Roles of accounting practice in a public setting: the case of the Parisian Great Exhibitions (1855-1900).

The five Universal Exhibitions held in Paris between 1855 and 1900 share the particularity of having been, unlike their British counterparts, financed first wholly, then in part, by the Government. Public financing led to public finance principles (budgetary and public accounting) being applied to the organisation of the Exhibitions. Along with these, the organisation in charge of running these events imported a set of well-formatted techniques. However, these techniques (budgeting and accounting technique) were part of a highly specific type of organisation that bore all the hallmarks of a project:  an Exhibition is characterised by strong notions of vision, intentionality and voluntarist action: it seeks to achieve objectives (of presentation/democratisation and dissemination) which require a certain number of specific activities to be set up, the results of which, subject to uncertainty or exogenous variables, must be measured both as preparations advance, and then again retrospectively, after the event.  an Exhibition is an event limited in time and space (it opens on a given date and for a length of time decided by the law (or decree) and its organisation is traditionally divided into four well-defined phases: preparation, realisation, exploitation and liquidation. The principles of public finance must therefore be adapted to a specific organisational environment and in particular, to the managerial constraints of the event. The system of accounting information is very much part of a process of organisational perception, governance and strategic mobilisation. The Universal Exhibitions provide an original field of investigation for examining the roles attributed to accounting within the framework of the organisation of such events. The originality here derives as much from the context (a project to be managed over a period of time and where no tool or project management model existed (Michaïlesco, 2007)) as from the public nature of the accounting technique used. Indeed, since knowledge of public accounting practice is incomplete, the study of organisation by the state would seem extremely interesting for the history of public finance (Thuillier, 1999). From this point of view, the Universal Exhibitions organised in Paris during the second half of the 19th century were organised under two different political regimes and within two distinct public finance frameworks. Changes in the regulations governing public finances had an impact on the powers bestowed on the organisations in charge putting on the Exhibitions. The accounting systems which were set up therefore had to be adapted to fit within the time limit. Moreover, public accounting was designed with the aim of controlling the collection of taxes and their use (Lemarchand, 1999), which is different from running an Exhibition, in particular if the event is seen in terms of project management. This change of objective modified the use of accounting systems and led to the emergence of specific roles that had to evolve as a result of both the accumulation of knowledge and the political context. The aim of this article is therefore to analyse the role of public accounting within the framework of the five Universal Exhibitions organised in Paris during the second half of the 19th century. The analysis was carried out using Burchell & al.âs classification system (1980). The latter distinguishes between four types of role assumed by accounting systems with reference to the characteristics of decision-making within an organisation. Indeed, decision-making is affected by adhesion to an objective and the uncertainty surrounding the consequences of the action taken. Depending on the degree of adhesion and uncertainty, decision-taking is described as âdecision by computationâ, âdecision by judgementâ, âdecision by compromiseâ, or âdecision by inspirationâ. The roles of accounting ascribed to these are as follows: âanswer machinesâ, âlearning machinesâ, âammunition machinesâ and ârationalization machinesâ. Two groups of Universal Exhibitions have been identified: those held under the Second Empire (the 1855 and 1867 Exhibitions) and those held under the 3rd Republic (the 1878, 1889 and 1900 Exhibitions). This division into two main periods allows us to take two important factors into account: on the one hand, the change of political regime that influenced the rules of public finance and on the other, the constitution of fairly general principles for the running of these events. The comparative study of these two groups of Exhibitions reveals that two distinct roles can be allotted to the accounting systems: a learning role during the Exhibitions of the first period, then a rationalization role in the case of the Exhibitions held during the second period. Under the Second Empire, the Universal Exhibitions financed exclusively by the Government were supported by strong political, economic and social aims. The importance given to holding such an event dispensed these projects from control by Parliament, whose influence had already been weakened considerably under Napoleon III. Although the decision to organise an Exhibition was unanimous, lack of knowledge on how to run such a project meant there was great uncertainty as to the consequences of decisions since the concept was new. Experience of running such a wide-ranging project therefore had to be acquired. An accounting system based on the rules and principles of public accounting and adapted to the events in question therefore met these needs. Within the framework of the Universal Exhibitions organised under the Second Empire, accounting may therefore be analysed as a learning instrument and aid to decision-making (learning machine). The arrival of the 3rd Republic and with it the return of strict parliamentary control, saw great controversy emerge as to the economic usefulness of Universal Exhibitions and the financial implication of the Government in their organisation. The difficulty in obtaining a consensus on how they should be run led to a process of retrospective justification in which accounting acquired considerable importance. Despite the financial disengagement of the Government, the principles of public finance were still applicable but had evolved as a result of changes in the political and economic environment. Experience acquired in the organisation of the preceding Exhibitions reduced the uncertainty inherent in evaluating the consequences of decisions taken. However, the need then arose to rationalize the existence of these events and the use of the private finances obtained. Budgetary procedures were strengthened and there was an overproduction of information in the shape of financial reporting and statistics. In this context, the accounting system, which had been adapted many times after the first Exhibitions as a result of changes in the environment, was then used to rationalize the action taken (rationalization machine). The documents used to carry out this study are of two different kinds. On the one hand, there are the various documents generated by the organization of the Exhibitions (correspondence, plans of the exhibition palaces, photographs, administrative and accounting documents etc.) that were presented to the national archives by the Ministry for Commerce between 1877 and 1910 (de Maurepas, 1998). In addition to these documents there are the official reports written by the general commissioners of the successive Exhibitions assessing the organisation of the events and the results (these reports are available in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France and the Bibliothèque des Arts Décoratifs).finance publique; système d'information comptable; Rôles de la comptabilité;

