Financial Management (UK) articles from September 2008

Financial Management (UK) archives from September 2008

Companies should use their business intelligence to let CIMA professionals add maximum value.(in business)
September 1, 2008... The idea of an accountant as a good storyteller isn't the first thought that springs to many people's minds when they think about the profession. Indeed, we would hope that accountants don't indulge in fiction. But factual narrative is...

No soft option.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... I think that P A Talbot's letter ("Rigour fortis", July/August) perhaps missed the point about the Russell Group of top UK universities' non-acceptance of A-level subjects perceived as "soft", including accounting. "Soft" is an unfortunate...

Vote of confidence.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... I would like to offer my congratulations to Glynn Lowth on becoming CIMA's new president, particularly as I helped him on his way by not beating him in the council election back in 1992. In fact, my recollection is that he beat me pretty...

Practice makes perfect.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... It was refreshing to read Howard Bryant's "Big in smalls" feature in the July/August issue. His article highlighted the power of the CIMA qualification and knowledge bank in helping companies to grow. Entrepreneurs often add more value...

Commons denominator.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... Shock! Horror! MPs claim all sorts of expenses that are unethical. They are our employees and are, therefore, accountable to us. They employ wives and relatives and they don't provide receipts for what they spend. They have two homes--indeed,...

Law change on directors' interests.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] New UK legislation governing directors' conflicts of interest comes into force on October 1. Every director must comply with three new statutory duties and with a separate obligation relating to conflicts of interest...

The 2008 International Financial.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... The 2008 International Financial Executives Leadership Forum will take place on September 24-26 in the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at the Potomac National Harbor, Maryland. The event, held jointly by CIMA, AICPA and CMA...

The International Ethics.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, an independent standard-setting board within the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), has proposed changes to the IFAC code of ethics for professional accountants. The...

The OECD is inviting comments.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... The OECD is inviting comments on draft guidelines to help pensions regulators and supervisory authorities improve pension fund governance. The guidelines, which were first issued as an OECD recommendation in 2005, have since been revised by the...

Firms start great hedge of China.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Increasing labour and commodity costs in China are causing global businesses to rethink their growth plans, according to a survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit and credit insurer Atradius. This is creating a...

British firms face cash-flow crisis.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)(Survey)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... The credit crunch is hitting UK companies much harder than those based in the US. A greater proportion of British firms face delayed payments, reduced access to credit, increased financing costs and demands for early payments from suppliers,...

Small businesses with ideas for combating climate change are being urged to compete for awards of up to 40,000 [pounds sterling] each from the Shell Springboard programme.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... Small businesses with ideas for combating climate change are being urged to compete for awards of up to 40,000 [pounds sterling] each from the Shell Springboard programme. The scheme, now in its fourth year, offers financial aid for UK...

The Carbon Disclosure Project, a collaboration of 385 institutional investors with a combined asset base of $57trn, has completed a research project into companies' carbon management practices with IBM.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... The Carbon Disclosure Project, a collaboration of 385 institutional investors with a combined asset base of $57trn, has completed a research project into companies' carbon management practices with IBM. The results from the study, which...

Board members run risk of ID fraud.(first in ... All the latest news affecting accountants in business, including regulations updates)
September 1, 2008... Poor information security is making directors and business owners increasingly vulnerable to identity theft, according to risk consultancy Marsh. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Company directors and retired directors are more at risk than...

Mark Lambton ACMA: FD, Hewlett-Packard UK and Ireland.(ONE2ONE)(Cover story)
September 1, 2008... HP has just made a 7bn [pounds sterling] bid for EDS that, if it succeeds, would double the size of your business. The proposed acquisition is very exciting for HP and is expected to close in the second half of 2008. It will more than...

Because you're worth it: if your company is wondering how to compete in the downturn, perhaps it's time for a really bold solution.(opinion)(economic stagnation affecting company)(Report)
September 1, 2008... Good news for firms worried about falling demand in a struggling economy: simply charge more. The people who told us that money can't buy happiness were wrong. Yet another study has shown that consumers like expensive goods more than cheap...

Coming soon and here to stay: is your organisation ready for a fundamental change in British immigration law? Julia Onslow-Cole explains what employers should do now to prepare for the new system.(legal briefing)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In February the Home Office announced the biggest overhaul of UK immigration rules for 30 years, replacing the current regime with a five-tier points-based system (PBS). The second tier, which applies to skilled...

A look under the rock: is Northern Rock's situation as dire as the financial press tells us? Simon Woolcott offers a fuller analysis of its half-yearly results.(opinion)(Northern Rock PLC)(Financial report)
September 1, 2008... Northern Rock (NR) recently published its first financial results since nationalisation. Some of these were covered in depth by the media, but their reports told only part of the story. To understand how the bank is really doing, I have looked...

