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Small and medium-sized businesses, also known as SMEs, represent an important part of the economy. However, international auditing standards have not been not well tailored to this business category. Niels van Nieuw Amerongen, holder of the Kreston Netherlands SME Accountancy chair at Nyenrode Business University, analyzed with a research team stakeholder roundtable discussions focused on an international auditing standard for less complex entities. He summarized the findings in two international publications.

Auditors are able to work more transparently and efficiently by using Bayesian statistics. That is the main conclusion of Koen Derks’ research, who obtains his doctorate from Nyenrode Business University today. Techniques to apply Bayesian statistics in the audit have been made freely accessible by Derks, through the open-source program JASP. “Auditors should be bold enough to deviate from ways already paved more often.”

Major social issues continue to have an increasing impact, also on the business community. And these issues increasingly require corporate involvement. Remko Renes (member of the Nyenrode Corporate Governance Institute) and Auke de Bos (associated with the EUR and EY) elaborate on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors. They think about the meaning and the importance of ESG, and the influence of this topic’s focus and transparency on organizations and directors and the roles of supervisors and audits. Based on their insights, they give recommendations to directors, supervisory directors, advisers and accountants.

If an organization wants to do business responsibly and make strategic decisions that benefit people, the environment, and the market, the golden rule is: to measure is to know.

We often underestimate how much power we hold in terms of being able to make a difference. We are all capable of contributing to bettering the world in one form or another.

Writing a master's thesis proves to be a real bottleneck for many students. What is it exactly that’s so challenging? And how can supervisors get a better grip on the number of master's theses that need to be completed?

A strong relationship between SME entrepreneur and the external auditor and experiencing added value with respect to the auditor’s service provision coherently go together. This is the conclusion of a scientific study led by Prof. Dr. Niels van Nieuw Amerongen RA.

Does measuring work performance within the Dutch public sector improve effectiveness and efficiency? According to Prof. Dr. Roland Speklé, Professor of Management Accounting & Control at Nyenrode Business University, performance measurement systems actually often have a negative effect on work performance.