CFO/treasurer dual role: treasury, financial reporting, and audit outcomes

This study focuses on a survey of chief financial officers (CFOs) in public firms in Japan concerning the following six points: the importance of the definition earnings quality; higher quality earnings; the determinants of earnings quality; prevalence, magnitude, and motivation of earnings management; accounting that influences earnings quality; and misrepresenting of earnings. The results are following: first, Japanese CFOs define earnings quality as earnings accurately reflecting economic reality, earnings accurately reflecting the results of operations, and earnings backed by cash flows, earnings sustainability, recurring, and consistent, and earnings reflecting long-term trend importance. Second, Japanese firms consider earnings that reflect consistent reporting choices over time as higher quality. They do not consider that earnings having accruals that are eventually realized as cash flow as higher earnings quality. Third, Japanese CFOs indicate that 30% of earnings quality is impacted by firm characteristics such as firm’s business model, industry, and macroeconomic conditions. Surprisingly, the influence of the board of directors is greater than the impact of their internal controls. Fourth, as for the determinants of earnings quality, CFOs consider that more than 70% of Japanese CFOs do not allow the discretion and that accounting standards limit their ability to report higher earning quality. Fifth, Japanese CFOs consider that higher earnings are influenced by accounting principles such as policies that match expenses with revenues and policies that rely on fair value accounting as much as possible. Sixth, CFOs themselves predict that 50% of Japanese firms use discretions and that they use 20% of earnings per share (EPS). Since there is inside and outside pressure to hit earnings benchmarks, Japanese firms possess the motivation to use earnings to misrepresent economic performance, Japanese managers see a red flag when generally accepted accounting principle’s earnings do not correlate with cash flow from operations.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the managerial views on the corporate financing practices of firms in the emerging market of Sri Lanka. Design/methodology/approach A survey approach was employed using chief financial officers (CFOs) from the top non-financial firms listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange. Findings CFOs’ views on corporate financing practices are not fully consistent with the theory: financial hierarchy appears to be more important and firms are less leveraged. Most Sri Lankan CFOs perceive some policy factors as important and theoretically support: volatility of earnings and cash flows, tax advantages of interest deductibility, transaction costs, timing of interest rates, low foreign interest rates and debt equity targets. These factors are high priority in emerging markets but either not important at all or less important in developed markets. Matching debt maturity with the life of assets is equally important in both markets. Most CFOs adhere their financing to the local debt market, while a few firms use foreign debt. CFOs are concerned about earnings per share (EPS) dilution, providing a natural hedge in foreign debt issues, credit ratings, under/overvaluation of stocks and corporate control, whereas they are significantly important in developed markets. Age and education mostly explain the differences. Research limitations/implications The study is restricted to large companies in a relatively smaller market. Hence, sample size is relatively small, even though it shows a higher response rate. Practical implications The study offers insights for corporate financing decision-makers that could impact on firm value through a shift in emphasis toward capital structure theories. Originality/value The paper focuses on corporate financing practices in Sri Lanka in search of emerging market features that could mitigate the gap in the emerging market literature through survey evidence.

This study explores the relationship between the overseas experience of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) and digital transformation in Chinese listed companies, using data from 2009 to 2022. Grounded in upper echelons theory, the research examines how CFOs’ international experience influences corporate strategy and digital innovation. The results demonstrate that CFOs with overseas experience significantly drive digital transformation within firms. This finding is robust, surviving multiple tests, including instrumental variable analysis to address endogeneity and various robustness checks. Further analysis reveals that while CFOs’ overseas work experience has a strong positive impact on digital transformation, their overseas education experience has an insignificant effect. The study also identifies research and development (R&D) intensity and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices as key mediators that enhance the relationship between CFOs’ overseas experience and digital transformation. These findings suggest that CFOs with international experience contribute strategic vision and a global perspective, fostering innovation and sustainability within the firm. By linking CFOs’ overseas experience with innovation and sustainable development strategies, this research contributes to the theoretical understanding of how strategic leadership impacts digital transformation. The study recommends that companies prioritize the overseas experience of CFOs to gain competitive advantages and create long-term value.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the unique and challenging relationship between the chief financial officer (CFO) and chief information officer (CIO) in the public sector.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, the authors operationalize the CFO–CIO relationship using upper echelon theory (UET) and propose an extension to it by introducing relationship effectiveness and role perception constructs. Applying a configurational approach to paired survey data, the authors use fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to examine both joint and individual role paths to success.FindingsThe CFO is ultimately responsible for financial reporting, disclosure and financial decision-making; however, regulatory changes in the accounting domain have resulted in the increased use of information technology (IT) thereby bringing the CIO to the forefront of the accounting information discussion. Thus, an improved understanding of the CFO/CIO relationship can have a direct impact on how accounting information is captured and analyzed. The authors find that CFO and CIO proximity can often increase the likelihood of an effective relationship. On an individual level, an ambidextrous approach to strategic value and cost-effectiveness is key to both CFO and CIO success.Research limitations/implicationsThis study extends current models of top management team relationships by examining work proximity and role perception in the context of UET. It was conducted within the context of Canadian government and post-secondary education. The authors believe the findings can be generalized for the public sector in general; however, its applicability in the private sector, where the role of the CFO is broader, is uncertain.Practical implicationsThe findings identify an opportunity for both accounting (financial) and IT communities to develop education within the context of their respective professional bodies to enhance this special relationship.Originality/valueRecent regulatory changes in the accounting domain have brought an increased need for IT and therefore increased interaction between the CFO and CIO. This study focuses on the unique relationship between the CFO and CIO, which has a direct impact on accounting functions and highlights the importance of both the CFO and CIO having an ambidextrous approach to strategic value and cost-effectiveness if they want to be successful. In addition, it demonstrates that the relationship between the CFO and CIO is important, but more important for the success of the CIO than the CFO.

