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statements (FS) in relation to a resolution by the Board of Accountancy (regulator) requiring the submission of a “certificate” by the CPA preparer of the FS, which should be attached to the audited FS filed with the SEC and the BIR. Just for clarification, the FS preparer is a person separate and distinct from the external auditor. There have been continuing developments regarding the resolution but which do not cure the controversies that initially arose. As a long-standing member of the profession, I feel I have a responsibility to continue to express my thoughts on these persisting issues.

When it comes to increasing the value of your business, the old adage rings true: It’s about the journey rather than the destination. Increasing value is an ongoing process—a process that involves the regular assessment of your business’s strengths and weaknesses. The process should ideally lead you to opportunities that allow you to build upon the former, while remedying—or eliminating—the latter. Because you never know when the need for financing—or the decision to sell—may present itself, you should always be searching for new ways to increase your company’s value. While there are obviously external factors that can play a role in how much your business is worth, there are also many things you can control. These may include:

MOST of us are being kept busy by two things—the First Quarter operations report and the tax filing deadline on April 15. And this being the Philippines, we’ll also be engrossed watching and listening to the candidates campaigning for their respective positions. Thus, it is understandable that only a few have given attention to the additional information being required of individual taxpayers for their Income Tax Return for calendar year 2015.

Nowadays, management itself (especially of those companies that are publicly listed) can manifest that it has designed and implemented internal controls related to financial reporting in several ways. Whenever the chairman, CEO, or the president and the chief financial officer sign the Statement of Management Responsibility accompanying a financial statement, they not only take responsibility for the financial statements but also provide assurances that adequate and effective controls were all in place. The Annual Corporate Governance Report (ACGR) issued by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires disclosure related to the internal control system of the company. Also, the Code of Corporate Governance specifies that companies establish, evaluate and monitor financial reporting controls to ensure the integrity of financial reports. How does one strengthen the financial reporting and internal control process within one’s organization?

The lack of attention to the proper and timely accounting of business transactions has significant consequences. Management is not properly guided when making business decisions, resulting in foregone opportunities or bad decisions that could lead to losses. Reliance on cash flow reports or the movements of funds in the company’s bank accounts, which are used as an alternative basis for assessing the business’ position, poses dangers to decision-making. In this scenario, business owners usually fail to consider other critical aspects affecting the business such as contingent liabilities, unrecorded obligations. Likewise, fraudulent transactions within the organization may go undetected when accounting records are not in order.

Companies outsource back-office business processes mainly to boost efficiency and reduce costs. Payroll, HR and accounting processes – the most common to be outsourced – are heavily transactional, and many companies determine that external specialists can execute these far more cost-effectively than they can themselves. It might therefore be expected that providers’ mastery of the relevant technical skills is the critical success factor in any relationship. The intangible aspects of these relationships – a partner’s reliability, trust and other 'non-technical' skills – count as much as (or even more than) harder factors, such as their specialist capabilities, in making outsourcing relationships work.

IMF Resident Representative to the Philippines Shanaka Peiris, in a presentation about the country’s economic outlook for 2016 and the opportunities and challenges ahead, he reported about the impressive growth achieved by the economy in recent years. Peiris said the Philippines’ economic fundamentals, such as real GDP growth, inflation rate, current account balance and general government debt, have been improving. Domestic private demand remains strong, supported by OFW remittances and the rapidly growing BPO sector. He also mentioned that the Philippines continues to have favorable endowments such as a huge English-speaking and literate workforce and an expanding domestic market, which now includes the Asean economic community. Indeed, there is great potential for the Philippines to take off economically.

To the veterans, baby boomers, old guards, or the so-called “dinosaurs,” the idea of office work is a 9-to-6 affair that involves sticking to a routine and ticking off tasks designed and intended to meet an organization’s objectives and goals. This “well-oiled machine,” where individual parts function in accordance with a particular template to deliver an intended objective, is a management concept taken from the Industrial Revolution and perhaps, inappropriately adopted by service organizations.