Big boom theory: Yuanzheng Cao, chief economist at Bank of China International, recently addressed the inaugural CIMA world conference in Colombo. In the following edited extracts of his speech, he analyses China's "economic miracle".(Conference news)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In the 30 years since China adopted its open-door policy to foreign direct investment (FDI), the country's economy has exhibited the following main features: strong, sustainable GDP growth, low inflation and high...

Worth their salt: companies gain far more than a warm glow of satisfaction from charitable sponsorships. Ruth Prickett explains how the Allianz Group became shipmates with the Jubilee Sailing Trust.
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The sight of tall ships sailing majestically into harbour never fails to draw an admiring crowd, evoking romantic dreams from Francis Drake singeing the King of Spain's beard to Johnny Depp swashbuckling away in...

Change drivers: how much can the car industry do to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions? Ruth Prickett investigates Ford's sustainable development strategy.
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "We see cutting emissions as part of the larger issue of sustainable development," says Andy Taylor, business development director at Ford of Europe. "We have to look at the whole issue of what we make and how we...

In their element: leading companies' strategies for a low-carbon future and their approaches to energy use were the topics up for discussion at a round-table debate hosted by FM.
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] How is your organisation preparing for the energy-efficient economy of the future? And what are the main factors driving the changes you're making? Mike Kelly, head of corporate social responsibility, KPMG...

Tales for the city: blue-chip firms should lead the way in providing user-friendly annual reviews, but are these up to scratch? Rosie Acfield reveals the findings of research into the quality of their narrative reporting.
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Narrative reporting in the FTSE 100 has got better over the past 12 months, but the pace of improvement has been slow compared with the dramatic advances we have seen in recent years. It seems that many companies...

Foot-in-mouth precautions: as the credit crunch progresses, more companies are asking their FDs to talk to the media. Roz Morris explains how to make this work for you.(career development)
September 1, 2008... One of the horror stories told by PR consultants about how not to handle the media in a crisis concerns a public transport disaster involving fatalities. The FD of the firm concerned was the first senior executive to be interviewed by the...

Environmental management: Carol Adams, Roger Burritt and Geoff Frost report on their research into how systematically Australia's biggest companies govern their performance on green issues.(technical matters)
September 1, 2008... Environmental performance is becoming increasingly significant in the private sector. A company's reputation, cost of capital and competitive advantage often depend on it--as do managers' bonuses. Voluntary tools to support the development of...

Cost management: John Porteous and Sophia Steiger describe how the UK government's biggest department has revolutionised the way it procures information technology services.(technical matters)
September 1, 2008... Large organisations in both the public and private sectors have a reputation for getting poor value for money from their information technology, but the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is cutting its IT operating costs significantly with...

Business intelligence: Peter Simons reports on the latest developments in the fast-moving BI software industry and forecasts new trends in decision-support technology.(technical matters)
September 1, 2008... The typical business intelligence (BI) architecture can be seen as having a stack of layers. The base usually comprises source data systems, from where data is processed by "extract, transform, load" (ETL) software into a data warehouse. Above...

Accounting in China: how successful has China been in its bid to harmonise its Gaap with IAS? Rui Hua Jiang, Lana Liu and Simon Hussain report on their research into its "accounting system for business enterprises".(technical matters)
September 1, 2008... Because its economic boom has generated significant interest from international investors and financial institutions over the past decade or more, China has been trying to change its accounting system from one that's appropriate to a...

Creating Valuable Business Strategies.
September 1, 2008... Creating Valuable Business Strategies Authors: Shiv Mathur and Alfred Kenyon Publisher: Butterworth Heinemann Price: 24.99 [pounds sterling] ISBN: 0750685484 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The scope and ambition of Creating...

The Real Life Guide to Accounting Research.(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Real Life Guide to Accounting Research Editors: Christopher Humphrey and Bill Lee Publisher: Elsevier/CIMA Publishing Price: 76 [pounds sterling] ISBN: 0080439721 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The stated desire of the...

Scott Van Der Vord: finance graduate, sourcing and supply services, Fujitsu.(student ONE2ONE)(Interview)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] You are 23 and already a professional golfer. Why take the CIMA qualification? I was sponsored through my economics degree at Exeter University by Sport England and the English Institute of Sport. Having played...

Management accounting--performance evaluation: in their second of two articles on constructing a budget for a business, Tim Thompson and Vaughn White use a marginal costing approach.(study notes: PAPER P1: (ALSO OF INTEREST TO P2 CANDIDATES))
September 1, 2008... In our article in the previous issue, we used absorption costing principles to construct a detailed budget for a fictitious manufacturing company. Now we will follow the same basic worked example as before, but this time using marginal costing....

Financial accounting and tax principles: any section of paper P7 can test you on leasing agreements and how to treat them. Sally Vernon offers her guide to accounting for leases.(study notes: PAPER P7)
September 1, 2008... Imagine that you've just passed your finals and want to celebrate by buying a new car. You might have received a big bonus for completing the exams, so you could use this cash to buy the car. Alternatively, you may need to borrow part or all of...