From Learning to Rationalization: the Roles of Accounting in the Management of Parisian Great Exhibitions from 1853 to 1902

During the second half of the nineteenth century, five Great Exhibitions took place in Paris. The French state was highly involved in their financing and management which led to the implementation of public finance rules. Because of specific managerial constraints, public accounting systems and practises were adapted to meet project management purposes. This research focuses on the roles that can be fulfilled by this accounting system. For this purpose, the classification system of organizational roles of accounting by Burchell et al. (1980) is used and the potential roles of accounting change over time according to political background and parliamentary control are considered.Great Exhibitions; public finance; accounting practises; accounting system roles; France; nineteenth century

Integration versus subcontracting: The case of the French automotive industry (1945-1970).

Today’s car manufacturers resort widely to subcontracting, but the origins of this practice are not recent. From the beginning of the twentieth century, the car manufacturer Louis Renault committed the production of some components to external suppliers, although the company is often presented as a comprehensive model of vertical integration. This article aims to describe the evolution of subcontracting within the Renault firm from 1945 to the 1970s. This family business company constitutes a relevant case study because of its history. During the interwar period, Renault became the leading French car manufacturer. The company then undertook a broad diversification of its business activities (towards the production of tractors, airplanes, buses, tanks…), but finally chose to focus on its core activity: the automotive business. In addition, this firm’s history is particularly interesting due to its close links with the history of France in the 20th century (Fridenson, 1998; Sardais, 2005). During this century, the political, economic and social events affecting France strongly influenced the company’s activity and constituted crucial turning points in its history (war production, nationalisation, privatisation …). The study of Renault’s archives, such as activity reports and internal memoranda, allow us to distinguish four stages in the evolution of the company’s externalisation policy. The nationalisation of the firm, at the end of World War II, constituted an interlude in its history. Under state control, the firm’s managers started to reflect on the possibility of a subcontracting policy. However, this debate was interrupted by strikes in the Billancourt factories. A real subcontracting strategy was implemented from the 1950s, after being hotly debated by the firm’s stakeholders. A great number of memoranda on the subject reveal a passionate debate on the advantages and disadvantages of subcontracting. The premises of this policy were not clearly affirmed, but they constituted the beginning of an irreversible process.Subcontracting; Renault;

De la diversité des pratiques comptables à l'objet de la comptabilité

L'industrialisation et le flux continu d'innovations techniques à la fin du XIXe siècle modifient considérablement la structure du bilan des entreprises au sein duquel les immobilisations prennent une place croissante. Ces changements dans l'environnement technique rendent nécessaires le recours à des sources de financement externes. Ces évolutions ne sont pas sans conséquence sur le modèle comptable français qui se diffuse au début du XXe siècle. Un déplacement de l'objet de la comptabilité est observable : d'un moyen de preuve et de garantie, elle doit désormais être un instrument d'information en raison de l'introduction de nouvelles parties prenantes de l'entreprise. Parallèlement, l'outil comptable et l'importante latitude qu'il permet, en l'absence de normalisation, ne doivent plus servir à la seule rétention des bénéfices mais permettre un arbitrage entre la constitution de réserves et la rémunération des actionnaires. C'est notamment à travers les modalités de comptabilisation et d'évaluation des actifs que cet arbitrage est rendu possible. L'étude de cas de L'Air Liquide, de sa création à 1939, illustre les nouveaux enjeux qui pèsent sur l'objet comptable au début du XXe siècle et met en évidence l'importance que revêt la problématique de l'évaluation des actifs dans ce contexte. L'étude de la structure financière de cette société et de ses choix comptables montre plus largement l'étroite relation de la comptabilité avec l'évolution du capitalisme.histoire de la comptabilité; valeur; actifs; L'Air Liquide

Une étude exploratoire des règles et pratiques françaises et internationales en matière de traitement comptable des actifs incorporels.

