Greetings AIET Section members,

I hope you have had a productive 2007-2008 year.  Your success is AIET success because you are the AIET section.  You participated in the mid-year meeting, the annual meeting workshop and sessions, and many other meetings.  You wrote and reviewed articles that have been, and will be published in JETA and other quality journals.  You provided input to professional organizations helping give them a vision of the future of technology in accounting.  You inspired many students to look toward that future technology.  Overall, you were a great representative of the AIET Section.

Next year as president, Roger is planning some new challenges for us.  Among these challenges, is a plan to build bridges with other organizations.  I am excited about the opportunity to expand our sphere of influence into new areas.  Working with Roger over the past year has a great experience.  Not only does he have good ideas, he works hard to see them through. There is no doubt that he will lead us to success as a section and as individuals.

As we look forward to next year, I thank you for your support of the AIET Section this year, and wish you success in all of your endeavors.

Best Regards,

-Rick

Richard Dull, PhD, CPA, CFE, CISA
AIET Section President 2007-08
Associate Professor of Accountancy
School of Accountancy & Legal Studies 
Clemson University 
301 Sirrine Hall 
Clemson, SC 29634 
(864) 656-0610 
rdull@clemson.edu 

The theme of the American Accounting Association's 2008 Annual Meeting is BUILDING OUR ACCOUNTING COMMUNITY. The AAA's concept of Community is "inclusive." Everyone who becomes a member becomes a part of the accounting education community, regardless of whether we teach and research in financial accounting, managerial, taxation, auditing, governmental, systems, or are focused on the public interest, gender issues, or accounting history. Accounting scholarship similarly involves alternative conceptualizations; we study current practices, but we also imagine and analyze how and why practices could be different. Thus, accounting, as an ancient discipline that arose with mathematics and human civilization, examines not only the way things are (as a social science) but also how they might be (as an engineering and policy science). At the 2008 meeting, the AAA celebrates and explores the power of accounting in all of these domains and for faculty members at all types of institutions.

The meeting site of Anaheim offers many tourist activities in the area, notably Disneyland, which is a short walk from the meeting hotels. For the annual meeting, the AAA obtained special prices for Disneyland tickets. For example, twilight convention tickets (enter the park 4 pm or later) are available for $35 per day and a 4-day park-hopper ticket is available for $149. More info is available on the AAA's meeting website 'overview' link (http://aaahq.org/AM2008/theme.htm).

The AAA Southwest Region will hold its annual meeting in Oklahoma City, February 26-28, 2009. The AAA Southwest Region meets in conjunction with the FBD (http://www.fbds.org/).

The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) are the accounting standards published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). In the past decade, the IFRSs went from being little used to what is now the world’s dominant set of accounting standards. IFRSs are used in over 100 countries. As far as the United States, leading accounting experts anticipate that IFRSs will be accepted for financial reporting, in place of US GAAP, for all companies listed in US stock market, as early as 2012 or 2013. A number of key events led to the current status of IFRSs as the world's choice for accounting standards. Among these key events were the financial scandals occurring in the US in the early 2000s, notably Enron, which highlighted shortcomings in US GAAP. A second key event was adoption of IFRSs for financial reporting by listed companies in the EU in 2005. A third key event was the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s announcement in late 2007 to accept IFRSs for financial reporting by non-US companies listed in the US stock market.

Research & Publications:

Locke, Joanne  and Alan D. Lowe . 2007. XBRL: An (Open) Source of Enlightenment or Disillusion? European Accounting Review, Vol. 16, No. 3: 585-623.
 
Abstract:     
Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) is being adopted by European regulators as a data standard for the exchange of business information. This paper examines the approach of XBRL International (XII) to the meta-data standard's development and diffusion. We theorise the development of XBRL using concepts drawn from a model of successful open source projects. Comparison of the open source model to XBRL enables us to identify a number of interesting similarities and differences. In common with open source projects, the benefits and progress of XBRL have been overstated and 'hyped' by enthusiastic participants. While XBRL is an open data standard in terms of access to the equivalent of its 'source code' we find that the governance structure of the XBRL consortium is significantly different to a model open source approach. The barrier to participation that is created by requiring paid membership and a focus on transacting business at physical conferences and meetings is identified as particularly critical. Decisions about the technical structure of XBRL, the regulator-led pattern of adoption and the organisation of XII are discussed. Finally areas for future research are identified. 
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Kratchman, Stan, Jacob L. Smith, and L.M. Smith. 2008. The Perpetration and Prevention of Cybercrimes. Internal Auditing, Vol. 23, No. 2 (March/April): 3-12.

