Revision har funnits länge men intern kontroll är något som har blivit mer uppmärksammat på senare tid i och med ett antal bolagsskandaler i USA. Intern kontroll är något som alla bolag bör ha och variationen är stor mellan bolagen. I svensk lagstiftning är den reglerad i 8 kap 4§ Aktiebolagslagen, men den är inte uttömmande. Det finns dock rekommendationer för större aktiebolag att tillämpa som exempelvis Svensk kod för bolagsstyrning. I mindre bolag som har ett fåtal ägare vilka även är aktiva i bolaget kan problem uppstå. Om inte en god intern kontroll finns inom bolaget måste intressenterna förlita sig mer på att revisorn upptäcker väsentliga fel vid revisionen. Eftersom det enbart finns rekommendationer för K4 bolag kan det vara svårt för K2 bolag att upprätta en god intern kontroll. Syftet är att undersöka den interna kontrollen i K2 bolag samt vilka intressenter som kan komma att påverkas av den. Uppsatsen är avgränsad till K2 bolag som endast tillämpar svensk lag. Bolagen är avgränsade enligt EG direktivet gällande små och medelstora bolag, definieras små bolag som bland annat 10-50 anställda. Uppsatsen är utförd med en induktiv ansats. De primära och sekundära källor har alla kritiskt granskats. I uppsatsen har främst fokuserats på en kvantitativ enkätundersökning, som bestod av 30 deltagande bolag. Undersökningen inriktades på hur den interna kontrollen fungerar i de svarandes bolag samt deras uppfattning om begreppet intern kontroll. Denna undersökning har kompletteras med en semi-strukturerad intervju med en revisor från ett av de stora revisionsbolagen. Detta för att få en mer djupgående bild av hur intern kontroll fungerar i små bolag. För att en förståelse ska kunna uppnås angående intern kontroll och revision har relevant fakta från böcker och artiklar sammanställts. Dessa har kompletteras med lagar och rekommendation om hur intern kontroll ska upprättas. Det finns även ett revisionsuttalande för revisorer som de kan tillämpa vid bedömning av den interna kontrollen i små bolag. Det kan konstateras att K2 bolag har upprättat någon form av intern kontroll och att omfattningen av den är varierande. Ifall bolagen upprättar intern kontroll kan onödiga kostnader undvikas och oegentligheter kan då fångas upp innan det orsakar ekonomisk skada. Intern kontroll behöver inte vara avancerad i dessa bolag, det kan räcka att de använder avstämningar och attester. Små bolag kan även använda sig av att analysera avvikelser i budgeten. De som påverkas mest av den interna kontrollen är ägarna och de anställda. Det är även dessa intressenter som har den bästa möjligheten att förbättra den. / This thesis is written in Swedish. Auditing has been around for a long time but more recently attention has been drawn to internal control because of several corporate scandals in the U.S. This is something that every company should apply, and the variation of it is great. It is regulated in 8 chap 4§ Aktiebolagslagen, but is not detailed. However, there are recommendations that larger limited companies can apply, for example the Swedish Code for Corporate Governance. Problems may arise in small companies with a few owners who are active within the company. If the company does not have a good internal control the stakeholders need to rely on the auditor to discover significant errors during the audit. Since it only exist recommendations for K4 companies it can be difficult for K2 companies to establish a good internal control. Therefore the purpose is to investigate the internal control within K2 companies and also which stakeholders who will be affected. The thesis is limited to the K2 companies which apply Swedish law. These are limited according to an EG directive, regarding small and medium size companies, where small are defined by among others as a company with 10-50 employees. The thesis is conducted through a inductive approach. The primary and secondary sources have all been critically viewed. A quantitative survey has mainly been used conducted with 30 participating companies. The focus of the survey was how the internal control works within these companies and also their point of view of the concept internal control. This survey has been complemented with a semi-structured interview with an auditor from one of the large audit companies. The interview was conducted to obtain a more in depth view of how the internal control works within small companies. To be able to obtain an understanding regarding internal control and auditing relevant facts from books and articles have been compiled. These have been complemented with laws and recommendations about how internal control should be established. In addition there are an audit opinion for auditors which they can apply during the internal control assessment in small companies.  It can be concluded that K2 companies establish some kind of internal control and that the scope is varying. If the companies establish an internal control unnecessary costs can be avoided and irregularities can be captured before any economical damage can occur. Internal control does not have to be advanced in these companies and it can be enough to use reconciliations and endorsements. They can also analyze budget deviations. Those who are mostly affected by the internal control are the owners and the employees. These are the stakeholders who have the possibility to improve it.

