Ulkoisen laskennan organisoinnin kehittäminen. Case: Stora Enso Oyj

Tutkielman päätavoitteena oli analysoida, miten taloushallintoa voisi kehittää case –yrityksessä ulkoisen laskennan osalta. Case yrityksenä oli Stora Enso Oyj. Tutkielmassa analysoitiin kolme kehittämisvaihtoehtoa. Ensin analysoitiin palvelukeskuksen soveltuvuutta case –yrityksen taloushallinnon kehittämiseen. Toiseksi tutkittiin, onko konsernin sisäinen fuusioituminen mahdollistanut case –yrityksen taloushallinnon toimintojen kehittämisen ja kolmanneksi etsittiin muita vaihtoehtoisia keinoja kehittää case –yrityksen taloushallintoa. Tutkielma edustaa ymmärtävää tapaustutkimuksen tyyppiä, jossa on normatiivisia piirteitä. Palvelukeskuksen soveltuvuus case –yrityksen taloushallintoon todettiin teoriassa hyväksi. Käytännössä sen toteuttamiselle löytyi kuitenkin esteitä, eikä palvelukeskusta tässä vaiheessa päätetty perustaa. Fuusioitumisen todettiin mahdollistavan case –yrityksen taloushallinnon kehittämisen vähäisessä määrin. Tätä ei kuitenkaan ole toistaiseksi hyödynnetty. Muina ratkaisuvaihtoehtoina taloushallinnon kehittämiseen tutkittiin lähinnä sähköistä ostolaskujenkäsittelyä. Se todettiin hyväksi vaihtoehdoksi ostolaskujenkäsittelyprosessin tehostamiseksi. Teoriaosuuden tavoitteena oli asemoida palvelukeskus muiden mahdollisten taloushallinnon kehittämisratkaisujen joukkoon. Palvelukeskuksen todettiin olevan lähinnä keskittämistä, mutta sisältävän piirteitä myös ulkoistamisesta ja liiketoimintaprosessien uudelleen organisoimisesta. Uusina seikkoina nousi esille asiakaslähtöisyys ja tulosvastuu.

Management Control for Corporate Sustainability Execution: The Role of Employee Compensation

The research described in this thesis examines the characteristics, the benefits and the challenges associated with the implementation of management accounting systems in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Applied to the CSR context, management accounting relates to the identification, elaboration and communication of information about an organization's interactions with the society and the environment. Based on this information, firms are able to make decisions to achieve social and environmental objectives and provide evidence justifying the benefits and the costs of such actions. The study begins by focusing on green management and exploring the characteristics of Environmental Management Accounting (EMA) systems within firms. The first chapter informs the reader about the growing body of EMA research and reveals unexplored relevant aspects that need to be further investigated. The work also emphasizes the importance of developing new theoretical hypotheses and appropriate research designs to empirically tackle new aspects of EMA and gain understanding on the use of these practices. Subsequently, given the acknowledged importance of control systems in influencing the behaviour of individuals within organizations, the remaining two chapters of the dissertation focus on the functioning of CSR-linked incentives assigned to employees in the form of compensation plans. The second chapter examines the determinants influencing corporate provision of incentives for the attainment of environmental targets. Empirical analysis of a sample of international firms reveals that companies are likely to use green incentives as mechanisms to increase the efficacy in contracting with their employees as well as to respond to social influences. Finally, the third chapter investigates the effectiveness of contracting associated with the use of CSR-linked executive compensation. Empirical analysis of a sample of US-based companies shows that corporate choice to tie senior executives' pay to CSR targets promotes the firm's CSR performance. Cette thèse examine les caractéristiques, avantages et défis associés à l'utilisation des systèmes de contrôle de gestion dans le domaine de la Responsabilité Sociale des Entreprises (RSE). Dans le contexte de la RSE, les activités du contrôle de gestion impliquent l'identification, l'élaboration et la communication d'informations qui concernent les interactions des organisations avec la société et l'environnement. Avec ces informations les entreprises sont en mesure de prendre des décisions visant à atteindre les objectifs sociaux et environnementaux de l'organisation et de documenter les bénéfices et coûts de ces actions. Dès le début, la thèse se concentre sur les caractéristiques des systèmes de contrôle de gestion environnementale au sein des entreprises. Le premier chapitre passe en revue la littérature existante et révèle des aspects inexplorés. Pour ce faire, le travail suggère le développement de nouvelles théories ainsi que l'utilisation de méthodes appropriées. Ces dernières doivent permettre d'aborder empiriquement de nouveaux aspects des systèmes de contrôle environnemental et faciliter la compréhension sur l'utilisation de ces pratiques. Considérant l'importance des systèmes de contrôle pour influencer le comportement des individus au sein des organisations, la suite du travail se concentre sur le fonctionnement des contrats de rémunération des employées liées aux résultats de la RSE. Plus particulièrement, le deuxième chapitre examine les facteurs qui influencent la décision des entreprises d'assigner des objectifs environnementaux aux employées. L'analyse empirique d'un échantillon d'entreprises internationales montre que les entreprises sont susceptibles d'utiliser des mécanismes incitatifs écologiques pour augmenter l'efficacité des contrats ainsi que pour répondre aux influences sociales. Finalement, le troisième chapitre analyse l'efficacité des contrats de rémunération des dirigeants liés aux résultats de la RSE. L'analyse empirique d'un échantillon de sociétés américaines indique que le choix de l'entreprise de lier la rémunération des dirigeants à des objectifs de la RSE favorise la performance RSE de l'organisation.

