Theophanis C. Stratopoulos

• University of Waterloo

This paper provides a review of recent publications and working papers on ChatGPT and related Large Language Models (LLMs) in accounting and finance. The aim is to understand the current state of research in these two areas and identify potential research opportunities for future inquiry. We identify three common themes from these earlier studies....

This paper provides a review of recent publications and working papers on ChatGPT and related Large Language Models (LLMs) in accounting and finance. The aim is to understand the current state of research in these two areas and identify potential research opportunities for future inquiry. We identify three common themes from these earlier studies....

This paper provides a review of recent publications and working papers on ChatGPT and related Large Language Models (LLMs) in accounting and finance. The aim is to understand the current state of research in these two areas and identify potential research opportunities for future inquiry. We identify three common themes from these earlier studies....

ChatGPT, a language-learning model chatbot, has garnered considerable attention for its ability to respond to users' questions. Using data from 14 countries and 186 institutions, we compare ChatGPT and student performance for 28,085 questions from accounting assessments and textbook test banks. As of January 2023, ChatGPT provides correct answers f...

ChatGPT, a language-learning model chatbot, has garnered considerable attention for its ability to respond to users’ questions. Using data from 14 countries and 186 institutions, we compare ChatGPT and student performance for 28,085 questions from accounting assessments and textbook test banks. As of January 2023, ChatGPT provides correct answers f...

Anecdotal and empirical evidence indicates that the growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) within accounting firms and accounting departments leads to improvements in efficiency, a gradual increase in the share of AI workers, and a decrease in junior accounting employees. If this trend continues, would it signal the beginning of an era of...

We study the informativeness of corporate disclosures in an environment of extreme uncertainty by using the COVID-19 pandemic as the setting. During the initial stage of the pandemic, firms had to respond to an unprecedented crisis with little prior experience or guidance from regulators. We find that COVID-19 disclosures in annual reports appeared...

This paper proposes a method for estimating the expected duration of competitive advantage from emerging technology adoption for the average adopting firm. The proposed method relies on publicly available data (e.g., web search interest, news articles, book titles, and firm disclosures) and integrates elements from diffusion of innovation theory, h...

We study the informativeness of corporate disclosures during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic when both firms and investors were grappling with unprecedented uncertainty. We find that qualitative COVID-related disclosures in annual reports appear to be informative to investors, as evidenced by the market reaction to the release of these dis...

SYNOPSIS Several studies have pointed to the transformative effects of blockchain on a wide spectrum of firms, industries, and professions. Despite the arguable consensus within the business community that blockchain will have a real impact on the way firms do business, views diverge when it comes to the timing of diffusion (i.e., when blockchain w...

Valuation of digital content has important individual, organizational, and microeconomic implications. Yet, the existing understanding of digital content consumption is focused primarily on consumption of free content. This means, that digital content is not a source of revenue for contributors and not directly tied to the revenue or expenses of th...

Reports by professional organizations (e.g., AICPA, CPA Canada, and ICAEW) argue that blockchain adoption is likely to reduce the need for record‐keeping tasks and shift the accounting focus to higher‐level activities. To evaluate such expectations and form their own opinions, accounting professionals need to understand the way blockchain works in...

The objective of these teaching notes is to provide an outline for offering blockchain related foundational knowledge to accounting students so they can evaluate and prepare for the effect of blockchain on the accounting profession. The approach is driven by the following principle: Given that accounting students do not want to become programmers o...

The aim of this paper is to contribute to the effort to develop material for enabling the next generation of tech-savvy accountants with business analytic capabilities, and increase their exposure and familiarity with tools such as R. More specifically, we leverage the award-winning tax case of Borthick and Smeal (2017) to illustrate the teaching o...

This study investigates whether Information Technology (IT) reputation, captured by the accumulation of consistent IT capability signals, influences bank loan contracting even though banks have access to inside information. We predict that IT reputation is associated with better loan terms because it lowers credit risk via its impact on default and...

Contrary to Frey and Osborne's (2013) prediction that the accounting profession faces extinction, we argue that accountants can still create value in a world of big data analytics. To advance this position, we provide a conceptual framework based on structured/unstructured data and problem-driven/exploratory analysis. We argue that accountants alre...

Motivated by the study of Reinking et al. (2015), the study proposes a due diligence process for future studies aiming to investigate the duration of competitive advantage due to emerging technology adoption. The proposed process is based on the following premise: Predictions related to rate of adoption are useful to IT business value researchers b...

The goal of this study is to understand the current state of audit data analytics use (i.e., the leveraging of data analytics in the performance of audits) within the Canadian audit profession. Based on survey results from 394 Canadian audit practitioners, we explore the following three questions: What is the locus of motivation behind audit data a...

The objective of this study is to provide a framework for predicting expected duration of competitive advantage due to emerging technology adoption, and suggest a process for generating technology specific predictions. Our framework integrates elements from the technology adoption (diffusion) cycle, hype cycles of emerging technologies, and the res...

The objective of this exploratory analysis is to introduce proxies for the bargaining power of buyers (suppliers) and provide some initial evidence regarding their ability to account for cross sectional variations in profitably measures. We leverage information that it readily available to modern analysts and managers, i.e., SEC filed statements, i...