Abstract:     
A major problem facing e-business is its vulnerability to cybercrime. Cybercrime includes any criminal activity committed on the Internet, such as phishing, spoofing, botnet, and denial of service attacks that cause e-business websites to lose money. This article describes how some common cybercrimes are perpetrated and provides examples of some companies affected. In addition, some guidance is offered on preventing crimes. Understanding types of cybercrime and basic prevention techniques will benefit internal auditors, as they can help evaluate whether a company has adequate defenses against cybercrime.

Great Ideas for Teaching Accounting Website:

Great Ideas for Teaching Accounting -- South-Western College Publishing has created the Great Ideas for Teaching accounting site (http://www.swlearning.com/accounting/car/gita.html) to allow accounting professors the opportunity to share their teaching techniques. The teaching tips contributed by various accounting professors are categorized into a table of contents similar to that of an introductory accounting textbook. There is a separate section for teaching tips on management accounting. The site also provides tips on classroom management, communication skills and team work development. Visitors can use a form at the site to submit their own teaching ideas.

JETA submissions should be sent to Editor Dan O'Leary (USC). The purpose of JETA is to encourage, support and disseminate the production of a stream of high-quality research focused on emerging technologies and artificial intelligence applied or applicable to a wide set of accounting related problems. More about JETA, including submission information is available on the AIET website (http://aaahq.org/aiet/publications/jeta/callsForPapers.html). 

Officer Elections:

The AI/ET Section Nominating Committee has generated a slate of officer
nominees for office.  Thanks to all members of the section who made
suggestions about potential nominees.  The nominees are:



President - Elect
Guido Geerts - University of Delaware





Vice-President
Gregory Gerard - Florida State University






Secretary/Treasurer
Ingrid Fisher - The University at Albany




The online ballot, which also contains more detailed biographical
information, is now available on the AAA web site at
http://aaahq.org/ballots/AIETBallot08/ballot2008.cfm.

Voting closes on JULY 25, 2008.
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Name Change from AIET to Strategic and Emerging Technologies (SET) Section:

The results of the ballot that proposed to amend the AIET bylaws to change the name of the section have been tallied by the AAA.  Effective at the beginning of the new fiscal year, we will be known as the Strategic and Emerging Technologies (SET) Section.
We had some healthy discussions prior to, and during the voting process and ultimately, the result of the ballot was 90% in favor of the change with 10% opposed.  Thanks to everyone that expressed their opinions and brought forward new ideas.  A special thanks to everyone that voted.
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Upcoming Meetings:

Business Meeting of the AI/ET Section

The business meeting of the AI/ET section will be held in its usual time slot at the Annual Meeting of the AAA, Monday from 2:00pm  - 3:30pm, at a location to be advised. An email will be sent prior to the meeting. See you there!
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CALL FOR PAPERS: 2009 AAA AI-ET Section Mid-Year Conference
January 9-12, 2009-Charleston, South Carolina

The AI/Emerging Technologies Section of the AAA will hold its 2009 Mid-Year Conference, in conjunction with the Information Systems (IS) Section, in Charleston, South Carolina, January 9-10, 2009. The meeting includes plenary speaker, panel discussions, research and education paper sessions and forum paper sessions. The “New Scholars Consortium” sponsored by the IS section will precede the meeting. For updates on the conference, please check the AAA-AI/ET section web site at www.aaahq.org/aiet or the AAA-IS section website at the section Web site at aaahq.org/infosys/index.html.

We invite submissions related to all aspects of strategic and emerging technologies. We especially encourage submissions on (1) research in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies; (2) linkages of technology and systems with financial accounting, managerial accounting, taxation, international accounting and public interest issues; (3) the technology revolution in accounting and its implications for the future of accounting practice, research and education and (4) accounting information systems education. Design science research is especially encouraged.

