The purpose of this study is to examine audit report lags and audit report deadline margins. It specifically examines whether audits of large accelerated filers are completed…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine audit report lags and audit report deadline margins. It specifically examines whether audits of large accelerated filers are completed within a shorter period as compared with regular accelerated filers due to the introduction of new deadline filing requirements by the SEC. The paper also examines whether large accelerated filers have shorter audit report deadline margins.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a sample of 7,129 firm-year observations over the period 2007-2013, an OLS regression model is applied by regressing audit report lags and audit report deadline margins on an indicator variable for large accelerated filers and a set of control variables.
Findings
Results indicate that audits of large accelerated filers have shorter audit report lags as compared with regular accelerated filers. Also, large accelerated filers have shorter audit report deadline margins as compared with regular accelerated filers. These results suggest that even though large accelerated filers’ audits are more complex by nature, auditors of these firms are under more pressure to complete their audits and issue their clients’ audit reports on time.
Research limitations/implications
While the control variables included in the models are all based on established theories and validated in prior research, there may still be some control variables that were excluded from the study’s models. Also, these results cannot be generalized beyond firms that are categorized as large accelerated filers or accelerated filers.
Practical/implications
Public accounting firms should be prepared to devote more resources to large accelerated filers’ clients. Also, regulators might need to reconsider revising the filing deadline requirements for the new category of large accelerated filers by weighing the pros against the cons of these new deadlines, as it appears that auditors of large accelerated filers need more time to complete their audits.
Originality/value
This study uses a new measuring tool in addition to audit report lags, which is the ‘audit report deadline margin’.
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Fei Kang, Magdy Farag, Robert Hurt and Cheryl Wyrick
The purpose of this study is to examine the association between certain audit firm characteristics and the number of Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB)-identified…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the association between certain audit firm characteristics and the number of Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB)-identified audit deficiencies.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a hand-collected sample of PCAOB inspection reports for small audit firms with 100 or less issuer clients from 2007 through 2010, an ordinary least squares model is applied by regressing the number of deficiencies on a set of audit firm characteristics.
Findings
Results show that the number of PCAOB-identified audit deficiencies is positively associated with the number of issuer clients and negatively associated with the number of branch offices, the human capital leverage and the organization structure as Limited Liability Partnership firms. Additional analysis also shows that the PCAOB inspection length is positively associated with the number of deficiencies, the number of branch offices and the number of issuer clients, but negatively associated with the organization structure as limited liability company firms. Moreover, the PCAOB inspection lag is positively associated with the number of deficiencies and the number of issuer clients.
Research limitations/implications
Results of this study cannot be generalized beyond public accounting firms with 100 or fewer issuer clients. In addition, there is a possibility that other measurements of firm-level characteristics that impact the number of PCAOB-identified audit deficiencies were not captured in the study.
Practical implications
This study explains the association between audit firm characteristics and PCAOB-identified audit deficiencies. Our results caution small audit firms about not having enough professional staff, low human capital leverage and serving too many issuer clients, as those factors may potentially impair audit quality.
Originality/value
This study helps to explain the relationship between audit deficiencies and controllable, measurable firm-level characteristics. It is, therefore, differentiated from previous studies, most of which were focused on PCAOB-identified audit deficiencies as measures of audit quality and stakeholder reactions to PCAOB reports.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the stability or loyalty in the auditor‐client relationship. It explores the association between audit fees and auditor loyalty…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the stability or loyalty in the auditor‐client relationship. It explores the association between audit fees and auditor loyalty. Specifically, it investigates whether clients paying less audit fees relative to other companies in their industries are more likely to be loyal to their auditors.
Design/methodology/approach
Logistic and ordinal regression analyses are used to compare loyal clients to clients that switched audit firms after controlling for factors that are expected to be associated with client loyalty.
Findings
Results show that relative audit fees have a significant effect on the degree of loyalty of clients to their audit firms. Additional analysis shows that the loyalty of clients that pay higher audit fees relative to similar clients in their industry are highly affected by increases in audit fees. However, the loyalty of clients who pay lower audit fees compared to similar clients in their industry is not affected by further increases in relative audit fees.
Research limitations/implications
The study does not differentiate between auditor dismissal and auditor resignation in the classification of clients that switched auditors. It also does not classify auditor switches into auditor‐initiated switches and client‐initiated switches.
Practical implications
It is cost effective for clients to stay with the same audit firm. Audit firms should be careful when adjusting their audit fees from one period to another, as there is a higher probability of losing a client, when increasing the audit fees, especially if this client is already paying higher audit fees relative to similar clients.
Originality/value
The findings of this study increase the understanding of how relative audit fees affect client loyalty in the audit market.
