Dr. Hughes is an associate professor of accounting. Prior to joining the UVM faculty in 2006, she spent 17 years teaching at Butler University in Indianapolis where she was twice elected the faculty commencement speaker by the senior class and the recipient of other teaching awards. Her research has been published in the Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Journal of International Accounting, Auditing & Taxation, Research in Accounting Regulation, Advances in Environmental Accounting, Issues in Accounting Education, Journal of Accounting Education, Accounting Education: An International Journal, Strategic Finance, Management Accounting Quarterly, and other publications. She has presented numerous research papers at meetings of the American Accounting Association, the Institute of Management Accountants, the European Accounting Association, and other national and international accounting conferences. She taught for one semester in Auckland, New Zealand, and worked during another in Mexico City. Before her academic career, she worked in public accounting and banking.
She currently serves as a member of the American Accounting Association Council, as the Past President of the American Accounting Association Northeast Region, and a committee chair to the American Accounting Association International Accounting Section.
Since her arrival at UVM, Professor Hughes has taught BSAD 060 Principles of Financial Accounting, BSAD 061 Principles of Management Accounting, BSAD161 Intermediate Accounting I, BSAD306 Survey of Accounting, and multiple sections of BSAD395 pertaining to business analysis and consulting and the international case class. She has also advised three Honors College theses, one of which was subsequently published in Research in Accounting Regulation. She is a member of the Honors College Council, the Graduate College Executive Committee, the School of Business Graduate Studies Committee (Chair), the AQ/PQ Committee, and the ad-hoc committee on determining journal quality (Chair). She has worked closely with Associate Dean Gurdon to develop and implement the Masters of Accountancy program.
- Hughes, S. B.; Beaudoin, C. A.; Boedeker, R. R. - "Good Intentions at Good Grains, Inc." (Refereed)
- Issues in Accounting Education
- 2013 - v. 28, no. 1, pp. 115-129
- Hughes, S. B.; Wood, A. L.; zz-Hodgdon, C. D. - "Bank Response to SEC Disclosure Guidance during the 2007 - 2008 U.S. Financial Crisis: Did Banks Respond by Improving Disclosures?" (Refereed)
- Research in Accounting Regulation
- 2011 - no. 2011, Issue 2, pp. 149-159
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Abstract: During 2008 the SEC increased its focus on the need for additional disclosures by banks and financial institutions, and issued specific guidance on disclosures of fair value estimates included within the MD&A. In addition, the SEC and FASB issued joint guidance for determining estimates of fair value. In this study we analyze the critical accounting policy and estimate disclosures included in the MD&A of 20 of the largest publicly-traded U.S. banks for 2007 and 2008. The results of prior research into disclosure change in response to additional regulatory guidance predict that the length of the disclosures will increase; it is more difficult to predict changes in quality in response to such guidance. We find the number of total sentences and accounting topics in which the banks disclosed significantly increased. The increases occur in accounting topics most severely affected by the financial crisis, and often specifically identified in SEC guidance. The disclosure quality of these topic disclosures also significantly increased. However, we find only 35% of the banks disclosed discussing the estimates with their audit committee, and only two disclosed the accuracy of past estimates. Given the prevalence of fair value measures in the financial statements, it seems likely estimates will differ from subsequent measurements, especially during periods of inactive markets and volatile pricing.
- Hughes, S. B.; Paulson Gjerde, K. A.; Boedeker, R. R. - "Capital Investment Decisions: Moving Beyond Traditional Financial Models" (Refereed)
- Journal of Corporate Accounting and Finance
- 2011 - no. March, pp. 53-61
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Abstract: Companies can supplement their traditional capital budgeting techniques with a strategic analysis that helps align both short and long-term goals. In fact, a strategic analysis of this kind may be the only technique applicable for decisions in which cash inflows are difficult to estimate. Because a strictly financial analysis may lead to different decisions than a strategic analysis, managers need to develop appropriate review criteria that can take into account both strategic and financial analyses, when appropriate.
