The Allergic Bodies Conference: Postgraduate/Postdoctoral Research Conference, 2010

This is the programme document for the annual Postgraduate/Postdoctoral Research Conference with Keynotes: Dr Jennifer Bajorek (Goldsmiths), Marianne Sjelsford (National Academy of Arts, Oslo, Sweden); Dr Maarten Vanvolsem (Lieven Gevaert Research Centre for Photography, Katholieke Universiteit, Brussels), Professor Pedro Lasch (Duke University)

An Analysis of Tax Incentives in the FDI Decision Process from Organisational Structural Perspectives: Evidence from UK Multinationals

This paper investigates the role of tax incentives in the FDI decision making process in a sample of UK multinational companies. The paper considers the relative importance of stages and determinants in the FDI decision making process. The determining factors in FDI decision process are examined from the organisational structure perspectives –FDI ownership form and market entry mode. The paper specifically identifies the role of tax in the strategic decisions of FDI organisational structure, as well as the stages of FDI decision making process. Relatively few prior empirical studies have examined the interface between tax strategy and corporate strategy in the context of FDI organisational structure and decision making process. This paper therefore attempts to examine the tax incentives for FDI decision process from the perspectives of the organisational structure

Analyst's evaluation of KPI usefulness, standardisation and assurance

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine analysts’ evaluations of usefulness of KPIs disclosed by UK corporates. The disclosure of KPIs, both financial and non-financial is driven by legislation in the form of the Companies Act 2006. The paper considers two of the key concerns raised with KPI disclosure: a lack of standardisation (leading to inconsistency of calculation) and a lack of external assurance. Design/methodology/approach: A questionnaire was prepared which was used as the basis for semi-structured interviews with senior professional equity analysts. Questions were designed to cover aspects of usefulness and desirability of standardisation to improve consistency and comparability as well as the incremental value of audit firms providing assurance of KPIs. Findings: KPIs are indeed a useful supplement to the financial statements in developing a corporate narrative. Analysts highlighted that a significant amount of this information is released to the market in advance of the Annual Report which performs a confirmatory role. Whilst analysts highlight inconsistencies in calculation methods of KPIs they did not feel that a standard calculation should be prescribed. Further they did not feel that assurance over the calculation would be valuable as they perceived that this would remove the flexibility of companies to select the most appropriate measures. Research limitations/implications: The paper contributes to the body of research on disclosure by focussing on how the KPI disclosure is used by the intended audience and whether and how the disclosure mechanism may be strengthened. Practical implications: The findings provide an interface between theory and practice adding to the body of knowledge on disclosure theory and in particular KPI disclosure and how it is used. This will in turn help the standard setters in ensuring that disclosures enhance usefulness. Originality/value: Insight into the actual usefulness of these measures is important to inform this debate on presentation of the corporate “narrative”. This goes some way to addressing the unanswered questions in Healy and Palepu (2001) and the calls for further qualitative research in the area (Watson et al., 2002)

IDENTIFIKASI ISI LAMBUNG IKAN KEPAET Osteochilus sp. ASAL PULAU BANGKA SEBAGAI DASAR PENGEMBANGAN DOMESTIKASI

Kepaet fish is the one of local fish species found in rivers of Bangka Island. Kepaet fish has similarity with Cempedik from Belitung Island. The characteristic of this fish is a black spot near its tail and a silver scales color. This fish has potentially for aquaculture species, so its needs to to find out the type of natural feed. The purpose of this study aimed to describe the types of food in stomach contents of Kepaet fish and to expalined the types of feeding behaviour. The results showed that the main food of Kepaet fish is Synedra (Bacillariophyta) with IP value 57,56%, Nitzchia (Bacillariophyta) 20,16%, Closterium 11,45% and Aulacoseira 8% and complementary food is Gyrosigma, Rhizosolenia, Melosira, and Selenastrum with between IP Value 0,06%- 0,38%.  Kepaet fish belongs to the herbivore fish group because has the relative length of the gut is 3,57.Ikan Kepaet merupakan salah satu spesies ikan lokal yang ditemukan di sungai-sungai pulau Bangka. Ikan Kepaet memilki kemiripan dengan ikan Cempedik yang berasal dari Pulau Belitung. Karakteristik ikan ini adalah titik hitam pada bagian ekor dan warna tubuh keperakan. Ikan ini berpotensi sebagai speses akuakultur, sehingga perlu dilakukan penelitian tipe makanan alaminya. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah mendeskripsikan jenis makanan yang terdapat dalam lambung ikan Kepaet dan menjelaskan tipe kebiasaan makan ikan ini. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa makanan utama ikan Kepaet adalah Synedra (Bacillariophyta) dengan nilai IP 57,56%, Nitzchia 20,16%, Closterium 11,45% Aulacoseira 8% dan jenis makanan tambahan lain yaitu Gyrosigma, Rhizosolenia, Melosira, and Selenastrum dengan nilai IP 0,06%- 0,38%. Ikan Kepaet tergolong dalam kelompok ikan herbivora karena berdasarkan panjang usus relatifnya adalah 3,57

Determinants of voluntary audit and voluntary full accounts in micro- and non-micro small companies in the UK

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in Accounting and Business Research, 42(4), 441 - 468, 2012, copyright Taylor & Francis, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/00014788.2012.667969.This study investigates the link between the auditing and filing choices made by a sample of 592 small private companies, which includes 419 micro-companies. It examines decisions made in connection with the 2006 accounts following UK's adoption of the maximum EU size thresholds in 2004, and the impact of the proposed Directive on the annual accounts of micro-companies. The research extends the model of cost, management and agency factors associated with voluntary audit, and develops a complementary model for voluntary full accounts. The results show the benefits of placing full audited accounts on public record that outweigh the costs for a significant proportion of companies. In non-micro small companies, voluntary audit is determined by cost and agency factors, whereas in micro-companies it is driven by cost, management and agency factors. In both groups, the predictors of voluntary full accounts include management and agency factors, and choosing voluntary audit is one of the key factors. The study provides models that can be tested in other jurisdictions to provide evidence of the needs of micro-companies, and the discussion of the methodological challenges for small company researchers in the UK makes further contribution to the literature

Digital transformation of business-to-government reporting:An institutional work perspective

Traditional business-to-government reporting is a core remit of the accounting function but is associated with a significant administrative burden on business. This burden is a major obstacle hindering business efforts to achieve core efficiency and innovation objectives. We use the conceptual lens of institutional work to examine how traditional business-to-government reporting is abolished and how digital reporting is established to replace it in attempts to reduce administrative burden but without compromising regulation effectiveness. We adopt a comparative approach to analyse qualitative evidence from three jurisdictions, namely, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and Australia. Regulators across these jurisdictions have been both pioneers and leaders internationally to transform business-to-government reporting in multi-agency settings. Our analyses illustrate how institutional work to develop digital business-to-government reporting across the jurisdictions was shaped by international influences and local factors. We also illuminate how actor engagement issues and the intertwined and mutually reinforcing nature of a mosaic of forms of institutional work shaped the path of these transformations. The study contributes to existing research by explaining how supportive conditions and structures are brought about and made to coalesce in the regulatory business reporting space for digital reporting to become established and widely adopted by business