The changing role of a CFO: a Swedish study on Earnings Management

Abstract: This thesis aims to provide empirical evidence regarding the existence of earnings management through an investigation of the changes in discretionary accruals surrounding a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) turnover event and tests how the role of a CFO has evolved over time in Sweden. Empirical tests are conducted on a sample of 240 CFO turnover observations accumulated from 201 NASDAQ OMX Stockholm firms over the time period 2001- 2017. We find no significant evidence of changes indicating that the turnover event has an impact on the reported discretionary accruals. Furthermore, the results show that the role of the CFO, as a financial goalkeeper of the company, has not developed over the sample time period in the context of Sweden. A further sub-sample analysis conducted on the transitioning characteristics of the CFOs and their effects on discretionary accruals is reported inconclusive. These findings contribute to the existing literature by filling the gap that exists in the current research on the effects of CFO turnovers on discretionary accruals and if the role has evolved in Sweden.