Topic > The Role of the Accountant in the Corporate Governance of Business Organizations

In the context of corporate governance, there are two vital elements that must be maintained to ensure the efficiency and transparency of organizational operations. These two elements are responsibility and performance. Shareholder confidence is strengthened by good corporate governance practices. Therefore, good corporate governance creates value for shareholders and protects corporate image in a competitive economic environment. The objective of corporate governance is to ensure the interests of all stakeholders and protect an entity from any type of financial crisis and risks that could damage corporate relationships (Rezaee Z., 2007). Achieving this objective requires a high level of commitment from all management employees whose responsibility is to supervise operational activities and strategic level activities in order to achieve organizational objectives. The accounting position in an organization is that of a manager or executive who plays a vital role in the financial function of the organization. All financial transactions are initiated by an accountant or presented by him to the board of directors or other interested parties in the form of financial statements and annual reports. Therefore, by virtue of his role, the accountant enables the board of directors and senior management to fulfill their responsibilities towards good corporate governance in the finance function of the organization. This article discusses the detailed aspects of the accountant's role in the corporate governance of the organization. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayAlthough common stockholders are the owners of the corporation to whom the board of directors is accountable, stockholders' actual powers tend to be limited, except in corporations where stockholders also assume the role of directors. Shareholders are often unaware of the company's current situation and future prospects. And they usually don't check the books. They predict the future profitability of the company only by analyzing the results presented to them in the form of annual reports or by analyzing market reports available in newspapers or market magazines. The day-to-day management of business operations is not their responsibility; rather, this responsibility rests with the officers and directors to whom this responsibility is delegated. For this reason, there is a risk that conflicts of interest may arise between shareholders and management personnel. The accountant is the part of the management staff. The relationship between the accountant and an organization is a kind of agency relationship. By virtue of this relationship, the accountant acts as an agent of the shareholders and his responsibility is to maintain the accuracy and transparency of accounting information. Accounting information is used for the preparation of financial statements and these financial statements are used by stakeholders in decision making (Cox C., 2005). Agency theory was suggested by Jensen M. in 1983 to explain the nature of relationships within organizations. This theory explains aspects of the role of management employees in controlling the functions of the organization. Agency theory suggests that audited accounts of public companies are an important source of post-decision information that minimizes agency costs for investors in contrast to alternative approaches. According to the alternative approach, financial statements provide the primary source of information for thepre-decision making process from the perspective of equity investors. According to the agency theory framework, each group of employees has their own set of goals within their department. If the achievement of these objectives leads to the achievement of organizational objectives then there is said to be objective congruence. And in case these objectives differ from each other, a conflict of interest arises. For example, if an accountant has his or her own set of goals that may differ from the organization's goals. An accountant as part of his role in the finance function has the responsibility of maintaining the books of accounts and forecasting the cash position of the organisation. Payments against sales and purchases must be sanctioned according to the cash position of the organization. In times of financial constraints, an accountant may suggest that the organization obtains long-term and short-term loans from the bank to meet financial obligations. This could be a risky decision from a shareholder perspective. Obtaining loans to meet daily cash needs shows that the company's credit policies are not very effective and that debtors are not making timely payments. Instead of suggesting that a company obtain loans to meet daily cash needs, an accountant will suggest that upper management review credit policies in order to ensure timely payments from customers. A company that is too dependent on loans to meet its financial obligations becomes heavily indebted and investor confidence in it declines. Now, this aspect of how to meet financial obligations is totally dependent on the information an accountant presents to management and directors. The board of directors has the primary overall responsibility for setting the direction of organizational operations and good corporate governance (Conference Board, 2003). In this role, the director's responsibility is to supervise all functions of the organization by directly monitoring, evaluating management's performance and rewarding them appropriately keeping the best interest of shareholders in mind (Rezaee Z., 2007). One of the Board's most important responsibilities is to ensure integrity in the financial reporting process and to oversee all information contained in the financial statements. An accountant provides all the necessary information used to make all the financial statement information. Therefore, the integrity of the financial reporting system through which these reports are generated depends on the integrity of the accountant responsible for entering the data used in preparing these reports. The accountant's role is to maintain the accuracy of all financial data and ensure its completeness. The measurement and valuation of assets and liabilities are based on calculations performed by an accountant. Beyond that, all important accounting estimates are also based on the accountant's judgment. Information contained in the books of accounts in the form of assets, liabilities and estimates is used by the Board to make informed and considered decisions. These decisions could be linked to any investments to be made in plants or machinery to update the production process or to making investments in controlled or associated companies. All these investments are made after analyzing the financial data presented by an accountant. An accountant must maintain the system of internal controls embedded in the financial function of the organization. In order to guarantee the completeness of financial transactions, their transparency and accuracy, internal controls.