News
Manufacturers expect innovation, collaboration to drive sustained growth
Manufacturers are optimistic that they can combine product and process innovation with customer and supplier collaboration to create sustained but modest growth in an uncertain world economy.Execs less optimistic about hiring, US economy, AICPA survey shows
Hiring plans for the second quarter of 2012 fell from the previous quarter, and optimism about the U.S. economy declined, according to the AICPA’s Business and Industry Economic Outlook Survey. Four of the 10 sectors represented in the report expect staffing levels to decrease over the next 12 months.The look ahead: US, UK manufacturing data could provide economic clues
Industrial production updates for many advanced economies come out this week. The data covers output of the manufacturing and mining sectors and of electric and gas utilities in the US and Europe and includes indicators for how the economies are performing.How to avoid enterprise-risk surprises
Researchers at North Carolina State University and speakers at the AICPA’s CFO Conference explain enterprise risk management and share best practices of how to prepare for risks that can cost you your business.Energy demand to outstrip China’s renewable energy efforts
Beijing is making every effort to boost the country’s renewable energy production, but by 2020 China is expected to emit 43% more carbon dioxide from burning coal than in 2010, a special report of the Economist Intelligence Unit projects.CFOs report difficulty finding accounting and finance talent
Finding qualified accounting and finance professionals is becoming increasingly difficult for executives, according to a recent survey. Staffing plans in accounting and finance are stabilizing after a busy end to 2011 and start to 2012 in terms of expected hiring and cuts.Data breaches emerge as tech sector’s fastest-rising risk factor
A rash of recent hacking incidents at high-profile organizations such as Sony Corp. contributed to a big jump in the percentage of large, publicly traded U.S. technology companies citing potential data breaches as a major risk to their businesses, a new BDO report says.Risk management takes hold in the asset-management industry, but challenges remain
The US asset management industry invested significantly to improve risk management since the 2008 financial crisis, but risk managers still face big challenges.What your company needs to know about BYOD
Most U.S. enterprises with 1,000 or more employees have bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies allowing employees to use their own smartphones and other mobile devices to access corporate computer networks, new research indicates. What should your company be doing to prepare for BYOD?The look ahead: How will Greece, a slowdown in China impact US outlook?
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke may provide clues about the health of the US economy when he speaks before the Congressional Joint Economic Committee on June 7th.New oil shock
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) highlights the risk of an oil price shock as one of the two key threats to global economic recovery this year, alongside the risk of a euro-zone meltdown.FASB and IASB narrow lessee accounting model options
FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) have narrowed their focus in anticipation of a vote next month on a lessee accounting model in their joint convergence project on leases.Pay to play? Survey shows increased risks of bribery, corruption
An erosion of ethical standards amongst decision-makers leaves companies increasingly vulnerable to corruption, a new fraud report shows.These risks can pummel your company’s earnings
About half of the most disappointing earnings surprises S&P 500 companies reported in the first quarter were caused by risks that were inherent in the companies’ business model, a first-of-a-kind study suggests.US gets new council for private company financial reporting standards
The US Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF) voted to create a Private Company Council (PCC) to identify and vote on differences in US GAAP for private companies.Six trading myths threaten US, Europe
Common trading myths – rooted in the misconception that offshoring of manufacturing jobs to countries with cheap labour is raising trade deficits in mature economies – can hurt the US and Europe.The look ahead: Is the US economy slowing or growing? Consumers may hold the answer
Consumers are a huge part of the US economy. And in the coming week, economic numbers may show how job security is influencing consumer confidence and the nation’s GDP growth, which appears to be slowing.Are you an accountant or a problem-solver?
The corporate finance professionals who climb the value chain will be interpreters and collaborators able to leverage data as a strategic asset while working across functional areas to solve problems and innovate, according to executives speaking at the American Institute of CPAs’ Council meeting in Washington.Bridging the ethical divide
About 80% of companies have ethics codes, yet only 36% collect ethics data. Learn more about the “ethical divide.”
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