The objective of this exploratory analysis is to introduce proxies for the bargaining power of buyers (suppliers) and provide some initial evidence regarding their ability to account for cross sectional variations in profitably measures. We leverage information that is readily available to modern analysts and managers, i.e., SEC filed statements, i...

The objective of this study is to identify factors that help firms develop an IT capability reputation, and to evaluate whether markets value a firm's ability to develop and sustain IT reputation. Building on the IT strategic leadership and corporate reputation literature, we argue that congruity in the background or hierarchical proximity between...

We consider how the information environment effects of enterprise system (ES) forecasting tools affect a given manager's decision to manipulate reported performance. As ES forecasting accuracy increases, the manager is better able to determine whether anticipated performance is going to exceed the desired level of performance, and we propose that t...

This study investigates the development and sustainability of a firm’s IT capability reputation from an IT executive’s standpoint. Building on institutional theory, we argue that IT executives will try to achieve external legitimacy - i.e., project an image of superior IT capability to external stakeholders - in the hope that top management team an...

The objective of this study is to identify factors that help build an IT reputation, and to evaluate whether markets value a firm’s ability to develop and sustain its IT reputation. Building on IT strategic leadership and IT business value literature, we argue that a similarity in the background and hierarchical proximity between CEO and senior IT...

This study examines the cross-sectional financial performance among firms from the global information and communication technology (ICT) sector over the period 1998–2007. Using a pooled linear regression, the results show that U.S.-based ICT companies are on average underperforming the rest of the world after controlling for firm-specific variables...

Prior literature shows that during an economic downturn firms have difficulty sustaining superior performance, and a larger percentage of firms report losses. Motivated by this literature, we explore the role of sustainability of organizational IT capability (ITC) on a firm’s performance during an economic downturn. Specifically, we examine how ITC...

This study introduces a causality-based framework of antecedents and consequences in order to examine the positive reciprocity between senior IT executives (sITes) and IT capable firms. More specifically we propose that: 1. There is a positive association between accrued sources of managerial power of sITes, such as structural and expert power, and...

Organizations seek to differentiate themselves in the marketplace by deploying information technology (IT) to develop dynamic IT capabilities and resist competitors’ attempts to imitate or improve these capabilities. While this strategy has been justified on the grounds that dynamic IT capabilities are durably heterogeneous, there does not seem to...

This paper explores how uncertainty reduction due to increased forecasting accuracy, which is one of main benefits associated with the adoption of Business Intelligence (BI) systems, will affect the behavior of knowledge workers and how this change in their behavior will impact the appropriation of benefits from BI investments. The study uses a mic...

Prior literature shows that during an economic downturn firms have difficulty sustaining superior performance, and a larger percentage of firms report losses. Motivated by this literature, we explore the role of sustainability of organizational IT capability (ITC) on a firm's performance during an economic downturn. Specifically, we examine how ITC...

Contrary to prior studies that have tried to examine the role of IT capabilities on firm performance in isolation from the role of senior IT executives, we propose that there is a positive relationship between the power of senior IT executives and the likelihood that the firm will develop superior IT capability. Furthermore, the contribution of IT...

Senior IT managers’ ability to add value leads to a view of IT as a strategic priority rather than a mere support activity. One of the primary goals of firms adopting a strategic view is to achieve IT leadership in their industry. This study examines the positive reciprocity between senior IT managers who act as a catalyst for the firm’s ability to...

The objective of this study is to explore and analyze the cross-sectional evolution of profitability among firms from the global information and communication technology (ICT) industry. More specifically, we examine and contrast financial performance measures of US versus non-US firms and evaluate whether host country government intervention (accou...

Senior IT managers’ ability to add value leads to a view of IT as a strategic priority rather than a mere support activity. When a firm adopts a strategic view of IT, one of the primary goals for that firm will be to achieve IT leadership in their industry. Numerous news articles and case studies documenting the practices of IT leaders, such as Wal...

Introduction While figures vary over time and across industries, the fact is that for most firms, information technology (IT) investments constitute their largest capital-spending item. On average, large US firms spend $300-500 million/year (or 3-4% of total revenue) on IT, with $50-90 million of those dollars invested in new IT products and servic...

Motivated by the current recession, the realization that uncertainty will remain even when the economy recovers, and the fact that frequent performance slumps are becoming the norm in our hypercompetitive environment, we take up the following question: Does a company’s IT innovation capability (ITIC) strategy lead to value creation and affect its a...

With this study, we consider whether characteristics of the information environment in which a manager operates are a driver of earnings management behavior. Specifically, does the manager's confidence in the accuracy of a given forecast of future performance affect whether an attempt to manipulate is made and the magnitude of the attempt? We prese...

In this research, we investigate the role of alternative IT innovation strategies (systematic, opportunistic, and non-IT innovation) on earnings persistence. Building on agility theory we argue that systematic IT innovation leads to sustainable value creation and ability to recover from negative earnings and recession. Using a sample of large US fi...

