The ValueReporting Revolution: Moving Beyond the Earnings Game - Hardcover

Eccles, Robert; Phillips, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471398799 ISBN 13: 9780471398790

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, 2001

Synopsis

This title provides a comprehensive framework for achieving higher levels of corporate information disclosure and transparency. In order to decide whether or not a company is a good investment, analysts and investment professionals need to know as much as possible about the company's tangible and intangible assets, as well as a variety of critical performance measures. Written by an international team of experts, "The Value Reporting Revolution" clearly explains why corporations must move toward greater transparency and, more importantly, it provides a comprehensive framework for achieving that goal. Among other important lessons, readers learn how to identify the gaps between how corporate managers perceive their disclosure practices versus how the markets see them, as well as how to leverage their organizations' electronic communications technology and tools to ensure easy access to vital information and more meaningful data analysis. Robert Eccles (Jupiter, FL) is President of Advisory Capital Partners, Inc. Robert H. Herz (New York, NY) is a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, US. David Phillips (London, UK) is a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, UK. Mary M. Keegan (London, UK) is head of Global Corporate Reporting at PricewaterhouseCoopers, UK.

About this title

Review:

Some readers might find it hard to rustle up enthusiasm for The Value Reporting Revolution--Moving Beyond the Earnings Game for at least two reasons. One, the cover bears the logo of PriceWaterhouseCoopers which, however pre-eminent it is, remains a firm of accountants. Two, it is written by four of its number. The knee-jerk reaction would be unfair though. When it can stay away from jargon and cheerleading, this is a surprisingly enjoyable look at the business world and its principal driving forces.

It cannot be often that such a volume bears comparisons with the works of Lewis Carroll and George Orwell, but in its discussion of the value of sell-side analysis they touch upon a corporate nerve becoming more raw by the day. In doing so, the authors subject to close scrutiny the independence of such analysts at investment banks and find that it doesn't pass the test. Analysts have had to adjust to the information they give so that it meets investor needs without offending their employer's clients. As a result, the meaning of the language with which they work has changed significantly. "Hold" now means "sell" while only a "strong buy" really means "buy". Lewis Carroll did something similar with Humpty Dumpty in Through the Looking Glass, and George Orwell with "Newspeak" in 1984, placing the PWC team in good literary company. "Corporate executives can decide to board the starship Internet ... or they can sit stoically in their caves, in effect chiselling disclosures on tablets of stone," it says in the chapter entitled "Can You See Clearly Now?". Someone with an ear for language and the ability to see the nub of the point wrote that. --Brian Bollen

Review:

""solid enough to become a standard work..." -- Accounting Technician, May 2001

"..easy to read..plenty to keep the reader interested..a stimulating read, guaranteed to make you question the real value of traditional quarterly earnings announcements.." -- M2 Communications

"A thought provoking book, well worth reading before you take on the management at the next annual meeting." -- Lloyd's List, May 2001

"It is a good and readable Cook's tour around the frontiers of accounting. It's account of "the earnings game" is the best I've read." -- Investors Chronicle, 2nd March 2001

About this edition

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0471398799
• ISBN 13: 9780471398790
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368