Accounting report
ehsan mohebi; jafar babajani; Mohammad Javad Salimi; mohammad taghi taghavi fard
Abstract
Regional Electric companies are organizations that pursue both social and financial goals in order to fulfill the assigned missions, so fulfilling the accountability due to their dual goals is of fundamental importance. In this research, by examining the information needs of the users of the financial ...
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Regional Electric companies are organizations that pursue both social and financial goals in order to fulfill the assigned missions, so fulfilling the accountability due to their dual goals is of fundamental importance. In this research, by examining the information needs of the users of the financial reports, the effective factors in the financial reporting of the sector have been studied. The aim of this research is to present a model for the environmental conditions and characteristics of regional electric companies in Iran. For this purpose, the required data after library study and exploratory search in the theoretical foundations and financial and accounting rules and regulations governing the relations of these persons and using a questionnaire, collected and analyzed using the fuzzy Delphi research method and appropriate statistical tests. The evidence from the analysis of the views of the respondents shows that the influencing factors are in four dimensions, including the compatibility of the model in providing the achievement of the organization's goals, the needs of information users, compatibility with financial and accounting laws and regulations, and finally, budget control and credit status reporting. Experts also agree on the factors proposed by this research to design and explain the financial reporting model of regional power companies in Iran
Audit Quality
Alireza Javadipour; jafar Babajani; Ghasem Blue; Vajhollah Ghorbanizadeh
Abstract
Considering the goals of forming the audit committee and its extensive duties, evaluating the performance of the audit committee in order to identify its strengths and weaknesses is very important. The present study presents a model for evaluating the performance of the audit committee and a practical ...
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Considering the goals of forming the audit committee and its extensive duties, evaluating the performance of the audit committee in order to identify its strengths and weaknesses is very important. The present study presents a model for evaluating the performance of the audit committee and a practical model for the use of the activities of the audit committee by the beneficiaries. The model obtained in the current research includes 3 parts of evaluating the individual characteristics of the members of the audit committee, evaluating the work processes and reporting of the audit committee, and evaluating its duties and responsibilities, and the final model includes 3 dimensions, 13 components, and 78 indicators. The results of the research showed that the working and reporting processes of the audit committee have the most weight in evaluating the performance of the audit committee, and the evaluation of the audit committee meetings as the focus of the audit committee's activities is the most important among the performance evaluation components.ObjectiveThe optimal performance of the audit committee is an important variable in improving the processes and structure of corporate governance as well as financial reports. The duties of audit committees around the world are in sync with developments in the economic environment, and in Iran, according to the approved charter of the audit committee, the purpose of forming an audit committee in companies is to help fulfill the supervisory responsibility of the board of directors and to improve it in order to obtain assurance of reasonable quality of financial reporting, effectiveness of the internal audit process, ensuring the independence of the independent auditor and its effectiveness, adapting the company's activities to the laws, and ensuring the effectiveness of the activities of the corporate governance system, its committees, and other components. Considering the goals of forming the audit committee and its extensive duties, evaluating the performance of the audit committee in order to identify its strengths and weaknesses is very important. Due to the lack of comprehensive research in the country to provide a model to evaluate the performance of the audit committee, the present research has addressed this issue and a practical model for the use of the activities of the audit committee has been presented.MethodThe research method used in the first stage of the study involved extracting the dimensions, components, and performance evaluation indicators of the audit committee from the theoretical sources of the research. Then, the Fuzzy Delphi method was used to screen the indicators, and the Best-Worst Method (BWM) multi-criteria decision-making method was used to weigh each dimension, component, and index. Finally, to determine the gap between the existing situation in the field of audit committee performance evaluation and the model obtained in the current research, the Fuzzy Gap method has been used.FindingsBy studying the theoretical sources of the research, 96 indicators were determined to evaluate the performance of the audit committee, which were classified into 3 dimensions and 15 components using theoretical foundations. In the next step, to check the indicators, interviews were first conducted with 10 experts. In the interviews conducted regarding 6 indicators, revisions, and content adjustments were made to adapt to the current conditions of the country's economic environment. One index was also removed due to the lack of a legal structure for the index in Iran. In the next step, 95 finalized indicators were presented to the research experts for screening, and the responses given by the research experts were analyzed using the Fuzzy Delphi method. By calculating the fuzzy average of the numbers and then de-fuzzifying them, indicators with a de-fuzzified number less than 0.7 were removed, and 78 indicators were approved by the research experts. The model obtained in the current research includes three parts: evaluating the individual characteristics of the members of the audit committee, evaluating the work processes and