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The objective of this study is to present novel evidence regarding the impact of the Key Audit Matters (KAM) disclosure requirements of International Standard on Auditing – 701 (ISA) on the auditing profession concerning reimbursement costs in underdeveloped nations, Jordan.

A year-industry fixed-effects OLS regression model has been employed to test the developed hypotheses. The regression analysis of the period from 2005 to 2022 tests the presence of KAM disclosures in Jordanian finance business, while the regression analysis of the period from 2017 to 2022 tests the actual impact of KAM disclosure following the first implementation of ISA-701 in Jordan.

The analysis has verified that the presence and the proportions of KAM disclosures outlined in ISA-701 resulted to significant auditing compensatory expenses. The findings confirmed that KAM disclosures increase auditor workload, responsibility, complexity, and risk, consequently resulting in higher reimbursement expenses.

The findings of this study have the potential to serve as a basis for the development of a novel financial regulatory legislation or a regulated framework for disclosing significant occurrences. This paper provides new empirical evidence to standard-setters and policymakers regarding the requirement of ISA-701 for external auditors to disclose KAM. This study is advantageous for stakeholders, regulatory agencies, standard-setters, and audit report readers who are interested in KAM disclosures and the implementation of ISA-701. The results could inspire the academic community to obtain fresh data from emerging markets to ascertain the impact of KAM disclosure on audit practices.

To the author's knowledge, this study is one of the few empirical investigations into the impact of current additional disclosure rules on the audit profession concerning reimbursement costs. It provides preliminary evidence linking ISA regulations to corporate productivity in Jordan, a developing nation. Little is known about how developing nation auditors react to KAM disclosures' role in stakeholder protection and how their expanded reporting obligations influence them. This study examines audit behaviour in a weak legal setting, unlike most prior studies, which have been done in highly regulated systems.

We study the role of having an audit committee (AC) as a signal of firm quality and as a monitoring device of the information quality contained in the listing prospectus.

Ordinary Least Squares regressions are used to examine the association between the presence of an audit committee and (1) the initial return (IR), and (2) the earnings forecast error in the listing prospectus in a sample of 55 Real Estate Investment Trusts that went public on the BME Growth market during 2013–2022. Heckman two-step estimation procedure to correct for endogeneity and bootstrap are used for robustness.

We show that IR and earnings forecasts are significantly affected by the presence of AC. The IR is higher and the earnings forecast included in the prospectus are of higher quality in firms with AC.

Our research provides (1) managers with new tools when deciding on their corporate governance structure in the listing process, (2) specific evidence for regulators on the role played by ACs in the process of going public, which may be useful in the context of the ongoing regulatory changes regarding admission processes in Europe, and (3) society with a sign that AC can enhance investor and public confidence in financial markets and foster a more stable and transparent investment environment.

The adoption of an AC is voluntary in this market, so this discretionary decision provides an exceptional opportunity to conduct such an analysis. Additionally, this issue has not been previously analysed in Europe.

我們擬探討審計委員會在作為是公司質素的一個信號, 以及在作為是監控上市招股書內資料質素的一個機制所扮演的角色。

研究人員使用普通最小二乘法回歸模型, 去探討審計委員會的存在與 (一) 初期回報、和 (二)上市招股書內收益預測的錯誤兩者之間的關聯。研究的樣本為55個於2013年 至 2022年間在 BME Growth 市場上市的不動產投資信託。研究人員使用自助法和可幫助修正內生性問題的赫克曼兩階段回歸, 以達數據的穩健性。

研究結果顯示, 審計委員會的存在會顯著地影響初期回報和收益預測。若公司採用審計委員會, 初期回報則會較高; 而且, 招股書內的收益預測也顯示較高的質素。

由於採用審計委員會與否在這研究的有關市場內純基於自主的決定、而非屬強制性, 因此, 與這決定有關的課題為學者提供了特殊的研究機會。再者, 在歐洲至今似仍未有學者曾嘗試探討這個課題。

本研究帶來以下實務方面的啟示: (一) 當經理需決定其在上市過程中的公司治理結構時, 本研究為他們提供了新的工具給他們使用; (二) 本研究為調控者就公司上市過程中審計委員會所扮演的角色提供具體的證據。而這因歐洲正進行更改與批核上市有關的規管而可能使其產生用處; (三) 本研究為社會提供一個信號, 顯示審計委員會不但可增強投資者和大眾對金融市場的信心, 而且還能培育更穩定和透明的投資環境。

公司治理、審計委員會、上市、初期回報、盈餘預測、不動產

This study investigates the influence of corporate culture on financial reporting transparency within Iranian firms.

