Tackling Complexity: Process Reconstruction and Graph Transformation for Financial Audits

A key objective of implementing business intelligence tools and methods is to analyze voluminous data and to derive information that would otherwise not be available. Although the overall significance of business intelligence has increased with the general growth of processed and available data it is almost absent in the auditing industry. Public accountants face the challenge to provide an opinion on financial statements that are based on the data produced by the automated processing of countless business transactions in ERP systems. Methods for mining and reconstructing financially relevant process instances can be used as a data analysis tool in the specific context of auditing. In this article we introduce and evaluate an algorithm that effectively reduces the complexity of mined process instances. The presented methods provide a part of the foundation for implementing automated analysis and audit procedures that can assist auditors to perform more efficient and effective audits

Financial Supervision Fragmentation and Central Bank Independence: The Two Sides of the Same Coin?

This paper analyses how the central banks role in the monetary institutional setting can affect the unification process of the overall financial supervision architecture. Using indicators of monetary commitment and central bank independence, we claim that these legal proxies show an inverse link with financial supervision unification. Therefore, the trade off still holds between the supervisory and the central bank involvement per se, however, monetary commitment and independence do also matter. In this respect, in an institutional setting characterized by a central bank deeply and successfully involved in supervision, or legally independent, a multi-authority model is likely to occur.Financial Supervision, Single Authority, Central Bank Independence, Monetary Commitment

Co-production of knowledge: A conceptual approach for integrative knowledge management in planning

Sustainable land use needs a manageable nexus of knowledge from planning practice, policy makers, the private economy, and civic society, as well as from scientific research. This is mutually dependent on the communicative and collaborative turn in spatial planning as well as by transdisciplinary research approaches. This paper offers an approach how to organise knowledge management and co-production of knowledge in the context of complex land use decisions. Therefore, a prototype of an internet-based knowledge platform is introduced based on a theoretical reflection of concepts for integrated information and knowledge management, as well as on practical experiences derived from a German case study. We conclude that sustainable land use requires Planning Support Systems (PSS) that combine transdisciplinary perspectives in order to co-produce robust knowledge. This also implies a transdisciplinary design of PSS. Challenges of implementation are discussed and further research is specified

Systematic sharing of knowledge obtained in pilot projects in spatial planning

Pilot projects are implemented to obtain results and knowledge that can be reused subsequently. In this paper, we address the question of the efficient and effective distribution of insights between pilot projects. We present detailed considerations on the structures which are required to share the results and knowledge obtained through evaluations of the stages of pilot projects. By establishing such structures, the reuse of existing knowledge is significantly simplified. A common structure for pilot projects allows for information sharing between equal stages of simultaneously running pilot projects. If the obtained knowledge of these individual stages is easily accessible, the need to review a comprehensive final project report is eliminated. For future pilot projects and large-scale projects, the costs associated with reusing existing knowledge is reduced and the cost-benefit ratio improves. We exemplify this by investigating systematic information sharing between equally structured pilot projects

THE DEVELOPMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN INDUSTRY: A LONG WAY TO BECOMING A PROFESSION

Im folgenden Beitrag wird die Auffassung vertreten, dass sich die betriebliche Personalentwicklung, verstanden als wirtschaftlich- betrieblich-pädagogische Dienstleistung, in der funktional differenzierten österreichischen Gesellschaft trotz einer merklichen Schlüsselpositionierung noch nicht als Profession konstituiert hat. Die Berufsgruppe der (haupt- wie nebenberufl ichen) PersonalentwicklerInnen ist auch im kollektiven Bewusstsein der Bevölkerung kaum vorhanden und verfügt trotz ihrer eigenständigen symbolischen Sinnwelt und Orientierung am Wohl der überantworteten Menschen in der medialen Öffentlichkeit nicht wirklich über ein ausgeprägtes Berufsimage. Daher wird die Verwendung der gesellschaftstheoretischen Figur ‚Berufskultur’ favorisiert und beleuchtet, welche konstitutiven Elemente die betriebsinterne Personalentwicklung zwar berechtigt als gesellschaftlich relevante Berufskultur, nicht aber als ‚Profession’ ausweisen.U radu se donosi mišljenje da se razvoj ljudskih resursa, ako se shvaća kao privredno-pedagoška uslužna djelatnost, u funkcionalno diferenciranom austrijskom društvu još nije konstituirao kao profesija usprkos zamjetnoj ključnoj poziciji koju zauzima. Profi l zanimanja kojom se bavi osoba zadužena za o razvoj ljudskih resursa (kao glavnim ili dopunskim poslom) jedva da postoji u kolektivnoj svijesti stanovništva i usprkos svojem samostalnom simboličnoj značenjskoj sferi i orijentaciji na dobrobit ljudi, u javnosti nema baš izražen profesionalni imidž. Stoga se radije rabi i ispituje društveno-teorijska sintagma „profesionalna kultura“ čiji sastavni elementi doduše opravdavaju osobni razvoj unutar profesije kao društveno relevantnu profesionalnu kulturu, ali ne kao i na „profesiju“The paper takes the view that the development of human resources in industry, understood to be an economic, industrial, and educational service, has not yet become established in the functionally differentiated Austrian society , despite its noticeable key position. The professional group of (full-time and sideline) Human Resources Developers is also barely present in the collective consciousness of the population and does not really possess a distinctive professional image in spite of its independent symbolic sphere of meaning and orientation towards the well-being of those entrusted in the medial public. Consequently, the utilization of the socio-theoretical figure “Professional Culture” is preferred and examined. The constituent elements thereof identify and justify internal human resources development as a socially relevant professional culture but not as a “profession”

