Kreativna računovodstvena praksa: empirijsko istraživanje

Naučni časopis za ekonomiju – 04/20

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Siniša Rajković*

Kreativna računovodstvena praksa: empirijsko istraživanje u Republici Srpskoj

Creative accounting practice: empirical research in the Republic of Srpska

Rezime Na osnovu sprovedenog kvalitativnog empirijskog istraživanja, u radu je analizirana zastupljenost (prisutnost) kreativnog računovodstva u finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj na uzorku od 603 ispitanika. Empirijsko istraživanje sprovedeno je u periodu decembar 2018 – januar 2019. godine u 11 gradova u Republici Srpskoj. Za potrebe istraživanja korišćen je anketni upitnik sa Likertovim skalama vrijednosti kao instrument za mjerenje stavova i mišljenja ispitanika (računovođa i revizora). Cilj istraživanja bio je da se ispitaju stavovi ispitanika o: zastupljenosti (prisutnosti) kreativnog računovodstva u finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj, uticaju kreativnog računovodstva na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja i kako ublažiti taj uticaj, najčešćim motivima, ciljevima i postupcima kreativnog računovodstva.

Dobijeni rezultati istraživanja ukazuju na to da je računovodstvena profesija pod jakim pritiskom menadžerskih struktura, zbog čega se računovođe suočavaju sa ozbiljnim etičkim izazovima. Kreativno računovodstvo prisutno je u finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj i ima negativan uticaj na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja. Istraživanje je pokazalo da je najčešći motiv upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva poreska evazija, te da je najčešće korišćeni kreativni postupak nepravilna procjena vrijednosti nekretnina i opreme. Dobijeni nalazi upućuju na potrebu podizanja nivoa kontrole kvaliteta rada kako računovodstvene tako i revizorske profesije.

Ključne riječi: kreativno računovodstvo, ciljevi i motivi kreativnog računovodstva, kreativni računovodstveni postupci, kvalitet finansij-skog izvještavanja.

AbstractBased on the conducted qualitative empirical research, the paper analyzes the representation (presence) of creative accounting in the financial statements of companies in the Republic of Srpska on a sample of 603 respondents. The empirical research was conducted in the period December 2018 - January 2019 in 11 cities in Republic of Srpska. For the purposes of the research, a survey questionnaire with Likert-type scale was used as an instrument for measuring the attitudes and opinions of respondents (accountants and auditors). The aim of the research was to examine the opinions of respondents about: the representation (presence) of creative accounting in the financial statements of companies in Republic of Srpska, the impact of creative accounting on the quality of financial reporting and how to mitigate that impact, the most common motives, goals and procedures.

The obtained research results indicate that the accounting profession is under strong pressure from management structures, which is why accountants face serious ethical challenges. Creative accounting is present in the financial statements of companies in Republic of Srpska and has a negative impact on the quality of financial reporting. The research showed that the most common motive for the use of creative accounting is tax evasion, and that the most commonly used creative procedure is incorrect assessment of the value of property and equipment. The obtained findings indicate the need to raise the level of quality control of the work of both the accounting and auditing professions.

Keywords: creative accounting, goals and motives of creative accounting, creative accounting procedures, quality of financial reporting.

* Savez računovođa i revizora Republike Srpske, e-mail: [email protected]

UDK 657.05:001.891(497.6 RS) ORIGINALNI NAUČNI RADDOI: 10.7251/FIN2004021R


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UVOD

Rastući broj prevara i finansijskih skandala u posljednjih trideset godina opravdao je skepticizam i strah eksternih korisnika u pogledu kredibiliteta i vjerodostojnosti finansijskih izvještaja koje prezentuju izvještajni entiteti. Zamagljivanja, falsifikovanja i lažiranja finansijskih izvještaja za reperkusiju su imali brojne finansijske skandale i prevare (Enron, Helmsley Enterprises, WorldCom, Parmalat, Tyco, Maxwell Communications i dr.), čime se problem povjerenja i kvaliteta finan-sijskih izvještaja aktuelizovao. Da ni naše okruženje nije imuno na ovakve vrste afera svjedoči i nedavni slučaj Agrokora u Hrvatskoj. Ovakve i slične afere i finansijske prevare nanijele su težak udarac računovodstvenoj profesiji i uzdrmali povjerenje zainteresovanih korisnika u finansijske izvještaje. Upravo je kreativno računovodstvo u ovim aferama bilo instrument kojim su se menadžeri poslužili kako bi zainteresovanim korisnicima prezentovali ono što žele da vide, a ne realnu sliku prinosne i finansijske snage izvještajnih entiteta.

Iako su u savremenoj literaturi i u svijetu ova oblast i problema-tika izuzetno aktuelne, do sada su sprovedena samo malobrojna istraživanja u zemljama bivše Jugoslavije. Upravo iz razloga što se ova oblast rijetko pominje u domaćoj literaturi te zbog nedovoljno posvećene pažnje i minimiziranja značaja ove problematike, činilo se interesantnim sprovesti empirijsko istraživanje koje će dati odgovor na pitanje da li je kreativno računovodstvo prisutno u finansijskim izvještajima kod nas i, ako jeste, kako to utiče na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja.