- zz-Hodgdon, C. D.; Hughes, S. B.; Street, D. L. - "Framework-based Teaching of IFRS Judgments" (Refereed)
- Accounting Education: An International Journal
- 2011 - v. 20, no. 4, pp. 415-439
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Abstract: IFRS are principles-based accounting standards that provide less prescriptive, interpretive and implementation guidance than some national standards. Thus, considerable judgement in the application of IFRS is often required. We suggest a three-step approach to teaching IFRS judgements (concepts, to principles/rules, to the judgements required in the application of those rules), and provide accounting educators with guidance and resources that will help them create and enhance student awareness of the importance of making professional judgements in the application of IFRS. We consider both pervasive issues, such as the going concern assumption, materiality and related disclosures, and issues encountered in the application of most IFRS, such as presentation and disclosure, classification, recognition/de-recognition, and measurement. We illustrate past judgements with examples from company annual reports, regulatory enforcement decisions published by the ESMA, and other sources for classroom use.
- Arel, B.; Hughes, S. B.; Sander, J. F. - "The personal financial reporting project: A student-based comprehensive learning project" (Refereed)
- Issues in Accounting Education
- 2011 - v. 26, no. 4, pp. 777-796
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Abstract: The Personal Financial Reporting Project is designed to help students better understand the basics of financial reporting by applying class concepts to their own financial situations. Through a series of monthly assignments completed over a two or three???month period, students identify their personal assets and liabilities, determine which of these are included within a balance sheet, develop an accounting system to track changes to their assets and liabilities and recognize revenue and expenses, prepare financial statements, and develop significant accounting policies. After the second assignment, each subsequent assignment builds on the prior part. As such, students must correct errors in the earlier parts to accurately finish the next assignment. The complete project is made up of five parts included in the following instructions; during some semesters the project was condensed to include only parts two through four. The latter approach may be very appropriate for programs on the quarter system. Students report the project is effective in making accounting concepts more understandable, improves their ability to prepare accounting reports, helps them understand the articulation concept and provides them with additional insight into their personal financial situation. The project motivates both top???tier students and those who do not perform as well on exams and quizzes.
- Hughes, S. B.; Sander, J. F.; Snyder, J. K. - "Critical Accounting Policy and Estimate Disclosures: Company Response to the Evolving SEC Guidance" (Refereed)
- Research in Accounting Regulation
- 2009 - v. 21, no. 1, pp. 19-33
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Abstract: In late 2001, soon after numerous financial reporting failures including the much publicized demise of Enron, the SEC began a series of initiatives to improve critical accounting policy (CAP) and critical accounting estimate disclosures included within the MD&A section of Form 10-K. The first announcement, in the form of cautionary guidance, was issued in December 2001. This was followed by a Proposed Rule in 2002, and additional disclosure guidance near the end of 2003. Combined, the guidance required companies to provide information that would help investors understand the impact of estimates, accounting policies and external factors on financial results. Through 2007, the SEC continued to provide guidance as to the content of CAP disclosures in the MD&A.
In this study, we assess the extent to which companies responded to the initial CAP guidance, and determine the extent to which company disclosures changed with additional SEC guidance by analyzing CAP disclosures included in the 2001 and 2003 10-K filings for 112 of the Mid-Cap 400 companies. Our findings indicate that most, but not all, sampled companies included 2001 CAP disclosures consistent with the cautionary advice. We find that the disclosure content increased from 2001 to 2003, and that the disclosure quality also increased. However, some items remained underdisclosed in 2003, indicating that even after a 2-year period in which the SEC continued to provide additional guidance and reviewed company CAP disclosures, companies were not fully disclosing content identified as important by the SEC, particularly when the guidance was included in the Proposed Rule.
- Gjerde, K. A.; Hughes, S. B. - "Racing to Success by Identifying Key Performance Drivers" (Refereed)
- Journal of Corporate Accounting and Finance
- 2009 - v. 20, no. 3, pp. 59-65
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Abstract: This article focuses on ways to identify key performance drivers (KPDs) and key performance indicators (KPIs). Unfortunately, lists of KPIs published in the past often focus on one industry and assume a generic business strategy. In addition, an overemphasis on financial measures will mean that KPIs will reflect past activities rather than signaling future performance. Managers need to develop meaningful metrics for their own businesses, not use generic KPIs. This is particularly important in small and medium-sized enterprises. How adept are you at this task? Do you know what drives net income for your organization?