Instructions for Submission

Due Date: September 15, 2008

Authors should submit research papers, education papers, education cases and education panel topics to the conference electronically to both Guido Geerts at the University of Delaware (geerts@aisvillage.com) and Robert Biscontri at the University of Manitoba (r_biscontri@umanitoba.ca). All documents should be submitted in Microsoft® Word format (.doc files). Place all tables, figures and appendices in the same document as the text of the paper. Authors should direct inquiries regarding submission to Robert Biscontri at the University of Manitoba (r_biscontri@umanitoba.ca). Notification of acceptance to the conference will be by November 1, 2008. By November 30, 2008, authors of accepted conference papers must provide a final electronic copy of their manuscript. Papers may be submitted jointly to the conference and the AI-ET section journal, The Journal of Emerging Technologies in Accounting (JETA). Please clearly indicate joint submission to JETA and the meeting.

Instructions for Submissions for the Information Systems Section

A separate “Call for Papers” will be at the IS Section Web site. If you are interested in submitting a paper for an IS section concurrent session, please find instructions for these submissions at: aaahq.org/infosys/conferences/conferences.htm.

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Call for Papers – Special Issue of the Journal of Information Systems

The Journal of Information Systems (JIS) is the journal of the Information Systems Section of the American Accounting Association (www.jisonline.org). JIS will publish a special section in the Fall 2010 issue entitled “Reviews of Information Systems Research.” The section will include papers that review a stream of research in information systems (IS). The papers will align that stream of research to current and future research in Accounting Information Systems (AIS).

Papers in the section will: (1) review the relevant IS literature (e.g., decision aids, user acceptance, GDSS, data and information quality, value of IT, IT governance, ontology, etc.), (2) integrate the relevant Accounting Information Systems (AIS) literature and (3) map future research directions in AIS and IS.

There is a two-step process for publication of papers in the special section. The first stage is a paper proposal. This stage ensures that the special section covers those dimensions of the IS literature most relevant to AIS. It should eliminate overlap between competing papers. The second stage is the formal review of completed papers. Accepted paper proposals do not guarantee publication of the final paper, which are subject to the normal double blind review process of the Journal. This review process takes place in the second stage.

The paper proposal should be no more than four pages in length. It should address the following questions: What strand of IS research will the paper review? What are the dimensions of the strand? What are some of the papers that constitute this strand? What are the major themes in this strand? Why is this strand of research important for AIS? How has the AIS literature contributed to the strand? What are the potential contributions of research in this strand to the practice of AIS? Where is research within this strand headed?

Submit the paper proposals using the guidelines for regular journal submissions at www.jisonline.org. Payment of the submission fee must accompany the full paper in the second stage.

The editor of the special section is Roger Debreceny, Shidler College Distinguished Professor of Accounting, School of Accountancy, Shidler College of Business, University of Hawaii at Manōa. Email: rogersd@hawaii.edu roger@debreceny.com. Do not hesitate to email Roger for feedback at any point in the process.

Key dates are:
Preliminary proposals: Nov. 30, 2008
Full papers: June 30, 2009
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17th Annual Research Workshop on Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies in Accounting, Auditing and Tax, Saturday 2 August 2008, Anaheim, CA:

Each year the AI/Emerging Technologies Section of the AAA organizes a research workshop prior to the Annual Meeting of the Association. This year, the 17th Annual Research Workshop on Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies in Accounting, Auditing and Tax will be held on Saturday 2 August in Anaheim, CA. Some fourteen papers will be presented at the workshop. Topics range includes knowledge management, continuous auditing, XBRL and ontological analysis. The workshop concludes with a panel of editors who will canvass research in the field. The full program for the Workshop is at http://aaahq.org/aiet/events/workshop.html .

