Interactive data in financial reporting:the construction of the non-professional investor

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States and in particular its immediately past chairman, Christopher Cox, has been actively promoting an upgrade of the EDGAR system of disseminating filings. The new generation of information provision has been dubbed by Chairman Cox, "Interactive Data" (SEC, 2006). In October this year the Office of Interactive Disclosure was created(http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2007/2007-213.htm). The focus of this paper is to examine the way in which the non-professional investor has been constructed by various actors. We examine the manner in which Interactive Data has been sold as the panacea for financial market 'irregularities' by the SEC and others. The academic literature shows almost no evidence of researching non-professional investors in any real sense (Young, 2006). Both this literature and the behaviour of representatives of institutions such as the SEC and FSA appears to find it convenient to construct this class of investor in a particular form and to speak for them. We theorise the activities of the SEC and its chairman in particular over a period of about three years, both following and prior to the 'credit crunch'. Our approach is to examine a selection of the policy documents released by the SEC and other interested parties and the statements made by some of the policy makers and regulators central to the programme to advance the socio-technical project that is constituted by Interactive Data. We adopt insights from ANT and more particularly the sociology of translation (Callon, 1986; Latour, 1987, 2005; Law, 1996, 2002; Law & Singleton, 2005) to show how individuals and regulators have acted as spokespersons for this malleable class of investor. We theorise the processes of accountability to investors and others and in so doing reveal the regulatory bodies taking the regulated for granted. The possible implications of technological developments in digital reporting have been identified also by the CEO's of the six biggest audit firms in a discussion document on the role of accounting information and audit in the future of global capital markets (DiPiazza et al., 2006). The potential for digital reporting enabled through XBRL to "revolutionize the entire company reporting model" (p.16) is discussed and they conclude that the new model "should be driven by the wants of investors and other users of company information,..." (p.17; emphasis in the original). Here rather than examine the somewhat illusive and vexing question of whether adding interactive functionality to 'traditional' reports can achieve the benefits claimed for nonprofessional investors we wish to consider the rhetorical and discursive moves in which the SEC and others have engaged to present such developments as providing clearer reporting and accountability standards and serving the interests of this constructed and largely unknown group - the non-professional investor.

Resource enclavity and corporate social responsibility in Sub-Saharan Africa:the case of oil production in Ghana

Why has Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) yielded such disappointing outcomes in oil-rich sub-Saharan Africa? Over the past decades, a sizable body of literature has emerged which draws attention to the shortcomings of oil-related development and complementary CSR exercises in the region. Most critiques on the topic, however, assess specific interventions and/or policies but fail to evaluate the complex decision-making processes, dictated heavily by setting, which produce such actions altogether. This thesis attributes CSR outcomes in oil-rich sub-Saharan Africa to the unique context in which the decisions underpinning actions take place. In doing so, the analysis borrows ideas from a diverse body of literature spanning the international development, accounting, management and political science disciplines. To explore these ideas further, the thesis focuses on the case of Ghana. The most recent “addition” to sub-Saharan Africa’s oil club, Ghana provides a rare glimpse of how decisions underpinning CSR have been identified, evolved and reshaped from the outset. To provide a comprehensive picture of CSR in the sector and its impacts at the local level, interviews and focus groups were conducted with a range of stakeholder groups. As is the case throughout sub-Saharan Africa, in Ghana, oil production occurs in offshore “enclaves”, which are disconnected geographically from local communities. This thesis argues that these dynamics have important implications for CSR. Findings point to companies also being disconnected ideologically from local development needs, which, in part explains the questionable CSR that has become such a contentious issue in the debate on oil and development in sub-Saharan Africa in recent years. The enclave-type setting in which oil production occurs appears to have stifled creativity and innovation in the area of CSR. This, along with institutional weaknesses, regulatory deficiencies and the Government of Ghana’s failure to adequately respond to local-level concerns, has produced these outcomes.

Europol and the EU’s fight against organized crime: exploring the potential of experimentalist governance

While issues relating to the development, legitimacy and accountability of the European Police Office, Europol, have been intensively discussed in political and academic circles, the actual impact of Europol on policy-making in the European Union has yet to receive scholarly attention. By investigating the evolution and the role of Europol's organized crime reports, this article elaborates on whether Europol has been able to exert an influence beyond its narrowly defined mandate. Theoretically informed by the assumptions of experimentalist governance, the article argues that the different legal systems and policing traditions of EU member states have made it difficult for the EU to agree on a common understanding on how to fight against organized crime. This lack of consensus, which has translated into a set of vague and broadly formulated framework goals and guidelines, has enabled Europol to position its Organized Crime Threat Assessments as the point of reference in the respective EU policy-making area. Europol's interest in improving its institutional standing thereby converged with the interest of different member states to use Europol as a socialization platform to broadcast their ideas and to ‘Europeanize’ their national counter-organized crime policy.