<p>Revision har funnits länge men intern kontroll är något som har blivit mer uppmärksammat på senare tid i och med ett antal bolagsskandaler i USA. Intern kontroll är något som alla bolag bör ha och variationen är stor mellan bolagen. I svensk lagstiftning är den reglerad i 8 kap 4§ Aktiebolagslagen, men den är inte uttömmande. Det finns dock rekommendationer för större aktiebolag att tillämpa som exempelvis Svensk kod för bolagsstyrning.</p><p>I mindre bolag som har ett fåtal ägare vilka även är aktiva i bolaget kan problem uppstå. Om inte en god intern kontroll finns inom bolaget måste intressenterna förlita sig mer på att revisorn upptäcker väsentliga fel vid revisionen. Eftersom det enbart finns rekommendationer för K4 bolag kan det vara svårt för K2 bolag att upprätta en god intern kontroll. Syftet är att undersöka den interna kontrollen i K2 bolag samt vilka intressenter som kan komma att påverkas av den. Uppsatsen är avgränsad till K2 bolag som endast tillämpar svensk lag. Bolagen är avgränsade enligt EG direktivet gällande små och medelstora bolag, definieras små bolag som bland annat 10-50 anställda.</p><p>Uppsatsen är utförd med en induktiv ansats. De primära och sekundära källor har alla kritiskt granskats. I uppsatsen har främst fokuserats på en kvantitativ enkätundersökning, som bestod av 30 deltagande bolag. Undersökningen inriktades på hur den interna kontrollen fungerar i de svarandes bolag samt deras uppfattning om begreppet intern kontroll. Denna undersökning har kompletteras med en semi-strukturerad intervju med en revisor från ett av de stora revisionsbolagen. Detta för att få en mer djupgående bild av hur intern kontroll fungerar i små bolag.</p><p>För att en förståelse ska kunna uppnås angående intern kontroll och revision har relevant fakta från böcker och artiklar sammanställts. Dessa har kompletteras med lagar och rekommendation om hur intern kontroll ska upprättas. Det finns även ett revisionsuttalande för revisorer som de kan tillämpa vid bedömning av den interna kontrollen i små bolag.<strong></strong></p><p>Det kan konstateras<strong> </strong>att K2 bolag har upprättat någon form av intern kontroll och att omfattningen av den är varierande. Ifall bolagen upprättar intern kontroll kan onödiga kostnader undvikas och oegentligheter kan då fångas upp innan det orsakar ekonomisk skada. Intern kontroll behöver inte vara avancerad i dessa bolag, det kan räcka att de använder avstämningar och attester. Små bolag kan även använda sig av att analysera avvikelser i budgeten. De som påverkas mest av den interna kontrollen är ägarna och de anställda. Det är även dessa intressenter som har den bästa möjligheten att förbättra den.</p> / <p><em>This thesis is written in Swedish.</em></p><p>Auditing has been around for a long time but more recently attention has been drawn to internal control because of several corporate scandals in the U.S. This is something that every company should apply, and the variation of it is great. It is regulated in 8 chap 4§ Aktiebolagslagen, but is not detailed. However, there are recommendations that larger limited companies can apply, for example the Swedish Code for Corporate Governance.</p><p>Problems may arise in small companies with a few owners who are active within the company. If the company does not have a good internal control the stakeholders need to rely on the auditor to discover significant errors during the audit. Since it only exist recommendations for K4 companies it can be difficult for K2 companies to establish a good internal control. Therefore the purpose is to investigate the internal control within K2 companies and also which stakeholders who will be affected. The thesis is limited to the K2 companies which apply Swedish law. These are limited according to an EG directive, regarding small and medium size companies, where small are defined by among others as a company with 10-50 employees.</p><p>The thesis is conducted through a inductive approach. The primary and secondary sources have all been critically viewed. A quantitative survey has mainly been used conducted with 30 participating companies. The focus of the survey was how the internal control works within these companies and also their point of view of the concept internal control. This survey has been complemented with a semi-structured interview with an auditor from one of the large audit companies. The interview was conducted to obtain a more in depth view of how the internal control works within small companies.