Earnings management offers an opportunity to hide frauds, which are often associated with key officials of corporate entities. Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) have been implicated in fraudulent earnings management. This study aims to investigate the effect of CFOs’ personality traits on earnings management in non-listed companies facing a debt crisis in Nigeria. The study explores a survey research method involving the administration of copies of a structured questionnaire on CFOs of the sampled companies. Statistical analysis includes computation of means, linear and multiple regression analyses. The findings reveal a high level of upward corporate earnings management and a strong exhibition of narcissistic trait among the CFOs. It was further observed that CFOs’ narcissistic trait is implicated in upward earnings management during the financial crisis. Possible economic implications of these outcomes include misallocation of resources by investors and aggravation of corporate debt crisis. These outcomes have policy implications on the appointment of corporate key officials and the accounting education curriculum. Consequently, the study recommends the personality trait test for individuals to be appointed into upper echelons’ positions in corporate organizations, as well as the inclusion of Element of Psychology in the curriculum of accounting education in Nigeria. AcknowledgmentOur sincere gratitude goes to Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria, for sponsoring the publication of this research paper as a contribution to the body of existing knowledge in corporate financial reporting in Nigeria.

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the relationship between characteristics of chief financial officers (CFOs) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) system adoption. Following upper echelons theory, the authors theorize that CFO age, education, tenure and recruitment influence ERP system adoption, and that this relationship is moderated by the CFO being responsible for firm-wide information technology (IT) functions.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical analysis is based on a survey of 296 large and medium-sized Austrian firms. Logistic regression analyses were used to test the association between CFO characteristics and ERP system adoption.FindingsThe authors find that firms with externally recruited CFOs have adopted ERP systems significantly more often than firms with internally promoted CFOs. Surprisingly, the results indicate that firms with less educated CFOs more often adopted an ERP system, and that the relationship between CFO characteristics and ERP system adoption is not moderated by the CFO being responsible for IT.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper adds to the literature by corroborating case-based evidence that CFOs and their characteristics influence ERP system adoption. Extending previous research which indicates that CFO characteristics influence accounting practices, the authors show that CFO characteristics also influence technological innovation such as the adoption of ERP systems. Future research on technological innovation may therefore pay closer attention to the influence of CFOs.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to quantitatively test the influence of CFO characteristics on ERP system adoption.

PurposeThis paper aims to examine whether high equity incentives motivate executives to avoid issuing convertible debt and/or to design convertible debt issues as anti-dilutive to earnings-per-share (EPS).Design/methodology/approachTests are conducted using the Heckman two-step probit model to control for potential self-selection bias between firms that issue straight debt and those that issue convertible debt. Further, analyses are conducted separately and jointly for the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to assess the differential impact of CEOs’ and CFOs’ equity incentives on convertible debt issuance and design decisions.FindingsFirms are more likely to design convertible debt issues as anti-dilutive to EPS when CFOs have high levels of equity incentives, but only when the firm stock price is sensitive to diluted EPS. High CEOs’ equity incentives have limited impact of convertible debt issuance and design decisions.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of this study is the generalizability of the findings and implications of this study due to the smaller sample size of convertible debt issues.Originality/valuePrior research has shown that bonus incentives influence CEOs with disincentive for EPS dilution and motivate them to make anti-dilutive financing decisions. Further, there is evidence that high equity incentives motivate CEOs to manage earnings to boost short-term prices. This study extends prior literature by showing that high equity incentives provide executives with disincentive for EPS dilution and motivate CFOs to design convertible debt issues as anti-dilutive to EPS possibly to avoid reduced stock prices. Further, this study shows that CFOs have greater influence over convertible debt design choices than CEOs do.

