Earlier models that measured de facto harmonization of international Accounting mainly used indices and other related statistical models. Those approaches do not account for the relative importance of individual balance sheet items or expense items being harmonized. This paper therefore proposes a different approach using Runsten?s (1998) permanent measurement bias model. That way it is possible to quantify the harmonization process by Accounting for differences among companies.

Title: Have IFRS made the Accounting more efficient for investors? ? A study of goodwill-relevance Level: Final assignment for Degree of Master (One Year)Author: Patrik Nygard and Andreas Pettersson       Supervisor: Markku Penttinen            Date: 2010 ? MayAim: The Swedish banks SEB and Swedbank are on the same market but their goodwill is amortized totally differently and its results will be different. We decided to examine the accounts in Sweden and see if they have been more efficient, from a user perspective, after the introduction of IFRS in year 2005Method:  This paper is made from a quantitative and a deductive approach. We have collected data from all companies listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange between the years 2002-2008 using the computer program Financial Datastream and then made the regression and other analyses and comparisons with the program MinitabResult & Conclusions: We have in this paper demonstrated that how the Accounting of goodwill designed is relevant to investors and that this relevance has increased in Sweden after the transition to IFRS. We have also concluded that the goodwill has greater relevance in a rising market than in a downward.Suggestions for future research: In future researches can the aim be to compare other Accounting standards changes that occurred in the year 2005 and see if the Accounting, from that perspective been more efficient.Contribution of the thesis: We have shown how the account influences investor?s decisions during different Accounting systems and in particular how they react on the changed account of goodwill.

The study describes the problems with analysis of real estate companies after the introduction of IFRS. With the introduction of IFRS (2005) and specially IAS 40 the real estate companies get the ability to appreciate its real estates to real value. With the difference in the Accounting, grows the question if it has become some differences for analysts with analysis and valuation of real estate companies. We also look into how well this new standard effect the real estate companies from the view of the Accounting quality and its characteristics..

Abstract The development towards an international Accounting standard implies that Swedish groups of companies that are not quoted on the stock exchange can use a parent company perspective or an entity perspective while making their group Accounting. The purpose of this study is to describe and explain the motives behind the groups of companies choice of perspective and to show how these motives agrees with the effect it has on the profit and loss account and on the balance sheet.The study includes four fictitious groups of companies based on real groups of companies. Every group of companies includes 1-3 subsidiary companies, where at least one is owned by the parent company with 51-70 %. Some assumptions were made before the consolidation.Relevant key numbers have been calculated according to both perspectives and then compared. A total of three semi structured interviews have been carried out two with representatives for the real groups of companies and one with a chartered accountant.

Today?s political debate on environmental issues and environmental thinking, alongside the Swedish presidency of the EU and Climate Conferences shows that the environment is an important topic. Environment is important, not only in politics, but also for companies and the demand of environmental strategies and environmental reports has increased. This leads to an increased pressure on firms to begin to report on environmental concerns and to create active systems for environmental thinking.The aim of the present study is to examine why firms in the transport sector, mainly lorry transports, reports environmental aspects and what drives these companies to create these reports.Based on stakeholder and institutional theory we aim to examine to which extent stakeholders affects the environmental Accounting and reporting. We also aim to explain how the organization is influenced to incorporate external and societal environmental procedures.

The problems and the opinions regarding Accounting of Goodwill have always been an issue. In the search for a more standardised Accounting standard IASB made a series of changes with the implementation of IFRS/IAS, which means that all companies who are listed on any stock exchange in Europe have to follow these new standards. During the process IASB wanted some feedback from the users to get a better understanding of how different participants in the economic market would respond to a number of questions regarding different changes in the Accounting. In total IASB got 126 responses for the 'Comment Letters' (CL) they sent out.This paper aims to review these CL and examine how different participants will stand on different questions, mainly regarding the elimination of the pooling method and if goodwill is to be amortised but also any opinions regarding the implementation of the impairment tests. The present study comprises 126 CL, which represent participants from all the corners of the Earth.

Throughout many years there have been discussions within the European Union (EU) regarding harmonization and improvement of Accounting rules for companies with listed shares or other securities. The ambition exists to adopt, the within the union applied Accounting standards, to those applied globally. These discussions lead the year 2002 to adoption by the council and parliament of international Accounting standards (IFRS). The ordinance meant that all listed European companies have to adopt international Accounting standards, accepted for application within the EU, for their consolidated accounts.During July 2003 the Swedish Government Official Reports issued a report (SOU 2003:71) stating, among other things, the differences and oppositions of implementing IFRS on a corporate level in Sweden, since corporate disclosure is regulated in Swedish law by Bokföringslagen (BFL) and Årsredovisningslagen (ÅRL). One of the main obstacles for the full implementation of IFRS is that a company?s annual report underlies the governmental taxation and an implementation of IFRS would affect this balance.

I en allt mer globaliserad värld ställs högre krav på företagens effektivitet och flexibilitet, detta har bland annat medfört stora satsningar på produktionsutveckling, vilket till slut föranlett lean production. På grund av att de traditionella styrsystemen inte anses vara användbara för företag som arbetar med lean production utvecklades lean Accounting, som är ett relativt nytt koncept som anses ha utvecklats för att ta hänsyn till lean productions påverkan på hela verksamheten. Däremot kan företag inte anta att det enbart handlar om att hitta ett koncept och för att därefter tillämpa konceptet. Denna studie syftar därför till att beskriva hur ledningsgruppen i tillverkande SMF mottar lean Accounting och att beskriva det första steget i utformningsprocessen hos tillverkande SMF. Detta har genomförts genom observationer med hög närvaro och även sintervjuer med en ledningsgrupps medlemmar på ett tillverkande SMF.

