Reflecting a growing trend, last week The Boeing Co. said it created a new Office of Internal Governance, reporting directly to Phil Condit, chairman and CEO. Boeing Senior Vice President Bonnie W. Soodik, currently president of Shared Services Group, will head up the new group. In her new role Soodik will have responsibility for: Internal […]
CW Subscriber Only
Posted inFrom the Archive
Whistleblower Activity On The Rise As Rule Date Nears
Where there is smoke there is fire. This is generally the case when whistle-blowers raise concerns about activities within their company. For this reason, last Tuesday, shares of Per-Se Technologies fell more than 15 percent on very heavy volume after the company revealed that it was informed about an anonymous letter sent to several financial […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Everything You Wanted To Know About Revenue Leakage
Not long ago, when shareholder value seemed to be exploding in every sector, companies were too busy counting revenue to focus on leaks in the stream. But, as we have all learned too well, success can breed complacency — and bad habits. Many companies, flush with boom times, took their eye off the ball. They […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Global Research Analyst Settlement Proving Unsettling For Issuers
The much-publicized “global research analyst settlement” is rapidly reshaping the ways brokerage firms conduct business, with significant consequences for both public and pre-IPO companies. Under the global settlement, which was entered into in response to enforcement actions brought by a number of federal and state regulators, ten leading brokerage firms agreed to severely limit interactions […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Study Holds Wealth Of Information On Board Practices
Korn/Ferry International, one of the world’s largest executive recruitment firms, recently published its 30th Annual Board of Directors Study, which is packed with interesting information on board trends and practices. Some expected changes are charted at right, but the study also charted board composition and compensation practices in great detail, comparing U.S. practices with those […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
What Does The SEC Look For? Games Against Time
In today’s heightened regulatory environment, what are common flags the SEC looks for that might indicate problems? We addressed these and other questions with Vinson & Elkins partner Rick Sauer, a former Assistant Director with the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. COMMON FLAGS One of the weaknesses of GAAP is that, by itself, it can’t necessarily […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Sarbanes-Oxley Act: Hidden Shoals for the Unwary
Last year I began teaching my 16 year-old daughter to operate our 205 horsepower pleasure craft. During my newboater indoctrination sessions, in addition to covering requirements such as running the motor compartment exhaust fan for four minutes prior to starting the engine, operating the boat’s navigation lights and learning on-water navigation rules, I took Morgan […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Survey Illustrates How Investment Pros Use Your Data
RESPONSES Most Important Statements Additional Info. Sources 1. Footnotes to Financials 2. Interim Financial Statements 3. Earnings Releases 4. Mgmt’s Discussion & Analysis 5. Conference Calls, Meetings SOURCE: AIMR A recent survey of nearly 2,000 analysts and portfolio managers that rated companies on the overall quality of financial reporting (they got a “C+” if you […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Stacking The Board In The New Age Of Governance
The parties to a merger-of-equals (or a merger-with-an-almost-equal) often divvy up board seats in the merger agreement. Sometimes, the parties simply specify the initial allocation of board seats at the closing, other times the parties lock-in the board seat allocation for a period of time following the closing. The Bank of America/FleetBoston and Anthem/WellPoint deals […]