Little is known about the effect of CFO (chief financial officer) tenure and earnings management using classification shifting. Based on upper echelons theory, this paper empirically investigates the impact of CFO tenure on classification shifting using data on Chinese A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2015. The results show that CFO tenure is negatively related to classification shifting, indicating that CFOs with longer tenures can mitigate the classification shifting behavior. Further tests show that firms have higher levels of classification shifting when CFOs are in the early or final years of their tenure. This research helps to understand the relationship between CFO tenure and earnings management.

Using accruals as a proxy for financial reporting quality, Peni and Vahamaa (2010) and Barua, Davidson, Rama, and Thiruvadi (2010) provide evidence that female Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) are more moral than male CFOs. Using 2,048 U.S. firm-year propensity score matching samples from 1997-2014, this stereotyped relationship is re-examined by empirically testing the likelihood of Real Earnings Management (REM) by female CFOs. Overall, the results show that female CFOs are, on average, 6% more likely to manipulate REM than male CFOs. One possible explanation for these results is that female CFOs face significant pressure (e.g., age, wage or diversity) and/or are motivated by earnings management incentives (e.g., avoiding reporting losses, meeting earnings benchmarks or beating analysts’ forecasts). The likelihood of REM by female CFOs is weakened after including pressure on female CFOs into the regression models. Surprisingly, the results suggest that female CFOs who beat analysts’ forecasts by more than one cent are less likely to manipulate REM. This latter result suggests that the documented association between female CFOs and REM might be triggered by poor firm performance. Further analysis suggests that while female CFOs are significantly associated with high firm performance, female CFOs who manipulate REM are significantly associated with low firm performance, especially cash flow from operations. This study contributes to prior literature on diversity, organizational behavior, and earnings management in several ways. It suggests that individual behaviors in organizations are more complex than they appear. Early childhood and heredity may not be valid structural determinants of organizational behavior.

The key roles of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in firm operating performance, corporate strategic choices, and corporate governance have been increasingly emphasized in recent decades. In this study, we empirically investigate the relation between CFO board membership and corporate investment efficiency to determine whether CFO presence on the board reduces firms’ propensity to over- or underinvest. We find that CFO board membership is significantly associated with a decreased level of corporate over- and underinvestment. Further, the positive effects of CFO board membership on corporate investment efficiency are greater for firms with greater information asymmetries. Last but not least, we find that the improved investment efficiency experienced by firms with CFOs on their boards has a positive effect on the firms’ future performance. Overall, we find that CFO board membership is associated with improved investment efficiency and firms’ future profitability. By documenting the real business impact of CFO board membership on investment efficiency and firms’ future performance, we add bricks to the literature on board composition and how it influences firms’ strategic choices and performance. Our findings suggest that having CFOs on boards could benefit firms’ investment practices, which directly relate to corporate strategic performance.

PurposeThis study aims to examine the relationship between the presence of ex-auditor chief executive officers (CEOs) and ex-auditor chief financial officers (CFOs) with the company's investment efficiency decisions.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use non-financial Indonesian listed firms, and the authors obtain 2,763 firm-year observations of ex-auditor CEOs and 2,708 firm-year observations of ex-auditor CFOs from 2010–2019.FindingsThe results show that ex-auditor CEOs tend to make efficient investment decisions, while ex-auditor CFOs do not. However, when a company has a CEO and a CFO who are both former auditors, there is a significantly stronger positive relationship with investment efficiency. These results indicate that working experience as an auditor can optimally facilitate the decision regarding investment level. Moreover, the results suggest that the CEO, as top management, has more influence in providing the company's final investment decisions, whereas the CFO plays a role in providing investment recommendations to the CEO. The results of this study are consistent with the use of alternative measurements and the robustness test of Coarsened Exact Matching (CEM).Practical implicationsThe results of this study can contribute as material for consideration by company management in selecting company organs with an auditor background to secure efficient investment.Originality/valueThis study specifically examines the experience, values, and particular characteristics of top management with an auditor background on the company's strategic decisions. This study is also based on the phenomenon that the number of ex-auditor CEOs and CFOs in Indonesia tends to increase every year.