Collaborating to achieve corporate social responsibility and sustainability? Possibilities and problems

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the possibilities and problems for collaboration in the area of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability. The paper explores the nature and concept of collaboration and its forms, and critically evaluates the potential contribution a collaborative approach between agencies might offer to these agendas. Design/methodology/approach: The paper explores different forms of research on collaboration, together with a UK Government report on collaboration, to evaluate how the issue is addressed in theory and practice. Findings: Sustainable development creates extensive challenges for a wide range of agencies, including governments, non-governmental organizations, businesses and civil society. It is unlikely, however, that solutions will be found in any one quarter. Collaboration between agencies in some form would seem a logical step in supporting measures towards a more responsible and environmentally sustainable global economy. Originality/value: The paper offers new insights into developing a research and praxis agenda for collaborative possibilities towards the advancement of CSR and sustainability. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

Communities of implementation

The concept of communities of practice (CoPs) has rapidly gained ground in fields such as knowledge management and organisational learning since it was first identified by Lave and Wenger (1991) and Brown and Duguid (1991). In this article, we consider a related concept that we have entitled “communities of implementation.” Communities of implementation (CoIs) are similar to communities of practice in that they offer an opportunity for a collection of individuals to support each other and share knowledge in a dynamic environment and on a topic in which they share interest. In addition, and to differentiate them from CoPs, a community of implementation extends the responsibilities of a CoP by having as its focus the implementation of a programme of change. This may well extend to designing the change programme. Thus, whereas a main purpose of a CoP is to satisfy “a real need to know what each other knows” (Skyrme, 1999) in an informal way, we argue that a main purpose of a community of implementation is to “pool individual knowledge (including contacts and ways of getting things done) to stimulate collective enthusiasm in order to take more informed purposeful action for which the members are responsible.” Individual and collective responsibility and accountability for successfully implementing the actions/change programme is a key feature of a community of implementation. Without these pressures the members might lower the priority of implementation, allowing competing priorities to dominate their attention and resources. Without responsibility and accountability, the result is likely to be (at best) an organisation which has not begun a change programme, or (at worst) an organisation which is stuck halfway through another failing initiative. To achieve these additional objectives beyond those of a CoP, the CoI needs to provide heightened support to its members. In fact often the members will collectively strategise the development and implementation of the change programme they are leading in the organisation. Other concepts similar to CoPs have appeared in the literature, for example “communities of knowing” (Boland & Tenkasi, 1995), but none have a specific focus on implementation. Perhaps the closest example of a CoI, as suggested by our definition, is reported by Karsten, Lyytinen, Hurskainen, and Koskelainen (2001) who describe a CoP in a paper machinery manufacturer which seems to have the necessary focus on implementation. The theoretical aspects of this article will explore the relationship between CoPs and CoIs, and the needs for different arrangements for a CoI. The practical aspect of this article will consist of a report on a case study of a CoI that was successful in its implementation of a programme of change that aimed to improve its organisation’s knowledge management activities. Over two years the CoI implemented a suite of complementary actions across the organisation. These actions transformed the organisation and moved it towards achieving its ‘core values’ and overall objectives. The article will explore: the activities that formed and gelled the community, the role of the community in the implementation of actions, and experiences from key members of this community on its success and potential improvements.

Corporate governance in the NHS

Corporate Governance - which is concerned with the management and direction of organizations at the very highest level - has grown in importance in the private sector, from where the concept largely derives, as a result mainly of malpractice. As a consequence, interest in the topic has grown steadily, largely on the part of Governments, regulators and academics. Managerial reforms of the NHS introduced refashioned District Health Authorities (DHAs) which mimic the role and structure of the Company board. The research reported in this thesis is an assessment of corporate governance in post reform English DHAs. The research examines the characteristics of directors, the extent to which corporate governance can be empirically demonstrated, the extent to which it is consistent with the Working for Patients reforms, and, the consequences of such changes for the development of directors and of DHAs. The research also considers the relevance of the findings to other parts of the NHS and public sector. The work draws upon the conceptual framework established by Tricker (1984; also Hilmer & Tricker 1991) with detailed survey and case study findings concerned with issues of direction, executive management, supervision and accountability. The findings from this new research make an important contribution to the policy debate and to the literature(s) concerned.

