Chapter 10 Performance Evaluation
(continued) S10-14
i. Management by exception
(10 min.) S10-15
Benjamin, the controller at Bristal Industries, does not
inform management that his sister is the principal
partner in a consulting firm that is bidding on work at
Bristal Industries.
Integrity – Mitigate actual conflicts of interest,
regularly communicate with business associates
to avoid apparent conflicts of interest. Advise all
parties of any potential conflicts.
Each month Jenna, a corporate controller, prepares
segment reports for all of the divisions of her company.
In these reports, she includes every general ledger
account. As a result, the report for each division is
several pages long and no one except Jenna and her
staff can interpret the reports.
Competence – Provide decision support
information and recommendations that are
accurate, clear, concise, and timely.
In the past six years since he graduated with an
accounting degree, Joe has not attended any
continuing education seminars. He has figured that he
knows enough to do his job since he has not forgotten
any relevant information from his college degree
program.
Competence – Maintain an appropriate level of
professional expertise by continually developing
knowledge and skills.
In casual conversation with friends on a Friday night,
Loren talks about how transfer prices are set at the
company where he is an accountant. As part of that
conversation, he shares the variable costs of the
company’s main product.
Confidentiality – Keep information confidential
except when disclosure is authorized or legally
required.
In the year end report to the Board of Directors,
Samuel, the controller, prepares the performance
report for the board of directors. The board will base
the annual bonuses on this report. Samuel designs the
report so that the favorable KPIs are displayed
prominently, while the KPIs that are unfavorable are
either not included or are buried deep in the later
pages of the report so that they are unlikely to be seen.
Credibility – Communicate information fairly
and objectively.