U nastavku rada, fokus je na metodološkom pristupu istraživanja, a potom su u empirijskom dijelu predstavljeni dobijeni rezultati istraživanja. Posljednji dio rada posvećen je diskusiji i interpretaciji dobijenih rezultata te zaključnim razmatranjima.

1. METODOLOGIJA ISTRAŽIVANJA

Za potrebe ispitivanja zastupljenosti kreativnog računovodstva u finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj sprovedeno je kvalitativno empirijsko istraživanje koje se baziralo na terenskom radu i kontaktu sa sertifikovanim računovođama i revizorima u Republici Srpskoj kroz anketni upitnik. Prikupljanje empirijskih podataka pomoću anketnih upitnika izvršeno je u pe-riodu decembar 2018 – februar 2019. godine. Distribucija anketnih upitnika iziskivala je terenski rad u dva navrata. Prvi put anketni upitnici su podijeljeni 4. i 5. decembra 2018. godine učesnicima na dvodnevnom specijalističkom seminaru kontinuirane profesionalne edukacije za ovlašćene revizore koji se održao u Banjoj Luci. Drugi put anketni upitnici su distribuirani u periodu 24. januar – 8. februar 2019. na seminaru o izradi godišnjeg finansijskog izvještaja za

privredna društva u Republici Srpskoj i aktuelnostima vezanim za izmjene u poreskim propisima Republike Srpske, koji se održao u 11 gradova (Banja Luka, Prijedor, Gradiška, Modriča, Brčko, Doboj, Bijeljina, Zvornik, Pale, Foča i Trebinje).

Stavovi ispitanika ispitani su pomoću Likertove skale, kako bi se provjerio stepen slaganja/neslaganja ispitanika sa ponuđenim tvrdnjama/izjavama. Na ukupno 25 izjava/tvrdnji ispitanicima je bilo ponuđeno pet mogućih odgovora kojima su izrazili stepen slaganja/neslaganja sa stavom izraženim u tvrdnji. Sve tvrdnje/izjave imaju isti smjer u smislu da veći broj označava veću izraženost određene pojave. Obrada podataka vršena je pomoću statističkog programa SPSS, dok je za vizuelizaciju podataka korišten softverski alat Tableau.

Da bi se ispitala i izmjerila interna konzistentnost (dosljednost, povezanost) pitanja, u anketnom upitniku koristio se Cronbach Alpha koeficijent pouzdanosti. Ovaj koeficijent pokazuje koliko pitanja u anketnom upitniku slično mjere određenu pojavu, odnosno koliko su setovi pitanja međusobno povezani. Cronbach Alpha koeficijent iznosi 0,873 ( = 0,873), što, prema kriterijumima, znači da se radi o izvrsnom (odličnom) nivou pouzdanosti primijenjenih mjernih skala, odnosno potvrđuje da anketni upitnik predstavlja valjan instrument za mjerenje stavova i mišljenja ispitanika.

2. EMPIRIJSKI REZULTATI

Za potrebe istraživanja korišćen je uzorak od 603 validna (uredno popunjena) anketna upitnika koji su bili predmet obrade, što iznosi oko 24% od ukupnog broja distribuiranih anketnih upitnika (oko 2.500). Ukoliko se broj validnih anketnih upitnika stavi u odnos sa ukupnim aktivnim (licenciranim) članovima Saveza računovođa i revizora Republike Srpske (3.373), može se konstatovati da ovaj uzorak iznosi 17,88% od ukupne populacije koja se posmatra (li-cencirane i aktivne računovođe i revizori). Imajući u vidu prethodno, osnovano je konstatovati da računovođe i revizori koji su učestvovali u istraživanju (skoro 18% posmatrane populacije) predstavljaju re-prezentativan uzorak kako s aspekta profesionalne kompetentnosti (relevantnosti), tako i s aspekta teritorijalnog principa (rasporeda i organizacije), što pruža realnu mogućnost uopštavanja zaključaka kako na cijelu posmatranu populaciju (računovođe i revizore), tako i na cijelu teritoriju Republike Srpske.

Kada je riječ o osnovnim podacima o ispitanicima, u nastavku je dat kratak grafički pregled stručne spreme, sektora zaposlenja, zanimanja, područja rada, te strukture profesionalno-stručnih zvanja koja ispitanici posjeduju.

Grafikon 1. Struktura ispitanika prema stručnoj spremi Grafikon 2. Sektor zaposlenja ispitanika


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INTRODUCTION

The growing number of frauds and financial scandals in the last thirty years has justified the external users’ skepticism and fear regarding the credibility of the financial statements presented by the reporting entities. Blurring, falsification and misrepresentation of financial statements have resulted in numerous financial scandals and frauds (Enron, Helmsley Enterprises, WorldCom, Parmalat, Tyco, Maxwell Communications, etc.), which has raised the issue of reliance and quality of financial statements. The recent case of Agrokor in Croatia also testifies that our environment is not immune to these types of scandals. Such and similar scandals and financial frauds have dealt a heavy blow to the accounting profession and shaken the confidence of interested users in financial statements. It was creative accounting in these scandals that was the tool that managers used to present to interested users what they wanted them to see, and not a realistic picture of the profitable and financial strength of the reporting entities.