This study aims to examine how performance management is compatible with the operations at Sida, Sweden?s International Development Cooperation Agency, by performing interviews with representatives from Sida. The public sector is facing increased demands on Accounting, which has emerged as an institutionalized social norm in society. The nature of Sida?s operations, however, proves to be highly complex, rendering results based management difficult to implement.

Traditionellt sätt har det varit svårt för forskare att dokumentera förekomsten ochomfattningen av manipulering av redovisningsmått. Big Bath Accounting är ett fenomen sominnebär att tveksamma redovisningsmetoder tillämpas i syfte att förvränga företagets verkligasituation, vilket ofta sker i samband med VD-byte och när företag redovisar ett för periodennegativt resultat. Intresset för ämnesvalet väcktes utifrån en tidigare studie om Big BathAccounting, som påvisade statistiska samband mellan nedskrivning av goodwill vid VD-byterespektive negativt resultat. I denna studie är syftet att utreda om statistiska sambandföreligger mellan företagets avsättningar vid VD-byte och negativt resultat enligt teorin BigBath Accounting. I studien undersöks inte alla avsättningar, utan endastomstruktureringsutgifter och övriga avsättningar, då de är svåra att kontrollera och utrymmekan finnas för kreativ tolkning.

Background: In 2001 the European Commission presented legislation to require use of IASB standards named IAS/IFRS for all listed parent companies within the EU no later than 2005, to improve an internal market for financial services within the EU. This harmonisation of the Accounting regulations answers to the social development of today with land-frontiers easier to cross, increased demands on an open financial market and the companies searching for risk capital outside the boundaries of the own country. International comparisons within Accounting have consequently become more of current interest and necessary. When the requirement to use the IASB standards only is intended for the group Accounting the remaining question is according to which regulations the parent companies will set up their annual financial reports. In Statens Offentliga Utredningar 2003:71(Swedish Government Official Reports) the parent companies are suggested to be given an opportunity to apply IAS/IFRS also in the annual financial report.

Accounting firms operate in environments with high competition for graduates and students today expect employers to be present on Facebook and the like. We aim to describe whether two major Accounting firms use social media in their graduate recruitment. We chose to do case studies of Grant Thornton and Ernst & Young and how they use social media channels aimed towards graduates. Through a through study of how the two companies communicated through various social media, we concluded that Grant Thornton was significantly better than their larger competitor at social media use. Both companies use Facebook as their main communication channel.

The purpose of this essay is to investigate if the companies listed on Nasdaq/OMX Stockholm Large Cap use the earnings management phenomenon Big Bath Accounting to a greater extent when a change of management (CEO) is made.Management tends to use earnings management when there is a bonus plan linked to the result of the company. To gain maximum bonus the management will try to manipulate the result in a way that in a long term maximize their utility. Through the earnings management technique Big Bath the management is given the possibility to take one large cost as a one-time expend, even though the cost is supposed to run over several financial years. This, of course, within the legal framework. A big bath may occur when there is an impairment of goodwill, tangible and/or intangible assets or larger provisions for future expense, or both of them at the same time..

Den samhällsrelaterade redovisningen har utvecklats under de senaste åren och fått en allt större betydelse för företagen och dess intressenter. Att utvecklingen går mot mer kunskapsintensiva verksamheter borde öka betydelsen av personalredovisning, vilken är en del av den samhällsrelaterade redovisningen. Det bör ligga i företagens intresse att redovisa sin personalrelaterade information med tanke på att det är en allt viktigare tillgång. Med anledning av att det endast finns ett fåtal regler för hur personalen skall redovisas, väljer företagen det sätt som passar repektive företag bäst. Syftet med undersökningen är att klargöra för i vilken omfattning svenska börsnoterade företag redovisar sin personalrelaterade information, om det skiljer sig mellan företagen beroende av branschtillhörighet, storlek eller någon annan faktor.

In the European Convention and the EU charter the principle ne bis in idem is provided, which implies that a person can not be tried or punished twice for the same offense. Since the European Convention was incorporated into Swedish law in 1995 the principles application has been discussed in tax law. Several cases have been examined by the European Court and the Supreme Court (HD) in order to determine whether dual punishment has occurred in the national rules concerning tax surcharge, tax crime and Accounting fraud. The judicial trials have brought different assessments concerning the matter, which have resulted in a lack of clarity on the application of the principle in Swedish law.The thesis purpose is to clarify whether the principle ne bis in idem is applicable on the relationship between tax surcharge and tax crime, and the relationship between tax surcharge and Accounting fraud.The authors' conclusion is that the principle ne bis in idem is applicable on the relationship between tax surcharge and tax crime because both sanctions are considered criminal in nature and concern the same crime, since they are based on substantially the same circumstances. Furthermore, the principle ne bis in idem is considered applicable on the relationship tax surcharge and Accounting fraud, because both sanctions are criminal in nature and their circumstances have a connection, therefore they are considered as the same crime..