Registration for the workshop is by signing up for CPE Session #1, when registering for the Annual Meeting (see http://aaahq.org/AM2008/cpeinfo.htm). Further details can be obtained from the workshop organizers, Roger Debreceny, Carol Brown and Amelia Baldwin at aietworkshop@yahoogroups.com.
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Panel on Ontology Interoperability at Annual Meeting

As members of the Section may be aware, Bill McCarthy and Roger Debreceny recently received funding  from the NSF to run a workshop on ontology interoperability. The workshop was held over two days in May. Bill and Roger will be running a panel at  the AAA Annual Meeting (session 3.06) that will bring together a number of section members that participated in what was a very revealing and rewarding workshop. The panel will be held at 4-5:30pm on Monday August 4, immediately after the Section Business Meeting. Here is the item from the program:

3.06. The National Science Foundation Interoperability Summit
Gathering practitioners and researchers from important communities, including the disciplines of computer science, ontological development, information science and accounting; and domains of eCommerce transaction systems, statistics and business reporting including XBRL. This recent Summit funded by the NSF and supported by the AAA, was designed to build a research agenda enhancing interoperability of standards and systems within and across financially oriented domains.

Presenters:
William E. McCarthy, Michigan State University
Roger Debreceny, University of Hawaii
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CALL FOR PAPERS: Ninth International Research Symposium on Accounting Information Systems (in coordination with ICIS 2008 and the European Conference on Accounting Information Systems)

Website: http://web.chapman.edu/asbe/faculty/bdehning/summer%202008%20web%20newsletter_files/Page758.htm

Date: December 13, 2008
Location: Paris, France
Submission Deadline:  August 1, 2008

In 2008, the Annual International Research Symposium on Accounting Information Systems and the Twelfth European Conference on Accounting Information Systems will be combined to the Ninth International Research Symposium on Accounting Information Systems.  It will precede the International Conference on Information Systems in Paris and replace the 2009 ECAIS.  The symposium, which is sponsored by SIG-ASYS (Special Interest Group on Accounting Information Systems) and the International Journal of Accounting Information Systems (IJAIS), will feature research papers that focus on the link between accounting and information systems research. The Symposium is particularly interested in interdisciplinary papers that draw from accounting, psychology, cognitive science, behavioral science, economics, computer science, and/or information technology.  High-quality, insightful, and theoretically sound studies of any type (action research, archival analysis, behavioral/experimental, design science, surveys, theory development, etc.) are equally encouraged.

All submissions to IRSAIS 2008 must represent original work that has not already been published in a journal or conference proceedings (in complete form – abstract publication is permissible).  If the work has been presented at another conference or is currently under consideration for publication or presentation elsewhere, the authors must disclose this fact.   

At least one author for every accepted paper must register for the symposium and be prepared to present his ideas in person.  Authors of accepted submissions must address the suggestions (if any) of the reviewers, and submit an electronic copy of the final version of the work by the specified deadline. Failure to do so will be tantamount to withdrawing this work from further consideration and it will not be included on the final program.

Submissions may be of two types:  Completed research papers and research-in-progress papers.

Completed research papers: Completed research submissions constitute a submission to IJAIS and such papers that are accepted for the Symposium will be published in an issue of the journal. Authors will need to revise the manuscript subsequent to presentation to address symposium comments and meet any additional requirements of the journal editor.  Papers should conform to IJAIS format, which is consistent with other Elsevier accounting journals.

Research-in-progress papers: Submission of promising research in its formative stages does not require complete analysis of results. Submissions should include a one-page abstract and a paper that includes the following sections: research objectives and questions, theoretical foundations of the study, research methodology being used, current status of the project, and a description of what the authors propose to present at the conference. These papers do not constitute submission to IJAIS, but will be eligible for fast track review through the journal subsequent to presentation if desired by the authors under advisement from the journal editor.

 Authors should identify themselves and provide contact information only on the cover page, as these submissions will be blind reviewed.  The second page of the paper should consist of an abstract plus a list of key words describing the main topics of the manuscript (the MISQ keyword list is recommended for use). Papers should be double-spaced to facilitate editing. The manuscript plus any supporting documentation (such as survey instruments) should be sent as e-mail attachments (in Word or PDF format) to:  IJAIS editorial office ,ijais@bus.ucf.edu

