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Investors use information available in annual reports to evaluate companies. The lecture enables students to carry out company analysis from the investor's point of view. They learn to apply procedures for obtaining and evaluating information from annual financial statements and to use these to assess the net assets, financial position and results of operations of a company. They will be able to analyze the effects of earnings management and understand financial, strategic, and earnings analysis. Furthermore, the lecture deals with planning calculations, provides the necessary knowledge to create own forecasts, and promotes the understanding of the connection to business valuation and investment decisions.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.

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The subject of the course Audit Advanced: IT Audit is the assessment and evaluation of information technology from the perspectives of annual auditing and management consulting. First, the perspective of the auditor is taken. The auditor has to carry out a target/actual comparison in as neutral and objective a form as possible on the basis of a legally prescribed target benchmark. The aim is to be able to make an assessment of the figures in the annual financial statements with sufficient accuracy. Information technology is discussed here both as an audit object (system audit in the company to be assessed) and in the form of the audit tool (of the auditor). Under both aspects, it offers potentials and risks for the increase/decrease of accuracy and profitability as diametrically opposed target values of the freelance auditor. The potential solutions that IT can contribute to both of these objectives are shown, firstly in the context of IT system auditing (in accordance with the standards of ISACA) and secondly in the context of statement-based auditing methodology (in accordance with the standards of the IDW). Building on the presentation of the theoretical foundations, an illustration is given in each case in case studies from practice (in a range from query-based general audit software to data mining algorithms). In the second part of the lecture, the situation of the auditor is contrasted with that of the management consultant in the context of due diligence projects. Here, too, IT as a potentially value-increasing or value-destroying factor is, on the one hand, an object of assessment and, on the other hand, a methodological element as a tool. Significant differences in the assessment, which in principle also proceeds "with due diligence", result from the fact that no "objective" standard is externally specified, but must be determined on an order-specific basis. The central role that the IT strategy of the buyer side and the contingency concept of the seller side play for the effectiveness and efficiency of IT due diligence is elaborated with comparative references to the first part of the lecture and again illustrated in the context of a case study.

Both perspectives have in common an examining, i.e. comparatively assessing, point of view as well as methodological aspects. The consequences of the different tasks and roles on procedure, result and risks are named and illustrated at the end of the lecture. This should not only make it possible to point out professional (training-relevant) differences between the two domains. In addition, special attention will be paid to the discussion of theoretically ideal, educationally relevant aspects of the personality of an auditor acting on behalf of the public sector or a management consultant acting in private.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.

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The seminar examines current issues in international accounting and corporate management. Specific questions are addressed in each seminar. These include questions such as: What are specific advantages and disadvantages of fair value accounting? How do different compensation systems affect the behavior of managers? What role do analyst forecasts play in the context of financial reporting? How reliable is information from supplementary voluntary disclosures?

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The seminar creates the ideal foundation for a master's thesis in accounting. It familiarizes students with accounting research methods and prepares them to conduct their own research project. In this seminar, students learn how to critically read and evaluate scientific texts on current research topics. Participants gain a deeper understanding of scientific work in the field of accounting. They receive food for thought for possible questions in a subsequent master's thesis and develop an overview of the current state of research for the topic covered in the seminar. You will develop important methodological skills and be able to critically question research approaches and conclusions. The small, individual setting of the seminar allows for interactions, through which students learn to discuss scientific issues. Participation in the seminar enables students to evaluate various scholarly essays in terms of the underlying research question and motivation, differences in research design, research contribution, and implications for future research and practice. Such analytical skills are equally fundamental to scholarly work as well as to problem solving in later professional settings.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.

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Large corporations and medium-sized groups organize their value chains worldwide. Services between the so-called "related parties" within the group of companies are remunerated with transfer prices. Transfer pricing systems are subject to a wide range of legal requirements. The appropriateness of transfer prices and the allocation of profits in corporate groups are analyzed according to the arm's length principle for tax purposes, which has been defined as a guideline by the OECD and many nations worldwide. In this module you will learn about the allocation of services between related companies under this aspect of globalization.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.

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In times of globalization, digitization and Industry 4.0, international communication, cross-border corporate processes and transnational company mergers are coming to the forefront of economic activities. Companies benefit from the cultural diversity of their employees, but at the same time this also poses challenges. How can an Argentinian and an Indonesian company merge successfully? How does a Dutch manager succeed in convincing the employees of the Indian subsidiary of a new corporate strategy? How should a Frenchman greet a Korean business partner at the first joint meeting? Using numerous practical examples, the Intercultural Management course teaches basic concepts of cultural dimensions and sensitizes students to intercultural cooperation in later professional life.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.

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Companies publish annual financial statements in order to communicate information to various external stakeholders. Different valuation and recognition models exist for this purpose in order to present the net assets, financial position and results of operations as realistically as possible. Different jurisdictions have developed different regulations in this regard. Due to the internationalization of the stakeholder groups, there are also efforts to standardize accounting. This should ensure that reporting addressees abroad also have the same level of information. In this environment, the International Accounting module provides background information and content on global accounting models.

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Further information is provided in the course catalog under the course overview at the bottom of this page.