Yritysten sosiaalisen vastuun tarkastelua vuosina 2000 ja 2006/Corporate Social Responsibility year 2000 and 2006

Tutkimuksen tarkoitus on selvittää, miten yritysten ajattelutapa sosiaalisesta vastuusta on muuttunut vuodesta 2000 vuoteen 2006. Lisäksi vastataan kysymyksiin, mistä osa-alueista sosiaalinen vastuu muodostuu, miten kirjoittelu sosiaalisesta vastuusta on muuttunut määrällisesti ja sisällöllisesti. Tutkimus on luonteeltaan laadullinen ja analyysimenetelmänä on käytetty diskurssianalyysiä. Tutkimusaineisto koostuu johtavien talousalan lehtien Talouselämä ja Kauppalehden artikkeleista vuosilta 2000 ja 2006. Artikkeleista saatua tietoa peilataan teoriatietoon ja näin pyritään hahmottamaan tutkimuksen tulokset. Tutkimuksen tulokset osoittavat, että vuonna 2000 lehdet ovat kirjoittaneet jonkin verran enemmän sosiaalisesta vastuusta kuin vuonna 2006. Molempina vuosina sijoittavat arvostavat vastuullista toimintaa. Yrityksen arvot ovat usein määritelty ”ylhäältä-alas”. Työntekijöiden pahoinvointi on lisääntynyt entisestään vuodesta 2000 vuoteen 2006. Syynä tähän kirjoitusten mukaan ovat esimerkiksi huono johtaminen ja työtehtävien organisointi. Sosiaalisen vastuun mittaaminen on hankalaa ja ikääntyviä työntekijöitä yritetään pitää yrityksissä mahdollisimman pitkään. Tulospalkkausjärjestelmät ovat käytössä muutamassa yrityksessä. Työn, perheen ja vapaa-ajan sovittaminen yhteen on vuodesta 2000 muuttunut entistäkin tärkeämmäksi vuonna 2006. Lopputulos on, että sosiaalisen vastuun kanto on huonontunut vuodesta 2000 vuoteen 2006.

