewin, network officer, tel: 01488 681884, fax: 01488...

QinetiQ. (On the move).(appointed Amanda Green central and commercial finance director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Amanda Green ACMA has been appointed central and commercial finance director at QinetiQ. Green joined the company in January 2002 from the Met Office, where she was finance director of its commercial division.

Doug Webb has joined QinetiQ as group financial controller. (On the move).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Doug Webb has joined QinetiQ as group financial controller. Previously he was regional finance director at Logica CMG.

Parsons Brinckerhoff. (On the move).(appointed Grey Ayres finance and adminstration director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Greg Ayres ACMA (above) has been appointed finance and administration director at Parsons Brinckerhoff. He previously held the post of finance director for Parsons E&C Europe, an affiliate of the Parsons Corporation. Prior to that he lived in...

Mike Bird ACMA has been appointed finance director at the Hospital of St John and St Elizabeth. (On the move).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Mike Bird ACMA has been appointed finance director at the Hospital of St John and St Elizabeth, a charitable organisation comprising a private hospital and a hospice.

G7 Europe. (On the move).(appointed Bob Jones commercial director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Bob Jones FCMA has been appointed commercial director of G7 Europe. Jones will head a team responsible for the evaluation of all commercial contracts in the UK and European markets. He previously worked at Orange and Siemens.

SCA Timber Supply. (On the move).(appointed Alan Mills financial director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Alan Mills ACMA (above) has been appointed financial director of SCA Timber Supply. The company provides UK DIY retail chains with timber product supply chain management services. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Applix. (On the move).(appointed Milton Alpern chief financial officer)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Milton Alpern has been appointed chief financial officer at Applix. Alpern will be responsible for the company's finance, SEC reporting and investor relations.

SCA Timber Supply. (On the move).(appointed Andrew Garner managing director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Andrew Garner FCMA (above) has been appointed managing director of SCA Timber Supply. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Huntress Search. (On the move).(appointed Andy Wickham finance director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Andy Wickham has been appointed finance director at Huntress Search. He previously worked at Triage Consulting, specialising in recruitment for the telecoms industry.

Laing Homes. (On the move).(promoted John Hall to finance director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... John Hall has been promoted to finance director for Laing Homes, south-east Thames. Before joining the firm, Hall worked in life assurance, banking and local government.

Mayer, Brown, Rowe and Maw. (On the move).(promoted David Morrison to partner)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... David Morrison has been promoted to partner at Mayer, Brown, Rowe and Maw. Morrison trained at MBR&M and joined the corporate department in 1994, where he developed a specialisation in non-contentious insolvency and restructuring.

Cabot Financial. (On the move).(appointed John Randall head of finance)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... John Randall has been appointed head of finance at debt sale and outsourcing specialist Cabot Financial. Randall brings more than 13 years of financial management experience to the role, having previously been group financial director at Opus...

Airplus International. (On the move).(appointed Spencer Hanlon UK managing director)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Spencer Hanlon has been appointed UK managing director for Airplus International. Hanlon previously worked at British Airways, where his posts included regional manager for Israel and Turkey and financial controller for eastern Europe and the...

Sharp Consultancy. (On the move).(Zoe Whitehead joins financial recruitment specialist)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Zoe Whitehead has been appointed by financial recruitment specialist Sharp Consultancy to place part-qualified and newly qualified staff in audit and accounting within accountancy firms throughout West Yorkshire. Before her move into...

Diary of events.(listing of various financial management events)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
July 1, 2003... The First Annual Beyond Budgeting Summit 1-2 July, London Contact: CIMA Mastercourses on 020 8849 2244 (www.cimaMastercourses.com) Fourth Asian Pacific interdiscplinary research in accounting conference 4-6 July, Singapore...