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Level 7 Diploma in Accounting and Finance

Abuse, Creative Accounting, and Ethical Failures

AF702 · Corporate Reporting — Week 2 of 16

CourseAF702
Week2 of 16
SemesterI
TutorOnline in the course chat

This week’s topics

Abuse, Creative Accounting, and Ethical Failures

  1. Aggressive revenue recognition schemes
  2. Off-balance sheet financing mechanisms
  3. High-profile corporate accounting scandals
  4. Regulatory enforcement and whistleblowing frameworks
  5. Aggressive Revenue Recognition Techniques, Part 1
  6. Aggressive Revenue Recognition, Part 2
  7. Whistleblowing – bringing you up to speed

What you will be able to do

  • 1.2 Evaluate the impact of the accounting and finance regulatory framework on business organisations.
  • 1.3 Assess areas of abuse and exploitation in accounting and financial reporting.

Activity

Start with this week’s 3 videos, then: Seminar, guided reading and a short written task: evaluate the impact of the accounting and finance regulatory framework on business organisations.

Study materials

Videos

  • Aggressive Revenue Recognition Techniques, Part 1 · YouTube · Edspira · 11 min · for registered students
  • Aggressive Revenue Recognition, Part 2 · YouTube · Edspira · 11 min · for registered students
  • Whistleblowing – bringing you up to speed · YouTube · Gowling WLG · 39 min · for registered students
  • Three common ethical failures and how to avoid them · YouTube · ICAEW · 8 min · for registered students

Further resources

  • MIT 15.535 Business Analysis Using Financial Statements, lecture notes: Off Balance Sheet Activities: the Enron Debacle · PDF · Other, slides · for registered students
  • Annual Review of Corporate Reporting 2025/26 (FRC) · PDF · Frc, report · for registered students
  • Mastering Strategic Management, ch. 10: Leading an Ethical Organization: Corporate Governance, Corporate Ethics, and Social Responsibility · PDF · Saylor Academy, textbook chapter; pp. 313–337 · for registered students
Materials marked “for registered students” open in the student portal, which is set up as soon as you receive final acceptance.
Week 1Week 3
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Admitted students ask questions on this week’s page in the student portal: an AI assistant trained on the course answers first, and during the course’s timetabled classes Connect to your tutor brings your tutor into the chat, who may start a call if needed.

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Course plan
  • Week 1: Regulatory Frameworks in Corporate Reporting
  • Week 2: Abuse, Creative Accounting, and Ethical Failures
  • Week 3: Conceptual and Theoretical Underpinnings of Accounting
  • Week 4: Corporate Accounting Policies and Application
  • Week 5: Preparation of Primary Financial Statements
  • Week 6: Group Financial Reporting and Consolidation
  • Week 7: Financial Performance Interpretation and Ratio Analysis
  • Midterm: Midterm evaluation
  • Week 9: Critical Assessment of Published Corporate Reports
  • Week 10: Sector-Specific Accounting Frameworks
  • Week 11: Critical Evaluation of Specialized Industry Accounting
  • Week 12: Applying Corporate Reporting in practice: case studies
  • Week 13: Assignment workshop: research, planning and referencing
  • Week 14: Assignment workshop: drafting, feedback and improvement
  • Week 15: Review and coursework completion
  • Final: Final assessment and submission
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