</p><p>To be able to obtain an understanding regarding internal control and auditing relevant facts from books and articles have been compiled. These have been complemented with laws and recommendations about how internal control should be established. In addition there are an audit opinion for auditors which they can apply during the internal control assessment in small companies.  It can be concluded that K2 companies establish some kind of internal control and that the scope is varying. If the companies establish an internal control unnecessary costs can be avoided and irregularities can be captured before any economical damage can occur. Internal control does not have to be advanced in these companies and it can be enough to use reconciliations and endorsements. They can also analyze budget deviations. Those who are mostly affected by the internal control are the owners and the employees. These are the stakeholders who have the possibility to improve it.</p>

<p>Bakgrund</p><p>Under de senare åren har ett flertal länder drabbats av bolagsskandaler som bidragit till en snabb utveckling inom corporate governance. För att förhindra liknande skandaler har mer eller mindre frivilliga regler för bolagsstyrning införts, så kallade koder. Bolagsskandaler har även inträffat i Sverige och 1 juli år 2005 infördes svensk kod för bolagsstyrning. Koden skall bidra till förbättrad styrning av bolag, stärka konkurrenskraften och främja förtroendet på kapitalmarknaden.</p><p>Syfte</p><p>Uppsatsens syfte är att beskriva och analysera om roll- och ansvarsfördelningen har förändrats mellan bolagsorganen efter införandet av svensk kod för bolagsstyrning.</p><p>Genomförande</p><p>Denna studie bygger på kvalitativ metod och tio intervjuer har genomförts. Intervjuer har skett med representanter från ägare, styrelse, bolagsledning, revisor samt respondenter med god kunskap inom bolagsstyrning.</p><p>Resultat</p><p>Studien visar att svensk kod för bolagsstyrning inte har haft någon större effekt på roll- och ansvarsfördelningen. Detta beror dels på att ABL redan har en tydlig fördelning mellan bolagsorganen och att behovet av en roll- och ansvarsförändring inte är lika stort i Sverige som i andra länder. Koden har dock stärkt ägarnas inflytande i bolag och ökat fokus på styrelsen.</p> / <p>Background</p><p>During last years numerous countries have been hit by corporate scandals which have contributed to a rapid development within corporate governance. To prevent similar scandals, more or less volontary rules for corporate governance have been introduced, so called codes. Corporate scandals have also occurred in Sweden and July 1st 2005 a Swedish code for corporate governance was introduced. The code shall contribute to an improved control of corporations, strengthen competitiveness and promote trust in the capital market.</p><p>Purpose</p><p>This papers purpose is to describe and analyse if the role- and responsibility distribution have changed between corporate bodies after the introduction of a Swedish code for corporate governance.</p><p>Implementation</p><p>This study is based on qualitative method and ten interviews have been conducted. Interviews have taken place with representatives from owners, board of directors, corporate management, accountants and respondents with good knowledge within corporate governance.</p><p>Result</p><p>The study shows that Swedish code for corporate governance have not had any greater affect on the role- and responsibility distribution. Part of this is because ABL already has a clear distribution between the corporate bodies and the need for a role- and responsibility change is not as necessary as in other countries. However, the code have strengthened the owners influence in corporations and increased the focus on the board of directors.</p>

