Reporting: intangibles key to future accounting.

Companies are beginning to incorporate intangible assets into their reporting, according to market research commissioned by CODA Financials Inc. Reputation and risk were voted the most important elements of future reporting by more than 80 percent of the survey respondents.

Recent high-profile governance failures have made senior executives keenly aware of the need to put in place processes to manage, measure and make decisions with respect to risk, brand and reputation. An expansion in the scope of their reporting systems to capture and analyze the key components of intangible assets was also high on the agenda.

Steve Pugh, CEO of CODA Financials, said of the research: "While the rhetoric of reporting intangibles--such as brand and risk--is well established, it is clear from our study that international businesses are now beginning to incorporate these areas into the reporting of their financial positions. The increasing significance of intangible assets--combined with the implications of globalization, government requirements for disclosure and the way that the Internet is empowering and enabling the public to track and influence companies' approaches to 'good governance'--is having enormous effects on directors' duties and accountability."

Close to 150 senior finance executives from international companies in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, The Netherlands and the U.S. took part in the research, which looked at various aspects of corporate governance, corporate social responsibility and compliance with accounting standards and proposed legislation.