Corporate Social and Regional Responsibility - The View of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises

The objective of this research was to understand and describe what corpo-rate social and regional responsibility is in SMEs and define the meaning of these concepts to the community and region. Corporate social respon-sibility (CSR) creates a basis for regional responsibility. Regional respon-sibility is a new concept and this research examines it from SMEs’ view-point. This is a theoretical research and the aim is to create a theoretical framework of SMEs’ corporate social and regional responsibility. This framework supports the future research on the subject. The research results show that CSR of SMEs is practical, informal and dependent on the scarce resources of SMEs. CSR is a complex and deep concept and SMEs have their own way of interpreting it. It can be stated that CSR-practises in SMEs are closely connected to employment, envi-ronment, community and supply chain. The challenge is to find motivation to socially and regionally responsible behaviour in SMEs. Benefiting from responsible behaviour and the attitude of SME’s owner-manager are the key reasons for SMEs to involve in CSR and regional responsibility. The benefits of this involvement are for example improved image, reputation and market position. CSR can also be used in SMEs as risk management tool and in cost reduction. This study indicates also that creation of strate-gic partnerships, local government participation, a proper legal system and financial support are the basic issues which support CSR of SMEs. This research showed that regional responsibility of SMEs includes active participation in regional strategy processes, L&RED initiatives and regional philanthropy. For SMEs regional responsibility means good relationships with the community and other related stakeholders, involvement in L&RED initiatives and acting responsibly towards the operating environment. In SMEs’ case this means that they need to understand the benefits of this kind of involvement in order to take action and participate. As regional responsibility includes the relationships between firm and the community, it can be stated that regional responsibility extends CSR’s view of stakeholders and emphasises both, the regional stakeholders and public-private partnerships. Community engagement and responsible be-haviour towards community can be seen as a part of SMEs’ social and regional responsibility. This study indicates that social and regional re-sponsibility of SMEs have a significant influence on the community and region where they are located. Better local and regional relationships with regional and community actors are the positive impacts of social and re-gional responsibility of SMEs. Socially and regionally responsible behav-iour creates a more positive environment and deepens the involvement of SMEs to community and L&RED initiatives.

Accounting research: a critical view of the present situation and prospects

In this study we critically review the internal procedures of the accounting community for generating and disseminating knowledge. We contend that academic journals on accounting research are scarce, publish few articles and apply high rejection rates, and the review process is lengthy and expensive. Additionally, an academic elite has unparalleled predominance in comparison to other business disciplines, reflected in an unusual share of published articles with authors affiliated to a small number of academic institutions, and the predominance of certain topics and methodologies. The discipline does not allow the collaborative, iterative and flexible features of innovative knowledge communities. The discipline¿s internal procedures favour restriction, control, slowness, and expiration, rather than participation, speed and renewal. They are ill suited for advancing knowledge and bode badly for successful research. As a result, accounting academics present low research performance and the discipline is facing steady decline. More importantly, the discipline is handicapped in producing innovative knowledge able to contribute to critical research and long term social well-being. We also focus on the Spanish institutional situation, arguing that Spanish requirements for reaching tenured positions are difficult for accountants to meet. We highlight the need to raise awareness of the problem and change the procedures.

Olympic social responsibility : a challenge for the future

Social responsibility, especially in the fields of education, society and peace, is one of the cornerstones of the olympic ideal and strategic vision (contribute to building a better world through sport). The article reviews the literature on organizational social responsibility (OSR) and the relationship between sport/olympism and OSR in order to examine the conditions governing the implementation and success of the International Olympic Committee's strategic vision. Several ways in which the IOC could promote a more ambitious and better-integrated social strategy: revise its performance model, notably evaluate and present in a social responsibility report; promote the adoption of OSR initiatives and strategies within the Olympic System from the bottom-up, rather than from the top-down; share best practices in the different countries for promoting and developing "sport for all"; create a World Agency for Development through Sport, or partnering and funding the international platform on sport and development; creating a World Agency for the International Governance of Sport. Two possible scenarios for the future of Olympic responsibility are finally discussed: strategy of "small steps" and a more ambitious local and global social strategy through sport and olympism.