- Hughes, S. B.; Sander, J. F.; Higgs, S. D.; Cullinan, C. P. - "The impact of cultural environment on entry-level auditors' abilities to perform analytical procedures" (Refereed)
- Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation/Elsevier
- 2009 - v. 18, no. 1, pp. 29-43
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Abstract: We focus on the impact of three of Hofstede's cultural dimensions, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and individualism, on the results of analytical procedures conducted by entry-level auditors in Mexico and the U.S. Analytical procedures are ideal for this research as they require auditors to use professional judgment and appropriate levels of professional skepticism, abilities related to all three cultural characteristics. We find no other study investigating the impact of culture on the application of auditing procedures similar across the studied cultures.
We find cultural characteristics do not affect the participants' abilities to predict income statement balances, but they may influence the ability to predict changes in balance sheet accounts. We also find culture is associated with differences in risk assessments. Our results indicate that participants rarely differentiate accounts that change according to expectation from those that change contrary to expectation, but rather alter their risk assessments to match the direction of balances that increase or decrease.
- Dion, L.; Robertson, G.; Hughes, S. B. - "What a University Can Teach You about Choosing Capital Projects" (Refereed)
- Strategic Finance
- 2009 - v. XC, no. 7, pp. 39-45
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Abstract: It's no simple task to make economic sense of which capital projects will help your organization compete with its peers (or at least allow it to catch up with them). The decision is complicated by the fact that only some projects are associated with easily projected cash inflows and outflows--for example, new product offerings and more-efficient equipment. For other projects, including those related to corporate support functions and information technology (IT) infrastructure, only the cash outflows may be estimable. These projects are difficult to evaluate using the traditional discounted cash flow (DCF) and payback models that most for-profit businesses use.
When the University of Vermont (UVM) realized it needed a way to prioritize its multiple potential building projects, it created a unique model that evaluates their impact on the University's mission, vision, and strategy. This article highlights how the University developed its model and illustrates how a focus on strategy and mission can help organizations like yours, whether for-profit or not-for-profit, determine the viability of strategic initiatives that don't easily fit in a traditional DCF format.
- Cullinan, C. P.; Hughes, S. B. - "The effects of expectation formation on detecting unexpected non-changes in account balances during analytical review procedures" (Refereed)
- Academy of Accounting and Financial Studies
- 2008 - v. 12, no. 3, pp. 85-96
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Abstract: The effectiveness of audit analytical procedures in identifying financial statement misstatements has been studied from a variety of perspectives. Most analytical procedures research uses unexpected changes in an account balance or ratio to signal a possible misstatement. Some recent misstatements (e.g., Cendant, WorldCom) have involved financial statement accounts remaining the same when they should have changed (i.e., an unexpected non-change). This research assesses whether auditors forming expectations are more sensitive to unexpected non-changes in account balances than auditors not forming expectations. Seventy nine auditors from three different firms participated in an experimental analytical procedure that contained both an unexpected change and an unexpected non-change in a client's accounts. Results indicate that explicit expectation formation increases auditor's sensitivity to unexpected changes in accounts. In the unexpected non-change situation, however, there was no difference between auditors forming expectations and those not forming expectations.
- Hughes, S. B. - "A U.S. Manager's Guide to Differences Between IFRS and U.S. GAAP" (Refereed)
- Management Accounting Quarterly
- 2007 - pp. 1-8
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Abstract: Accountants know that financial reporting standards differ by country or region. In the United States, financial accountants, auditors, and analysts are very familiar with U.S. GAAP. Accountants and auditors in other countries may be well-versed in their home-country GAAP, or they may be familiar with the requirements of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) developed by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The European Commission's adoption of IFRS for EU public company consolidated reports in 2005 required many preparers, auditors, and analysts to become familiar with the content and application of IFRS. Standards similar to IFRS were required in Australia for the first time in 2005 as well. It has been estimated that, during that year, 8,000 additional financial statements were based on IFRS. This number will continue to grow as more countries adopt IFRS or IFRS-equivalent financial reporting standards. Canada, for example, is expected to adopt IFRS effective January 1, 2011. (1)
- Gjerde, K. P.; Hughes, S. B. - "Tracking performance: When less is more" (Refereed)
- Management Accounting Quarterly
- 2007 - v. 9, no. 1, pp. 1-12
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Abstract: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY With or without a balanced scorecard, it is easy for managers to become inundated with metrics and measures. In this article, we first highlight the differences between lagging and leading measures. Second, we illustrate the importance of differentiating the strategic leading indicators - the key leading measures - from those that may improve operational efficiency without significant improvements in profitability. Third, we use a business simulation to demonstrate that focusing on and improving the key leading measures has the greatest impact on profitability, but getting lost in the secondary measures dilutes the effect. Combined, the results illustrate that less may be more when it comes to measuring performance.
