Richard L. Jenson

The Enterprise Resource Planning System as a Strategic Solution

Many large organizations are integrating core business processes throughout the supply chain by implementing enterprise resource planning systems. Although some have encountered difficulties during the rigorous enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation process, most problems seem to result from users trying to map a previously ill-behaved system to work within the structure of the ERP system.

Parametric estimation of programming effort: an object-oriented model

This paper demonstrates that software development effort can be forecast during the conceptualization of a system using parametric analysis

End-user control environments and the accounting managers' perceived quality of the applications

Abstract The availability of powerful application developments tools has raised important questions about the extent to which control can and should be administered over end-user developers. This study examines the relationships among four factors hypothesized to be relevant to the control of end-user computing and the quality of such applications. The variables examined were end-user application quality, the extent of management concern about end-user computing issues, the extent of the organizational control environment, and the impact of resulting applications. Management concern about end-user control was shown to have a positive linear relationship with application impact, control environment, and application quality. There was no support for the hypothesis that a more extensive control environment is related to higher application quality.

Audit evidence: the US standards and landmark cases

Auditors gather evidence to formulate their judgment on financial statements and in assessing the risk factors concerning the company under audit. Examines the role played by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in developing auditing standards concerning audit evidence. Significant court and SEC cases relating to audit evidence are described and issues discussed.

An Empirical Comparison of Internal and External Audit Supervision

Carries out a study which empirically examines both internal and external auditors in New Zealand to determine the extent to which 21 audit supervisory tools were used in audit practice. In addition to determining how frequently each of the supervisory techniques was used, the study tested two hypotheses. The first hypothesis was that the statistical variance for the number of audit supervisory techniques used on internal audits is greater than that for external audits. The second hypothesis was that the average number of audit supervisory techniques used on external audits is greater than that for internal audits, suggesting that external audits are more closely supervised than are internal audits. Both hypotheses were supported by the study data. In addition, supervisory profiles were constructed for both internal and external audits. The profiles indicated that while external audits appear to use more supervisory techniques during the course of the audit due to greater liability and competitive pressur...

The Reach and Effectiveness of FDICIA: Internal Controls and Audit Committee Regulation in Banking

Complex and overlapping regulations governing the conduct of audits in the banking industry are dominated by the internal controls and audit committee requirements of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 (FDICIA). Empirical tests using confidential supervisory data show that banks subject to these requirements under FDICIA are capable of conferring benefits that are useful to regulators in monitoring their financial condition. These benefits, however, are not evident uniformly across time nor across banks that vary by inherent accounting risk.

A Skeptical Look at Document Imaging

Despite the growing popularity of document imaging, organizations should he skeptical of applications involving the actual imaging of some business documents and records. It appears that many imaging applications are treating the symptoms (excess paper handling and storage) rather than the disease (bad processes and fragmented organizations).