The Rise of Accounting: Making Accounting Information Relevant Again with Exogenous Data

Abstract

Financial reporting and assurance in their current form are losing relevance to investors in firm valuations. New sources of data, especially exogenous or external data that are generated outside the organizations, have opened doors to new ways of business measurement and information validation. Examples of exogenous data include social media, online searches, social networks, and news media. This paper discusses the state-of-the-art applications of exogenous data in the measurement and assurance of business reporting, ESG, and cybersecurity and provides potential avenues for future research. Furthermore, this paper speculates on the nature of the new paradigm of business measurement and assurance with exogenous data and the difficulties that are emerging.