Paradigms of Business Consulting Agreements

Business consulting represents one of the most important activities in the service economy, yet its contractual arrangements have rarely been analysed. Various scandals linked to professional consulting in recent times, such as the accounting scandal surrounding the German DAX-company, Wirecard, or the ‘Luanda Leaks’, give reason for a closer look at this activity, as well as the corresponding contractual agreements. Additionally, the regular functioning of consulting agreements is largely undiscussed. The aim of this contribution is (1) to highlight the essential problems of business consultancy contracts, namely the informational advantage of the consultant with regard to the quality of advice and price; structural conflicts of interest, especially in the case of business consultancy by auditors; the possibilities of abusing consultancy contracts for personal gain, as well as the liability of the consultant and the exemption of management from liability through the use of consultants; and (2) to propose solutions to these problems using the existing rules of due diligence and collateral duties, especially by applying general norms in the light of the economic function of management consultants as brokers for knowledge and know-how.Le conseil aux entreprises représente l’une des activités les plus importantes de l’économie des services, mais ses contrats n’ont guère été analysés. Divers scandales liés au conseil professionnel, tels que le scandale comptable entourant la société allemande Wirecard ou les ‘Luanda Leaks’, ont récemment donné lieu à un examen plus approfondi de cette activité et de ses accords contractuels. Cependant, le fonctionnement régulier des accords de conseil est également peu discuté. L’objectif de cette contribution est (1) de mettre en évidence les problèmes essentiels des contrats de conseil en gestion, à savoir l’avantage informationnel du consultant en ce qui concerne la qualité du conseil et le prix; les conflits d’intérêts structurels,104 notamment dans le cas du conseil en gestion par des auditeurs; les possibilités d’abuser des contrats de conseil à des fins personnelles ainsi que la responsabilité du consultant et l’exonération de responsabilité de la direction par le recours à des consultants; et (2) de proposer leur solution par le biais des règles existantes de diligence raisonnable et des obligations collatérales en appliquant des normes générales à la lumière de la fonction économique des consultants en gestion en tant que courtiers en information.Die Unternehmensberatung stellt eine der wichtigsten Tätigkeiten in der Dienstleistungswirtschaft dar, ihre Verträge sind jedoch kaum untersucht worden. Verschiedene Skandale im Zusammenhang mit der Unternehmensberatung in jüngster Zeit, wie zB der Bilanzskandal um das deutsche DAX-Unternehmen Wirecard oder die ʻ‘Luanda Leaksʼ, Leaks’, geben Anlass, diese Tätigkeit und ihre vertraglichen Vereinbarungen näher zu beleuchten. Aber auch die reguläre Funktionsweise von Beraterverträgen ist weitgehend undiskutiert. Ziel dieses Beitrags ist es, (1) auf die wesentlichen Probleme von Unternehmensberatungsverträgen hinzuweisen, nämlich den Informationsvorsprung des Beraters in Bezug auf Beratungsqualität und Preis; strukturelle Interessenkonflikte, insbesondere bei der Unternehmensberatung durch Wirtschaftsprüfer; die Möglichkeiten des Mißbrauchs von Beratungsverträgen zur persönlichen Bereicherung sowie die Haftung des Beraters und die Haftungsbefreiung des Managements durch den Einsatz von Beratern; und (2) deren Lösung durch die bestehenden Regeln der Sorgfalts- und Nebenpflichten unter Anwendung allgemeiner Normen im Lichte der wirtschaftlichen Funktion von Unternehmensberatern als Informationsvermittler vorzuschlagen.Peer Reviewe