A sociological analysis of four police consultative committees in Birmingham

Consultation between the police and the community was a recommendation of Lord Scarman in his report into the Brixton riots in 1981. By 1982 the West Midlands Police Authority had established local consultative committees on each police sub-division. This thesis is a study of four Police Consultative Committees in Birmingham, using qualitative methods of attendance at committee meetings and interviews with committee members. The research was carried out between 1990 and 1992 - ten years after formal consultation was established, and aimed to examine the relationship between the micro social processes of the committees and key sociological theoretical concepts. The analysis of the four committees contextualises them within the social and political parameters of urban policing in the late 1980s. Each committee is taken as a case study to highlight the following aspects of consultation:- relations between the police and black communities; membership, representation and accountability; responding to community conflict; crime prevention agencies and networks of social control. The findings are then generalised to the sociological theoretical concepts of hegemony, legitimation, community conflict and social control. The central proposition of this thesis is that, whilst these committees are not fulfilling the role Lord Scarman envisaged for them (of involving local community representatives in policing strategies and policies), they do have important policing and political roles. It is argued that they offer a platform from which senior police officers can engage local people into supporting policing objectives without actually involving them in determining those objectives. Furthermore, such committees have political symbolism in that they enable the government to be seen to be responding to the issues of accountability and relations between the police and black communities following the urban disorders, without actually devolving any statutory powers to the community.

The changing roles of accountants in industry.

Both accountants and their professional associations have come under pressure in recent years to move with a changing environment. A research project was established therefore in order to study the present roles of accountants in industry, to consider how such roles have evolved, and to consider ways in which these roles might change in the future. Apart from these specific objectives, the thesis also attempts to come to terms with some of the major philosophical and theoretical challenges that face sociology. Given these broad aims, and given a limited amount of previous research, the approach was to derive tentative classifications and propositions from empirical investigation, rather than to test preconceived hypotheses. Data was obtained primarily from ninety-nine structured interviews with both accountants and other managers from twelve industrial enterprises. Aside from studying specifically the changing roles of accountants in industry, the following areas were investigated: the historical development of industrial organisations, accounting systems, and the professional accounting bodies; the process of occupational entry, socialisation, and career paths of accountants; and the current education, training, and career development of, and labour market for, accountants in industry. Despite variations according to accountants' positions, the sample's work characteristics and orientations were found to be similar to those of managers from other areas. In fact most accountants were more concerned with 'getting on' than committed to a career in accounting or to any particular professional association or employing organisation. While there was a move towards a more general business involvement for the majority of the sample, there was also in some cases an increasing demand for specialist accounting skills. In conclusion, although an eventual technological substitution for the work of accountants in industry is thought to be unlikely, their work is becoming more liable to evaluation and intervention form those outside their occupational group.

A cross-national investigation into the marketing department's influence within the firm:toward initial empirical generalizations

An ongoing strong debate within the marketing discipline concerns the role of marketing within the firm. It has been frequently reported that the marketing function is in a deep decline. Marketing executives and academics alike are interested in the antecedents of this decline and potential performance consequences of this decline. Recent academic research have started investigations on this important topic. Using studies in single countries innovativeness and accountability of the marketing department has been reported as major antecedents of the influence of the marketing department within the organization. Academic research, however, does not provide convincing evidence for a direct link between this influence and business performance. Instead it shows that market orientation is a crucial intervening variable, as marketing department influence is positively related market orientation, which subsequently positively related to business performance. As noted prior research, however, studies firms in single countries. In this article we execute a cross-national study on the antecedents and performance consequences of marketing department influence in order to derive initial empirical generalizations. This study is executed in seven Western-oriented countries, including USA, UK, The Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Israel and Australia. The study heavily builds on the framework developed in the 2009 Journal of Marketing article of Verhoef and Leeflang. This framework is tested per country and subsequently meta-analytic tests are used to derive initial empirical generalizations. An important empirical generalization is that innovativeness, the customer-connecting capabilities, and accountability of the marketing department are positively related to marketing department influence. Interestingly, a second initial generalization is that creativity of the marketing negative induces less influence. Our results also show a third empirical generalization in that firms having a CEO with a marketing background tend to have more influential marketing departments. Confirming prior research a fourth initial empirical generalization is that MD influence measures and market orientation are positively related. Market orientation is subsequently positively related to business performance. Our most important generalization is, however, that MD influence is positively related to business performance. Hence, beyond striving to become market oriented, firms should also aim to have strong marketing departments. These departments can create a stronger focus on the customer and can also coordinate marketing efforts. In order to become more influential marketing departments should: (1) acquire innovative capabilities, (2) be more connected to customers, (3) invest in accountability, and (4) be careful with be careful being too creative.