In this study we examine the persistence of a firm's ability to differentiate itself from its peers and stand out in a crowd of competitors through IT innovation. By using cross-sectional data set of large US firms from 1997-2004, our empirical evidence shows that prior IT innovation experience is an important determinant of current IT innovation c...

Past research findings indicate that the successful adoption of information technology to support business strategy can help organizations gain superior financial performance versus their competitors. Adopting enterprise-wide resource planning systems is considered a strategic investment decision because it represents a significant commitment of re...

Our objective in this paper is to develop a firm value model to assist IT managers and researchers in understanding the multiple effects that IT investments have on firm value. This firm value approach adds to the process-oriented approach through simultaneous evaluation of all of the factors that affect firm value. It is crucial for IT professiona...

Approaching IT innovation (ITI) from a strategic management standpoint, this paper sheds light on the issue of the capability of a firm to innovate with IT over time. In this study we argue that ITI is a cumulative and path-dependent capability that is not easily replicated. Companies that have developed ITI capability and attained ITI status among...

Prior studies have shown that the IT innovation capability, a company's ability to systematically innovate with IT, is not easily replicated (persistent), and the persistence tends to be stronger during periods when the IT budgets are declining (hard IT budgets), such the post Y2K period. Building on resource based view we argue that companies that...

Prior studies have shown that the IT innovation capability, a company's ability to innovate systematically with IT, is not easily replicated (persistent), and the persistence tends to be more pronounced during periods when economy-wide IT budgets are declining (hard IT budgets), such the post-Y2K period. Building on resource based view we argue tha...

Recognizing the need to bridge the gap between the outsourcing and the IT capability literature, this study provides a framework for approaching outsourcing decisions from an IT-capable firm's perspective. The paper lays the foundation for a micro-economic framework for contrasting the value-adding proposition of three sourcing options: insourcing...

While several studies have examined the role of strategic alliances in outsourcing, as a way to manage the client-vendor relationship, no systematic attempt has been made to integrate the knowledge from the strategic management literature. The study contributes to this line of research, by developing a framework that weaves the Relational-Theory Vi...

Faster, cheaper, better has become the mantra for business success in today’s economy and business process outsourcing (BPO) has become one of the means by which this goal may be achieved. BPO is defined as the long-term contracting out of information technology enabled business processes to an outside provider to help achieve increased shareholder...

A characteristic of the information age is the dramatic increase in expenditures by organizations on information technology (IT). As a result of these investments, managers generally anticipate productivity gains, which are commensurate with the costs of IT. However, several empirical studies in the 1980s and early 1990s found no statistical associ...

There is a belief that the payoffs from investments in information technology (IT) are difficult to recognize, and therefore a sustained competitive advantage from an IT-enabled strategy is difficult to distinguish from a temporary competitive advantage. We develop a model to test whether market participants are able to recognize a sustained compet...

Information technology (IT) has been asserted to be a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Empirical evidence has shown that IT can improve a company's performance and competitive position. We examine the factors that are believed to lead to a sustainable competitive advantage due to an IT-enabled strategy, and test these factors empiricall...

Our objective in this paper is to show how the firm value framework can be used to examine IT investments and research on IT investment decisions. The firm value approach adds to the process-oriented approach through simultaneous evaluation of all of the factors that affect firm value. We demonstrate how to use the firm value framework in evaluatin...

Our objective in this paper is to show how the firm value framework can be used to examine IT investments and research on IT investment decisions. The firm value approach adds to the process-oriented approach through simultaneous evaluation of all of the factors that affect firm value. We demonstrate how to use the firm value framework in evaluatin...

Recent research has shown that if used effectively, information technology (IT) can provide companies with superior performance relative to their direct competitors [MIS Q 24 (2000) 169; Inf Manage 38 (2000) 103]. The most common benefits from the successful use of IT are in increased profitability or efficiency. Return on assets (ROA) decompositio...

Based on previous empirical research, there seems to be little relation between investment in information technology (IT) and financial performance (often referred to as the ‘productivity paradox’). We hypothesize that this is due to the fact that many companies implement IT projects ineffectively. Like any other asset, IT must be utilized effectiv...

This paper proposes a measure to assess firm performance which is based in neoclassical production theory and yet can be empirically estimated with widely available financial accounting ratios. A translog cost function is estimated, and fitted per-unit average cost figures are generated based upon the firm's individual characteristics and industry...

While previous research has focused on choosing between insourcing or outsourcing, no systematic attempt has been made to find a viable alternative for IT-capable companies, which need to realize optimum value from their IT capabilities. This study identifies information technology outsourcing alliances (ITOA) as a strategic alternative to generate...

While previous research has focused on choosing between insourcing or outsourcing, no systematic attempt has been made to find a viable alternative for IT capable companies, which need to realize optimum value from their IT capabilities. This study reviews the IT outsourcing and strategic management literature and identifies outsourcing alliances a...

Management's perception towards the competitive contribution potential of innovation with IT (ITI) can be likened to a roller coaster ride. Managers' confidence with IT rises some times only to fall later. Such an observation might have us believe that companies do not take a long-term and systematic approach to innovation with IT, because a firms'...