Financial Reporting and Analysis Practices in Small Enterprises: Their Association with Growth Rate and Financial Performance
Financial Reporting and Analysis Practices in Small Enterprises: Their Association with Growth Rate and Financial Performance
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小型企业的财务报告和分析实践：与增长率和财务绩效的关联
DOI：
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发表时间：
1994
影响因子：
6.2
通讯作者：
Leslie G. Davies
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
R. Mcmahon;Leslie G. Davies
已经形成了大量的规范性文献，全部或部分涉及小企业使用财务分析。例如，最近为小企业所有者-经理人编写的财务管理书籍强调了培养阅读和解释历史财务报表的技能以监控财务健康和进展的重要性（Rausch 1982，McMahon 1986，Meredith 1986，步行者和Petty 1986，巴罗1988）。在相关期刊中，一些文章强烈提倡使用财务分析技巧（马约和罗森布鲁姆，1975;帕特龙和杜布瓦，1981;货车沃里斯，1981;康斯坦丁，1982;康斯坦丁和马丁，1982），而另一些文章则有所保留（威尔士和白色，1981;豪厄尔、弗雷泽和斯蒂芬森，1982）。最近的一些出版物论述了小型成长型企业的显著特征、问题和需求（哈钦森和雷，1986;斯坦沃思和柯伦，1986;斯科特和布鲁斯，1987;卡赞建，1988;图罗克，1991）。毫无例外，这些都突出了增长给小企业带来的压力。这些出版物还详细说明了这些企业的组织和管理需要进行的变革，以便它们生存和繁荣。正如哈钦森和雷（Ray，1986）指出的那样，增长可能导致财务压力，如现金流困难和过度使用债务。这些财务问题迫切需要通过改进财务报告和分析系统来改进财务控制。尽管有大量关于小企业财务报告和分析的规范性文献，但很少有经验证据支持所提出的建议。此外，该领域的理论发展很少，不能充分支持这些建议。本文所描述的探索性研究试图为文献中的处方找到实证依据。对于一个小型成长型企业的样本，这项研究寻求历史财务报告和分析做法与实现的增长率和财务业绩之间可能存在的联系。Petty（1991，第90页）主张在这种情况下采取以下探索性方法：什么是“好的”研究？传统智慧告诉我们，研究应该以理论为基础，我们首先发展理论，从基本理论中建立假设，然后我们根据经验进行测试，即，演绎分析在一个新兴的、不成熟的学科中，我们发现自己与小企业和创业融资有关，难道我们不能从纯粹的创业者的技能中受益吗？换句话说，我们不应该也重视应用于纯粹探索性的、经验性的研究的归纳逻辑吗？对文献的详尽回顾（McMahon和Holmes，1990，1991，1992）显示，很少有与本文类似的已发表研究。费城坦普尔大学的经济和商业研究局（1961年）是第一个研究小企业财务比率的机构。不幸的是，这份报告主要是描述性的，提供的相关证据很少。在剩下的研究中，Ray和哈钦森（1983）调查了小型成长型企业的财务报告和分析实践，而托马斯和埃文森（1987）则研究了财务报告和分析实践与业绩特征之间可能存在的联系。Ray和哈钦森（1983）报告了在伦敦证券交易所上市之前和之后，快速成长的小型企业的融资和财务控制实践。研究人员调查了33家“超级成长”企业上市前10年和上市后4年的财务记录。为了提供一个基准，他们还研究了一个没有成长和上市的小企业的匹配样本。…
A substantial body of prescriptive literature has evolved dealing in whole or part with use of financial analysis by small enterprises. For example, recent financial management books written for small enterprise owner-managers emphasize the importance of developing skills in reading and interpreting historical financial statements to monitor financial health and progress (Rausch 1982, McMahon 1986, Meredith 1986, Walker and Petty 1986, Barrow 1988). In relevant journals, some articles strongly advocate use of financial analysis skills (Mayo and Rosenbloom 1975, Patrone and DuBois 1981, Van Voorhis 1981, Konstans 1982, Konstans and Martin 1982), while others do so with some reservations (Welsh and White 1981; Howell, Frazier, and Stephenson 1982). A number of recent publications deal with the distinguishing characteristics, problems, and needs of small growth enterprises (Hutchinson and Ray 1986, Stanworth and Curran 1986, Scott and Bruce 1987, Kazanjian 1988, Turok 1991). Without exception, these highlight the stresses produced in small enterprises by growth. The publications also detail the changes required in the organization and management of such enterprises in order for them to survive and prosper. As Hutchinson and Ray (1986) indicate, growth can result in financial stresses such as cash-flow difficulties and excessive use of debt. These financial problems create a critical need for improved financial control which can come about through an upgrading of financial reporting and analysis systems. Notwithstanding the abundance of prescriptive literature on financial reporting and analysis in small enterprises, there is very little empirical evidence to support recommendations made. Furthermore, theory development in the area is minimal and cannot adequately support the recommendations. The exploratory study described in this article attempts to find empirical justification for the prescriptions in the literature. For a sample of small growth enterprises, the study seeks possible associations between historical financial reporting and analysis practices and achieved rate of growth and financial performance. Petty (1991, 90) argues for an exploratory approach in these circumstances as follows: What is "good" research? Conventional wisdom teaches us that research should be theory based, where we first develop the theory, build our hypotheses from the underlying theory, which we then test empirically, i.e., deductive analysis. In an emerging, and immature, discipline, where we find ourselves with small-business and entrepreneurial finance, could we not also benefit from the skills of the pure empiricist? In other words, should we not value also inductive logic applied to purely exploratory, empirical research--what William Bygrave calls "enlightened speculation"? AVAILABLE ASSOCIATIVE EVIDENCE ON PRACTICE Exhaustive reviews of the literature (McMahon and Holmes 1990, 1991, 1992) reveal few published studies similar in focus to this article. The Bureau of Economic and Business Research (1961) of Temple University, Philadelphia, was the first to study the use of financial ratios in small businesses. Unfortunately, this report was largely descriptive and provided very little associative evidence. Of the remaining studies, Ray and Hutchinson (1983) investigated financial reporting and analysis practices in small growth enterprises, while Thomas and Evanson (1987) examined possible associations between financial reporting and analysis practices and performance characteristics. Ray and Hutchinson (1983) report on financing and financial control practices in small, rapidly growing enterprises up to and following listing on the London Stock Exchange. The researchers examined the financial records of a sample of 33 "super growth" enterprises for 10 years before their listing, and for 4 years after. To provide a benchmark, they also examined a matched sample of small enterprises that did not grow and achieve listing. …