Submission Deadline: August 1, 2008
Notification of Decision: September 22, 2008
Revised Manuscripts Deadline: October 27, 2008
Registration Deadline: October 31, 2008
Conference coordinators:
If you have any further questions, please contact on of the following conference coordinators:
Jim Hunton, Bentley College/Maastricht University – jhunton@bentley.edu
Steve Sutton, University of Central Florida/University of Melbourne – ssutton@bus.ucf.edu
Eddy Vaassen, Maastricht University/University of Amsterdam – e.vaassen@aim.unimaas.nl
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CALL FOR PAPERS: The Allied Academies International Conference 2008:

The Allied Academies will hold its 2008 international meeting in Reno, Nevada. Presentation dates will be Wednesday October 15 through Friday October 17, 2008.  Conference Submissions and registration materials are due by September 1.  Base registration, on or before September 1, is $275, late registration after that date will be $325.  Submission information is available online (http://alliedacademies.org/Public/Conferences/2008RenoCall.aspx). The Allied Academies International Conference holds joint meetings of all its member academies:

Academy of Accounting and Financial Studies (AAFS)
Academy of Banking Studies (ABS)
Academy for Economics and Economic Education (AEEE)
Academy of Educational Leadership (AEL)
Academy of Entrepreneurship (AE)
Academy of Information and Management Sciences (AIMS)
Academy of Organizational Culture, Communications & Conflict (AOCCC)
Academy of Marketing Studies (AMS)
Academy of Strategic Management (ASM)
Academy of Legal, Ethical and Regulatory Issues (ALERI)
Academy for Studies in International Business (ASIB)
International Academy for Case Studies (IACS)
Academy of Health Care Management (AHCM)

Note from the newsletter editor: I attended this meeting last year and consider it one of the best I've attended during my 25-year career. If you're looking for an interdisciplinary, relatively low cost, and very collegial academic conference, this is the place to go. And if you're a fan of the old western TV show, Bonanza, you have to make the short drive up to Virginia City; also, Lake Tahoe is close by.

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AI/ET Sessions at the 2008 Annual Meeting:
 
The section has organized an interesting and innovative program at the 2008 Annual Meeting in Anaheim. This year there are as many as 40 (!!) simultaneous sessions, so please print this list to take to the Annual Meeting for quick reference. Thanks to Guido Geerts for organization of the program.

 
Monday, August 4, 2008 - 10:15 am-11:45 am
Session Title: 1.07. Reengineering the Audit Function (Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies)
Moderator: Rod Brennan, Siemens Corporation
Panelists: Eric Cohen, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Deon Minaar, KPMG
Bill Titera, Ernst & Young
Miklos Vasarhelyi, Rutgers Business School

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Monday, August 4, 2008 - 4:00 pm-5:30 pm

Session Title: 3.10. Research Issues in Accounting Information Systems (Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies)
Moderator: Jose Dutra Oliveira, University of São Paulo
Hype Cycle, Technology Maturity Level, Strategic Technologies And Accounting Information System Research Issues
Daniel E. O’leary, University of Southern California;
Discussant: Jagdish S Gangolly, SUNY Albany

Exploiting Comparative Advantage: A Paradigm for Value Added Research in Accounting Information Systems
Michael Alles, Rutgers Business School; Alexander Kogan, Rutgers Business School; Miklos Vasarhelyi, Rutgers Business School;
Discussant: Aida Sy, Manhattan College

Towards a Critical Approach to MIS and AIS: Labor Process and the Processing of Labor
Jean Guy Degos, Montesquieu University; Aida Sy, Manhattan College; Tony Tinker, Baruch College at The City University of New York and St. Andrews University;
Discussant: Jagdish S Gangolly, SUNY Albany

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Tuesday, August 5, 2008 - 10:15 am-11:45 am

Session Title: 4.04. Internet Technologies and Decision Making (Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies)
Moderator: Barbara Lamberton, University of Hartford

The Effects of Web Syndication on Investor's Decision Making
Yu Cong, Towson University; Hui Du, University of Houston - Clear Lake; Jinjuan Feng, Towson University;

The Impact of Corporate Governance Quality and Earnings Forecast Results on the Credibility of Website Disclosures
Lori L. Epping, University of South Dakota; W. Mark Wilder, University of Mississippi;