Evolution of cameral accounting

Abstract

Accounting for adsorption and desorption in Lattice Boltzmann simulations

We report a Lattice-Boltzmann scheme that accounts for adsorption and desorption in the calculation of mesoscale dynamical properties of tracers in media of arbitrary complexity. Lattice Boltzmann simulations made it possible to solve numerically the coupled Navier-Stokes equations of fluid dynamics and Nernst-Planck equations of electrokinetics in complex, heterogeneous media. With the moment propagation scheme, it became possible to extract the effective diffusion and dispersion coefficients of tracers, or solutes, of any charge, e.g., in porous media. Nevertheless, the dynamical properties of tracers depend on the tracer-surface affinity, which is not purely electrostatic and also includes a species-specific contribution. In order to capture this important feature, we introduce specific adsorption and desorption processes in a lattice Boltzmann scheme through a modified moment propagation algorithm, in which tracers may adsorb and desorb from surfaces through kinetic reaction rates. The method is validated on exact results for pure diffusion and diffusion-advection in Poiseuille flows in a simple geometry. We finally illustrate the importance of taking such processes into account in the time-dependent diffusion coefficient in a more complex porous medium.

Service Quality of ASPs (Application Service Providers): Case of an E-accounting Service

Service quality has been a hot topic in services marketing research since the ‘80s. Although it has been widely researched in the B2C context, as well as there is some research in the B2B side, it has received very little attention specifically in the context of the ASP (Application Service Provider) business model. The thesis uses streams of service quality literature in B2C and B2B as well as research of the ASP model to form a comprehensive understanding of service quality in the context of the ASPs. The empirical part consists of a case study of Netvisor, a fast-growing Finnish ASP providing e-accounting services. The key findings are that some traditional service quality dimensions seem to apply also in the ASP context and the relative importance of some dimensions differs with regard to different customer levels. Suggestions are made to improve the service quality of the case company.

The Present State and a Development Plan of Cost Accounting in Batch Production of Wind Turbine Gears

The aim of this master’s thesis was to document the present state and to create a development plan for Moventas Wind’s cost accounting. The current cost accounting system was evaluated and most fundamental problems were chosen as areas of focus in development work. The development plan includes both short- and long-term development proposals for problems identified. This report presents two alternative models for product costing. Benchmarking of cost accounting practices and modern cost accounting theories were used in development of cost accounting. It was found that the current cost accounting system functions quite well and the adjustments in unit cost rate calculation have only a minor influence on costs of goods sold. An OEE-based standard cycle concept was also developed and it was found that the implementation of this new system is worthwhile in the long-term.

A comparative study of difficulties in accounting preparation and judgement in agriculture using fair value and historical cost accounting for biological assets valuation

This paper presents empirical research comparing the accounting difficulties that arise from the use of two valuation methods for biological assets, fair value (FV) and historical cost (HC) accounting, in the agricultural sector. It also compares how reliable each valuation method is in the decision-making process of agents within the sector. By conducting an experiment with students, farmers, and accountants operating in the agricultural sector, we find that they have more difficulties, make larger miscalculations and make poorer judgements with HC accounting than with FV accounting. In-depth interviews uncover flawed accounting practices in the agricultural sector in Spain in order to meet HC accounting requirements. Given the complexities of cost calculation for biological assets and the predominance of small family business units in advanced Western countries, the study concludes that accounting can be more easily applied in the agricultural sector under FV than HC accounting, and that HC conveys a less accurate grasp of the real situation of a farm.

Accounting manager : Servei web gestor de comptabilitat

Aquest projecte consisteix en un petit servei web de comptabilitat desenvolupat amb Vaadin framework, MySQL i Java. Dita aplicació permet crear factures i altres documents i portar-ne unes estadístiques de les figures relacionades amb aquesta comptabilitat. El fet d'utilitzar Vaadin permet desenvolupar aquest servei web mitjançant Java. Aquesta entrega es composa d'una presentació, la memòria i el producte (servei web+BD+instruccions).