Chapter1: Overview of Corporate Financial Reporting

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS126890+08-Sep-2009+BW20090908

*Only the Summary section is redone*

Summary

With money being a tight issue with many corporations, many companies have begun to change the way they operate. In this article, Yardi Systems is owned by Tobin Properties, which manages residential properties as well as retail offices. Once Tobin Properties purchased Yardi Systems, Tobin decided to have Yardi Voyageur govern Systems’ financial reporting and to create better management activities to run the company. Yardi Systems is a company whose main objective is to create new real estate investment ideas and sometimes software for managing property. Systems’ financial issue before teaming up with Voyageur was what was bringing the corporation behind. For example, spreadsheets were being prepared in an untimely manner since they did not have a dashboard that consisted of all their leases and expiration dates. That makes it easy to forget when things must be paid off. Voyageur has not also begun to take control over the majority of Systems’ financial activities, resulting in more accurate reportings and potentially a better and deeper analysis of the company on a whole. Perhaps the result of this action will bring a better future for Systems.


Connections

In this particular article, we are able to see that the efficiency of financial reporting not only affects the company's internal users itself, but external users as well. For example, the article mentioned that they are now able to publish their financial statements earlier by three or four days, which allows potential investors more time to decide upon purchasing a share in the company or vice versa. When it was mentioned that Yardi now has a dashboard, it was a reminder to me that having a software that could keep track of expenses, liabilites, and so on. That itself, is similar to a domino effect. With the dashboard, any money owed would be visible along with any activity that is required to keep a business running. With a lack of an organization factor, the way the company is running starts to become messy and business etiquette is often forgotten. In a nutshell, being efficient and using software that is able to keep track of any transactions or important reminders are quite vital to any business.


Reflection

As I read this article, I found myself applauding the changes that Yardi Voyageur has begun to enforce upon Yardi Systems. I felt that with the new management team, Yardi Systems would be able to capture the attention of potential shareholders and run its business more smoothly. I also found that Yardi Voyageur really embodied the principle of accounting in the way that they produced the statements early and accurately, two aspects of GAAP (Generally Accepted Accouting Principles). My only wish for Yardi Systems is if they had found Yardi Voyageur earlier, when the world was in a deeper, more economically troubled situation for with a better understanding of keeping their books accurate and finishing any financial papers earlier could mean money saved. Nonetheless, it's better late than never.

-Betty Chan