I’m an Information Technology Writer, Educator and
Researcher. I write research studies and books dealing with information
technology and accounting, teach online courses and take on some consulting
assignments.
My prime assignment at
present is Project Director for XBRL Canada, an organization dedicated to
developing the use of XBRL for accounting and reporting purposes. This work
is through the offices of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants
in Toronto. XBRL is fully explained at the XBRL International
Website. There is more about XBRL Canada at its website.
I am also a Volunteer Advisor with Canadian Executive Services Organization (CESO),
a very worthwhile organization that utilizes the skills of old experienced
folks like me for the benefit of those who can use the help. Mine is a very
modest contribution, but the world needs all the help it can get.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
- Dr Martin Luther King
I retired in 2006 as a Professor of
Accounting and Information Systems from St. Francis Xavier
University in Antigonish, Nova
Scotia. Previously, I enjoyed a twenty-three year career in public practice
with the firm of KPMG, seventeen years as
a partner. In KPMG, I worked in the accounting and assurance areas for
several years, primarily as a quality control and research resource, but
then evolved into Information Systems Consulting.
Before joining KPMG, I
worked with the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants
as a Research Manager and as Assistant Director of Education. I’ve come
full circle in a sense, because most of my work now is with the CICA.
My
Interests
I have long been interested and involved in
research in accounting, business reporting and information systems and have
published several books. In recent years, much of my
attention has been focused on Information Technology and the Internet, more
specifically e-Business. XBRL and ERP systems. I also co-authored a
textbook on e-business for Pearson Education (Prentice Hall), the third
edition of which was released in March, 2008. It's called E-Business - A
Canadian Perspective for a Networked World. It's actually an innovative
combination book website and the website can be found on the Pearson
Education site.
I am interested in fiction writing too and have
published some short stories. My interest in fiction led me to agree to
serve on the Board and as co-editor of the Antigonish
Review, one of Canada's leading literary reviews. I recently formed my
own publications company – BlackAvon
Books, which I see as an electronic and print on demand type of
operation. It’ll offer authors a better deal than current traditional publishers.I
also recently published a novel, called The
Opportunity.
My
Activities
Much of my activity is now focused on research
and writing. I finished a study on Integrating XBRL into Accounting
Information Systems for the CICA in 2007. Then we started a new study on Data Level Assurance,
which should be published sometime in 2010.
I teach online courses in Electronic Business. I taught for ten years at StFX,
starting in Accounting and migrating to Information Systems—the story of my
life! Recently we started up a Certificate Program in e-Commerce, which is
available through the Continuing Education Department of StFX and for which
information is available on that
department’s website.
I've presented various
Seminars over the years such as: CICA Handbook Update, Accounting and
Auditing Update, Real Estate Accounting, Business Combinations, Current
Value Accounting, Foreign Currency Translation, Auditing and Information
Technology, Electronic Commerce, and Year 2000 issues. In November, 2001, I
presented a workshop on e-commerce at the Asian-Pacific Conference of
Accountants in Rio de Janerio with Robert Jensen of Trinity College in
Texas, who has the accounting
world's most famous website. During the summer of 2002, we did a
similar presentation at the conference of the American Accounting
Association in San Antonio, Texas, and then in November, at the
Asian-Pacific Conference in Los Angeles. In the fall of 2003, I did some
seminars at the University of South Africa, in Midrand, South Africa.
Lately, I have been focusing on XBRL, and have presented seminars on that
topic in Rhode Island, Orlando, Vancouver and Toronto. In 2006 I did
a presentation at the AAA Annual Meeting in Washington on Reporting on the
Internet and am on the program in August, 2008 on the same topic. I also
did a poster session under the Innovative Research umbrella, on Data
Centricity in Accounting in 2006. This led to several great discussions on
the topic and a lot of fun. In 2007, I did a session on XBRL at the
annual conference of the Canadian Academic Accountants Association (CAAA)
in Halifax. During 2009, I began researching the impact of Web 2.0 on
financial and business reporting and did a presentation on this topic at
the AAA Annual Meeting in New York in August 09. The plan is to explore
this exciting area further and perhaps publish a monograph on it.
Webpages on some of these seminars are provided on this
site that may be useful for conducting seminars on these topics.
My Recent Publications
Currently, my major interest is business use of
the Internet and e-business generally as well as the emerging area of
electronic reporting and the use of XBRL. In 1999, I
prepared a Research Study for the CICA on the Impact of Information
Technology on Financial and Business Reporting. About the same time, I also
finished a book on Strategic Internet Commerce. And then in late 2000, my
book "Enterprise Resource Planning - Engine of E-Business" was released.
In fall, 2001, the CICA published "Collaborative Business - Beyond
e-Business" and in 2002, they published my "Mobile Business - A
Wireless World". During my sabbatical in 03-04, I prepared a Research
Study for the CICA on the subject of e-filing of information with
regulators and web based reporting. The Study focuses on the information
systems that support such reporting and explores the use of XBRL for these
purposes. It was published in December, 2004. Then we (we being the
Information Technology Advisory Committee at the CICA) decided, since we
were recommending XBRL for e-filing purposes, that the subject of how to
implement XBRL tagging within accounting information systems was worthy of
exploration, so we launched a study on that topic, which was published in
2007. Currently, I’m working on a follow-up study on the assurance
implications of XBRL and other data oriented technologies, tentatively
called Data Level Assurance, which should be on the street during the
winter of 09-10.
My More
Personal Side
My
beautiful wife, Sue, passed away in 2007 and I miss her terribly. I continue to live in our home, a 111 years old farm house, in the quiet village of Heatherton, Nova Scotia.
They are not long, the days of wine and roses:
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.
-
Dawson
I have about twenty-two acres
of land bounded by a junction
of rivers called the Pomquet Forks where you can catch trout and salmon. The ocean is about five minutes away and the
beaches in the area are some of Nova Scotia's best kept secrets.
I
travel quite a lot and
one of my
favourite cities is London, England, although
I love Florence,
Italy, as well as the Tuscan Hills. In the winter, I enjoy Bahamas and
some Caribbean islands. And Paris is
wonderful.
Page last updated—Aug 6, 2009
