Auditor communication in an evolving environment : going beyond SAS 600 auditors' reports on financial statements

In 1993 the Auditing Practices Board issued an expanded audit report, SAS 600 Auditors’ Reports on Financial Statements, in an attempt to educate users and to clarify certain matters pertaining to the audit function. This paper investigates the extent to which the new audit report, SAS 600, has been successful in aligning the views of auditors, preparers and users about issues dealt with in the expanded audit report, and the extent to which the three groups considered that it would be useful for additional matters, including corporate governance, to be reported upon by the auditor. Our findings suggest that SAS 600 has been successful in clarifying the purpose of the audit and the respective responsibilities of auditors and directors. However, to meet the expectations of users and to add more value, the audit report needs to provide more information about the findings of the audit.

Optimizing employee engagement with internal communication : a social exchange perspective

Employee engagement is linked to higher productivity, lower attrition, and improved organizational reputations resulting in increased focus and resourcing by managers to foster an engaged workforce. While drivers of employee engagement have been identified as perceived support, job characteristics, and value congruence, internal communication is theoretically suggested to be a key influence in both the process and maintenance of employee engagement efforts. However, understanding the mechanisms by which internal communication influences employee engagement has emerged as a key question in the literature. The purpose of this research is to investigate whether social factors, namely perceived support and identification, play a mediating role in the relationship between internal communication and engagement. To test the theoretical model, data are collected from 200 non-executive employees using an online self-administered survey. The study applies linear and mediated regression to the model and finds that organizations and supervisors should focus internal communication efforts toward building greater perceptions of support and stronger identification among employees in order to foster optimal levels of engagement.

Authentication of concast communication

In this paper we tackle the problem of finding an efficient signature verification scheme when the number of signatures is signi.- cantly large and the verifier is relatively weak. In particular, we tackle the problem of message authentication in many-to-one communication networks known as concast communication. The paper presents three signature screening algorithms for a variant of ElGamal-type digital signatures. The cost for these schemes is n applications of hash functions, 2n modular multiplications, and n modular additions plus the verification of one digital signature, where n is the number of signatures. The paper also presents a solution to the open problem of finding a fast screening signature for non-RSA digital signature schemes.

Discrete phase-locked loop systems and spreadsheets

This paper demonstrates the use of a spreadsheet in exploring non-linear difference equations that describe digital control systems used in radio engineering, communication and computer architecture. These systems, being the focus of intensive studies of mathematicians and engineers over the last 40 years, may exhibit extremely complicated behaviour interpreted in contemporary terms as transition from global asymptotic stability to chaos through period-doubling bifurcations. The authors argue that embedding advanced mathematical ideas in the technological tool enables one to introduce fundamentals of discrete control systems in tertiary curricula without learners having to deal with complex machinery that rigorous mathematical methods of investigation require. In particular, in the appropriately designed spreadsheet environment, one can effectively visualize a qualitative difference in the behviour of systems with different types of non-linear characteristic.

Dynamic self-organization phenomena in complex ionized gas systems : new paradigms and technological aspects

An overview of dynamic self-organization phenomena in complex ionized gas systems, associated physical phenomena, and industrial applications is presented. The most recent experimental, theoretical, and modeling efforts to understand the growth mechanisms and dynamics of nano- and micron-sized particles, as well as the unique properties of the plasma-particle systems (colloidal, or complex plasmas) and the associated physical phenomena are reviewed and the major technological applications of micro- and nanoparticles are discussed. Until recently, such particles were considered mostly as a potential hazard for the microelectronic manufacturing and significant efforts were applied to remove them from the processing volume or suppress the gas-phase coagulation. Nowadays, fine clusters and particulates find numerous challenging applications in fundamental science as well as in nanotechnology and other leading high-tech industries.

Standards that we can 'own' : Threshold Learning Outcomes for Journalism, Public Relations, and Media & Communication Studies

This paper outlines the progress by the JoMeC (Journalism, Media & Communication) Network in developing TLO (Threshold Learning Outcome) statements for Bachelor-level university programs in the disciplines of Journalism, Public Relations and Media & Communications Studies. The paper presents the finalised TLO statement for Journalism, and outlines moves to engage discipline-based groups to further develop preliminary TLOs for Public Relations and Media & Communication Studies. The JoMeC Network was formed in 2011, in response to requirements that from 2014 all degrees and qualifications at Australian universities would be able to demonstrate that they comply with the threshold learning standards set by the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). The AQF’s threshold standards define the minimum types and levels of knowledge, skills and capabilities that a student must demonstrate in order to graduate. The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) will use the AQF’s threshold standards as a key tool in recording and assessing the performance of higher educational institutions, and determining whether they should be registered as Australian Higher Education Providers under the Higher Education Standards Framework. The Office of Learning & Teaching (OLT) places the onus on discipline communities to collaborate in order to develop and ‘own’ the threshold learning standards that can be considered the minimum learning outcomes of university-level programs in that field. With the support of an OLT Grant, the JoMeC Network’s prime goal has been to develop three sets of discipline-specific TLOs – one each for the Journalism, Public Relations, and Media & Communications Studies disciplines. This paper describes the processes of research, consultation, drafting and ongoing revision of the TLO for Journalism. It outlines the processes that the JoMeC Network has taken in developing a preliminary TLO draft to initiate discussion of Public Relations and Media & Communication Studies. The JoMeC Network plans to hand management of further development of these TLOs to scholars within the discipline who will engage with academics and other stakeholders to develop statements that the respective disciplines can embrace and ‘own’.

