In your opinion, should standards covering concerns related to environment, society, and governance (ESG) be based upon the information desires and needs of market participants (investors) or what the SASB thinks investors “should be” interested in? What conclusion would you draw if the standards that are developed by the SASB do not affect investment decisions?
What are some of the benefits of going public? Costs? Do you think that the Container Store should have gone public? Does “conscious capitalism” work for a public company? Why or why not?
Do you agree with the position in the editorial piece that General Motors should consider taxpayers ahead of stockholders and not buy back shares, at least at this point in their recovery?
In your opinion, can a firm pursue value maximization for shareholders and simultaneously pursue sustainability/social responsibility? Are these goals at odds with each other? If so, how? What advice would you give to Unilever’s CEO?
Do you think that changing the tax code to allow banks to deduct dividends would reduce the “excessive” risk taking that banks have been accused of? Can you connect all the dots in the chain of reasoning behind the proposal?
What is the distinction among the payments (that BP will pay for the Gulf oil spill) that determines whether they are tax deductible or not? For the nondeductible payments, what will be the effect on the effective tax rate (increase or decrease)?
Ford and GM estimate that they will have to spend $300 million each to implement the new revenue recognition standard. Other companies will also likely spend nontrivial amounts complying with the new standard. How would you propose measuring the benefits of this standard and whether the benefits exceed the costs?
Do you agree that accounting standards are too complex? If so, how could they be made simpler? What would be the costs of doing so? The benefits?
What is your opinion about an advanced placement (AP) course in high school for accounting, as proposed by the Pathways Commission? How would you propose implementing the “Pathways Vision Model”?
Would you invest in an IPO that uses non-GAAP measures? If not, why not? If yes, under which circumstances? That is, how would you determine which items are ok for the firm to strip out of GAAP earnings?
What cash flows are difficult to classify? How could one of the “misclassified” cash flows affect firm valuations?
The PCAOB reports to the SEC and the SEC has now made its criticism of the PCAOB public. Should they have done so? What are the implications of the public disagreement? Should former auditors run the PCAOB, rather than attorneys and career governmental employees? Why or why not?
If you were the CFO of a US company, what factors would you consider in deciding whether to report BOTH IFRS and US GAAP financial results? Do you think many companies will exercise the option to report both, if the option is offered?
In your opinion, what are the benefits of allowing management to provide alternative performance measures (non-GAAP metrics)? What are possible costs or potential problems?
When should revenue be recognized in the mobile (e.g., iPhone) gaming industry? Why does it matter if it is recognized at the time of payment or over the life of usage, particularly if the average period of use is so short?
How many times have you heard that the sky will fall if leases are moved from the notes to the balance sheet?
Do you think it should be up to the registrants to decide what information is relevant for investors? Who else should decide what disclosures are relevant?
How do you think the SASB will affect financial reporting? Auditing? Firm valuations and investor decisions? Why do you think the board of the SASB wanted the former head of the FASB, the former chair of the SEC, and the former mayor of NYC?
Why do you think that the demand for accounting and finance professionals is so strong, leading to expected compensation increases? How much do you think you will earn in your chosen field upon graduation?