reporting of the audit committee, and evaluating its duties and responsibilities. The final model includes 3 dimensions, 13 components, and 78 indicators.4- ConclusionAccording to the findings of the research, the important components in evaluating the performance of the audit committee are the audit committee meetings, the audit committee resources, communication with the board of directors, the audit committee charter, and monitoring of financial reporting. The results of the research showed that the working and reporting processes of the audit committee carry the most weight in the evaluation of the audit committee's performance, with a weight of about 66%, and the evaluation of the audit committee meetings as the focus of the audit committee's activities is the most important among the evaluation components. Also, proper communication with the board of directors, provision of sufficient resources for the activities of the audit committee, the existence of an approved charter of the audit committee, and monitoring of internal controls and financial reporting are important areas for evaluating the performance of the audit committee. The results of the research also indicated the existence of a significant gap between the current status of the audit committee's performance evaluation and the model obtained in the research. In this regard, it is suggested that the legislator (Securities and Exchange Organization) obliges the listed companies to evaluate the performance of the audit committee under their supervision. Furthermore, it is recommended to use the model presented in the current research, considering the importance of dimensions and components. Additionally, the board of directors of the companies can improve the performance of these committees by taking into account the important components of the audit committee's performance, by holding the audit committees under their supervision accountable in these areas, and also making a reasonable and logical assessment of their performance.Enhancing KnowledgeThis research has presented a practical model to evaluate the performance of the audit committee according to the characteristics of Iran's economic environment, which can serve as the basis for analyzing the performance of the audit committee based on its different functional dimensions.
Financial audit
AliAkbar Javan; jafar babajani; mohamad marfo; Farokh Barzideh
Abstract
In this study, by using the Fuzzy Delphi research methodology and getting the expert opinions, it was tried to identify indicators for improving audit quality approved by experts in order to design a suitable model for the Economy of IRAN by utilizing a confirmatory factor analysis model. Also in this ...
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In this study, by using the Fuzzy Delphi research methodology and getting the expert opinions, it was tried to identify indicators for improving audit quality approved by experts in order to design a suitable model for the Economy of IRAN by utilizing a confirmatory factor analysis model. Also in this research, the gap between current and desired situation of audit quality indicators in IRAN is investigated. Finally, the dimensions of audit quality are ranked in terms of importance. For this purpose, following the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, 60 indicators were identified. These indicators were classified in five dimensions: a. Input factors with 21 indicators; B. Process factors with 10 indicators; C. Output factors with 9 indicators; D. Key interactions with 10 indicators; and E. Contextual factors by 10 indicators. Data were analyzed by utilizing R, Amos and Super Decisions software. The findings indicate that 54 indicators have been adopted, which provide a model for improving the Audit Quality. Also the results of comparing the current and desired situation of audit quality improvement indicators shows a significant difference between the current situation of the audit quality and the desired environment in Iran. Finally, the results of ranking the dimensions affecting the improvement of audit quality Shows that process factors are in the first place of importance from the point of view of experts, input factors are in the second place, main interactions and contextual factors are both in the third place and output factors are in the fourth place. IntroductionThe accuracy of the operation of each component of the financial reporting supply chain leads to higher-quality financial reporting. One of the most important components of this chain is external audits that, by considering the public interests, assure that the financial information presented in financial reports is fair and reliable (IAASB, 2011; Royaei et al., 2015; Imani Barandagh, Mehrani and Hojjat Shamami, 2016). Therefore, the international auditing and assurance standards board (IAASB), using a holistic approach, published a framework for audit quality in which the main factors contributing to audit quality are introduced. Researchers in different countries, including Iran, are expected to pay attention to the indicators suggested by the IAASB and adjust these indicators according to the context in which audit firms operate to help those involved in the financial reporting supply chain, especially auditors, to improve audit quality.Thus, conducting a study aimed at developing a model for audit quality improvement in Iran, considering the indicators suggested by the IAASB to improve audit quality and enhance the position of the auditing profession in Iran.Research Question(s)The present study can answer this question: What is the audit quality improvement model in Iran?Literature Review2.1. Audit quality definition:There is still no comprehensive, worldwide, and consensual definition, and thus, audit quality can be introduced as a complex and multidimensional concept (Mashayekhi et al., 2013; Alavi and Vakili Fard, 2021) that cannot be limited to a simple definition and the opinions of all those involved in the financial reporting supply chain should be taken into account (Bonner, 2008; Knechel et al., 2012; IAASB, 2014; Mohammadrezaei et al., 2019).2.2. Efforts to improve audit quality:Financial crises in recent decades have called into question the auditing profession and audit quality. Therefore, Policymakers have made attempts to identify key indicators of audit quality. As a more considerable step, in 2014, the