Ethical reporting in Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (1983-2010)

The main aim of this study is to undertake a critical examination of the ethical and developmental performance of an Islamic bank as communicated in its annual reports over a period of 28 years (1983-2010). Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited's (IBBL hereafter) ethical performance and disclosures are further analyzed through interviews conducted with the bank's senior management. The key findings include an overall increase in ethical disclosures during the study period. However, the focus on various stakeholders' needs has varied over time reflecting the evolving nature of the Islamic finance industry over the last three decades. Based on a secular economy, IBBL focused in the first two decades on the "Particular" Shariah compliance disclosure as a way of establishing its reputation and differentiating itself from conventional banks in a dual banking system. Post 2005, the ethical performance and disclosure shifted to more "Universal" disclosures such as sustainability, charity, employees, and community related disclosures signaling responsible conduct and the bank's adoption of a "wider stakeholder approach." However the bank is still failing to provide full disclosure on certain significant categories such as sources and uses of disposable income, thereby contradicting the principles of full and comprehensive disclosure and accountability. In addition, the structure of IBBL's investment portfolio reveals an overreliance on debt-based financial instruments and a shortcoming in fulfilling the developmental and social objectives of Islamic finance. This is evidenced by the "qualified" Shariah Supervisory Board reports that the bank consistently received. This research provides further evidence that Islamic banking and Finance in its current practices reflect the "global" and the "local" influences in an era dominated by global conventional finance. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

From bilateral to trilateral governance in local government contracting in France

In France, the tradition of contracting out local public services has been predominantly one of partnership and co-operation rather than competition and antagonism. However, in recent years the traditional approach has come under intense criticism, something which has far-reaching implications for public-private governance. Adopting the socio-legal approach to the study of contract governance set out by Peter Vincent-Jones, this paper explores the discrepancy between descriptions of a traditional French approach to local public services governance, in which the bilateral values of trust and co-operation are emphasized, and a new discourse of local public services governance, which argues for detailed contract planning and close contract monitoring. It is argued that this discrepancy reveals the beginning of a shift in the governance of public service exchange relationships from relatively noncontractual and bilateral to relatively contractual and trilateral. The French case highlights the importance of regulatory and accountability frameworks to the manner in which contracting parties perceive exchange governance. © Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2005.

Accounting in politics:devolution and democratic accountability, Mahmoud Ezzamel, Noel Hyndman, Age Johnsen and Irvine Lanley

Book review: Mahmoud Ezzamel, Noel Hyndman, A° ge Johnsen and Irvine Lapsley (eds), Routledge, 2008, 191 pp., £65 (hb), ISBN: 9780415425902

Control, accounting and value-for-money implications of utility regulation:a literature review

This paper reviews and evaluates the literature concerning the privatisation and regulation of the utility industries in the UK. The economic theories behind and political reasons for the programme are considered to give the reader an appreciation of the environment from which these organisations were born and the implications for their continued existence. Once this has been established the paper then considers the role that accounting has played and will continue to play in these industries. This includes consideration of the technical questions which these new organisations are asking and also the role that accounting has in the organisational structure and culture. It draws as a conclusion that these recently privatised industries provide a unique and rich source for further accounting research.

The SEC’s retail investor 2.0: Interactive data and the rise of calculative accountability

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States mandated a new digital reporting system for US companies in late 2008. The new generation of information provision has been dubbed by Chairman Cox, ‘interactive data’ (SEC, 2006a). Despite the promise of its name, we find that in the development of the project retail investors are invoked as calculative actors rather than engaged in dialogue. Similarly, the potential for the underlying technology to be applied in ways to encourage new forms of accountability appears to be forfeited in the interests of enrolling company filers. We theorise the activities of the SEC and in particular its chairman at the time, Christopher Cox, over a three year period, both prior to and following the ‘credit crisis’. We argue that individuals and institutions play a central role in advancing the socio-technical project that is constituted by interactive data. We adopt insights from ANT (Callon, 1986; Latour, 1987, 2005b) and governmentality (Miller, 2008; Miller and Rose, 2008) to show how regulators and the proponents of the technology have acted as spokespersons for the interactive data technology and the retail investor. We examine the way in which calculative accountability has been privileged in the SEC’s construction of the retail investor as concerned with atomised, quantitative data (Kamuf, 2007; Roberts, 2009; Tsoukas, 1997). We find that the possibilities for the democratising effects of digital information on the Internet has not been realised in the interactive data project and that it contains risks for the very investors the SEC claims to seek to protect.

Social and environmental accountability in developing countries

The principal aim of this chapter is to undertake a critical review of the social and environmental accountability of global business activities in developing countries. While global business activities have contributed to the economic development of developing countries they have many adverse social and environmental consequences which are often under-studied. I explore the role of accounting in making those consequences visible. The chapter, however, concludes that while social and environmental accounting has the potential to raise the visibility of social and environmental impacts of corporate activities it often fails to do so particularly under the current voluntary disclosure regime where corporations can choose what to report and how to report. This is even more pronounced in the developing countries because of their vulnerabilities arising from various social and environmental problems. The chapter argues for a case of ‘surrogate accountability’ as an alternative to the current corporate driven form of accountability.