Financial reporting provides a window into the operational and financial workings of a company. However, translating this information into actionable insights is anything but straightforward. It requires an understanding of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), the quality of financial information, and the adjustments and analyses required to accurately measure and evaluate firm performance, risk, growth prospects, and value. This course is devoted to a systematic study of these topics, often in industry-specific contexts. We will discuss key GAAP in detail, and analyze many actual financial disclosures and accounting abuses. We will also cover standard and not-so-standard financial analysis techniques, and incorporate insights from practitioner and academic research. The primary objective is to acquire a deep understanding of accounting information and how to intelligently use it in making investment and related decisions. Such knowledge is required of executives, bankers, analysts, investment managers, and other sophisticated users of financial information.

Jonathan Glover

James L. Dohr Professor of Accounting; Accounting Division Chair

Jonathan Glover is a Professor of Accounting in the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University.  Prior to joining Columbia in 2015, Professor Glover was the Richard M. Cyert Professor of Management and Economics and Professor of Accounting at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University.  Jonathan’s research is on accounting theory and information economics.  The topics he...

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