- Hughes, S. B. - "Using Form 20-F reconciliations to internationalize an accounting course" (Refereed)
- Journal of Accounting Education/Elsevier
- 2007 - v. 25, no. 3, pp. 137-151
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Abstract: Accounting courses and textbooks in the United States focus on US generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). As a result, US accounting students have little exposure to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and to differences between these standards and US GAAP. To familiarize students with the differences between IFRS and US GAAP, accounting instructors can develop assignments based upon the reconciliation of IFRS to US GAAP net income included in Form 20-F, the annual document submitted to the SEC by non-US firms. The course assignment described in this paper provides students with a "road map" of the differences underlying specific company financial reporting, and helps instructors identify where these differences occur. The assignment represents an innovative way of integrating international financial reporting standards and SEC reporting requirements into a higher level undergraduate or graduate accounting course.
- Hughes, S. B.; Caldwell, C.; Gjerde, K. P. - "Promoting investment in intangible assets" (Refereed)
- Management Accounting Quarterly
- 2006 - v. 7, no. Summer, pp. 1-8
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Abstract: Strategic business unit managers are often evaluated based upon return on investment targets--targets that reward lower expenses and lower investments. This focus, however, may be at odds with the strategic objectives of the larger organization that require investment in organizational assets, generally large-scale intangible assets that form the basis for achieving the organization's strategic goals. Investments in these intangible assets have the potential to reduce profits in the short term but enhance profits in the long term. To encourage investment in organizational assets, organizations must align their compensation schemes with their long-term objectives. We examine the experiences of the Steak n Shake Company to illustrate how one company aligned the objectives of its business unit managers with its strategic plan to build human capital.
- Sander, J. F.; Hughes, S. B. - "Adjusting the inventory account when companies use LIFO: Explanation and application to distribution and chemical industries" (Refereed)
- Credit and Financial Management Review
- 2005 - no. Fourth Quarter, pp. 31-42
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Abstract: It is widely understood that a disadvantage of LIFO is that it assigns the oldest inventory costs to the inventory account, which, when prices are changing, can result in an inventory value that is useless as a measure of current value. FIFO, however, avoids this disadvantage by assigning the most current costs to inventory.
The purpose of this article is to explain a simple adjustment that restates LIFO inventory to the more current cost based FIFO value and analyze effects of this adjustment. We begin by demonstrating the LIFO adjustment and explaining its effect on one company. This is followed by an analysis of the effects of the LIFO adjustment on a sample of companies from ...
- Boedeker, R. R.; Hughes, S. B. - "Best practices in finance: How Intel Finance uses business partnerships to supercharge results" (Refereed)
- Strategic Finance
- 2005 - v. 87, no. 4, October, pp. 26-33
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Abstract: Recipient of the 2006 William M. Lygrand Institute of Management Accountants Gold Medal. The roles of the finance and accounting functions have changed over the past few years. In place of the traditional scorekeepers and tabulators, both accounting and finance personnel now find themselves operating in cross-functional teams working to identify new business opportunities, streamline operations, and improve profitability. Intel describes the active involvement of finance and accounting personnel in making decisions that affect the various operating units as a business partnership between finance and operations.
The business partnership concept began at Intel during the 1980s and accelerated to its current state during the leadership of CFO Andy Bryant. In a successful partnership, finance personnel use their business influence to help operating areas deliver above-average financial and business results, thereby increasing shareholder value. Since the finance function isn't involved in the daily activities of the operations area, it stays focused on the financial impact of various decisions. Operations gains a finance partner who is well versed in the business, is skilled at data analysis, and has the ability to clearly communicate the financial returns of various decisions.
To better understand how Intel developed its finance partnerships into a best-practice approach to achieve operating and financial excellence, we interviewed senior controllers and operations managers within Intel. Their overwhelming conclusion is that when a highly competent general manager and a strong finance professional form an effective partnership, they can accomplish great things within the business unit.
