Financial Management (UK) articles from July 2004

Financial Management (UK) archives from July 2004

Editorial comment.(Chartered Institute of Management Accountants annual conference)(Editorial)
July 1, 2004... Every business has its own set of tired cliches, and many financial managers will have experienced the temptation to reach for their guns (or at least an enormously heavy tax manual) when told that we live in an ever-changing world. This truism...

CIMA lines up star attractions.(Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, Boris Johnson MP, Radio 4 Presenter Sarah Montague, Roger Bootle)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Boris Johnson MP and Radio 4 presenter Sarah Montague will be making appearances at two of CIMA's key events this year. Montague, who replaced Sue MacGregor as anchorwoman on the BBC's Today programme, will chair this year's CIMA annual...

Boris Johnson will be the guest speaker at the CIMA and Financial Management Awards gala dinner after the conference on the evening of 25 November.(Chartered Institute of Management Accountants)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Boris Johnson will be the guest speaker at the CIMA and Financial Management Awards gala dinner after the conference on the evening of 25 November. The Conservative MP for Henley-on-Thames and editor of The Spectator will be entertaining diners...

Big Four await liability cap verdict: the DTI is under pressure to limit the burden on audit firms.(Corporate Governance, Department of Trade and Industry)
July 1, 2004... The secretary of state for trade and industry, Patricia Hewitt, is thought to be close to deciding whether provisions to cap auditor and director liability will he enacted or not. A spokeswoman for the Department of Trade and Industry said...

National Business Awards unearth secrets of leadership.(News Round-Up)(2003 National Business Awards)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Defining the X-factor that makes one leader more effective than another is a task that has eluded academics and consultants alike. But now an analysis of entries for a competition to find the UK's best businesses and entrepreneurs has...

Arty parties do pension plans: NAPF delegates aired their views on postcards. Ruth Prickett reports the results.(National Association of Pension Funds, Art of Pensions campaign awards, Matthew Demwell of Mercer Human Resource Consulting)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Pensions may have been a thorny issue for many companies struggling to deal with stock market losses and FRS17 disclosures, but it seems that people working in the sector are managing to retain their sense of humour. This year's entrants for...

Watchdog puts more final-salary schemes at risk.(News Round-Up)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Powers given to the new pensions regulator under the forthcoming Pensions Act may deal a further blow to final-salary schemes. The legislation, expected to receive royal assent in November, includes new "moral hazard" clauses designed to...

Financial jobs fit all sizes.(News Round-Up)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Firms in the financial sector are less likely to discriminate against obese people than those in other industries, according to a survey by Manson Warner Healthcare. It found that 6 per cent of financial firms worried about the health...

Accountants turn SMEs green.(News Round-Up)
July 1, 2004... Financial managers have a key role in helping small businesses to improve their environmental credentials, according to government regulators. A survey by the Federation of Small Businesses found that almost three quarters of small businesses...

Web offers environmental aid.(News Round-Up)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A new website is aiming to help accountants get to grips with green regulations. The NetRegs website was launched in May by the Environment Agency and other regulators. It offers guidance on environmental regulations and includes information on...

FSA plans external risk audits.(News Round-Up)(Financial Services Authority)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Accountants in business will need to prepare for their risk management procedures to be audited if new proposals by the Financial Services Authority are adopted. The watchdog wants to bring audit procedures in line with recommendations in the...

Strike threat over fringe benefits.(News Round-Up)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Companies are becoming more vulnerable to industrial action in support of extra wage and fringe benefits including pensions, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. The number of working days lost to disputes over benefits...

Missive prize up for grabs.(News Round-Up)(Dell Computer Corp. UK's marketing)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Make life easier for yourself: turn to page 11 and find out how to win a Dell computer worth more than 1,000 [pounds sterling] simply by writing a letter to the editor. The Dell Inspiron notebook is a multimedia laptop PC with a super-sharp...

Employers urged to revise benefits: the jobs market for financial professionals is hotting up.(Retention Strategy)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Current pay and benefits packages will not be good enough to retain financial professionals as the economy continues to improve, a new survey has found. With up to 24,000 new financial jobs expected to be created in the City of London...

Firms count cost of poor expense management.(News Round-Up)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Many medium-sized businesses are not getting as much value as they could out of the expense management systems they have in place, according to a new study. The research, commissioned by American Express, has found that companies are...

