Where are the Controls?: Corporate Ethical Breaches Identified by Auditors

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According to a 2011 internal audit, executives at the British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline were warned about critical problems with the way the company conducted research at its drug development center in China. Potential financial risk and regulatory action are likely due to the sales practices that are currently at the center of a bribery and… Read more »

Coinstar and Self-Service Retailing

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Coinstar is a company that was founded just over two decades ago by Jens Molbak, who as a Stanford University graduate student, realized there wasn’t an easy way to spend the spare change piled up in a jar on top of his dresser. Since that time the company has become known for its Redbox kiosks,… Read more »

Do great products translate into great profits?

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So far the summer of 2011 has seen its share of giant wildfires. Recently GelTech Solutions, Inc. was profiled in CNN – Your Money’s segment on small businesses for its product – FireIce. The company is committed to continuing the work of developing sustainable solutions that solve common problems and maintain the integrity of the… Read more »

Intellectual Property Disputes

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The proper valuation and management of intellectual property is an area where accountants add value to their client services.  Often companies engage accountants and other financial experts to defend both plaintiffs and defendants in intellectual property (“IP”) disputes. As this video shows, similarity in names or trademarks can be at the heart of these disputes. … Read more »

The Avandia Disaster

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GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)’s $3.4 billion legal charge on the diabetes drug Avandia probably isn’t the last of the costs the company will record against this drug. That means Avandia will probably be a lossmaker for GSK, proving that former CEO Jean-Pierre Garnier 1999 failure to follow up on worries about heart attack deaths associated with Avandia… Read more »

Happy Birthday! Microsoft is 35 years old!

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From modest beginnings, Microsoft, started by college dropout Bill Gates, gave birth to an entire industry, changing the way we live and work and became one of the largest software companies on the planet. As this article points out, not everything has been notable during its history. In particular, look at this parody video of… Read more »

Research and Development (R & D): Does This Indicate a Crack in the Foundation of IFRS Convergence?

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When the IASB and FASB began the convergence process in 2002, they considered R & D as a high-priority project, where differences between US GAAP and IFRS were seen as particularly straightforward. However, as this article notes, still no consensus has been reached because IASB’s R&D treatment  appears to defeat comparability in the eyes of… Read more »

Starbucks’ Social Media Strategy

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It is not an accident that Starbucks is the leading consumer brand on Facebook. CEO and Chairman Howard Schultz explains that Starbucks gained prominence on Facebook by making a significant commitment to investing in social media. Executives at Starbucks have learned that they can’t push a product on a consumer. Rather, they must engage consumers… Read more »

Green Accounting Roadmap

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A new report by Ceres, a leading coalition of investors, environmental and public interest organizations in North America, stresses that companies must make immediate envrionmental improvements to remain competitive in the 21st century global economy.  Sustainable performance, not short-term environmental initiatives, will position companies to plan and innovate in an increasingly resource-contstrained economy.  Included in… Read more »

Instant-Coffee Wars

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Starbucks has been working on a closely guarded secret for 20 years – Via Ready Brew instant coffee. A month after its launch, Nestle, the maker of Taster’s Choice, has begun an aggressive campaign against the new interloper. This campaign includes free samples of Nescafe’s “sticks,” direct mailings, and Web commercials. QUESTIONS: How should Nestle… Read more »