IAASB developed a framework for audit quality in which the main factors contributing to audit quality were introduced. The IAASB has introduced the main factors contributing to audit quality in this framework and believes that following the framework in the economic environment of each country can lead to high-quality audits and improve the position of the auditing profession in society.MethodologyThe present study is applied research in terms of purpose and descriptive survey in terms of the data collection method. The purpose of this study is to identify the indicators of audit quality improvement in Iran and develop a model for audit quality improvement. To this end, the fuzzy Delphi method and the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) technique are employed.3.1. Statistical population and sampling methodThe statistical population of this study comprises audit experts (the partners and senior managers of audit firms that are a member of the IACPA and Iran audit organization). The expert panel members were selected using the purposive sampling technique and 80 questionnaires were distributed among the audit experts, and finally, 58 questionnaires were collected to analyze the data.Results4.1. The importance level of the research indicators based on experts’ opinions (the results obtained from the fuzzy Delphi method)According to the obtained results, no indicator is removed, and all the indicators play a role in improving audit quality in Iran and are confirmed by experts. 4.2. Audit quality improvement modelIn the next step, the CFA technique was used to extract the research final model. To this end, first, the first-order one-factor CFA model related to audit quality improvement was fitted, and after removing items with factor loadings less than 0.5, 54 indicators remained. The final research model, which is a model for improving audit quality in the economic environment of Iran, was formed as described in Figure 2. Discussion and ConclusionThis study, using the fuzzy Delphi method and obtaining the opinions of 58 experts, seeks to identify audit quality improvement indicators and design a model suitable for the economic environment of Iran. To this end, based on the theoretical framework, 60 indicators were collected and categorized into five dimensions: a) input factors with 21 indicators, b) process factors with 10 indicators, c) output factors with 9 indicators, d) key interactions within the financial reporting supply chain with 10 indicators, and e) contextual factors with 10 indicators. The results show that 54 out of 60 indicators in five separate dimensions are accepted, which represent the model for audit quality improvement in the economic environment of Iran according to experts’ opinions as described in the aforementioned model (Figure 2).
Accounting tools
Jafar Babajani; Farrokh Barzideh; Vahid Mohammadrezakhani
Abstract
Public Sector Internal Audit, by delivering reliable and consulting services in line with improvement and eliminate challenges can support organizations to achieve goals and provide better services. The purpose of this study is to provide a model for the establishment of internal audit in the public ...
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Public Sector Internal Audit, by delivering reliable and consulting services in line with improvement and eliminate challenges can support organizations to achieve goals and provide better services. The purpose of this study is to provide a model for the establishment of internal audit in the public sector entities in Iran. The approach of the research is based on qualitative method by using fuzzy Delphi model. The statistical population consisted of 85 experts and elites in the internal audit who were selected as the expert group of the research by using non-probability sampling technique. Finally, after the consensus of the experts, we establish the framework internal audit in public sector by considering external environment and our country criteria. This framework can assisting ministers and heads of state agencies in promoting the level of performance and evaluation of financial and operational accountability in addition to growth and improvement of the financial oversight system and the increase of efficiency, effectiveness and economic scale in the public sector.1- IntroductionInternal audit, as a part of the internal control system and one of the important components of corporate governance, plays a significant role in creating added value by improving the quality level of the organization's operations and activities and complying with laws and regulations and their implementation methods.Internal audit is one of the effective tools in the process of realizing and evaluating the level of financial and operational accountability. In this process, the government acts as a respondent and citizens and representatives will play a role as receivers of the answer. In such a system (if such an approach is accepted), the minister or the head of the executive body, in terms of the heavy responsibility he has for accountability, designs and implements appropriate control mechanisms to ensure compliance with laws and regulations. The questions raised in this research can be summarized as follows:Main question 1: What is the pattern of establishing internal audit in government institutions of the public sector of Iran?The purpose of this research is to provide a model for the establishment of internal audit in the government agencies of the public sector of our country.2- Literature ReviewIn a report, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (2011) examined the role of internal audit and internal control as a means of strengthening the transparency and accountability of the public sector.Gamayouni (2018) in a research investigated the effect of the efficiency of the internal audit function and the implementation of the accrual-based government accounting standard on the quality of financial reporting. Dunya and Barak (2021) addressed the issue of internal control, a lever for good governance of state-owned companies in Morocco.Rahmani et al. (2014) examined the obstacles to the establishment of internal audit units in public universities in Iran. The obstacles facing the establishment of the internal audit unit are placed in 3 main groups: "Cultural, organizational and legal obstacles", "Lack of recognition, training and proper