Although in contemporary literature and in the world, this area and issues are extremely topical, so far only a small number of resear-ches have been conducted in the countries of the former Yugoslavia. Precisely because this area is rarely mentioned in the domestic literature and insufficient attention and minimizing the importance of this issue, it seemed interesting to conduct an empirical study that will answer the question of whether creative accounting is present in financial statements in our country and if so, how. this affects the quality of financial reporting.

In the continuation of the paper, the focus is on the methodological research and then the obtained research results are presented in the empirical part. The last part of the paper is dedicated to the discussion and interpretation of the obtained results and concluding remarks.

1. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

For the purpose of examining the respresentation of creative accoun-ting in the financial statements of companies in the Republic of Srpska, a qualitative empirical research was conducted based on fieldwork and contact with certified accountants and auditors in the Republic of Srpska through a questionnaire. The collection of empirical data using questionnaires was performed in the period December 2018 - February 2019. The distribution of survey questionnaires required fieldwork on two occasions. For the first time, the questionnaires were distributed on December 4 and 5, 2018 to the participants during a two-day specialist seminar of continuous professional education for certified auditors, which was held in Banja Luka. For the second time, the questionnaires were distributed in the period January 24 - February 8, 2019 during the seminar for the preparation of the annual

financial report for companies in the Republic of Srpska and current issues related to changes in tax regulations of the Republic of Srpska, which was held in 11 cities (Banja Luka, Prijedor , Gradiska, Modrica, Brcko, Doboj, Bijeljina, Zvornik, Pale, Foca and Trebinje).

The opinions of the respondents were examined using the Likert scale in order to check the degree of agreement/disagreement of the res-pondents with the offered assertions/statements. Respondents were offered five possible answers to a total of 25 assertions/statements, expressing the degree of agreement/disagreement with the statement. All assertions/statements have the same direction so that a larger number indicates a greater expression of a particular phenomenon. Data processing was performed using the statistical program SPSS, while the software tool Tableau was used for data visualization.

In order to examine and measure the internal consistency (coherence) of the question, the Cronbach Alpha reliability coefficient was used in the survey questionnaire. This coefficient shows how many questions in the survey questionnaire similarly measure a certain phenomenon, that is, how interconnected sets of questions are. The Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient is 0.873 ( = 0.873), which according to the criteria means that it is an excellent level of reliability of the applied measure-ment scales, ie it confirms that the survey questionnaire was a valid instrument for measuring the attitudes and opinions of respondents.

2. EMPIRICAL RESULTS

For the purposes of the research, a sample of 603 valid (duly completed) questionnaires was used, which was the subject of processing, which amounts to about 24% of the total number of dis-tributed survey questionnaires (about 2,500). If the number of valid survey questionnaires is compared with the total active (licensed) members of the Association of Accountants and Auditors of Republic of Srpska (3,373), it can be stated that this sample makes 17.88% of the total population observed (licensed and active accountants and auditors). Having in mind the previous, it is reasonable to state that the accountants and auditors who participated in the research (almost 18% of the observed population) represent a representative sample both in terms of professional competence (relevance) and in terms of territorial principle (distribution and organization), which realistically provides the possibility of generalizing the conclusions to the entire observed population (accountants and auditors), as well as to the entire territory of the Republic of Srpska.

When it comes to basic data on respondents, the following is a brief graphical overview of education, employment sector, occu-pation, field of work, and the structure of professional titles that respondents have.

Graph 1. Structure of respondents by education Graph 2. Respondents employment sector


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Prethodni grafički prikazi pokazuju da najveći broj ispitanika ima visoku stručnu spremu − 383 (63,52%), te da je 64% ispitanika zaposleno i radi u privatnom sektoru. Takođe, preko 90% ispitanika zaposleno je na poslovnima računovodstva, revizije i finansija, dok najviše ispitanika ima profesionalno-stručno zvanje sertifikovani računovođa (373 ispitanika, odnosno 46,51%).

U drugom dijelu upitnika (dio B) – Finansijsko izvještavanje i krea-tivno računovodstvo, tražilo se od ispitanika da ocijene u kojoj mjeri

kreativno računovodstvo utiče na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja i kako ublažiti taj uticaj, da ocijene koji su najčešći motivi upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva, te da iskažu stavove o pitanju zastuplje-nosti kreativnih računovodstvenih postupaka kod nas.

Na početku drugog dijela upitnika ispitano je da li su se ispitanici neposredno ili posredno susreli s pojmom ili postupcima kreativnog računovodstva, i dobijen je sljedeći odgovor:

Grafikon 3. Zanimanje / područje rada ispitanika

Grafikon 4. Profesionalno-stručna zvanja ispitanika

Grafikon 5. Struktura ispitanika na osnovu toga da li su se susreli s pojmom i postupcima kreativnog računovodstva

Kao što se može vidjeti iz prethodnog grafikona, čak 409 ispitanika (67,83%) na neki se način (neposredno/posredno) upoznalo i susrelo s pojmom i postupcima kreativnog računovodstva.