Antecedent factors of knowledge sharing in research supervision

Today’s economy is a knowledge-based economy in which knowledge is a crucial facilitator to individuals, as well as being an instigator of success. Due to the impact of globalisation, universities face new challenges and opportunities. Accordingly, they ought to be more innovative and have their own competitive advantages. One of the most important goals of universities is the promotion of students as professional knowledge workers. Therefore, knowledge sharing and transfer at the tertiary level between students and supervisors is vital in universities, as it decreases the budget and provides an affordable way to do research. Knowledge-sharing impact factors can be categorised in three groups, namely: organisational, individual, and technical factors. Individual barriers to knowledge sharing include: the lack of time and trust and the lack of communication skills and social networks. IT systems such as elearning, blogs and portals can increase the knowledge-sharing capability. However, it must be stated that IT systems are only tools and not solutions. Individuals are still responsible for sharing information and knowledge. This paper proposes a new research model to examine the effect of individual factors, organisational factors (learning strategy, trust culture, supervisory support) and technological factors on knowledge sharing in the research supervision process.

A typology of technological enablers of website service failure prevention

An increasing range of services are now offered via online applications and e-commerce websites. However, problems with online services still occur at times, even for the best service providers due to the technical failures, informational failures, or lack of required website functionalities. Also, the widespread and increasing implementation of web services means that service failures are both more likely to occur, and more likely to have serious consequences. In this paper we first develop a digital service value chain framework based on existing service delivery models adapted for digital services. We then review current literature on service failure prevention, and provide a typology of technolo- gies and approaches that can be used to prevent failures of different types (functional, informational, system), that can occur at different stages in the web service delivery. This makes a contribution to theory by relating specific technologies and technological approaches to the point in the value chain framework where they will have the maximum impact. Our typology can also be used to guide the planning, justification and design of robust, reliable web services.

Drawing and writing on the screen

This chapter focuses on the physicality of the iPad as an object, and how that physicality affects the interactions children have with the device generally, and the apps specifically. Thinking about the physicality of the iPad is important because the materials, size, weight and appearance make the iPad quite unlike most other toys and equipment in the kindergarten space. Most strikingly, this physicality does not ‘represent’ the virtual vast dimensions of the iPad brought about through the diverse functions and contents of the apps contained in it. While the iPad is small enough and functional enough to be easily handled and operated even by young children, it is capable of performing highly complex, highly technological tasks that take it beyond its diminutive dimensions. This virtual-actual contrast is interesting to consider in relation to the other resources more commonly found in a kindergarten space. While objects such as toys, bricks, building materials often do prompt the child to imagine and invent beyond the physical boundaries of the toy, they not have the same types of virtual-actual contrasts of a digital device such as the iPad. How then, might children be drawn to the iPad because of its physical, technological and virtual difference? Particularly, how might this virtual-actual difference impact on the physical skills associated with writing and drawing: skills usually learnt through the use of a pencil and paper? While the research project did not set out to compare how digital and paper-based resources affect writing and drawing skills there was great interest to see how young children negotiated drawing and writing on the shiny glass surface of the iPad.

Educating for the creative economy in emerging countries

In 1972, the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Human Environment expressed a growing realization that economic and social progress needed to be balanced with a concern for the environment and the stewardship of natural resources. The hard-to-grasp concept of "sustainable development" was first defined as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs" (World Commission on Environment and Development [WESDJ, 1987, p. 43). This definition contains two concepts: first, "human needs," with priority given to the world's poor, and, second, the environment's limits for meeting the state of technological and social organization (WESD, 1987, p. 43). At the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (UN, 2002a), the focus on environmental protection broadened to encompass social justice and the fight against poverty as key principles of development that is sustainable. Three interdependent and mutually reinforcing "pillars" were recognized: economic development, social development, and environmental protection. These pillars must be established at local, national, and global levels. The complexity and interrelationship of critical issues such as poverty, wasteful consumption, urban decay, population growth, gender inequality, health, conflict, and the violation of human rights are addressed in all three pillars (Pigozzi, 2003, p. 3). Following the concept of sustainable development, we argue that the challenge for developing countries in contemporary society is to meet the very real need for economic development and opportunities for income generation, while avoiding the unintended and unwanted consequences of economic development and globalization. These consequences include social exclusion, loss of cultural heritage, and environmental and ecological problems.

Confucius Institutes and the network communication approach to public diplomacy

Discussions of public diplomacy in recent years have paid a growing amount of attention to networks. This network perspective is understood to provide insights into various issues of public diplomacy, such as its effects, credibility, reputation, identity and narratives. This paper applies the network idea to analyse China’s Confucius Institutes initiative. It understands Confucius Institutes as a global network and argues that this network structure has potential implications for the operation of public and cultural diplomacy that are perhaps underestimated in existing accounts of Chinese cultural diplomacy. In particular, it is noted that the specific setup of Confucius Institutes requires the engagement of local stakeholders, in a way that is less centralised and more networked than comparable cultural diplomacy institutions. At the same time, the development of a more networked for of public cultural diplomacy is challenged in practice by both practical issues and the configuration of China’s state-centric public diplomacy system informed by the political constitution of the Chinese state.

The work of Media Arts in the age of digital production

This chapter uses as a beginning point Walter Benjamin’s famous essay ‘The work of art in the age of technological reproducibility’(1935/2008) to discuss Media Arts education. It locates ‘Media Arts’ at the intersection of three key ideas: 1) media arts products as objects for popular and everyday consumption and intervention by individuals and broader audiences; 2) materiality and how individuals use their bodies and technologies to produce, combine and share digital materials and; 3) the construction of aesthetic knowledge and how this relates to critical and conceptual thinking. These ideas are discussed in the context of the development of curriculum for students at all ages of schooling, with specific attention given to the knowledge and skills students might develop within Media Arts education in primary schools. Examples from a Media Arts project in a primary school in Australia – where a new Media Arts national curriculum has been developed –are provided to illustrate the key ideas discussed in the chapter.