familiarity" and "Obstacles related to the employees of the internal audit unit".Nikbakht et al. (2016) in a research, analyzed Vera's data with the help of open, central and selective coding method which is specific to grounded theory approach. Moradi and Bahri Terali (2017) studied the factors affecting the effectiveness of internal audit in improving internal controls in banks and state-owned companies.3- Research MethodThe current research is an applied and developmental research. In this research, it seeks to know the existing conditions and help in the decision-making process, so it is classified as a descriptive research, and it also seeks to obtain the opinion of a large statistical community on the subject of the research, so it is a descriptive-survey research.According to the use of the fuzzy Delphi method, the statistical population of the research includes experts based on the three characteristics of "presence of representatives of expert groups", "deep knowledge of the research topic" and "breadth of opinion and knowledge". ", from among expert groups such as auditors. The head of the State Court of Audit, auditors of executive bodies, and directors of audit organizations and academic faculty members of universities who have experience in the field of internal audit using non-probability-chain or network sampling method Barfi) were selected.In this research, first, to identify the dimensions, components and indicators of the internal audit establishment model, the subject literature has been reviewed using the library study method. After identification, the examples of these cases in the public sector of our country were examined based on the opinion of experts. Considering the advantages of the fuzzy Delphi method (29FDM) compared to the traditional Delphi method (30TDM), the fuzzy Delphi method has been used in this research.4- Research findingsIn the data collection phase, 85 questionnaires were completed and presented by 100 members of the expert group. 14.1% of the respondents to the questionnaire questions are in the doctoral level, 77.6% are in the master's level, and 8.2% are in the bachelor's degree. 18.8% of the respondents to the questions of the academic questionnaire, 41.2% were accountants and 40% were auditors of the Court of Accounts.According to the education distribution of the respondents who form the expert group, the obtained results are reliable. In this research, we tried to use the most appropriate group to achieve more accurate results. The reliability of the questionnaire was determined by Cronbach's alpha method. If the obtained alpha coefficient is more than 0.7, it has an acceptable reliability test, which was obtained in this research with a coefficient of 94. Therefore, the questionnaires of this research have good reliability. Based on the results of binomial test for all items, the significance level is less than 0.01. Therefore, at the 99% significance level, the ratio of agreement and disagreement is not the same, and because the ratio of agreement is more than 0.5, the initial agreement of the experts with the items is acceptable. After the binomial test, fuzzy analysis was performed using triangular fuzzy shapes. If this number is greater than 7, it is accepted, otherwise it is rejected.5-DiscussionThe importance of the role of internal audit in public institutions has increased in the last two decades. Internal controls and auditing are considered a desirable function to assist public sector management. Because internal audit plays a fundamental role in maintaining public funds, discovering and preventing abuses and mistakes, and improving methods.6-ConclusionIn this research, an attempt was made to present the model of establishing internal audit in a local way. In this regard, with the help of the fuzzy Delphi method, according to the opinion of experts, dimensions, components and indicators were presented in the form of the mentioned model.
Seyyed Morteza Mortazavi; Javad Shekarkhah; Jafar Babajani
Abstract
A system of effective internal controls is a foundation for the safe and sound operation of banks and helps management to safeguard bank's resources and interests. Since improving performance of internal control system requires recognizing its current status, in this study, an attempt has been made to ...
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A system of effective internal controls is a foundation for the safe and sound operation of banks and helps management to safeguard bank's resources and interests. Since improving performance of internal control system requires recognizing its current status, in this study, an attempt has been made to evaluate the current status of establishment of internal control system in Iranian banks. For this purpose, through the designed questionnaire, experts have been asked to evaluate the current status of effective indicators in establishing internal control system of banks, taking into account the importance of these indicators. Received answers were analyzed using fuzzy delphi method, fuzzy gap analysis, importance-performance analysis and paired sample test. According to experts, the current status of all effective indicators in the establishment of the internal control system of banks was assessed as unfavorable. Findings from fuzzy gap analysis also indicate that except for 3 indicators, there is a significant gap between the current status (what is) and the desired status (what should be) of indicators. Also, according to the findings of importance-performance analysis, out of 119 indicators studied, 113 indicators do not have acceptable performance despite their high importance. In addition, based on the results of the paired sample test, it can be concluded that there is a significant gap between current status and desired status of effective indicators in establishing the five dimensions of the internal control system of banks: control environment, risk assessment, control activities, information and communication and monitoring activities.
Jafar Babajani; Ali Saghafi; Vajhollah Gorbaizadeh; Hiva Rastegar Moghadam
Abstract
It is expected that accountants provide information which increases the ability of decision making and professional judgement. In this regard, the rendered information should entail characteristics such as ethical principles. In other words, professional accountants should comply not only with the accounting ...