PurposeThe Chief Financial Officer (CFO), despite being a critical organization member responsible for ensuring quality of financial reporting, audit and compliance, is under-researched. Grouped as a member of top management teams (TMS) in studies, factors influencing decision making in this group rely on static measures of characteristics without regard for dynamic and longitudinal influences of career trajectories and industry occupational group memberships. The relationship between the high-tech industry as a site of notable reported internal control (IC) weakness and influences on CFOs requires closer examination. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws together the upper echelons theory and occupational communities (OCs) to explore the impact of shared values and behavioral norms from different sources on executive decision making. Internal and external sources of OC are proposed and their influence on activities with respect to corporate IC is tested. The sample of 1,573 firm/year observations includes high-tech firms listed on major US exchanges was developed using data from five distinct databases. Executives’ biographic information was manually collected.FindingsResults indicate that senior financial executives belong not only to their firm and its culture but also to OCs that extend beyond the firm. Membership in professional credential granting occupational groups has less impact on effective IC than experience in the high-tech industry. In combination, multiple OCs show evidence of compound and counteracting effects on IC. The OC that arises in the high-tech industry makes a measurable positive difference in the quality of IC in sample firms, in contrast with the OC among credentialed accounting and financial professionals.Research limitations/implicationsThis quantitative study of OC reveals the differential impact of different sources of OC and contributes to the literature on TMS a new framework for examining decision making. OC is typically studied through qualitative methods and, thus, potential exists to further explore the specific nature and dynamics of the OCs identified in this study.Practical implicationsThe study highlights the role of broad affiliations and networks among senior financial executives which may have bearing on their ability to effectively manage IC. The role of these networks may also partially explain instances of CFO failure and thus dismissal. Knowledge of the role of OC may help boards of directors in the selection and promotion of senior financial officers of the firm.Originality/valueThe paper offers a different perspective on professional accounting expertise in one specific industry where incidence of IC weakness is high relative to other industries. Study results expand recent research on TMS to include sociological impacts of cohort groups. Despite generally weaker IC in the high-tech sector, this study demonstrates the value of exploring group membership within the industry as an important predictor of behavior. The result is a new perspective to CFO decision making which illustrates the relevance of OCs among upper echelons. The implications of findings for CFO recruitment and promotion are borne out in recent instances of senior financial executive failure in the sector.

The gradual promotion and implementation of financial transformation in enterprises has created a more perfect control environment and opportunity for entire management and control of cash flow and value management in enterprises. So this paper tries to establish the management and control model of cash flow in enterprises. The model is composed of two parts: strategic management of cash flow and tactical management of cash flow, concerning four levels: operators, managers, monitors and decision-makers. Its core contents include three parts: strategic planning of cash flow and cash value-added (objective), ‘threedimension’ balance of management and control of cash flow and cash flow budget (process) and performance evaluation of cash flow (result). It is a complete selfcontained feedback system, which is composed of ‘objective- process- result’, and the enterprise physical flow, information flow and capital flow provide the support of basic data for the model.KeywordsCash FlowCash Value-AddedManagement and Control Model

The problem of managing the enterprise's cash flows is relevant, since the successful management of these resources is the key to the financial security and stability of any business entity. The purpose of the study was to identify universal recommendations for improving the enterprise's cash flow management by generalizing the theoretical aspects of cash flow management and analysing the cash flows of PJSC “Odesa Cognac Factory”. The following methods were used in the study: systematization and generalization (theoretical aspects were studied and existing views of scientists on the essence and management of cash flows were summarized), factor analysis (key financial factors influencing the process of enterprise cash flow management were identified), coefficient analysis (analysis of the efficiency of enterprise cash flow management was carried out). Using the example of the operating enterprise PJSC “Odesa Cognac Factory”, the dynamics of changes in the key components of cash flow management is analysed and the existing gaps in their management are identified. The carried out analysis allowed identifying possible directions for improving the efficiency of cash flow management of the enterprise and to provide certain recommendations, as a result of implementation of which the enterprise will have a positive impact on its further activities, namely: focusing on optimization of available cash flows and their balancing; studying the regularity of their movement in the enterprise by calculating the liquidity and solvency indicators; considering the possibility of introducing the use of budgeting and financial management in the enterprise as additional tools for managing cash flows; creation of an independent department for controlling the movement of available cash flows; use of reliable and timely accounting information on cash flows when making certain management decisions due to the increased use of modern information technologies. The practical value of the study is the universal nature of the recommendations provided for the implementation of measures to improve the efficiency of cash flow management, since these recommendations can also be used by other similar enterprises

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is a chief executive whose responsibilities are related to accounting and audit work. However, there is a downward trend in hiring CFOs with an accounting background. Therefore, we aim to study the relationship between accountant CFO and audit outcomes. This paper use samples of non-financial firms listed on the Indonesia Exchange Stock (IDX) from 2010 to 2018 and using OLS with a cluster by the firm in Stata 17.0 to analyze the relationship between accountant CFO and audit outcomes. We document that accountant CFOs tend to appoint Big4 accounting firms because they demand a higher audit quality. Furthermore, the results suggest that accountant CFOs are more likely to have a higher audit fee, a higher audit quality, and a shorter audit report lag. This finding shows that the accountant CFO can be related to the audit outcomes and this shows how auditors value the accountant CFOs. We expect this paper contributes to enrich the literature on accountant CFO and helps firms in hiring their CFO.