Big fines for firms missing share deadline.(Regulations Update)
July 1, 2004... Companies lace substantial penalty claims if they fail to notify the Inland Revenue in time about directors' and employees' company share transactions, Grant Thornton has warned. Companies have to disclose details of shares and unapproved...

Cold-calling organisations feel legal freeze.(Regulations Update)(Telephone Preference Service )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Businesses that make unsolicited telephone calls need to be aware of tough new regulations that took effect on 25 June. They now have to check their calling lists with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or face a possible fine or...

VAT: is it a car or is it a van?(Regulations Update)(Value Added Tax)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Business users of cars will need to check the status of their vehicles against new guidance from HM Customs & Excise to clarify the VAT treatment of car-derived vans, Most businesses that buy motor cars can't recover the VAT owing to a "block"...

Help the HSE tackle stress at work.(Regulations Update)(Health and Safety Executive)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Health and Safety Executive has launched a three-month consultation on proposals to reduce work-related stress. An explanation of the proposals is available on the HSE's website in video format and feedback can be delivered on-line. They...

Late commuters cost 7.7bn [pounds sterling] a year.(Regulations Update)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The number of working hours lost to commuting problems has increased by 35 per cent in the past two years, according to a survey by Reed. The resulting annual cost to business is estimated to be 7.7 billion [pounds sterling]. In the UK 17 per...

Presidential engagements.(Institute News)(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Calendar)
July 1, 2004... Presidential engagements 1 July CIMA executive committee, head office, London 2 July CIMA council strategy, head office, London 3 July CIMA council, head office, London ...

Ian Christison FCMA Deputy president.(Institute News)(Fellow Chartered Management Accountant )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Ian Christison began his career in industry and moved into 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...

New president pledges professional development and lifelong learning.(Institute News)(Fellow Chartered Management Accountant )
July 1, 2004... CIMA elected Professor Roland Kaye as president at this year's AGM, which was held at London's Cafe Royal on 12 June. Professor G Roland Kaye BSc (Hons) MSc FCMA is currently dean of the Open University Business School, the largest and...

Council member elections.(News Round-Up)
July 1, 2004... Casual vacancy, Area 3 Notice is given that, as the council member in electoral Area 3 (East Midlands and East Anglia), John Coghlan, was elected as vice-president at the 2004 AGM, a new candidate is being sought to represent Area 3 on...

Claude Perera becomes president of CIMA Sri Lanka.(News Round-Up)(Fellow Chartered Management Accountant)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Claude Perera FCMA holds a masters degree in accounting and finance from the Guildhall University in London. He returned to Sri Lanka in 1986 and, since his return, he has been involved mainly in the tea industry. He is a founder director of...

John Coghlan FCMA vice-president.(News Round-Up)(Fellow Chartered Management Accountant)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... John Coghlan has spent his entire career in industry. He has worked in the engineering sector, motor assembly and, for the past 30 years, in packing for Jefferson Smurfit Group. He joined Smurfits as an accountant and was made a chief executive...

RAB is A-OK.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... I thank Sir Andrew Likierman for his comments ("Moving on up", Letters, June) regarding my recent articles on resource accounting and budgeting (RAB) in government. I have worked for 18 years in and around government finance--and for eight...

Small wonder.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... It was a delight when, with some amazement, I found almost two features in the June issue targeting small businesses and members in practice. Having worked for nearly six years in an accounting practice providing services to small businesses, I...

The age of reason.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... I am disappointed at the biased consultation process that has just started on continuing professional development for CIMA members. Although I realise that the future is in the hands of the institute's younger contingent, there does seem to be...

Who's got time for part-timers?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... This is a call to my fellow CIMA mothers out there. Am I alone in wishing to combine my career with raising a family? I have been incredibly fortunate over the past 13 years to have found part-time employment through personal...

Little nous on the prairies?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... One of the conditions of applying to become a member of Certified Management Accountants of Alberta (CMA Alberta) is that the applicant must possess a university degree recognised by CMA Alberta. This prerequisite effectively rules out CIMA...

Beating the system.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... In his advice to those contemplating system upgrades to meet the challenges of IFRS, Jonny Cheetham rightly encourages an integrated data model, a focus on cultural aims and lowering the cost of ownership (Questions & answers, June). A few...

In a league of their own.(football clubs, Premiership, Nationwide League )
July 1, 2004... It is predictable that, of the four football clubs in the recent Nationwide League division one play-offs, Sunderland and West Ham United were relegated from the Barclaycard Premiership in the previous season and Ipswich Town were relegated the...