Cette communication cherche à étudier l’impact de l’introduction des normes IFRS sur le traitement comptable des actifs incorporels, dont le poids ne cesse de croître au sein des états financiers. Une étude théorique et empirique compare le traitement comptable des actifs incorporels selon les normes françaises et internationales. Les résultats, issus de l’analyse des rapports annuels de l’année 2004 des entreprises du CAC40, montrent que cinq configurations se dessinent, dont deux regroupent 83% des entreprises. Pour la majorité d’entre elles, l’application des nouvelles normes ne génère aucun changement, ce qui va à l’encontre des conclusions de l’étude théorique. L’autre tendance significative rassemble les entreprises enregistrant une augmentation de l’écart d’acquisition au détriment des autres actifs incorporels, ce qui semble contraire aux objectifs visés par l’IASB.From 2005, European listed firms and many more around the world are required to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The introduction of a uniform accounting system is expected to ensure greater comparability and transparency of financial reporting around the world. Over recent years there has been an increasing interest in the field of intangibles, which are gaining more and more importance in financial statements. This paper aims to study the impact of the adoption of IFRS standards on the accounting treatment of intangible assets. In a first part, we examine and compare the similarities and differences between the two accounting systems concerning intangible assets. Secondly, we conduct an empirical study, based on the analyse of French listed companies annual reports for 2004. In fact, 2004 heralds a crucial turning point in the countdown to 2005, the date by which all European Union-listed companies must report their consolidated accounts using IFRS. Findings show that five configurations representing the impact of IFRS application occur, two of which include 83% of the companies selected. For most of them, the implementation of international standards does not imply any change. This is contrary to our findings presented in the first part. The other significant tendency concerns companies recording an increase in the amount of goodwill to the detriment of other intangible assets, and this seems contrary with the IASB objectives. This is followed by a discussion of findings and directions of future research.Actifs incorporels; Ecart d'acquisition; Normes françaises et IFRS; Etude comparative; Accounting standards;

ECART D'ACQUISITION ET NORMES IAS/IFRS UNE ETUDE EMPIRIQUE DES PRATIQUES DES ENTREPRISES FRANCAISES

Cet article tente de dresser un état des lieux du traitement comptable de l'écart d'acquisition à la veille de l'application des nouvelles normes internationales en se basant sur l'analyse des rapports annuels de 33 entreprises françaises cotées sur le CAC 40. Malgré une grande hétérogénéité dans le traitement comptable actuel de l'écart d'acquisition, les résultats obtenus ont permis de dresser une typologie. Ils soulignent également les difficultés introduites par les nouvelles normes : - des difficultés internes liées à la reconnaissance et au suivi des actifs incorporels, à la définition d'une Unité Génératrice de Trésorerie ou encore à la détermination de la valeur recouvrable de l'écart d'acquisition et du taux d'actualisation correspondant - des difficultés externes liées aux nouvelles exigences en matière de publication d'informations comptables et financières relatives à cet actif.Ecart d'acquisition; normes IAS 36; 38 et IFRS 3; actifs incorporels; test de dépréciation

Ecart d'acquisition et normes IAS/IFRS : une étude empirique des pratiques des entreprises françaises.