Kada je riječ o ocjeni uticaja kreativnog računovodstva na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja kod nas, ispitanicima su bili ponuđeni sljedeći odgovori: „Presudno utiče“, „Veoma utiče“, „Uglavnom uti-če“, „Djelimično utiče“ i „Ne utiče“, te su dobijeni sljedeći rezultati:

Grafikon 6. Pokazatelji u kojoj mjeri kreativno računovodstvo utiče na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja

Kao što se može vidjeti, svega 5,14% ispitanika smatra da kre-ativno računovodstvo uopšte ne utiče na kvalitet finansijskog

izvještavanja, dok preostalih skoro 95% ispitanika smatra da u manjoj ili većoj mjeri ovaj uticaj i te kako postoji. Nakon što smo


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Graph 3. Respondents’ occupation/field of work

Graph 4. Professional titles of respondents

Previous graphs show that the largest number of respondents have a university degree - 383 (63.52%), and that 64% of respondents are employed and work in the private sector. Also, over 90% of res-pondents are employed in accounting, auditing and finance, while most respondents have the professional title of certified accountant (373 respondents, or 46.51%).

In the second part of the questionnaire (part B) - Financial reporting and creative accounting, respondents were asked to assess the

extent to which creative accounting affects the quality of financial reporting and how to mitigate this impact, to assess the most common motives for using creative accounting, and to express opinions about the representation of creative accounting procedures in our country.

At the beginning of the second part of the questionnaire, it was examined whether respondents directly or indirectly encountered the concept or procedures of creative accounting, and the following answer was obtained:

Graph 5. Structure of respondents who have or have not encountered the concept and procedures of creative accounting

As can be seen from the previous chart, as many as 409 respondents (67.83%) in some way (directly/indirectly) became familiar and encountered the concept and procedures of creative accounting. When it comes to assessing the impact of creative accounting on

the quality of financial reporting in our country, respondents were offered the following answers: “Crucially affects”, “Very affects”, “Mainly affects”, “Partially affects” and “Doesn’t affect” and these are the results:

Graph 6. Indicators of the extent to which creative accounting affects the quality of financial reporting

As can be seen, only 5.14% of respondents believe that creative accounting does not affect the quality of financial reporting at all,

while the remaining almost 95% of respondents believe that, to a greater or lesser extent, this impact does exist.


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došli do odgovora da li je i u kojoj mjeri kreativno računovodstvo zastupljeno u finansijskim izvještajima, od ispitanika se tražilo da iskažu stav o tome ko je, prema njihovom mišljenju, najviše sklon

manipulisanju finansijskim izvještajima. Rezultati su ilustrovani sljedećim grafičkim prikazom:

Grafikon 7. Odgovori na pitanje ko je najviše sklon manipulisanju finansijskim izvještajima

Iz prethodne grafičke ilustracije evidentno je da čak 452 ispitanika (74,96%) smatra da su menadžeri najviše skloni manipulisanju finansijskim izvještajima. Da su računovođe sklone manipulacijama finansijskim izvještajima smatra 34 ispitanika (5,64%), 12 ispitanika (1,99%) tvrdi da su za to odgovorni revizori, dok se 105 ispitanika (17,41%) izjasnilo da je riječ o nekom drugom.

U nastavku su dati grafički prikazi u kojima su prezentovani dobijeni rezultati kod pitanja koja su sadržala Likertovu skalu za ispitivanje stavova ispitanika. Na samom početku, od ispitanika se tražilo da iz ugla svoje ekspertize ocijene na skali od 1 („uopšte se ne slažem“) do 5 („u potpunosti se slažem“) u kojoj mjeri se slažu sa ponuđenim tvrdnjama i dobijeni su sljedeći rezultati:

Grafikon 8. Grafički prikaz rezultata (odgovora) na anketno pitanje br. 11 bazirano na Likertovoj skali

U nastavku slijedi pregled rezultata do kojih se došlo kada su u pitanju motivi upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva. Naime, od uče-snika istraživanja traženo je da izraze stavove na skali od 1 do 5 (1 = veoma rijedak motiv, 5 = veoma čest motiv) o pitanju razloga

(motiva) upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva u Republici Srpskoj. Ponuđeno je bilo sedam motiva upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva i u nastavku su ilustrovani podaci do kojih se došlo analizom i obradom odgovora ispitanika:


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After we came to the answer as to whether and to what extent creative accounting is represented in the financial statements, respondents were asked to express an opinion on who is most prone

to manipulating financial statements. The results are illustrated by the following graph:

Graph 7. Answers to the question who is most prone to manipulating financial statements

From the previous graphic illustration, it is evident that as many as 452 respondents (74.96%) believe that managers are most prone to manipulating financial reports. 34 accountants (5.64%) believe that accountants are prone to manipulating financial reports, 12 respondents (1.99%) claim that auditors are responsible for that, while 105 respondents (17.41%) stated that it was someone else .

Below are graphical representations in which the obtained results are presented in relation to the questions that contained the Likert scale for examining the opinions of the respondents. At the outset, respondents were asked, from the point of view of their expertise, to rate on a scale of 1 (“strongly disagree”) to 5 (“strongly agree”) to what extent they agreed with the statements offered, and the following results were obtained:

Graph 8. Graphic presentation of the results (answers) to the survey question no. 11 based on the Likert scale

The following is an overview of the results obtained when it comes to the motives for using creative accounting. Namely, the research participants were asked to express their opinion on a scale from 1 to 5 (1 = very rare motive, 5 = very common motive) on the issue of the reason (motive) for the use of creative accounting in the Re-

public of Srpska. Seven motives for the use of creative accounting were offered, and the data obtained by analyzing and processing the respondents’ answers were illustrated below:


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Grafikon 9. Motivi upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva u Republici Srpskoj