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Magdy S. Farag and Rafik Z. Elias
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of public accounting firms' mix of service revenue on their average productivity measured by total revenue per partner.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of public accounting firms' mix of service revenue on their average productivity measured by total revenue per partner.
Design/methodology/approach
Using data from Public Accounting Report on top public accounting firms by revenue, an OLS regression model is applied by regressing revenue per partner on the percentage of revenue generated from auditing and attest, tax, management consulting, and other services independently.
Findings
Results show that the proportion of auditing and attest service revenue is negatively associated with public accounting firms' productivity. However, the proportion of other services revenue, other than tax and management consulting services, is positively associated with productivity. Additional investigation shows that if public accounting firms provide other services in their mix of services, then tax and management consulting services do not contribute to these public accounting firms' productivity.
Research limitations/implications
Results of this study cannot be generalized beyond the top 100 public accounting firms, and the measurement of revenue per partner ignores the exact number of partners within different service areas.
Practical implications
Although auditing and attest services are considered core services of public accounting firms, they do not increase the productivity of the firm.
Originality/value
This study helps in assessing whether average productivity of public accounting firms is affected by the proportion of a specific type of service in the post‐SOX era.
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Rafik Z. Elias and Magdy Farag
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how accounting students view cheating actions inside and outside the classroom. It relates the love of money, a psychological variable…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how accounting students view cheating actions inside and outside the classroom. It relates the love of money, a psychological variable, to the ethical perceptions of accounting students by examining their cheating perceptions.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey is developed based on cheating actions and the love of money scales and administered to 213 undergraduate and graduate accounting students in two universities in the western US students' perceptions of cheating are measured. Students are classified according to their love of money as money‐worshippers, money‐repellants, or careless money‐admirers.
Findings
Accounting students view cheating actions outside the classroom as more unethical than cheating actions inside the classroom. The love of money is significantly related to perceptions of cheating. Money worshippers view cheating actions as more ethical followed by money‐admirers and money‐repellants who view such actions as more unethical.
Research limitations/implications
The surveyed students may not be representative of all students in the USA. In addition, perceptions of cheating may not determine cheating behavior.
Practical implications
Instructors should continue to emphasize the importance of ethical behavior. Future employers should consider the love of money as an important psychological variable related to ethical perception in their hiring decisions.
Originality/value
Previous research founds that classroom cheating can be used to predict future workplace cheating among accounting employees. The study is the first to examine the relationship between the love of money and cheating among accounting students.
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Mohamed El Mokadem and Magdy Khalaf
The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between green supply chain management and sustainability performance in a manufacturing context.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between green supply chain management and sustainability performance in a manufacturing context.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey approach was adopted to collect data from 163 manufacturing organizations to test the research hypotheses. A structural equation modeling (SEM) using the technique of path analysis with bootstrapping is used to test the hypothesized relationships.
Findings
The research findings provide supporting evidence for the importance of implementing green supply chain management (GSCM) as a holistic system that includes internal and external green practices. Besides, the findings highlight the direct effect of GSCM on environmental, social and operational performance. Finally, the findings provide supporting evidence that GSCM could only be translated into better economic returns through the improvement of environmental and operational performance.
Research limitations/implications
The nature of the surveyed sample and the use of a single informant might limit the ability to generalize the research findings outside the research context.
Practical implications
The research findings help managers understand that GSCM must be implemented as a holistic system and that the real benefits of its implementation extend beyond the mere environmental benefits to include operational, social as well as economic benefits.
Originality/value
The paper’s contribution to knowledge is twofold. First, the study identifies how GSCM is conceptualized and how its effect is translated into improved economic performance. Second, the research explains the contradicting findings in previous studies regarding the relationship between GSCM and economic performance.
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Walid E. Elgammal, Essam M. Eliwa, Hosni A. Goomaa, Medhat E. Owda and H. Abd El-Wahab
This paper aims to focus on the synthesis of the macrocyclic complexes (Cu and Zn) and their applications as anticorrosive materials in epoxy paint formulation for surface coating…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to focus on the synthesis of the macrocyclic complexes (Cu and Zn) and their applications as anticorrosive materials in epoxy paint formulation for surface coating application.
Design/methodology/approach
A selected macrocyclic Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes were prepared via template synthesis and characterized using Fourier transform infrared, thermal gravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscope, flexibility, hardness and adhesion of coating films prepared using epoxy paint.
Findings
The corrosion resistance of the epoxy-painted films was improved due to the incorporation of the Zn and Cu complexes into the formulation.
Originality/value
It was found that the metal complex-based formulation with Cu(II) and Zn(II) had outperformed the sample blank.