Os riscos de poluição ao meio ambiente envolvendo petróleo envolvem, não só o seu transporte, como também seu refino. O prejuízo causado por um derramamento de petróleo vai além de danos à fauna e flora, pois envolvem também questões sociais. A emissão de óxidos de enxofre, denominadas SOx, durante o refino de petróleo através do craqueamento catalítico em leito fluidizado (FCC) também é uma das preocupações ambientais, já que esses óxidos estão relacionados com o a formação de chuva ácida e problemas respiratórios. Os hidrocarbonetos provenientes de um derramamento podem ser degradados em produtos menos agressivos ao meio ambiente, por oxidação química, por exemplo. Já as emissões de enxofre na unidade de FCC podem ser minimizadas por diversos processos, como por exemplo, o uso de aditivos nas unidades de FCC. Nesse trabalho óxidos de manganês dos tipos OMS-1 e OMS-2 foram sintetizados em presença e ausência de biomassa e óxidos OMS-2 foram dopados com os metais cobre, vanádio e ferro. Possíveis alterações em suas propriedades, suas atividades catalíticas em oxidação de hidrocarbonetos e em testes de captura de enxofre em condições de temperatura similares à unidade de FCC foram investigadas. Constatou-se uma diminuição na área superficial, tamanho e volume de poros nos óxidos sintetizados em presença de biomassa, através de uma análise de adsorção e dessorção de N2 (ASAP), porém seus difratogramas em uma análise de difração de raio X de pó (DRX) revelaram a obtenção de estruturas do criptomelano em todos os OMS-2. Os óxidos OMS-2 testados na oxidação do cicloexano, não sofreram modificações em sua estrutura após seu uso como catalisador, mas a presença da biomassa na síntese não aumentou sua atividade catalítica. Nos testes DeSOx, o óxido dopado com ferro apresentou o melhor desempenho e testes em ciclos mostraram ser possível sua reutilização / The risk of pollution to the environment involving oil involve not only the transport, as well as its refining. The damage caused by an oil spill goes beyond damage to fauna and flora, they also involve social issues. The emission of sulfur oxides, SOx called during the refining of oil through the fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) is also an environmental concern, since these oxides are related to the the formation of acid rain and respiratory problems. The hydrocarbons from a spill can be degraded into less harmful products for the environment by chemical oxidation, for example. Since sulfur emissions in the FCC unit can be minimized by various methods, for example, the use of additives in FCC units. In this work manganese oxides types of OMS-1 and OMS-2 are synthesized in the presence and absence of biomass and OMS-2 oxide was doped with the metals copper, vanadium and iron. Possible changes in their properties, their catalytic activities in the oxidation of hydrocarbons and sulfur capture in conditions similar to the FCC unit were investigated temperature tests. Found a decrease in the surface, size and volume of pores in the oxides synthesized in the presence of biomass area, through an analysis of N2 adsorption and desorption (ASAP), but their diffraction patterns on an analysis of X-ray diffraction powder (XRD) revealed the structures of obtaining criptomelano in all OMS-2. The OMS-2 oxides tested in the oxidation of cyclohexane, have not changed in its structure following its use as a catalyst, but the presence of biomass synthesis did not increase its catalytic activity. In Desox tests, the iron oxide doped showed the best performance and testing cycles proved possible reuse

Os riscos de poluição ao meio ambiente envolvendo petróleo envolvem, não só o seu transporte, como também seu refino. O prejuízo causado por um derramamento de petróleo vai além de danos à fauna e flora, pois envolvem também questões sociais. A emissão de óxidos de enxofre, denominadas SOx, durante o refino de petróleo através do craqueamento catalítico em leito fluidizado (FCC) também é uma das preocupações ambientais, já que esses óxidos estão relacionados com o a formação de chuva ácida e problemas respiratórios. Os hidrocarbonetos provenientes de um derramamento podem ser degradados em produtos menos agressivos ao meio ambiente, por oxidação química, por exemplo. Já as emissões de enxofre na unidade de FCC podem ser minimizadas por diversos processos, como por exemplo, o uso de aditivos nas unidades de FCC. Nesse trabalho óxidos de manganês dos tipos OMS-1 e OMS-2 foram sintetizados em presença e ausência de biomassa e óxidos OMS-2 foram dopados