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It is expected that accountants provide information which increases the ability of decision making and professional judgement. In this regard, the rendered information should entail characteristics such as ethical principles. In other words, professional accountants should comply not only with the accounting standards and technical norms, but also with ethics which is a preventive factor in financial fraud and corruption. However, the question is how to equip accounting graduates with ethical competencies. Increasing attention to this issue in recent years has resulted in creation of some models for educating ethical competencies. In the present research, the validity of three-dimensional model of ethical competencies’ education has been analyzed. Three-dimensional model of ethical competencies’ education emphasizes on education of eleven competencies as a separate course with combinational teaching method. The statistical population has consisted of bachelor students majoring accounting at the universities in Tehran. Moreover, two-stage sampling technique has been used as a sampling method. The research has been implemented using Pretest-posttest control group design and the data have been analyzed by univariate analysis of covariance. The results have shown that the mentioned ethical education has developed the students’ moral judgements. So, it is expected that by using the model in academia, accounting graduates will become familiarized with necessary competencies to make ethical decisions.
Jafar Babajani
Abstract
The ministry of economic affairs and finance with cooperation of supreme audit court, managers, and comptrollers has provided a new public finance bill to be introduced in Islamic parliament of Iran. The bill will be considered as the fifth public finance law since the advent of legislature in Iran if ...
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The ministry of economic affairs and finance with cooperation of supreme audit court, managers, and comptrollers has provided a new public finance bill to be introduced in Islamic parliament of Iran. The bill will be considered as the fifth public finance law since the advent of legislature in Iran if enacted by the parliament. Legislation of laws in Iran such as the mentioned law is usually based on trial and error method in which the previous law forms the basis of revision. Then, the redundant articles are deleted and the necessary new articles which are originated from the weaknesses of previous law are added. Whereas, the present author believes that the public finance law should result from the process of reviewing the same laws in developed countries, extracting the fundamental decrees and customizing them to obtain a proper pattern for preparing the new public finance bill.Since the author’s recommended methodology is not applied in preparing the draft of public finance bill, the author has used a comparative research methodology in this paper to compare key decrees of current public finance act and the new public finance bill. The results reveal the fact that on the one hand, the bill has some similarities and differences with the present act, but on the other hand, it has some capabilities and deficiencies.
jafar babajani; farrokh barzideh; peyman imanzadeh
Abstract
Achieving an effective, efficient and economical performance is the main responsibility of each organization's management. The efficiency and effectiveness of management in each organization means the ability of its managers in the preparation, development, allocation, maintenance and utilization of ...
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Achieving an effective, efficient and economical performance is the main responsibility of each organization's management. The efficiency and effectiveness of management in each organization means the ability of its managers in the preparation, development, allocation, maintenance and utilization of the existing resources, and the performance audit is one of useful instruments in improving the planning and control of operations and presentation of methods for the advancement and development of performance. The present research aims to evaluate the present situation of performance audit in the public sector of Iran and present strategies for its improvement. Evaluation of the present situation of performance audit requires experts' opinions considering their mindsets. In the present research, dimensions, components and indices of the performance audit pattern and the functional status of each index were evaluated and the difference between the present situation and the desired one was determined using the experts' opinions. According to the results obtained from the statistical analyses, all of the research indices are important and considering the significance-performance analysis, the functional situation of performance audit indices in the country is in the "acceptable" and "weak" areas.
Jafar Babajani; Adel Azar; Morteza Moayeri
Volume 9, Issue 33 , April 2011, , Pages 1-37
Abstract
During the past two decades, public sector accounting and reporting system encountered significant reforms. The aim of these reforms was removing bureaucratic system barriers which prevent efficient use of scarce resources. Extended reforms and changes in public sector of developed and even developing ...
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During the past two decades, public sector accounting and reporting system encountered significant reforms. The aim of these reforms was removing bureaucratic system barriers which prevent efficient use of scarce resources. Extended reforms and changes in public sector of developed and even developing countries have persuaded many scholars to investigate them. These studies have shown that mentioned reforms often stem from a set of factors and drivers observed in the countries encountering these reforms. The present study discusses the literature regarding these reforms, and identifies influencing factors and drivers in reforms of Iran’s public sector financial and operational accountability system from the viewpoint of Iranian experts. Accordingly, using Delphi method through a survey of 142 Iranian experts, the key factors and drivers of reforms in Iran's public sector financial and operational accountability system have been identified. In the end, the status of these factors and drivers in the current condition of Iran is evaluated.