Stakes are High: Essays on Brazil and the Future of the Global Internet

This workbook seeks to provide some background to the Global Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance (NETmundial) scheduled for April 23rd and 24th 2014 in São Paulo, Brazil. It is designed to help outline the internet policy issues that are at stake and will be discussed at NETmundial, as well as background on internet policy in Brazil. The workbook includes essays on the history of the NETmundial meeting and the Marco Civil process in Brazil; some background on the environment in Germany—with particular attention to the link between the meeting and the Snowden case; questions of legitimacy surrounding open processes for lawmaking; and comments on the material presented to the organizing committee by official and unofficial commenters. This workbook was produced as a part of the Internet Policy Observatory, a program at the Center for Global Communication Studies, the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. It was edited and curated by a steering committee including Ellery Roberts Biddle of Global Voices, Ronaldo Lemos of the Rio Institute for Technology and Society, and Monroe Price of the Annenberg School for Communication. They were assisted by Alexandra Esenler, Laura Schwartz-Henderson, and Briar Smith

Jahresbericht Forschung und Entwicklung 2008

Forschungsjahresbericht 2008 der Hochschule Konstanz Technik, Wirtschaft und Gestaltun

Strategies, programs, and projects pertaining to policy on transport: research in selected European states, the United States, and Japan (short title: 'SmartBench') ; final report on Sweden

"The government in Sweden champions the international competitiveness of the country' s economy and industry. The structure and substance of transport research in Sweden is in constant flux. Because Sweden has its own automotive industry, extensive and cost-intensive research programs on vehicle development are conducted in cooperation with industry, the research community, and the government and are largely financed by the Swedish state. Setting priorities in transport research also seems to come easier to Sweden than to Germany, where authority is shared by the federal government, state governments, and their respective ministries in a way unknown in Sweden. On the whole, Sweden is one of the world's innovative leaders in both applied and basic research on transport, an assessment reflected in the ambitious objectives of the country' s transport policy. An outstanding example thereof is 'Vision Zero', Sweden's long-term goal of completely eliminating deaths due to accidents. Sweden, like other countries, is grappling with the impacts of mass motorization. In comparison to the German way of dealing with these problems, the Swedish approach seems to focus pragmatically more on environmental objectives and safety standards and devotes greater attention to the needs of disadvantaged road users. The social sciences, a traditional strength in Sweden, play a major role. Swedish transport research addresses the topics of safety, environment, and future technologies. The independent Swedish local authorities conduct their own environmentally ambitious transport projects, which are scientifically grounded political decisions promoting informed efforts to help the environment." (author's abstract)"Der schwedische Staat fördert massiv die Sicherung der internationalen Wettbewerbsfähigkeit der nationalen Wirtschaft und Industrie. Die Verkehrsforschung in Schweden befindet sich dementsprechend in einem permanenten strukturellen und thematischen Veränderungs- und Anpassungsprozess. Da Schweden ein Land mit einer eigenen Fahrzeugindustrie ist, werden umfangreiche und kostenintensive Forschungsprogramme zur Fahrzeugentwicklung in Kooperation von Industrie, Forschung und Staat aufgelegt und zum größeren Teil vom Staat finanziert. Die politische Steuerung der Akzentsetzungen in der Verkehrsforschung scheint leichter als hier zu Lande, da es eine Aufteilung von Kompetenzen zwischen dem Bund, den Ministerien und den Ländern in Schweden so nicht gibt. Insgesamt ist Schweden im internationalen Vergleich sowohl in der angewandten Verkehrsforschung als auch in der Grundlagenforschung innovativ. Dies korrespondiert nicht zuletzt mit den ambitionierten Zielen der Verkehrspolitik. Die 'Vision Zero', das langfristige Ziel keine Verkehrstoten mehr zu wollen, ist dabei ein herausragendes Leitbild. Auch Schweden hat die bekannten Probleme mit den Folgen der Massenmotorisierung. Im Unterschied aber zu Deutschland wirkt der Umgang mit diesen Problemen stärker und pragmatisch an Umweltzielen und Sicherheitsstandards ausgerichtet, wobei den Anforderungen schwächerer Verkehrsteilnehmer/innen mehr Beachtung geschenkt wird. Hier spielt die starke sozialwissenschaftliche Verkehrsforschung eine wichtige Rolle. Die Themen der Verkehrsforschung insgesamt sind Sicherheit, Umwelt und Zukunftstechnologien. Die unabhängigen schwedischen Kommunen führen eigene, umweltpolitisch ambitionierte Verkehrsprojekte durch, die die wissenschaftlichen Anstrengungen unterstützen und umgekehrt auch verkehrswissenschaftlich begründet werden." (Autorenreferat