com os metais cobre, vanádio e ferro. Possíveis alterações em suas propriedades, suas atividades catalíticas em oxidação de hidrocarbonetos e em testes de captura de enxofre em condições de temperatura similares à unidade de FCC foram investigadas. Constatou-se uma diminuição na área superficial, tamanho e volume de poros nos óxidos sintetizados em presença de biomassa, através de uma análise de adsorção e dessorção de N2 (ASAP), porém seus difratogramas em uma análise de difração de raio X de pó (DRX) revelaram a obtenção de estruturas do criptomelano em todos os OMS-2. Os óxidos OMS-2 testados na oxidação do cicloexano, não sofreram modificações em sua estrutura após seu uso como catalisador, mas a presença da biomassa na síntese não aumentou sua atividade catalítica. Nos testes DeSOx, o óxido dopado com ferro apresentou o melhor desempenho e testes em ciclos mostraram ser possível sua reutilização / The risk of pollution to the environment involving oil involve not only the transport, as well as its refining. The damage caused by an oil spill goes beyond damage to fauna and flora, they also involve social issues. The emission of sulfur oxides, SOx called during the refining of oil through the fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) is also an environmental concern, since these oxides are related to the the formation of acid rain and respiratory problems. The hydrocarbons from a spill can be degraded into less harmful products for the environment by chemical oxidation, for example. Since sulfur emissions in the FCC unit can be minimized by various methods, for example, the use of additives in FCC units. In this work manganese oxides types of OMS-1 and OMS-2 are synthesized in the presence and absence of biomass and OMS-2 oxide was doped with the metals copper, vanadium and iron. Possible changes in their properties, their catalytic activities in the oxidation of hydrocarbons and sulfur capture in conditions similar to the FCC unit were investigated temperature tests. Found a decrease in the surface, size and volume of pores in the oxides synthesized in the presence of biomass area, through an analysis of N2 adsorption and desorption (ASAP), but their diffraction patterns on an analysis of X-ray diffraction powder (XRD) revealed the structures of obtaining criptomelano in all OMS-2. The OMS-2 oxides tested in the oxidation of cyclohexane, have not changed in its structure following its use as a catalyst, but the presence of biomass synthesis did not increase its catalytic activity. In Desox tests, the iron oxide doped showed the best performance and testing cycles proved possible reuse

Dans le contexte de l’écologie industrielle, l’objectif du projet est de récupérer du dioxyde de carbone à partir des fumées d’incinérateur de déchets industriels dangereux pour le valoriser en tant que matière première. La technologie de captage du CO2, la plus adaptée pour des fumées de postcombustion, est l’absorption du CO2 par des alcanolamines. Les fumées d’incinération de déchets dangereux présentent des particularités qui peuvent nuire au bon fonctionnement des unités de captage. Ainsi, la composition des fumées d’une usine d’incinération est caractérisée par une forte concentration en dioxygène, et enfin à la présence de NOx et SOx liée aux déchets industriels spéciaux qu’elle incinère. Le premier objectif est de déterminer l’influence des polluants (NOx, SOx) sur la dégradation de l’amine (MEA) et le second objectif est d’étudier l’impact des polluants sur la vitesse (ou flux) d’absorption du CO2 dans un solvant. / In the context of industrial symbiosis, the goal of this project is to reuse the carbon dioxide from the incinerator gas as a commercial substance. The most suitable technology of CO2 capture from postcombustion gas is the chemical absorption by alkanolamines. Some characteristics of waste incinerator gas may affect the performances of CO2 capture process. The composition of gas from industrial waste incinerator plant is characterized by a high concentration of oxygen and the presence of NOx and SOx. The first goal is to determine the influence of pollutants like NOx and SOx on the degradation of the amine and the second objective is to study the impact of pollutants on the CO2 absorption kinetics in a solvent.