Kada je riječ o postupcima kreativnog računovodstva u bilansima stanja i uspjeha koji se najčešće koriste kod nas, od učesnika se tražilo da iz ugla svoje ekspertize izraze stav na skali od 1 do 5 (1 = Uopšte se ne koriste, 2 = Rijetko se koriste, 3 = Ponekad se koriste, 4 = Često se koriste, 5 = Uvijek se koriste) o pitanju zastupljenosti navedenih postupaka kreativnog računovodstva u

finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj. Konsultujući relevantnu literaturu, učesnicima je ponuđeno sedam najčešće korišćenih postupaka kreativnog računovodstva da bi se ispitala njihova zastupljenost kod nas. Dobijeni rezultati ilustrovani su sljedećim grafičkim prikazom:

Grafikon 10. Grafički prikaz najčešće korištenih postupaka kreativnog računovodstva u Republici Srpskoj


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Graph 9. Motives for the use of creative accounting in the Republic of Srpska

When it comes to the procedures of creative accounting in the balance sheets and income statements that are most often used in our country, the participants were asked to express their opinion on a scale from 1 to 5 (1 = Not used at all, 2 = Rarely used, 3 = Sometimes used, 4 = Often used, 5 = Always used) on the issue of representation of the mentioned creative accounting procedures

in the financial statements of companies in the Republic of Srpska. Consulting the relevant literature, participants were offered seven most commonly used creative accounting procedures to examine their representation in our country. The obtained results are illu-strated by the following graphical representation:

Graph 10. Graphic presentation of the most commonly used creative accounting procedures in the Republic of Srpska

Finally, respondents were asked, from the point of view of their expertise, to rate on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = “Not contributing at all”, 5 = “Very contributing”), to what extent the offered assumptions

contribute to mitigating the impact of creative accounting on the quality of financial reporting and the following results were obtained:


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Na kraju, od ispitanika je traženo da iz ugla svoje ekspertize oci-jene na skali od 1 do 5 (1 = „Uopšte ne doprinose“, 5 = „Veoma doprinose“) u kojoj mjeri ponuđene pretpostavke doprinose ubla-

žavanju (minimiziranju) uticaja kreativnog računovodstva na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja i dobijeni su sljedeći rezultati:

Grafikon 11. Grafički prikaz pretpostavki ublažavanja uticaja kreativnog računovodstva na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj

3. REZULTATI I DISKUSIJA

Na osnovu prethodno ilustrovanih rezultata sprovedenog kvalita-tivnog empirijskog istraživanja, evidentno je da se ispitanici (raču-novođe i revizori) neposredno ili posredno susreću sa postupcima kreativnog računovodstva (67,83% ispitanika), te da kreativno računovodstvo ima uticaj na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja (preko 90% ispitanika)

Skoro 452 (75%) ispitanika smatra da su menadžeri najviše skloni manipulisanju finansijskim izvještajima. Ovi rezultati su u korelaciji s mnogim istraživanjima i nalazima širom svijeta, ali isto tako i veliki finansijski skandali su pokazali da su menadžeri ti koji oblikuju finan-sijski rezultat s ciljem da ga prikažu boljim nego što on realno jeste.

Da primjena kreativnog računovodstva smanjuje (kvari) kvalitet i vjerodostojnost informacija prezentovanih u finansijskim izvještajima smatra skoro 50% ispitanika. S druge strane, kada je riječ o legal-nosti/zakonitosti kreativnog računovodstva, mnogi ispitanici bili su neodlučni i zbunjeni prilikom izjašnjavanja, o čemu govori i činjenica da ih je čak 281 (46,6%) odgovorilo sa „Ne znam / Nemam stav“. Ovo upućuje na zaključak da se o ovoj problematici ne zna mnogo i da je potrebno podizati svijest računovođa i revizora o značaju i važnosti kreativnog računovodstva te kroz profesionalne edukacije i seminare približiti ovu problematiku računovođama i revizorima. S obzirom na ove rezultate, ne čude stavovi 375 (62,2%) ispitanika da bi edukacija i podizanje svijesti o važnosti tačnih i pouzdanih

finansijskih izvještaja bilo od velike koristi prilikom ublažavanja uticaja kreativnog računovodstva i povećanja kvaliteta finansijskog izvještavanja.

Da finansijski izvještaji privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj nisu dovoljno pouzdani i transparentni, smatra čak 302 (50,1%) učesnika. Ovo su alarmantni rezultati, pogotovo zato što su učesnici anketnog upitnika osobe koje neposredno učestvuju u sačinjavanju finansijskih izvještaja (sertifikovane računovođe i sertifikovani računovodstveni tehničari). Pored toga, ovaj nalaz otvara i neka druga pitanja, jer se, s obzirom na to da računovođe smatraju da finansijski izvještaji nisu dovoljno pouzdani ni transparentni, osnovano možemo zapitati kakav je tek stav investitora i povjerilaca kada je riječ o kvalitetu finansijskih izvještaja. Ovi rezultati ukazuju i na potrebu podizanja nivoa kontrole kvaliteta rada i nadzora nad radom računovođa.

