Strategic Finance articles from April 2004

Strategic Finance archives from April 2004

Retaining your top performers.(Careers)
April 1, 2004... Employee retention--a priority many put on hold during the recession--is reemerging as a key concern for businesses. As the economy shows signs of improvement, dissatisfied staff members may begin exploring other job opportunities, making it...

Return of the socially conscious corporation: how can you reap the rewards of good corporate citizenry? Be one--and broadcast it!
April 1, 2004... The "socially responsible" corporation is making an encore on the global stage. Good corporate citizenry may be a throwback to a tumultuous era three decades ago, but it's on the rise today just as public faith in corporations descends. It's...

Life skills 101.(End Note)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2004... What gesture often follows the reassuring words, "Trust me"? A smile, of course. It's the social cue we bring along to every interview, the additional encouragement we add to words like, "Well, what do you think?" We'll even use it to get the...

Unethical workplace is still with us.(Ethics)(business scandals are on the rise)
April 1, 2004... "AN INFECTIOUS GREED HAS CONTAMINATED American business"--Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan The well-advertised business scandals of the last few years seem to indicate that Greenspan's perspective is well founded. Further...

A roundtrip ticket to trouble: when a seemingly legitimate transaction isn't.(Accounting)
April 1, 2004... Can a public company that has substantive transactions and doesn't overstate net income run afoul of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC)? Yes, when those transactions involve roundtripping and the company doesn't report them...

The incredible shrinking employee.(Best Practices)(Human resource management)
April 1, 2004... ERIC STARTED HIS NEW JOB WITH OPTIMISM. His experience in marketing was exactly what was needed at the small start-up. He was able to quickly tap his Rolodex for the ideal vendor to handle an urgent project. Disillusion came fast and...

Making the supply chain: management business case: management accountants are an integral part of this process.(SCM)(supply chain management )
April 1, 2004... During the "e-business" boom of the late 1990s and early 2000, supply chain management (SCM) was much ballyhooed as the next competitive weapon for companies in the manufacturing, distribution, and retail industries. In fact, the core element...

How unilever HPC-NA sold its employees on the balanced scorecard: the company put almost as much effort into selling the scorecard as it does when it markets its products.(Performance measurement: annual conference topic)
April 1, 2004... Their products are in our laundry rooms and bathrooms. Q-Tips. Dove. Snuggle. Wisk. Pond's. The list of well-known brand names goes on for world-class marketer Unilever Home and Personal Care-North America (HPC-NA). This company not only takes...

The $175 question.(Perspectives: message from the chair)(on the benefits of membership of Institute of Management Accountants)
April 1, 2004... "When I pay my IMA dues ever y year, just what do I get for my $175?" This is a question I often hear from members. I believe IMA offers value many times greater than the dollars-and-cents price of the dues. Though the rewards of your...

What's the state of international standards? We're still a long way from harmonization.(Standards Setting)
April 1, 2004... Will there ever be any teeth behind international accounting standards? That's a question the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) has been asking since the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) was launched in London in 1973....

Strategic Finance: self-study quiz.
April 1, 2004... ANNOUNCEMENT: The Strategic Finance Self-Study Quiz is a program in which financial professionals can earn CPE credits for passing a test based on what they have learned about various topics from reading certain magazine articles. Three...

Strategy and execution: a continual process.(Strategic Management)
April 1, 2004... In many organizations, strategy is treated as an event rather than as a continuous process. Yet the most successful and effective organizations in the world have a process of strategy and execution that is seamless and continual. This is true...

Where are we headed?(News)(accounting profession)
April 1, 2004... WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN WITH THE ACCOUNTING PROFESSION HAS BEEN ON the minds of management accounting, financial management, and auditing professionals since the first of the seemingly endless number of corporate accounting scandals broke three...

FASB reappoints Ed Trott.(streetwise)(Financial Accounting Standards Board)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2004... IMA member Edward W. Trott, CPA, has been reappointed to the Financial Accounting Standards Board for a second five-year term beginning July 1, 2004. Formerly a partner with KPMG, Trott began his career with the firm in 1968 in Greensboro,...

Strikes a chord.(Readers' Input)(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2004... Bob Gunn's "Capability vs. Capacity" [March 2004] really struck a chord with me. It provided great insights that complement much of what I have been working on recently in terms of professional development. He drew a clear picture for me of a...

You ignored standard products.(Readers' Input)(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2004... I've never written a letter to the editor before, but the January 2004 article "Grab Your Picks and Shovels! There's Gold in Your Data" made me take the time. The article completely ignores the mainstream, industry-standard business...

I second Pat Romano's motion.(Readers' Input)(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2004... This letter is to second the motion that Pat Romano made in his March letter. Pat suggested that "the direction of IMA should be reconsidered and modified" to go back to the success of its "Bold Step Publication Program." Pat was too...

Oops!(streetwise)(Correction Notice)
April 1, 2004... We goofed. The figures in the IMA Financial Summary on page 8 of the March issue don't foot. The correct figure for Total Liabilities and Net Assets should be $18,793, not $18,712. We apologize for the error.

A look at corporate governance worldwide.(Books)(Excerpt)
April 1, 2004... IN A BLUEPRINT FOR CORPORATE GOVERNANCE, FRED R. KAEN explores how the modern corporation is managed for the benefit of its owners. While it is often thought that owners only indirectly exercise management responsibility, Kaen endeavors to show...

SEC Proposal on lawyer reporting criticized.(Government)(Securities and Exchange Commission)(Laws)
April 1, 2004... NOW THAT THE SECURITIES & Exchange Commission (SEC) has finished its rulemakings on how internal and external auditors have to behave under Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), it is turning its attention to lawyers. In-house attorneys are at the center of...

Treat as a theft loss or a capital loss?(Taxes)
April 1, 2004... THE ENRON, TYCO, WORLDCOM, AND ANDERSEN cases, which led to criminal charges and convictions, have raised some interesting tax planning questions for those taxpayers realizing significant losses from these securities in their taxable...

All USB.(Tools of the trade)(Universal serial bus)
April 1, 2004... If your USB ports are in the back of your computer or on the floor on the bottom front of your tower, you could use one of Tripp Lite's 4-Port Ultra-Mini Hubs. Plug it in, and you have four more USB high-speed outlets. With the extension cable,...

Big deal?(Tech Forum)(Universal Serial Bus)
April 1, 2004... REALLY, HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE CAN A PLUG MAKE? One plug sure looks like another when you're crawling around on the floor looking for the other serial connector in the back of your computer to add a scanner or printer. And surely you don't want to...

How to comply with section 404? The PCAOB offers guidance.(Trends in Financial Management)
April 1, 2004... EXACTLY TWO WEEKS AFTER THE Securities & Exchange Commission extended the compliance dates for Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) issued its long-awaited standard on how external...