Sunday, April 12, 2009
Hmmmm..
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Friday, April 10, 2009
The Downturn of World Financial Crisis

CREATIVE ACCOUNTING defined as a euphemism that practices by specific groups of managers with drawn intention by altering corporate accounting statement with the actual financial statement. Deviating from the basic rule of accounting with specific intention by falsifying data is against the law.
Account Misrepresentation
Such activities that lead to account misrepresentation are done systematically by managers to attract investment from stakeholders in becoming their stockholders. Managers falsified data in several ways namely inflating profits in assets and net income statement or drastically understate earnings for the benefit of the higher management.
In 2002, Quest Communication and Freddie Mac, United States of America was found guilty of creative accounting. These two Wall Street giants had illegally misrepresented and declared their financial statements and status. Quest Communication inflated their revenues to attract investors into the accounts. While Freddie Mac understates their earnings with the intention of the top management benefiting from the earnings while posting high annual bonuses among themselves.
Corporate Integrity and Principle of Prudence
The question of corporate integrity and negligence surfaces in the account misrepresentation occurred in the strings of creative accounting scenes among the Wall Streets giants right after the global economic recovery from 2000 to 2003. In the case of Quest Communication, ignorance and lack of internal control in safeguarding the assets mislead the managers into such activities. At the juncture of peak dot com boom, Quest Communication suffers weak working capital and in series of troubled bad debts. Based on the situation to save the company from bankruptcy, the managers decide to deviate from the basic rule and going against the principle of prudence by inflating their net worth to generate higher income and to stay competitive in the market. [1]
Earning Management
Large corporations adopt Earning Management method which involves managers in safeguarding the economic performance and structuring the company portfolio to gain confidence of investors. This method at certain condition, position the company’s credibility and performance in within its capability. An example was the disclosures of key ratio in large corporation such as Singapore Airlines in its annual report by lowering its key asset value to increase its profitability and to gain the trust of their stockholders and stakeholders.
Adjustments are made in within the loopholes of the financial accounting to produce a non-realistic financial statement with intention to project a desired outcome of satisfactory financial health status. Such behaviors are drawn by fundamental intentions in effect towards the financial statements.
Market Expectations
While maintaining the industry expectations, managers play a critical role in conforming towards the principle of full disclosure and materiality in the disclosure of company’s financial health status. In the desire to achieve a higher market expectation, negligence and personal integrity are ignored especially at critical times such as credit crunch and economic downturn arouses managers in preventing corporate debts turning into toxic assets.
The introduction of hedge funds and stock options as compensation packages are examples of creative accounting that enable large corporations to generate higher net worth in the Return of Investment. On surface, it may look as though it increase the net worth of the corporation but in contrary, such compensation packages that are offered are used as a stepping stone to bailout unhealthy financial statements. [2]
Personal Realization Bonus
Inflating profits in financial statements and annual reports are some critical examples of creative accounting. It is conducted intentionally to fraud the asset of the organization in personal favor. Such incident could be seen largely in the recent global financial crisis where familiar faces such as Bernard Madoff and Stanley O’Neil are on the top list in creating personal wealth through laundering asset of through their responsibilities in the organization. This shows that principle of sincerity is not practice in reporting the reality of the financial status of the company.
Maintenance in Position within the Market
Principle of prudence aims to show the reality of one firm should paint a pretty picture in comparison to its actual fact. While top management decides on such activities due to business downturn and yet trying its best in gaining the confidence and trust from the stakeholder to maintain its position in the marketplace. One example quotable situation is from the WorldCom incident. While in the downturn, the finance department painted a false picture on its financial status and its profitability with an intention to increase the stock prices of WorldCom. The accountability and the individual negligence of act places the company in jeopardy towards its list of stockholders and stakeholders.
Conclusion
Principle of accounting dated back to tradition where with an objective of providing financial statement and maintaining a healthy financial status throughout its business development is crucial to stay vigilant and prudence in the marketplace. Financial controllers are bind within the principal of regularity which is defined to the conformity of law and regulations. Creative accounting and earning management is not encouraged even when crisis happens.
