Lecture

Current Courses

Prof. Dr. Patrick Velte

Financial-, Sustainability-, and Integrated Reporting

This lecture deals with key challenges in financial, sustainability, & integrated reporting from an international and German perspective. We will focus on a listed multinational corporation in Germany.

First, a comparative analysis of financial reporting according to German Commercial Code (GCC) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) will be presented. Second, after an overview of empirical research methods in financial reporting, the economic need of sustainability reporting and integrated reporting will be discussed, based on the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive - CSRD/European Sustainability Reporting Standards - ESRS and the global standards of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).

Ziel: Qualification goals

Knowledge regarding financial reporting according to German Commercial Code (GCC) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS); sustainability reporting according to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS); and integrated reporting according to the global standards of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB); methods of empirical accounting research

Current Issues in A & F: Sustainable Corporte Governance

Goal and contents of the lecture:

- Current issues regarding sustainable corporate governance, focusing on listed multinational corporations in Germany

- Lectures notes provide guidance into the topic of sustainable corporate governance from a normative and empirical view

- The first chapter covers the basics of corporate purpose & governance

- All remaining parts cover sustainable corporate governance reporting (corporate governance and sustainability reporting) and key (sustainable) corporate governance mechanisms (management board, supervisory board, external auditor)

- Theoretical foundation: stakeholder agency theory

You will develop a deep understanding of important issues in sustainable corporate governance and of its relevance in a social, political and economic context

Accounting (Minor BWL)

Externes Rechnungswesen: Handelsrechtlicher Jahresabschluss, Ansatz-, Ausweis- und Bewertungsvorschriften. Gegenüberstellung und Abgrenzung der externen Rechnungslegung nach HGB und IFRS.

Internes Rechnungswesen: Kosten- und Erlösrechnung als

Teilbereich der Unternehmensrechnung, Grundbegriffe der Kosten- und

Erlösrechnung, Kalkulation, Kostenstellenrechnung, Kostenartenrechnung, Erfolgsrechnung, Break-Even-Analysen

Ziel: Die Veranstaltung ist in zwei große Bereiche unterteilt. In der ersten Hälfte des Semesters erfolgt eine Einführung in das externe Rechnungswesen, u.a. die Grundzüge der doppelten Buchführung. Die Studierenden lernen sowohl für Handelsunternehmen als auch für Industrieunternehmen die wichtigsten Geschäftsvorfälle kennen (Waren-, Zahlungs- und Gehaltsverkehr, Materialverbrauch). Zudem wird das Externe Rechnungswesen nach Maßgabe des handelsrechtlichen Jahresabschlusses behandelt. Anschließend erfolgt eine Abgrenzung der wesentlichen Rechnungslegungsgrundsätze sowie der Bestandteile der Rechnungslegung nach HGB und IFRS. Die Studierenden erlernen die Voraussetzungen zum Ansatz und zur Bewertung ausgewählter Bilanzpositionen nach HGB und IFRS. Die Analyse eines Nachhaltigkeitsberichts schließt den ersten Teil der Veranstaltung ab.

In der zweiten Hälfte des Semesters werden die Grundzüge der Kosten- und Leistungsrechnung erörtert. Die Studierenden erlernen die grundlegenden Methoden der Kostenrechnung, worunter vor allem die Kostenarten-, Kostenstellen- und die Kostenträgerrechnung fallen. Schließlich wird das Methodenrepertoire durch die Ergebnisrechnung und die Break-Even-Analyse (Gewinnschwellenanalyse) komplettiert.

Zur Veranstaltung wird eine Übung angeboten, um die Thematik mit Fallbeispielen zu trainieren.

Reporting on Board Diversity - Walking the talk or Diversity Washing?

Introduction to the topic:

Despite recent regulatory interventions by (inter)national standard setters, business reporting on board diversity is sluggish and in need of optimisation, despite theoretical evidence.

It is becoming increasingly important to present concrete strategies for achieving sucessful sustainable corporate governance and sustainability reporting. This especially relates to listed firms with headquarters in Germany. Within the framework of board diversity reporting, companies can present both general concepts and concrete indicators, such as on gender-specific salary distribution, sustainability expertise of their directors, and foreign experiences. Due to low comparability and objectivity of sustainability and corporate governance reports, there is a risk of self-impression management, leading to a symbolic use of diversity reporting. From the view of stakeholders, board diversity reports may include vague descriptions (so-called boilerplates), leading to a mismatch between external communication (talk) and their real diversity progress (walk). In reference to the well-known counterpart of greenwashing from environmental sustainability, we use the term "diversity washing" in this seminar.

Ziel: Contents of the event:

The extent of board diversity reporting (e.g., on gender, age, foreign skills, sustainability expertise) has not yet been sufficiently investigated scientifically for German listed firms and is therefore the core question of our seminar. First, we will be introduced to the topic, whereby in addition to a theoretical foundation and an outline of the existing empirical research literature, we will also look at the current regulatory developments in Germany. We discuss the necessity as well as the possibilities of concrete board diversity measures and their quality in corporate governance and sustainability reports for German DAX firms for the current financial year. Moreover, we will discuss why diversity reports have to be prepared and to which stakeholders they are addressed. The students form research groups and examine the extent of board diversity reporting for selective DAX firms by a content analysis and scoring method. These results are compiled, discussed and then prepared for the oral presentation.

The students have the opportunity to deepen their knowledge in the field of sustainability and sustainability reporting based on diversity issues. The seminar addresses the interface as well as the difference between practical diversity practices, regulatory and stakeholder pressure, and empirical research on board diversity.

The seminar takes up an issue assigned to the module in that it deals academically with the responsibility of companies towards society, which is of particular relevance as a cross-faculty alternative course of action for all Master's students.

Research Project in Sustainable Accounting & Finance