- Hughes, S. B.; Caldwell, C. B.; Gjerde, K. P.; Rouse, P. - "How groups produce higher-quality balanced scorecards than individuals" (Refereed)
- Management Accounting Quarterly
- 2005 - pp. 34-44
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Abstract: When comparing scorecards built by individuals and by groups, this study shows that groups filter out individuals' poor ideas and incorporate their appropriate ideas. Collectively, groups produce scorecards that contain good-quality but primarily mainstream ideas.
- Padgett, M. Y.; Gjerde, K. P.; Hughes, S. B.; Born, C. J. - "The relationship between pre-employment expectations, experiences, and the length of stay in public accounting firms" (Refereed)
- Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies
- 2005 - v. 12, no. 1, pp. 82-102
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Abstract: This study examines the relationship between work-family conflict, employment expectations, and length of stay in public accounting. Length of stay is modeled as a function of demographic factors and job characteristics associated with work-family balance, measured in terms of the extent to which the employees' expectations matched their actual employment experiences. Results indicated that gender, the presence of children in the household, flexible schedules, and the presence of mentors were related to length of stay in public accounting.
- Hughes, S. B.; Gjerde, K. P. - "Do different cost systems make a difference?" (Refereed)
- Management Accounting Quarterly
- 2003 - v. 5, pp. 22-30
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Abstract: Many factors, like complexity of the production process, frequency of operation at capacity, or the nature of competition, must be taken into account when deciding what cost system a company will adopt. "Given the internal and external pressures that a company faces, one cost system may be better suited to serve its needs than another." In order to determine what types of cost systems U.S. manufacturing companies use and to examine the differences, if any, in the information generated from them, a survey was conducted on finance and accounting professionals at 130 U.S. manufacturing companies.
- Smith, B.; McFatridge, M.; Hughes, S. B. - "Pleasant Run, Inc." (Refereed)
- Cases from Management Accounting Practice
- 2002 - v. Vol. 17, pp. 108 - 131
- Hughes, S. B.; Anderson, A.; Golden, S. - "Corporate environmental disclosures: Are they useful in determining environmental performance" (Refereed)
- Journal of Accounting and Public Policy
- 2001 - v. Vol. 20, no. No. 1, pp. 217-240
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Abstract: Our paper focuses on the environmental disclosures made by 51 United States (US) manufacturing firms for 1992 and 1993. Content analysis of annual report disclosures, made within the president's letter, the management's discussion and analysis (MD&A), and note sections, was used in conjunction with environmental ratings of US corporations, as compiled by the Council on Economic Priorities (CEP). Our study investigated whether disclosures differed between firms who had been rated good, mixed or poor in their environmental activities and whether these disclosure differences could be used to differentiate between actual environmental performance levels. Our study also investigated how a change in disclosure standard for one section of the annual report changes disclosures in other sections of the annual report. The results are important in light of Dunlap and Scarce's (1991, p. 657) findings that public concern about the environment was at an all-time high, and Epstein and Freedman's (1994, p. 106) finding that individual investors consider annual report information about environmental activities to be more desirable than information about any other social activity.
- Hughes, S. B.; Sander, J. F.; Reier, J. C. - "Do environmental disclosures in US annual reports differ by environmental performance?" (Refereed)
- Advances in Environmental Accounting and Management
- 2000 - v. Vol. 1, pp. pp. 141 - 161
- Hughes, S. B.; Corsaro, S. - "PPC, Inc., an instructional case " (Refereed)
- Journal of Accounting Education
- 1997 - v. 15, no. 3, pp. 345-357
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Abstract: PPC, Inc. can be used to discuss many management accounting concepts, including ABC, variable costing, the theory of constraints, cost allocation, and behavioral issues. The case is based on the operating results of an actual printing company that was evaluating its product costing system in an attempt to improve profitability. In addition to dealing with new competitive pricing pressures, bottlenecks in one department prevented the company from increasing its sales volume to the level necessary to cover recent additions in fixed costs. The case materials can be adapted to emphasize one concept or to discuss alternative techniques, and the case can be used in introductory through MBA managerial accounting classes.
- Hughes, S. B.; Willis, D. M. - "How Quality Control Concepts Can Reduce Environmental Expenditures" (Refereed)
- Journal of Cost Management
- 1995 - no. Summer, pp. 15-19
- Patterson, J. L.; Hughes, S. B. - "The Golsen Rule 18 years later" (Refereed)
- The Tax Advisor
- 1989 - no. February, pp. 122-131