[1] Quest Communication, United States of America 2002 in reference from http://www.businessonline.com
[2] Hedge Funds and stock options in reference from publication of Bloomberg Market, March 2009
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Thursday, March 19, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
reflection~
2008 is indeed an eventful year for everyone of us. With impacts from food contamination to global economic unstability. We had also seen the much sadder news of the ever attacked by the group of terrorist in Mumbai that kills my friend's colleague. Sad~
The oriental believes that the figure 8 is supposed to bring luck and prosperity to the society but it got worst. The situation is much uncontrollable in comparison to 1998 global economy crisis or the 1988 world political crisis. Do we ever think about what will happen in 2018, 2028 and beyond? How will the next generation to survive the next downturn?
It is a debate among the people around what will happen to Earth and the residence of Earth in times to come? Mars has always been known to the planet closest to Earth. Are we all had a plan to evacuate to Mars if Earth are no longer inhabitable? With the erratic behavior of Mother Nature towards the environment causing much alarming global warming on Earth. Do we all ever thought of that we human are the root to what we had now?
It was when early this year that I watched the documentary by Al Gore - The Inconvenient Truth. And at the later of the year, a report shown that Al Gore had places much effort in reducing global warming, but indeed the report says that his house consumes at least 20% more energy compare to other houses in similar composition.
But I have to say that, Al Gore and the environmentalist had made an effort to make people realize the importance of conserving the balance of the environment for the next generations to come. Personally, if I have the time and the social circle that involves in such activities, I would be pretty much interested to be involved in the conservation project driven on a global initiatives in promoting green environment.
2008 & career
Today is the last day of 2008 and this is the year in making a major decision to have a focus changed in career path. This is a year of achievement to me in enriching my knowledge in business practice and also realizing my potential career as a project manager.
This is also the year which I placed a great load of effort in my career in lecturing and my duty as a project manager. A group of students and I worked alongside to develop a design studio and within 6 months, we had completed at least 8 major design projects. This is trully a rewarding effort which I had placed in for the past few months and the fruit of labor for this year had revealed itself through future sponsorship by the instituition.
As a reward for me this year in my career was to see success after success by my group of students conducting internship as well as traineeship in the design studio. Pleasing to the heart at an achievement that was never thought to be brought alive. Students in and out the studio with a drawn intention had further develop the achievement of this design studio.
Next year will be a difficult year but I hope that nothing should be impossible to handle...
2008 & life
This year was more a career driven year. Friends come and go with the next moment you will get to know another person. Knowing great deal of people is one of the key to success factor in everyone's life. I had got to know a few people which had helped me to realize certain area and also to boost my confidence level.
CJ came back to Singapore this year after completing her studies in London. Lars visits to Asia for the second time again and now he is with Kyle in New Zealand hunting for sheepskins. My buddies are the one who keeps me going and looking forward for things ahead.
Thanks CJ for the wonderful road trip~ is 1600km not 16000km…hahaha…
Need to do more soul searching and seek for love life which will be my next mission…
Good bye 2008
Welcome 2009~
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Saturday, October 11, 2008
A Leader
A long time since I drop by my blog to talk about what is going on around me. Something I would like to share with all of you who are reading my blog.
Earlier this week, I watched a movie by the title of Matchstick Man played by Nicholas Cage and my favorite Alison Lohman, gotten the DVD from HMV and really its a good movie for me to recommend to anyone of you who wants to watch a movie.
The day after, I was suppose to attend a camp as a facilitator. This camp is for my students and its somekind of leadership and motivational camp as to train the students to be student leaders. Its really a cool camp and also the camp was located a very cool place too.
Compare to last year's camp at Changi, this year the camp venue was at this super ulu place in Singapore. Lim Chu Kang. And this is the place people will come here to bury the dead. Ok lets not talk about that part.
What I really wanna share with all of you is that, while I as a facilitor to the camp, I am also responsible for the well being and the development of my students. So I was sitting together with the students as well as their trainers.
Extracting a quote from the movie Matchstick Man, I start to relate it this way..
"Money to some people are like foreign films without subtitles" This is the exact quote which I relate it to my students. Money is a value that we perceives in which we create to believe that it carries a value with us all the time. While foreign films without subtitles is difficult to be understand by anyone who dont speak that language and it loses its value if no one able to appreciate it.