Du fait de biais dont souffrent les dirigeants d’entreprises lorsqu’ils prennent des décisions d’acquisition, le M&A a une longue tradition de ne pas générer des retours positifs pour les acheteurs. Au travers de 3 essais, notre recherche explore l’impact de récentes évolutions de l’environnement économique et social, incluant 1) le déploiement des normes IFRS, 2) le développement des comités de conseil d’administration ou de surveillance, et 3) la publication de la Loi NRE, sur la performance M&A des acquéreurs en France. Analysant les rendements anormaux générés au moment où une acquisition est faite, nous trouvons que la performance M&A ne s’est pas améliorée, principalement du fait que les principaux changements intervenus ont laissé un important pouvoir discrétionnaire au management mais aussi parce l’adoption de nouvelles pratiques de marché ont pu être intégrées par les investisseurs dans leur évaluation de résultats d’acquisition. Nous trouvons aussi que les stratégies RSE ont un impact négatif. Cependant, nous trouvons que la mise en place de comités de conseil et l’entrée en vigueur de la Loi NRE, qui ont pu conduire à une transparence accrue de l’information, ont eu un impact positif. / Because management suffers from biases when making acquisition decisions, M&A has been having a longstanding reputation for providing acquirers with no or limited returns. Through 3 essays, our research explores the impact of recent evolution in business environment, including 1) the implementation of IFRS regulations, 2) the development of board committees popularized following SOX regulations, and 3) the implementation of the NRE Law, on acquirers’ M&A performance in France. Analyzing abnormal returns generated at the time of an acquisition is made, we find that M&A performance has not overall improved, mainly because most the changes reviewed can be assumed to leave a significant space for managerial discretion but also because new business practices become market standards integrated by investors when valuing acquisition outcomes. We also find CSR strategies to have a negative impact on M&A performance. We however find that the implementation of a board committee and the enforcement of the NRE Law in France, that may lead to more information transparency, have had a positive impact.

In this study, I use Section 404(b) of the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act as an exogenous shock to examine the effect of auditors’ assessment of internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) on audit fees, cost of debt, and net value of compliance between 2002 and 2010. Using firms themselves as their own control, this study conducts firm-fixed effects analyses to explore the close causal effect of SOX 404(b) on compliance costs (proxied by audit fees), compliance benefit (proxied by cost of debt) and net compliance benefit (proxied by Tobin’s q). Through analyzing how SOX 404(b) affects firms’ compliance cost, compliance benefit, and net compliance benefit, the results suggest that SOX 404(b) decreases firms’ cost of debt, but also imposes compliance costs. Overall, SOX 404(b) increases firm value premium by around 8.63%. The study also examines whether the 2007 reforms have achieved their purpose by comparing audit fees before and after the 2007 reforms.

This purpose of this paper is to assess the effects of increased accounting regulations on financial reporting practices. Specifically, this paper provides an in-depth look into two specific regulations, The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) and the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010. SOX was enacted as a result of the many accounting scandals that occurred in the late 1990s, and its main intention was to reduce the likelihood that fraud would occur by establishing additional oversight and increasing the number of regulations for public accounting firms. This paper examines the costs associated with specific provisions within SOX and the effects that they have on public companies. Ultimately, this paper finds that SOX imposes an unfair burden to smaller public companies. Secondly, this paper examines the effect that regulations in the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act had on the financial services industry. The 2008 financial crisis was caused by poor regulations of large financial institutions, which failed to prevent these institutions from engaging in behavior that would later have a negative impact on many Americans. In order to prevent this type of behavior from affecting the stability of the entire U.S. economy, Congress enacted the Dodd-Frank Act. Due to the recent enactment of this act, and because most of its provisions are still being implemented, this paper focuses on identifying and presenting valid arguments for and against some of the act’s most important provisions.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.