Mnogi nalazi i studije na sličnu temu ukazuju na to da fleksibilnost MRS/MSFI otežava bavljenje problematikom kreativnog računovod-stava (Shah, S. Z. A., et al., 2011; Yadav, B., 2013; Odia, J. O., et al., 2013; Rajput, M. S., 2014; Wokukwu, K., et al., 2015. i mnoga druga istraživanja). Autori ovih istraživanja ukazuju na neadekvatnost i fleksibilnost u međunarodnim računovodstvenim standardima kao inicijalnu kapislu kada se poseže za kreativnim računovodstvenim praksama. Rezultati našeg anketnog upitika uglavnom ukazuju na isti zaključak. Naime, da fleksibilni i nedovoljno precizirani MRS/MSFI negativno utiču na prevenciju prakse kreativnog računovod-stva, a samim tim i na podizanje kvaliteta finansijskog izvještavanja


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Graph 11. Graphic presentation of assumptions for mitigating the impact of creative accounting on the quality of financial reporting in companies in the Republic of Srpska

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Based on the previously illustrated results of the conducted qualita-tive empirical research, it is evident that respondents (accountants and auditors) directly or indirectly encounter creative accounting procedures (67.83% of respondents), and that creative accounting has an impact on the quality of financial reporting (over 90% of respondents).

Almost 452 (75%) respondents believe that managers are most prone to manipulating financial statements. These results are correlated with many researches and findings around the world, but also big financial scandals have shown that managers are the ones who shape the financial result with the goal of presenting it better than it really is.

Almost 50% of respondents believe that creative accounting re-duces (spoils) the quality and credibility of information presented in financial statements. On the other hand, when it comes to the legality of creative accounting, many respondents were indecisive and confused when making a statement, which is evidenced by the fact that as many as 281 (46.6%) answered with “I don’t know/I don’t have an opinion”. This points to the conclusion that not much is known about this issue and that it is necessary to raise the awareness of accountants and auditors about the importance and significance of creative accounting, and bring this issue clo-ser to accountants and auditors through professional training and seminars. Given these results, it is not surprising that 375 (62.2%) respondents believe that educating and raising awareness about the importance of accurate and reliable financial statements would be of great benefit in mitigating the impact of creative accounting and increasing the quality of financial reporting.

As many as 302 (50.1%) participants believe that the financial reports of companies in the Republic of Srpska are not sufficiently reliable and transparent. These are alarming results, especially

since the participants in the survey questionnaire are persons who directly participate in the preparation of financial statements (certified accountants and certified accounting technicians). In addition, this finding raises some other questions, because given that accountants believe that financial statements are not sufficiently reliable or transparent, we can reasonably ask what is the opinion of investors and creditors about the quality of financial statements. These results also indicate the need to raise the level of quality control and supervision over the work of accountants.

Many findings and studies on a similar topic indicate that the flexi-bility of IAS/IFRS makes it difficult to address the issue of creative accounting (Shah, S. Z. A. et al. (2011), Yadav, B. (2013), Odia, J. O. et al. (2013), Rajput, M. S. (2014), Wokukwu, K. et al. (2015) and many other studies). The authors of these studies point to the inadequacy and flexibility in international accounting standards as an initial trigger when resorting to creative accounting practices. The results of our survey questionnaire generally point to the same conclusion. Namely, as many as 301 (50%) respondents believe that flexible and insufficiently specified IAS/IFRS have a negative impact on the prevention of creative accounting practices and thus on raising the quality of financial reporting. Also, the results show that reducing the room for maneuver allowed by flexible IAS/IFRS would mitigate the impact of creative accounting on financial statements (46.3% of respondents).

When it comes to the motives for the use of creative accounting, they are mostly the same in all countries, and most often it is about attracting investors and creditors, tax evasion, achieving bonuses and extra bonuses for top management. Similar research has shown that in underdeveloped countries and countries in transition, the most common motive for the use of creative accounting is tax evasion, while in developed countries the most common motive is the realization of bonuses and extra management bonuses. In the Republic of Srpska, respondents also singled out tax evasion (58.1%


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smatra čak 301 (50%) ispitanika. Takođe, rezultati pokazuju da bi smanjenje manevarskog prostora koji dozvoljavaju fleksibilni MRS/MSFI ublažilo uticaj kreativnog računovodstva na finansijske izvještaje (46,3% ispitanika).

Kada je riječ o motivima upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva, oni su uglavnom u svim zemljama isti, a najčešće se radi o privlačenju investitora i povjerilaca, poreskoj evaziji, ostvarivanju bonusa i ekstrabonusa top-menadžmenta. Slična istraživanja su pokazala da u slabo razvijenim zemljama i zemljama u tranziciji najčešći motiv upotrebe kreativnog računovodstva jeste poreska evazija, dok je u razvijenim zemljama najčešći motiv ostvarivanje bonusa i ekstrabonusa menadžmenta. U Republici Srpskoj ispitanici su takođe izdvojili poresku evaziju (58,1% ispitanika) i ostvarivanje bonusa menadžmenta (47,8% ispitanika) kao dva najčešća motiva za pribjegavanje kreativnoj računovodstvenoj praksi.