Leveraging a dataset of 1,480 firm-year observations from the Tehran Stock Exchange spanning from 2013 to 2022, the study employs text mining to quantify linguistic features of corporate culture and transparency, specifically readability and tone, within annual financial statements and Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) reports.

Our results confirm a positive and significant relationship between corporate culture and financial reporting transparency. The distinct dimensions of corporate culture — Creativity, Competition, Control, and Collaboration — each uniquely enhance financial transparency. Robustness tests including firm fixed-effects, entropy balancing, Generalized Method of Moments (GMM), and Propensity Score Matching (PSM) validate the profound influence of corporate culture on transparency. Additionally, our analysis shows that corporate culture significantly affects the disclosure of business, operational, and financial risks, with varying impacts across risk categories. Cross-sectional analysis further reveals how the impact of corporate culture on transparency varies significantly across different industries and firm sizes.

The study’s scope, while focused on Iran, opens avenues for comparative research in different cultural and regulatory environments. Its reliance on text mining could be complemented by qualitative methods to capture more nuanced linguistic subtleties.

Findings underscore the strategic importance of cultivating a transparent corporate culture for enhancing financial reporting practices and stakeholder trust, particularly in emerging economies with similar dynamics to Iran.

This research is pioneering in its quantitative analysis of the textual features of corporate culture and its impact on transparency within Iranian corporate reports, integrating foundational theoretical perspectives with empirical evidence.

Despite the rising trend of sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) incorporation into sustainability reporting, there remains a gap in understanding the role of SDG disclosure (SDGD) in the relationship between sustainability and financial performance. Thus, this study aims to investigate the relationship between sustainability performance and the level of SDGD; the relationship between sustainability performance and financial performance; and the link between the level of SDGD and financial performance.

Conducted in Italy, the analysis involves manual collection of sustainability reports from company websites for the fiscal years from 2019 to 2022, followed by textual analysis to identify SDG-related content disclosed in nonfinancial reports. Financial and nonfinancial data from Orbis and LSEG databases are used for regression analysis on panel data.

Findings align with existing literature, emphasizing the partial mediator role played by the level of SDGD in the relationship between sustainability performance and financial performance, measured by return on equity. In addition, the study suggests that there is a positive relationship between sustainability performance and the level of SDGD and a positive relationship between the level of SDGD and financial performance.

This study contributes to a deeper understanding of how SDG disclosures function within the broader nexus of sustainability performance and financial outcomes. Findings from this study provide empirical support for the argument that SDGD is not merely a regulatory compliance tool but also a strategic asset that can enhance a firm’s financial performance.

This research examines how responsible deployment of ChatGPT in the UAE’s government sector, guided by New Public Management principles, can enhance customer journeys by integrating services across government bodies. Through semi-structured interviews with UAE government officers, the study investigates this approach’s benefits, challenges, and applications for achieving efficient and integrated public service delivery.

This research adopts a qualitative approach, purposive sampling strategy, and semi-structured interviews to explore the subjective viewpoints of 20 high-level UAE government authorities. The thematic analysis uncovers ChatGPT’s benefits, challenges, and applications, aligning with New Public Management principles.

Thematic analysis reveals four themes: Benefits and Applications of ChatGPT, Challenges, Strategies to Overcome Challenges, and Steps for Customer Journey Enhancement through ChatGPT.

The analysis is based on participant responses provided during the interviews, which may be subject to biases or incomplete information. Secondly, the study focuses solely on the provided applications and participant responses, limiting the generalizability of the conclusions to other contexts.

The implementation of ChatGPT in the government sector has practical implications for transforming its operations and enhancing communication, efficiency, decision-making, and service offerings: citizen engagement, streamlined processes, and informed governance.

This study uniquely examines ChatGPT’s role in government, offering insights into communication, efficiency, decision-making, and service offerings. Identifying hurdles enriches understanding of ChatGPT’s practical integration in government.

Although building professional capital improves student learning and the effectiveness of schools in educating students, it needs to be explored in the area of primary schools in Ethiopia. Thus, this study was conducted to explore the practices of primary school principals to develop the professional capital of teachers and the associated challenges.

A case study was used to collect data from nine teachers and five principals of Ethiopian primary schools using a maximum variation sampling. Data obtained from interviews and two focus groups were subjected to thematic analysis.

Principals and teachers reported that to develop the human capital of teachers, principals provided teachers with opportunities to attend training, encouraged informal collaboration for professional improvement and encouraged the practice of continuous professional development programs. For the development of social capital among teachers, the principals also formed various social groups, encouraged frequent interactions between school stakeholders and created a caring school culture to strengthen the interactions between school stakeholders. For building the decision-making capital of teachers, principals promoted an environment in which teachers' professional judgment and wisdom are respected and so forth. The challenges to develop professional capital were related to teachers and principals, schools and education bureaus.

