Husam Aldamen

Audit Committee Characteristics and Firm Performance During the Global Financial Crisis

We address the question ‘do governance enhancing audit committee (AC) characteristics mitigate the firm performance impact of significant‐adverse‐economic events such as the Global Financial Crisis (GFC)?’ Our analysis reveals that smaller audit committees with more experience and financial expertise are more likely to be associated with positive firm performance in the market. We also find that longer serving chairs of audit committees negatively impacts accounting performance. However, accounting performance is positively impacted where ACs include blockholder representation, the chair of the board, whose members have more external directorships and whose chair has more years of managerial experience. We contribute to the growing body of research on the impact of audit committee governance attributes on performance during times of financial distress.

Does adopting good corporate governance impact the cost of intermediated and non-intermediated debt?

This study examines the impact of good corporate governance practices on the reported cost of debt for Australian listed companies. Prior research has established that governance lowers the cost of non‐intermediated debt (Sengupta, 1998; Bhojraj and Sengupta, 2003; Ashbaugh‐Skaife et al., 2006). We extend this analysis to the Australian corporate debt market which is dominated by intermediated or privately held debt. Our findings are consistent with the prior work and shows that increased corporate governance lowers cost of debt. However, when we split the sample companies into intermediated and non‐intermediated debt sub‐samples, we find this result only holds for the non‐intermediated debt sub‐sample. Furthermore, we find that small companies that adopt better corporate governance practices do not benefit through lower cost of debt. This raises questions about the merits of universal adoption of costly governance practices.

Does Lecture Capturing Impact Student Performance and Attendance in an Introductory Accounting Course

ABSTRACT The study empirically examines the interplay between lecture capturing viewership, performance and attendance for students in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. The sample consists of 254 students enrolled in an introductory accounting class either in the Fall semester or in the Spring semester. We show a weak positive relationship between lecture capturing and performance, especially in the presence of other variables such as GPA, attendance, gender and seniority. However, we do not find that lecture capturing reduces attendance. Actual performance results are contrasted with students’ perception of the usefulness and effectiveness of lecture capturing. Survey responses reveal that, overall, students attribute a great deal of credit to this pedagogical resource. They stated that lecture capturing clarifies concepts discussed in class, assists in studying for exams, enhances exam results and increases interest in the course. However, the majority of low-performing students believe lecture capturing to be a substitute for attending traditional lectures.

Corporate governance and access to interest bearing debt

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to extend the growing body of literature on the impact of corporate governance on debt contracting by examining if better governance is associated with access to interest bearing debt. The paper aims to explore whether no-debt companies have governance structures that are qualitatively different to debt companies within a market with a distinct corporate finance structure, such as Australia. Design/methodology/approach - The analysis is portioned into two stages. The first stage focuses on univariate analysis which includes descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The second stage introduces multivariate analysis, in the form of a probit regression model, to test the relationship between corporate governance and access to interest bearing debt. Findings - The results suggest that companies with higher levels of corporate governance are more likely to access interest bearing debt relative to no-debt companies. However, the unexpected finding is that only resource companies that implement higher governance are more likely to access interest bearing debt. The core driver is that resource companies with no-debt have systematically lower governance than all other companies. Research limitations/implications - The cross – sectional design of the study is limited in its ability to shed light on the question of causality. One potential avenue is to develop an event study around the timing of governance and debt access changes. Originality/value - The paper contributes to the extant literature by investigating the relationship between governance and access to interest bearing debt in the understudied Australian debt market.

Performance of Family Firms During the Global Financial Crisis: Does Governance Matter?

We investigate whether better corporate governance impacts the performance of family versus non-family firms during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). If good governance matters then its impact should be amplified during times of exogenous financial shocks. Furthermore the impact of governance will be more pronounced for family firms as family firms are more resilient, have greater access to survival capital and have a longer term decision making focus. We find that the value of family firms is more sensitive to book value than earnings changes whereas better governance results in a higher earnings relationship with value during the GFC. We also find better governance, irrespective of whether the firm is family or non-family, is associated with better accounting and market performance during the GFC.

Does good corporate governance enhance accruals quality during financial crises

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the efficacy of corporate governance systems in enhancing earnings quality during the recent global financial crisis (GFC). The literature provides insight into the corporate governance–accruals quality relationship during periods of relative financial stability. However, little is known about periods of unexpected financial shocks such as the GFC. Design/methodology/approach - The sample consists of 340 companies (1,020 firm years) listed on the ASX during 2007-2009. Factor analysis is used to compute corporate governance factors. Seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) is used to test the impact of pre-GFC corporate governance on accruals quality during the GFC. Findings - Consistent with prior research, the findings suggest that good corporate governance is positively related to accruals quality before the GFC. More importantly, the impact of good governance intensifies during the GFC, where the mitigating role of governance is arguably under pressure. Furthermore, during the GFC, good corporate governance also affects the level of asset impairment. Research limitations/implications - The study provides empirical evidence that the relationship between good corporate governance practices and accruals quality is amplified during the GFC. The results support the efforts of market regulators to improve the governance of companies and make them stronger during financial crises. Originality/value - The study is an important addition to corporate governance research because it tests governance dynamics in a unique crisis period and establishes that corporate governance structures are effective when most needed.

Cumulative learning and sustained engagement in an introduction to accounting course

Purpose - Due to its technical focus, the introductory accounting course has a hierarchical knowledge structure that requires students to master and integrate abstract knowledge which builds on itself over time. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between engagement and examination performance for students enrolled in a hierarchically structured course. Design/methodology/approach - This research involves a retrospective study of an introduction to accounting course examining the relationship between increased engagement and examination performance. Students are provided opportunities for engagement through assigned homework and optional ungraded assignments. Performance is measured by scores on each of three examinations conducted throughout the semester. Findings - The study finds that additional engagement in assignments has no significant impact on mid-semester examination performance; however, sustained engagement throughout the semester has a cumulative impact on final examination performance. Moreover, students that perform well on mid-semester examinations do not benefit from additional engagement, whereas students that perform poorly on the mid-semester examinations exhibit substantially higher final examination scores from sustained engagement. Practical implications - This study illustrates the complex interplay between engagement and performance and the timing of performance gains. The implication for educators is that increased sustained engagement is likely to result in increased but delayed student performance gains in disciplines with hierarchical knowledge structures. Originality/value - This study contributes to the literature in its examination of the timing of performance benefits gained from increased engagement in courses with a cumulative knowledge base.