Na osnovu obrađenih empirijskih podataka, rezultati su pokazali da je nepravilna procjena vrijednosti nekretnina i opreme (42,6% ispi-tanika) najčešći postupak kreativnog računovodstva u finansijskim izvještajima privrednih društava u Republici Srpskoj. Ovaj nalaz je u korelaciji sa rezultatima sličnih istraživanja. Naime, u stručnim raspravama mnogi relevantni autori sve više naglašavaju probleme koje je prouzrokovao koncept fer vrijednosti, odnosno model revalo-rizacije, ističući pritom da je upravo koncept fer vrijednosti generisao i omogućio ekspanziju i zastupljenost kreativnog računovodstva u finansijskim izvještajima.

Uvažavajući činjenicu da je kvalitet revizije veoma važna dimenzija kvaliteta finansijskog izvještavanja, ispitanici su stava da bi pobolj-šanje i unapređenje kvaliteta eksterne revizije (62,7%) doprinijelo ublažavanju (minimiziranju) uticaja kreativnog računovodstva na kvalitet finansijskog izvještavanja. Takođe, rezultati su pokazali da je neophodno da se radi i na edukaciji i podizanju svijesti o važnosti tačnih i pouzdanih finansijskih izvještaja kako bi se smanjio uticaj kreativnog računovodstva i povećao kvalitet finansijkog izvješta-vanja (62,2% ispitanika).

ZAKLJUČAK

Budući da kreativno računovodstvo često ne krši zakonsku regu-lativu, postavlja se pitanje da li je ono dobro ili loše. Odgovor na ovo pitanje zavisi od motiva, svrhe i ciljeva njegove primjene. Na slikovit način opisao je to Bhasin (Bhasin, 2016) koji kaže: „Kreativno računovodstvo je poput mača sa dvije oštrice – menadžment može da ga upotrijebi u pozitivnom smislu ili ga može zloupotrijebiti. Iz tog razloga želja menadžmenta je da finansijsku sliku kompanije predstavi u što boljem svjetlu, a za reperkusiju može imati potpuni gubitak imidža i ugleda kompanije“.

Za kreativno računovodstvo ne može se reći da je nelegalno/neza-konito, ali zato se može diskutovati o tome da li je ono etično ili ne. Ovo iz razloga što se nameće sljedeće pitanje: ukoliko je kreativno računovodstvo zastupljeno u bilansima izvještajnog entiteta, da li je time ispunjena glavna svrha finansijskog izvješavanja, odnosno da li su ti finansijski izvještaji realni i daju li istinit i fer prikaz bilansnih pozicija?

Kako su pokazali rezultati istraživanja koje je sprovedeno, a to su pokazala i slična istraživanja u svijetu, menadžeri su ti koji najčešće posežu za kreativnim računovodstvenim postupcima i manipu-lacijama. Uzimajući ove podatke u obzir, opravdano se nameće zaključak da je računovodstvena profesija pod jakim pritiskom menadžerskih struktura, što implicira da se pridržavanje etičkog kodeksa računovođa sve više dovodi u pitanje.

Iako je načelo opreznosti jedno od možda i najvažnijih načela urednog bilansiranja jer zahtijeva da se finansijski rezultat oprezno odmjerava, stiče se utisak da su međunarodni računovodstveni standardi zanemarili upravo ovo načelo, iako se na njega pozivaju. Zanemarivanje ključnih računovodstvenih principa otvara prostor za „kreiranje“ nerealno visokih finansijskih rezultata. Upravo fleksibil-nost MSFI/MRS i ostavljanje mogućnosti izbora između određenih računovodstvenih politika i procjena stvorili su prostor za moguće računovodstvene manipulacije i uticaj na oblikovanje finansijskih izvještaja. Zahvaljujući ovoj slobodi izbora, menadžmentu je na neki način omogućeno upravljanje finansijskim rezultatom naviše ili naniže, u zavisnosti od interesa. Ako se ovo uzme u obzir, onda se opravdano postavlja pitanje da li su finansijski izvještaji pouzdana informaciona podloga za donošenje poslovnih odluka.

Mnogi autori smatraju da je uvođenje koncepta fer vrijednosti, između ostalog, omogućilo razvoj kreativnog računovodstva, što pogoduje menadžmentu, koji sve manje razmišlja kako da ostvari što bolji rezultat, a sve češće kako da ga iskaže u što većem iznosu.

Savremene poslovne prevare dobar su razlog da se računovođe i revizori, ali i kontrolni organi dodatno edukuju kako bi se upoznali sa pojavnim oblicima kreativnog računovodstva i kako bi mogli da daju svoj maksimum u njegovom suzbijanju i sprečavanju. Jer, sasvim je izvjesno da se pred računovodstvenu i revizorsku profesiju u budućnosti postavlja jedan od najvećih i najozbiljnijih izazova – etički izazov.

IZVORI

1. Bhasin, Madan Lal (2016). Survey of Creative Accounting Prac-tices: An Empirical Study. Wulfenia journal, Klagenfurt, Austria, 23 (1), 143−162.

2. DeVellis, R. F. (1991). Scale development Publications. Newbury Park, New York.

3. Odia, J. O., Ogiedu, K. O. (2013). Corporate governance, re-gulatory agency and creative accounting practices in Nigeria. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 4(3), 55−66.

4. Rajput, M. S. (2014). Creative accounting: some aspects. In-ternational Journal of Business and Administration Research Review, 2(4), 193−199.

5. Shah, S. Z. A., Butt, S. (2011). Creative Accounting: a tool to help companies in a crisis or a practice to land them into crises, International Conference on Business and Economics Research. IPEDR, 16, 96−102.

