All articles by Robert Herz
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Blog
Disclosure effectiveness gains traction and momentum
A host of private and regulatory groups are making big strides in improving disclosure effectiveness. Robert Herz has more.
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Blog
The SEC’s summer reading list is not for the faint of heart
Robert Herz reviews the SEC’s recent accounting and enforcement releases, which reveal familiar patterns in corruption, as well as a commitment by the SEC to commence enforcement actions on any accounting and reporting violations it finds.
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Blog
Expanded auditor report: take two
The PCAOB has issued a reproposal to amend and expand the auditor’s report, keeping in mind a similar proposal from the United Kingdom’s Financial Reporting Council. Columnist Robert Herz says the U.K. proposal has been well received and signals a fundamental change in auditor reporting across the world.
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Blog
FASB offers guidance on hedge accounting complexities
Image: Hedge accounting can help organizations manage exposures that range from changing interest rates to counterparty credit risk. But the rules that govern hedge accounting are extremely detailed and require close compliance consideration. CW columnist Robert Herz discusses how, with new regulations proposed, things are only going to get more ...
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Blog
The pros and cons of quarterly reporting
Image: A common criticism of the requirement for U.S. public companies to report quarterly is that it engenders too much short termism. The debate over the pros and cons of quarterly reporting has raged for decades, with no end in sight. But what if there was a way to retain ...
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Blog
Seven Habits of Effective Audit Fee Management
Corporate audit fees are rising again. This is probably not news to you. Still, research of why audit fees are rising—and why some companies can continue robust business activity without painfully higher fees—reveals certain practices that do keep fees relatively reasonable. This week, columnist Robert Herz discusses those seven steps ...
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Blog
The U.S. Financial Reporting System, Circa 2015: Are We OK?
Not long ago a foreign student in financial reporting put a question to columnist Robert Herz: Why is the United States falling behind in financial reporting? The questioner cited three points—accounting standards, expanded audit reports, and sustainability reporting—as reason for his position. This week, Herz re-examines U.S. performance on those ...
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Blog
Gleaning Enforcement Insights From Accounting Missteps
A confession from Compliance Week columnist Robert Herz: He spends time each summer reading Accounting & Auditing Enforcement Releases the SEC publishes as part of its enforcement against corporate misconduct. This week, Herz looks over the various AAERs of the last 12 months to pluck out common themes: more enforcement ...
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Blog
Improving EITF to Improve Accounting Practice
FASB’s Emerging Issues Task Force turns 30 this year, and with that comes its third 10-year review of how the EITF should consider new accounting issues. This week, columnist Robert Herz offers his thoughts on where the EITF can improve, including what issues it addresses and voting practices to make ...
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Blog
Tilting Toward IFRS Experiments in the U.S.
Last December, SEC officials raised yet again the idea of letting U.S. companies file financial data—just a bit, on a voluntary basis—according to International Financial Reporting Standards. The proposal was the latest in a long discussion about whether to let U.S. businesses adopt IFRS. This week, Compliance Week columnist Robert ...
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Blog
New Ideas on Disclosure Reform
Disclosure reform is one of the more intractable problems of corporate reporting. The SEC says it will work to move that issue forward this year, and inside, Compliance Week columnist Robert Herz offers his view on how to reinvigorate that project: Aim for a system of one corporate “evergreen” file ...
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Blog
The Ingredients for Good Non-Financial Reporting
Good disclosure begins with good standards. That has been challenging enough for financial reporting, and now investors want even more disclosure about important non-financial information. This week, Compliance Week columnist Robert Herz talks about the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (disclosure: he sits on SASB’s board), its effort to develop disclosure ...
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Blog
Keeping Reporting Overseers on the Same Page
The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board have several formal and informal channels to compare notes and exchange ideas. Still, some wonder if a forum to discuss the reporting system as a whole and the long-term health of that system ...
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