Building teachers' professional capital increases school effectiveness, although primary schools still need to investigate this further. Therefore, by improving knowledge and information on approaches to building professional capital in teachers, this study is important to administrators and other relevant school stakeholders. This also helps principals transform their leadership behavior to be more pedagogical in leading teaching and learning and enhance teachers' ability to build and exercise effective social and professional behaviors towards their students in their daily practices.

Engineering knowledge continuity is crucial for the life cycle management of long-lived and complex assets, such as nuclear plants, locks and storm surge barriers. At the storm surge barriers in the Netherlands, engineering knowledge continuity is not yet fully assured, despite long-standing efforts. This study aims to explore the relationship between system characteristics, the organizational demarcation of maintenance and operation and the challenges in achieving engineering knowledge continuity and provides suggestions for improvement of theory and policy.

Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with professionals from various backgrounds in construction, engineering and asset management of the Dutch storm surge barriers, augmented with visits to barriers and barrier teams. A thematic analysis was used to identify and describe the challenges to engineering continuity, their origins and potential solutions. We reviewed knowledge management policy documents and asset management consultancy reports to validate the findings. Additionally, we engaged in frequent interactions with professionals at the barriers. We achieved saturation and validation once no new issues were raised during these discussions.

The thematic analysis developed multiple themes describing the challenges to engineering continuity, their origins and potential solutions. The key findings are that expert engineers are critically important to deal with redesigns induced by obsolescence. Moreover, due to barrier uniqueness, long redesign cycles and reliability requirements, conventional knowledge continuity tools are insufficient to enable new engineers to reach expert level. Finally, the thematic analysis shows that, in some cases, outsourcing should be reduced to facilitate internal learning.

The study introduces the application of the knowledge-based view of the firm and the concept of requisite knowledge redundancy to the long-term management of complex assets. It calls for more attention to long gaps in the use of unique knowledge and the effect on knowledge continuity.

In countries where disclosing and reporting matters on sustainability are optional, what are the drivers promoting voluntarily disclosing information related to social responsibility and environmental sustainability corporate environmental and social responsibility? Exploring drivers promoting the demand for voluntarily disclosing information related to social responsibility and environmental sustainability in Saudi Arabia, where regulatory and professional bodies have not mandated information on corporate environmental and social responsibility, motivates this study.

A total of 48 individuals voluntarily participated in the survey.

Findings reveal that creating a better social, ethical and mental image, building a public relations image for the company, improving stakeholder trust in the company, signaling to investors the company’s care for the earth to meet the ethical motivation of stakeholders, enhancing corporate social responsibility awareness and exhibiting surpasses the mere generation of profits, all derive such disclosure. Such disclosure also signifies the firm’s value as well as improves the overall firm’s economic performance.

Regulatory and professional bodies must issue and adopt reporting models for entities, principally private companies, whether publicly traded or not, of the content. Their reports should aim to inform users and stakeholders about fulfilling the social and environmental responsibilities of entities toward society and its members.

Out of the drivers for the demand, perceptions of elders toward meeting ethical motivation of senior management significantly differ from that of younger.

Few studies have been attempted on drivers of the demand for reporting environmental sustainability and social responsibility in an environment where such reporting is not mandated. This study offers insight from Saudi Arabian corporate reports.

This study aims to present state-of-the-art research on circular economy (CE) implementation in construction and demolition waste management (CDWM) within the construction sector.

A mixed-method (scientometric and critical analysis) review strategy was adopted, involving scientometric and critical analysis to uncover the evolutionary progress within the research area, investigate key research themes in the field, and explore ten issues of CE in CDWM. Moreover, avenues for future research are provided for researchers, practitioners, decision-makers, and planners to bring innovative and new knowledge to this field.

A total of 212 articles were analyzed, and scientometric analysis was performed. The critical analysis findings reveal extensive use of surveys, interviews, case studies, or mixed-method approaches as study methodologies. Furthermore, there is limited focus on the application of modern technologies, modeling approaches, decision support systems, and monitoring and traceability tools of CE in the CDWM field. Additionally, no structured framework to implement CE in CDWM areas has been found, as existing frameworks are based on traditional linear models. Moreover, none of the studies discuss readiness factors, knowledge management systems, performance measurement systems, and life cycle assessment indicators.

The outcomes of this study can be utilized by construction and demolition sector managers, researchers, practitioners, decision-makers, and policymakers to comprehend the state-of-the-art, explore current research topics, and gain detailed insights into future research areas. Additionally, the study offers suggestions on addressing these areas effectively.

This study employs a universal approach to provide the current research progress and holistic knowledge about various important issues of CE in CDWM, offering opportunities for future research directions in the area.