6. Wokukwu, K. (2015). Creative Accounting: unethical accoun-ting and financial practices designed to boot earnings and to meet financial market expectations. Journal of Business and Economic Policy, 2(1), 39−48.

7. Yadav, B. (2014). Creative Accounting: an empirical study from professional perspective. International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research, 3(1), 38−53.

8. Škarić Jovanović, K. (2007). Kreativno računovodstvo − motivi, instrumenti i posledice, Zbornik radova XI kongresa SRRRS. Savez računovođa i revizora RS, Banja Luka, 51−70.


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of respondents) and the realization of management bonuses (47.8% of respondents) as the two most common motives for resorting to creative accounting practices.

Based on the processed empirical data, the results showed that incorrect assessment of the value of property and equipment (42.6% of respondents) is the most common procedure of creative acco-unting in the financial statements of companies in the Republic of Srpska. This finding correlates with the results of similar studies. Namely, in expert discussions, many relevant authors increasingly emphasize the problems caused by the concept of fair value, ie the revaluation model, emphasizing that the concept of fair value generated and enabled the expansion and representation of creative accounting in financial statements.

Recognizing the fact that audit quality is a very important dimension of financial reporting quality, respondents believe that improving and enhancing the quality of external audit (62.7%) would contri-bute to mitigating (minimizing) the impact of creative accounting on the quality of financial reporting. Also, the results showed that it is necessary to work on education and raising awareness of the importance of accurate and reliable financial statements in order to reduce the impact of creative accounting and increase the quality of financial reporting (62.2% of respondents).

CONCLUSION

Since creative accounting often does not violate legislation, the question arises as to whether it is good or bad. The answer to this question depends on the motive, purpose and goals of its applica-tion. Bhasin (Bhasin, 2016) described it in a pictorial way, saying: “Creative accounting is like a double-edged sword - management can use it in a positive way or it can abuse it. For that reason, the desire of the management is to present the financial picture of the company in the best possible light, and for repercussion it can have a complete loss of the company’s image and reputation.”

Creative accounting cannot be said to be illegal, but it can be dis-cussed whether it is ethical or not. This is because the following question arises: if creative accounting is represented in the balance sheets of the reporting entity, does it fulfill the main purpose of financial reporting, ie are these financial statements realistic and do they give a true and fair view of balance sheet items?

The results of the conducted research have shown, as similar researches in the world have also shown, that managers are the ones who most often resort to creative accounting procedures and manipulations. Taking these data into account, it is reasonable to conclude that the accounting profession is under strong pressure from management structures, which implies that compliance with the code of ethics of accountants is increasingly being questioned.

Although the precautionary principle is one of perhaps the most important principles of orderly balancing, because it requires the financial result to be measured carefully, it seems that international accounting standards have neglected this very principle, although they refer to it. Ignoring key accounting principles opens the space

for “creating” unrealistically high financial results. It is the flexibility of IFRS/IAS and the possibility to choose between certain accounting policies and estimates that have created room for possible acco-unting manipulations and influence on the preparation of financial statements. Thanks to this freedom of choice, the management is in some way enabled to manage the financial result up or down depending on the interest. If this is taken into account, then the question justifiably arises as to whether the financial statements are a reliable information basis for making business decisions.

Many authors believe that the introduction of the concept of fair value, among other things, has enabled the development of crea-tive accounting, which benefits management that is less and less thinking about how to achieve the best possible result, and more often how to present it as higher as possible.

Modern business frauds are a good reason for accountants and auditors, as well as control bodies, to be additionally educated in order to get acquainted with the emerging forms of creative accounting and to be able to give their maximum in its suppression and prevention. Because, it is quite certain that the accounting and auditing profession will face one of the biggest and most serious challenges in the future - the ethical challenge.

REFERENCES

1. Bhasin, Madan Lal (2016). Survey of Creative Accounting Prac-tices: An Empirical Study. Wulfenia journal, Klagenfurt, Austria, 23 (1), 143−162.

2. DeVellis, R. F. (1991). Scale development Publications. Newbury Park, New York.

3. Odia, J. O., Ogiedu, K. O. (2013). Corporate governance, re-gulatory agency and creative accounting practices in Nigeria. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 4(3), 55−66.

4. Rajput, M. S. (2014). Creative accounting: some aspects. In-ternational Journal of Business and Administration Research Review, 2(4), 193−199.

5. Shah, S. Z. A., Butt, S. (2011). Creative Accounting: a tool to help companies in a crisis or a practice to land them into crises, International Conference on Business and Economics Research. IPEDR, 16, 96−102.

6. Wokukwu, K. (2015). Creative Accounting: unethical accoun-ting and financial practices designed to boot earnings and to meet financial market expectations. Journal of Business and Economic Policy, 2(1), 39−48.

7. Yadav, B. (2014). Creative Accounting: an empirical study from professional perspective. International Journal of Management and Social Sciences Research, 3(1), 38−53.

8. Škarić Jovanović, K. (2007). Kreativno računovodstvo − motivi, instrumenti i posledice, Zbornik radova XI kongresa SRRRS. Savez računovođa i revizora RS, Banja Luka, 51−70.

NAUČNI ČASOPIS ZA EKONOMIJU – 04/20

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Kreativna računovodstvena praksa: empirijsko istraživanje