Suchergebnisse

Board of directors' audit committees are becoming an increasingly popular vehicle for enhancing the objectivity and independence of auditors and overseeing the financial information generating process. This is occurring at a time when directors and auditors are facing criticism and increased litigation due to corporate failures and disclosures of illegal or questionable payments.
This article examines the workings of a corporate audit committee that operated in the mid-nineteenth century. The committee functioned as "auditor" for the company since there was no established public accounting profession in the U.S. at that time. They disentangled the financial affairs of the company and probably directly contributed to the replacement of the President of the company. Although the activities of corporate audit committees have changed or evolved considerably through the years, both the 1870 corporate audit committee and modern corporate audit committees have pursued a common goal of achieving accuracy and completeness in corporate financial reports.

Audit committees have become a standard feature of corporate governance in UK listed companies since the publication of the Cadbury Committee's report in 1992. Despite some initial sceptical comment, their widespread adoption has apparently been uncontroversial. However, a decade later, remarkably little is known about how they operate and whether they are effective in providing the benefits anticipated by Cadbury. In the aftermath of Enron, expectations of the audit committee role in supporting auditor independence are likely to intensify. A key feature of audit committee activity – indeed, of the role of the non‐executive director – appears to be the asking of questions, but the practical link between the questioning process and the achievement of the benefits outlined by the proponents of audit committees remains obscure. This paper argues that both the content and context of the questioning process deserve further examination if audit committee activity is to be seen as anything more than a ceremonial performance.

PurposeThe gender theory demonstrates that women have made significant contributions to the increases of firm performance and monitoring the management. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the association between audit committee gender diversity (ACGD) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure of the firms listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conduct regression analysis to test the association between the presence of female members on the AC and CSR disclosure. The final sample in this study consists of 693 firm‐year observations from Iranian listed firms over the period 2012–2018. Moreover, to ensure the robustness of the findings, this study uses a series of sensitivity analysis tests.FindingsThe regression results show that ACGD has a significant positive influence on the level of CSR disclosure. The finding is robust to alternative measure of ACGD, CSR disclosure and endogeneity concern.Practical implicationsThe findings have numerous practical implications for regulators, policy makers, managers and investors. This study has implications for Iranian regulators and policymakers and sends positive signal about recommending or requiring gender diversity on the board and its subgroups such as AC. Furthermore, the findings have implications for the investors, so that they have to make informed investment decisions given both financial factors and ACGD, and eventually invest in those firms with women membership in their AC's composition.Social implicationsConcerning with board of directors and the general assembly of shareholders, as the findings suggest the significant role of ACGD in the enhancement of CSR disclosure, boards and the general assembly are to engage women in AC composition to both increase AC efficiency and improve CSR disclosure level.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study of its kind that investigates the association between ACGD and CSR disclosure in emerging capital markets, and therefore can contribute to extend the current literature on CSR in developing countries, especially Iran's emerging capital market.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between the presence of females on the audit committee and the number of audit committee meetings.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses a multivariate regression model to examine the association between gender on the audit committee and the number of audit committee meetings used as a proxy for audit committee diligence. The paper uses a sample of 254 firms from the S&P SmallCap600, with a December 31, 2003 fiscal year‐end.FindingsThe author finds consistent evidence to show that audit committees with at least one female director were likely to meet more often than all‐male audit committees.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research suggests that it may be fruitful to examine the effects of gender on other aspects of audit committee and board activities and the interaction between audit committees, management, and the external auditor. Furthermore, the results of the paper have strong implications for regulators and policy makers, since the presence of a female director on the audit committee may bring many positive outcomes, thereby leading to better corporate governance practices. Hence, the appointment of more females on the audit committee should be strongly emphasized.Originality/valueThis research paper contributes to the contemporary literature regarding the increased awareness of good outcomes associated with having women on the audit committee in various ways. First, this research encourages the appointment of more females on the audit committee. Second, increased diligence of the audit committee leads to enhanced corporate governance practices. Third, the presence of females on the audit committee could lead to good corporate decision making. Fourth, the presence of a female on the audit committee could lead to increased confidence of the public. Fifth, this research also serves as an influencing power to encourage equal opportunities for both men and women.

In the wake of the report of the Cadbury Committee on Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance, most major public companies in the UK now have an audit committee in place. However, commentators have noted that the establishment of an audit committee does not guarantee its effectiveness and it is pertinent to the continuing corporate governance debate to consider how such effectiveness may be assessed. This paper reports on a study which examines audit committee activities through interviews with audit committee chairs, finance directors and internal and external auditors. The study identifies influences on the development and activities of audit committees which have not previously been researched in any detail: these include the reasons for audit committee establishment, the timing and conduct of meetings, and communication between participants. The paper argues that audit committee effectiveness should be evaluated from a perspective which acknowledges these influences and recognises the continuing development of the audit committee role over time.