It is the same as people, everyone around us perceives a value and we create a value to everyone around us which makes a believe that how much of value that a person carries. The value will then determine who we are and what makes us around us. So as a person and esp as a leader, we need to create a value for ourselves to let others perceives what makes us a leader.
A leader is someone who stands out from everyone else and they are the one who shape our environment. It is some think everyone ought to ponder upon if he/she wants to be unique in their own way.
Cheers,
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Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Again..Weird Dreams..
Hmm.. last night I had a dream again. And again, as usual, I had weird dreams again.
Last night dream was more sickening. I have no idea why but its about child sexual abuse. I do not know who is the abuser yet I do not know how did it happened in the first place.
But this is how my dream goes..
It was sometime late at night and I was over-looking a room. This room has this particular cabinet which caught my attention. Its like a book-shelf and it is build with glass door. Its empty.
It is midnight and I saw this person, lifting up the sexually abused kids up and placed them into the cabinet and let them sleep in it. I could not see their faces but I remember how shy and timid they are, with their blanket and pajamas wrapping overthemselves. And also I remember that the kids shyed away from the man and keep saying please dont touch me anymore. The kids one by one wrapping themselves up and trying to sleep.
I remembered one of the kid trying to switch off the lights but I felt that the way how the kid acted was very weird and remember the movie, Ju-On? Its exactly how it shivers and twitches.
The lights went off and the next moment, I saw the kid switch on the light. One by one waking up. And because of the vibration towards the cabinet, the kids fell off from the cabinet. The weirdest things of all, THE KIDS TURNED INTO FILES!! Someone walked passed the files and tries to pick it up, he opens one of the file and I saw one of the filing of the abused case with the kid's photo and documentation. The file contains the documentation of the cases where and when the kid was abused! That means this kids are already dead!
The next moment, *poof* the files turn into dust. One file after another, the files turned into dust and couldnt be save anymore.
I got freak out and I got up. I just hope that its just a dream/nightmare and had been thinking about this the entire day.
Oh dear...
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Sunday, June 1, 2008
Weird Dreams...
It has been quite sometime since I visited my blog and had been tight down with many many projects and of course my students mid-year design module.
Anyway, my title weird dreams..
Recently I had been encountering weird dreams all over again which it may be weird but I thought I should share with all of you and maybe you can tell me what do you guys think about it.
The most recent dream that I had was last night which in my vision of the dream, I saw a family. A family, usually is the dad, mom and a kid, I think is a boy which is about 10 years old. This particular family was a happy one which they used to go for outing and they had dinner together and many other things.
I think his mother is a housewife and his dad works for a iron ore company.
One day, this boy started to give alot of problems to the family which in my dreamy vision, everything happens with a blink of an eye, the family was falling apart, while his father ran into terrible debts and his mother is always crying. She looks rather cheerful sometimes but when it comes to late evening, she will grin not only to her family, but to everyone else.
One day the kid went to school and out of depression, the kid started banging on his table and everything happened so fast that the kid was send to the headmaster room. The funny thing is that out of a sudden, the headmaster gave the kid some caning and the kid broke down with tears in his eyes. He cried and cried and the headmaster decided to call the kid's dad.
A few hours later, his dad came to school and the headmaster explained what had happened during the day. His dad was rather disappointed with his child's behaviour after which he decided to bring him back home.
Once back home, his dad asked the boy's mom to get into the car and he drove them to the place where he works. The iron ore factory. When they reached the factory, his dad mentioned that he couldnt take the level of stress anymore and he says that their son had caused much embarrassment to the family.
The father then bring the family to the melting pot for the iron ore and he asked his wife and his son to grab hold of the cable. When three of them were secured to the cable, his dad lowered the cable which the cable heads directly towards the melting pot.
For a moment, I saw the faces of the family while the cable lowering the three of them down and they were screaming and screaming. I stand and watched them going down and feel so helpless but to watch them die.
From the point when they were melted in the melting pot, I couldnt bear it and I quickly opened my eye, thank god it is just a dream but yet it looks so real. It is so real that, I could still remember every detail of it.
If this story means something please tell me ok? because I keep getting weird weird dreams almost every night. And when I have weird dreams again, I will write.
Sign off..
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