An Empirical Examination of Corporate Websites as a Voluntary Disclosure Medium
Roger Debreceny, University of Hawai'i at Manoa; Andrew Lymer, The University of Birmingham; Samir Trabelsi, Brock University;

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Tuesday, August 5, 2008 - 4:00 pm-5:30 pm

Session Title: 6.05. Sustainability Reporting Assurance, Strategic Information Systems, and Economic Analysis (Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies)
Moderator: Stewart A Leech, University of Melbourne

Evidential Reasoning under Dempster-Shafer Theory for Assurance Services in Sustainability Reporting
Sunita Rao, University of Kansas; Rajendra P Srivastava, University of Kansas;

Organizational Assimilation Of Strategic Information Systems: Toward A Comprehensive Model
Mohamed Elbashir, University of Queensland; Philip A Collier, University of Melbourne; Steve G Sutton, University of Central Florida/University of Melbourne; Michael Davern, University of Melbourne; Stewart A Leech, University of Melbourne;
Discussant: Hui Du, University of Houston - Clear Lake

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Wednesday, August 6, 2008 - 10:15 am-11:45 am

Session Title: 7.06. XBRL (Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies)
Moderator: Hui Du, University of Houston - Clear Lake

The Validity of XBRL Voluntary Filing Documents and Issues on Extension Taxonomies on the SEC EDGAR System
Kuo - Hua Chou, National Pingtung Institute of Commerce; C. Chang, San Diego State University;

Modeling Business Applications with XBRL and UML
Joseph Callaghan, Oakland University; Rob Nehmer, Oakland University; Vijayan Sugumaran, Oakland University;

XBRL: Solving Real World Problems
Glen L. Gray, California State University at Northridge;
Discussant: Barbara Lamberton, University of Hartford

Last Year, August 2007, Meeting – Passing of the Torch:



Outgoing President 2006-07 Sev Grabski receives award plaque for his outstanding service from Incoming President 2007-08 Rick Dull.







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Educaton, research, and other links are available on the AIET website. Please send any suggestions for new links you think will be of interest to other section members to the Newsletter Editor or to the section's Webmanager: Andy Lymer. 

AIET Section Members in the News:

Note of Sympathy and Congratulations:



Our good wishes go out to Margarita Lenk, who is recovering from a terrible bicycle accident.  Margarita is at Colorado State and is the Chair of the Education Committee of the Section.

Earlier this year, Margarita received the 2008  KPMG National Faculty Fellow award for work with minority accounting students and minority faculty.





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Member Receives Research Award:



Murphy Smith, accounting professor at Texas A&M University, was presented the Distinguished Paper Award by the American Accounting Association Southwest Region at its annual conference in Houston in March 2008. Smith's paper, coauthored with Kun Wang, is titled: “Does Corporate Reputation Translate into Higher Market Value?” In the photo, Smith (left) is congratulated by American Accounting Association President-Elect Dr. Susan Haka.



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Committees:

The AIET Section operates effectively through a structure of committees who collectively take responsibility for the variety of tasks and functions the section aims to provide coverage over. Current committee information is on the AIET website (http://aaahq.org/aiet/committees.html). 

Please send me items of interest for the next newsletter, including: 

- Recent books or journal articles related to AIET - whether you have published them or you have seen other peoples' work that you think would be of interest to section members.
- Conferences and calls for papers related to AIET - make sure all regional or local events you may be involved with get good billing this way. This could include non-AAA events too (if directly relevant to section members' interests)
- Have you been to an interesting meeting recently? Why not write a few paragraphs for us describing who presented what so we can all benefit in some way from events we couldn't attend? 
- Personal accomplishments e.g. promotions or awards (don't be shy now!) Have you changed jobs recently? Let people know where you are now via the newsletter perhaps! 
- New research projects started or updates on current ones you may be working on. PhD students - tell us what you are doing and what you are finding out - there may be people out there who can help you in all kinds of ways you hadn't thought about - ask!
- Other items related to AIET e.g. comments or questions you'd like answers to or help with. Maybe someone out there has an answer that can help you with an issue you are facing? Ask! 

Best regards, 

L. Murphy Smith, Newsletter Editor 
Professor of Accounting
Texas A&M University
Lmsmith@tamu.edu