Cet article tente de dresser un état des lieux du traitement comptable de l’écart d’acquisition à la veille de l’application des nouvelles normes internationales en se basant sur l’analyse des rapports annuels de 33 entreprises françaises cotées sur le CAC 40. Malgré une grande hétérogénéité dans le traitement comptable actuel de l’écart d’acquisition, les résultats obtenus ont permis de dresser une typologie. Ils soulignent également les difficultés introduites par les nouvelles normes : des difficultés internes liées à la reconnaissance et au suivi des actifs incorporels, à la définition d’une Unité Génératrice de Trésorerie ou encore à la détermination de la valeur recouvrable de l’écart d’acquisition et du taux d’actualisation correspondant des difficultés externes liées aux nouvelles exigences en matière de publication d’informations comptables et financières relatives à cet actif.The objective of the present paper is to study the accounting treatment of goodwill and practices concerning this intangible asset before the application of new international accounting standards. The empirical study is based on the analysis of 33 annual reports of French top companies listed on the Paris Stock Exchange. The empirical findings enable us to underline a great heterogeneity in current accounting treatment of goodwill in French companies. Our results provide evidence that new accounting standards raise internal problems: the recognition and follow-up of intangible assets, the definition of the components of a Cash-Generating Unit (CGU), the determination of their recoverable amounts and the associated discount rate of goodwill. Besides, we outline the impact of IAS/IFRS concerning the disclosure of accounting and financial information to external partners on this asset.Publication financière; France; Normes comptables internationales; Actifs incorporels;

UNE ETUDE EXPLORATOIRE DES REGLES ET PRATIQUES FRANÇAISES ET INTERNATIONALES EN MATIERE DE TRAITEMENT COMPTABLE DES ACTIFS INCORPORELS

Cette communication cherche à étudier l'impact de l'introduction des normes IFRS sur le traitement comptable des actifs incorporels, dont le poids ne cesse de croître au sein des états financiers. Une étude théorique et empirique compare le traitement comptable des actifs incorporels selon les normes françaises et internationales. Les résultats, issus de l'analyse des rapports annuels de l'année 2004 des entreprises du CAC40, montrent que cinq configurations se dessinent, dont deux regroupent 83% des entreprises. Pour la majorité d'entre elles, l'application des nouvelles normes ne génère aucun changement, ce qui va à l'encontre des conclusions de l'étude théorique. L'autre tendance significative rassemble les entreprises enregistrant une augmentation de l'écart d'acquisition au détriment des autres actifs incorporels, ce qui semble contraire aux objectifs visés par l'IASB.Actif incorporel; écart d'acquisition; normes françaises et IFRS; étude comparative

Characterization of oxidative stress in Leishmaniasis-infected or LPS-stimulated macrophages using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

The physiological changes caused by external stimuli can be employed as parameters to study pathogen infection in cells and the effect of drugs. Among analytical methods, impedance is potentially useful to give insight into cellular behavior by studying morphological changes, alterations in the physiological state, production of charged or redox species without interfering with in vitro cellular metabolism and labeling. The present work describes the use of electrochemical impedances spectroscopy to simply monitor by modeling impedance plots (Nyquist diagram) in appropriate equivalent circuit, the changes affecting murine macrophage cell line (RAW 264.7) in response to parasite infection by Leishmania amazonensis or to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment. These results demonstrate the ability of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy to discriminate between two opposite cell responses associated to two different stimuli, one caused by the internalization of a parasite, and the other by activation by a bacterium component. Indeed, the study has allowed the characterization, from an electrical point of view, of the extra-cellular NO radical produced endogenously and in great quantities by the inducible form of NO-synthase in the case of LPS-stimulatedmacrophages. This production was not observed in the case of Leishmania-infectedmacrophages for which to survive and multiply, the parasite itself possesses mechanisms which may interfere with NO production. In this latest case, only the intracellular production of ROS was observed. To confirm these interpretations confocal microscopy analysis using the ROS (reactive oxygen species) fluorescent probe 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate and electron paramagnetic resonance experiments using Fe(DETC)2 as NO radical spin trap were carried out

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy to study physiological changes affecting the red blood cell after invasion by malaria parasites

The malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, invades human erythrocytes and induces dramatic changes in the host cell. The idea of this work was to use RBC modified electrode to perform electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) with the aim of monitoring physiological changes affecting the erythrocyte after invasion by the malaria parasite. Impedance cell-based devices are potentially useful to give insight into cellular behavior and to detect morphological changes. The modelling of impedance plots (Nyquist diagram) in equivalent circuit taking into account the presence of the cellular layer, allowed us pointing out specific events associated with the development of the parasite such as (i) strong changes in the host cell cytoplasm illustrated by changes in the film capacity, (ii) perturbation of the ionic composition of the host cell illustrated by changes in the film resistance, (iii) releasing of reducer (lactic acid or heme) and an enhanced oxygen consumption characterized by changes in the charge transfer resistance and in the Warburg coefficient characteristic of the redox species diffusion. These results show that the RBC-based device may help to analyze strategic events in the malaria parasite development constituting a new tool in antimalarial research