Dead reckoning: many financial managers appear unable to relinquish their faith in the power of performance measurement. David Allen explains why there's a great deal more to quantification than that.(Management)
July 1, 2004... To judge from my postbag, and the reaction of seminar delegates, one of the most contentious aspects of my "management accountants look forwards" theme is its criticism of performance measurement. The old management model was characterised by...

Scrapheap challenge.(management accountants functions, referendum analysis)
July 1, 2004... When management accountants were asked to name their departments' top initiatives by an Ernst & Young survey last year, they listed implementing financial enterprise resource planning systems; rolling out new budgeting, reporting or analytic...

World in motion: the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the International Monetary Fund are both bullish about the prospects for growth. David Ross reviews their latest forecasts.(Economics)
July 1, 2004... Halfway through the year is an appropriate time to review the forecasts provided for the major economies by the the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The recent surge...

You know it makes sense: the cost to firms of providing structured support for staff who are taking a financial qualification should be more than offset by the savings they will gain from it in future.(People Management)
July 1, 2004... Why should employers be accountable for training their accountants? "We leave it up to the individual; it's their responsibility," is the common response of many financial managers. Accountants are indeed intelligent, proactive individuals who...

Who cares for shares? Directors under pressure from shareholders to improve returns constantly risk making decisions that will damage the long-term viability of their firms. Peter Gingell proposes a novel solution.(City)
July 1, 2004... If you ask whom directors are responsible to, almost everyone will say it's the shareholders, but is this true in practice or even in law? Recently the government asked for comments on plans to limit directors' liabilities, but there was no...

GUS driver: to be affected by one financial scandal could be deemed a misfortune--but two? David Tyler has emerged blameless yet 'battle-worn' from his experiences to become finance director at one of the biggest retail groups in the UK. He tells Camilla Berens why his autobiography would be called from Pigfeed to Picasso--not that he has any time to write it.(Great Universal Stores PLC, David Tyler, Fellow Chartered Management Accountant )(Cover Story)
July 1, 2004... The London headquarters of GUS has two things in common with the group's finance director, David Tyler FCMA: both are well appointed but neither is exceptionally high profile. The retail giant's nerve-centre is a stone's throw from Hyde Park....

Uneasy money: when a business takes on outside investment for the first time, it can be an upsetting experience for its founding shareholders. Mike Brooks describes some of the pitfalls to avoid when seeking equity finance.(How To Manage Equity Financing)
July 1, 2004... Most large businesses do not spring into existence fully formed. For nearly all of them, the path from the original concept to an enterprise of substance is an erratic one, characterised by a series of jerky changes in size and character. My...

Silicon don: CIMA's 71st president has worked at the forefront of educational technology for more than two decades. Camilla Berens finds out why IBM turned to computer fanatic Roland Kaye when it ran out of ideas.(Interview: Roland Kaye)(Interview)
July 1, 2004... Professor Roland Kaye is ideally suited to the role of CIMA's presidency. His career has taken him into the worlds of both business and academia, and his experiences have left him with a solid appreciation of the needs of most of the...

Ursine qua non: can high-dividend-yield stocks offer a safe haven during a bear market slump? Mahen Bulumulla investigates whether such an investment strategy can minimise the potential for loss, at least in the short term.(Finance: high-yield stocks)
July 1, 2004... Whether you are a CFO, a portfolio manager, a private investor or are indirectly involved through your investments in pension funds and other savings schemes, you are hound to be affected by swings in the stock market to some extent. The...

Neds under the bed: on the face of it, very little seems to have changed since the Higgs report was published 18 months ago, Camilla Berens. But, on closer inspection, opportunities for a new breed of non-executive director are starting to emerge.(non-executive directors)
July 1, 2004... It's not always true to say that the only way is up. If you are getting to the top of the career ladder and aren't sure what to do next, you could always consider going sideways. Take non-executive directorships for example: the part-time...

Much obliged: a mountain of consumer debt is threatening to become more than just a blot on the UK's economic landscape. Michael Goddard advises that the only borrowing to be done for the time being should be from Shakespeare.(Finance: debt)
July 1, 2004... "Neither a borrower nor a lender be"--one of the sounder pieces of advice offered by Polonius in Hamlet--is being studiously ignored by consumers throughout the UK. This country has developed such an appetite for household debt that...