All papers at managerial and strategic levels: good exam technique can make the difference between success and failure. David Forster offers his tips for scoring those vital extra marks.(study notes: PAPERS P1-P9)
September 1, 2008... The first thing that students sitting any managerial or strategic level paper will encounter is the 20-minute period of reading time. The clear objective for the reading time is that candidates should be better off after these 20 minutes than...

Exam notice: visit www.cimaglobal.com regularly for updates.(study notes)(Website overview)
September 1, 2008... November 2008 exams The November exams will be held on Tuesday 18, Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20. Online entry to the exams via students' "My CIMA" accounts has been available since Friday August 1. The standard closing date for entry...

Members pick up honours.(institute update)
September 1, 2008... Two CIMA members were recognised in the Queen's birthday honours list this year. Andrew Kelly FCMA was awarded an OBE for his work at the Ministry of Defence. Baldev Goyal ACMA was awarded an OBE for his voluntary services in the London Borough...

May 2008 exam results.(institute update)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The latest round of exam results showed mixed performances, but overall pass rates on managerial level papers increased on those in November 2007. Pass rates at strategic level dipped slightly. Students around...

Investigation committee.(institute update)(cases of Graham Brickstock Australian Communications and Media Authority )
September 1, 2008... The investigation committee found a prima facie case for Graham Brickstock ACMA to answer concerning allegations that he had: failed to inform clients of additional costs when they arose; delayed billing for work he had carried out in 2004...

The CIMA award of arms explained.(institute update)
September 1, 2008... South African members recently attended a presentation at the Cape Town branch AGM explaining the meaning of the emblems on the CIMA award of arms. The crest was originally granted in the thirties to the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants,...

Diary: forthcoming local events in the UK.(Calendar)
September 1, 2008... CENTRAL LONDON AND NORTH THAMES Contact: area.one@cimaglobal.com. Please book online, where possible, at www. Cimaglobal.com.central Iondonandnorththames October 4 LANTSS student conference (in association with Badenoch &...

Factory finance manager: Adam Lunney explains the development opportunities provided by this fast-moving role on the "front line".(so you want to be ...)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] By the time you have qualified as a CIMA accountant, you will be itching to put the theory you have learned into practice. The image of accountant as bean-counter is fast becoming outdated. Today the ability to...

Legal & General Property.(On the move)
September 1, 2008... Andy Banks FCMA has been appointed finance director at Legal & General Property. He rejoins the firm from New Star, where he spent 18 months as its chief operating officer for property.

Reed Elsevier.(On the move)
September 1, 2008... Adam Cochrane FCMA has joined Reed Elsevier as group financial controller. He was group controller at SABMiller.

Beric Croome FCMA.(On the move)
September 1, 2008... Beric Croome FCMA, a tax executive at Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs, has been awarded a PhD by the University of Cape Town for his thesis on taxpayers' rights in South Africa.

Aegon Canada.(On the move)
September 1, 2008... Kishanth Seevaratnam ACMA has become operational risk and internal controls manager at Aegon Canada. He was team leader, risk and internal controls, at Direct Energy.

Tasteful advertising opportunity.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "Normal business continues at UK company with offices in Ahmedabad QX Ltd, the outsourcing accountancy company based in Skipton, North Yorkshire, says its office in Ahmedbad is unaffected by the terrible events at the weekend in the Gujarat...

Mangled metaphors.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "The crucial points to be prepared, We don't expect to see too many people ending up in hot water over this, but having to back-pedal in order to comply could be embarrassing and extremely inconvenient" Shan Shod, head of corporate...

Headline abuse.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "US teacher suspended over book" Guardian online July 3. "Environment stunts growth" (Not a story furthering the nature/nurture debate but one highlighting an increase in the number of publicity stunts concerning environmental...

Run that one past us again.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "Top ten execution venues launched by Xtrakter." Xtrakter. "Colt to provide low latency connectivity to Turquoise." Colt.

Job titles to kill your boss for.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... * Head yeti, 10 Yetis. * Bright monkey, 3 monkeys Communications. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Bottom-line concerns.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Food in the Workplace reveals that a significant minority--over 30 per cent--of office workers think their health and well-being are someone else's responsibility. "The bottom line is fat people are also often...

Jargon bingo.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "We firmly believe that our approach is the most effective way to change thoughts, create actions and embed beliefs for the longer term, delivering a real return on investment for our clients." Involve.

Double-double negative.(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "Michael Silver, research vice-president at Gartner, said the development of Midori was a sensible step for Microsoft. 'The value of Microsoft Windows, of what that product is today, will diminish as more applications move to the web and...

They would say that, wouldn't they?(... last out)
September 1, 2008... "DOES SUCCESSIONMANAGEMENT WORK? A ten-year follow-up research programme, examining the impact of succession management on organisational success, identifies proactive succession management as a key factor in shaping corporate survival and...