This paper examines a principal-agent problem between a manager (principal) and an employee (agent). At the contracting date uncertainty with regard to the profitability of the relationship is present. Once the contract is signed, the employee performs a specific investment that reduces his...

This paper offers an explanation for audit committee failures within a corporate governance context. We consider a setting in which the management of a firm sets up financial statements that are possibly biased. These statements are reviewed/audited by an external auditor and by an audit...

In this paper we analyze the value of delegation in a two-period agency. A central management hires an agent to perform a personal effort in each period. Due to time constraints or lack of ability this effort can not be performed by central management. Besides personal effort firm value is...

This paper offers an explanation for audit committee failures within a corporate governance context. We consider a setting in which the management of a firm sets up financial statements that are possibly biased. These statements are reviewed/audited by an external auditor and by an audit...

We consider a principal agent problem in a decentralized organization. The agent holds private information with respect to an uncertain demand within a single selling season. As such his task is to determine the optimal order quantity. Being head of a profit center, however, he naturally focuses...

We consider a two period principal-agent problem in a LEN setting. Stock prices as well as accounting measures are available for incentive contracting. The principal needs to implement one out of two accounting systems. While the early accounting information system reports an accounting signal...