Publication Type
PhD Dissertation
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
2-2024
Abstract
I examine how the hierarchical structure of a firm’s accounting function influences its financial reporting quality. Using information from accounting employees’ online resumes to infer the hierarchical layers in a firm’s accounting function, I find that a firm with a more hierarchical accounting function exhibits higher financial reporting quality. Further analysis shows a hierarchical accounting function is associated with a reduced likelihood of internal control weaknesses, in particular internal control weaknesses in the segregation of duties and accounting personnel matters. These findings suggest that a hierarchical accounting function enhances financial reporting quality through improving internal control. These effects are more pronounced when a firm’s accountants are of a lower level of education and when a firm’s accounting function spans a smaller geographical region. Collectively, my findings underscore the importance of the organizational structure of a firm’s accounting function in shaping its financial reporting quality.
Keywords
organization structure, financial reporting quality, corporate accountants, internal control, internal information quality
Degree Awarded
PhD in Accounting
Discipline
Accounting
Supervisor(s)
WANG, Rencheng; HUANG, Sterling Zhenrui
First Page
1
Last Page
69
Publisher
Singapore Management University
City or Country
Singapore
Citation
LI, Shuo.
Accounting function hierarchies and financial reporting quality. (2024). 1-69.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/etd_coll/569
Copyright Owner and License
Author
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.