Measurement using the New Rules of Measurement

The RICS New Rules of Measurement mean that the construction industry now has a way of allowing a more consistent approach to the measurement and estimating of buildings from the start of a project, right through until the end, and beyond. Estimating and cost planning using the New Rules of Measurement offers comprehensive guidance on all the technical competencies concerned with estimating throughout the precontract stages. It provides a full commentary to the NRM, with detailed and comprehensive examples of how to measure estimates and cost plans in accordance with this new prescriptive approach. For both students and practitioners, the acquisition of technical competencies is by practice so this book offers step-by-step worked examples to follow as well as an exercise on each topic. Key Features • helps dispel anxieties about using a new method in an important area of fee generation • based on the author’s successful Roadshows, organised by the RICS to promote the NRM • companion websites provide support for learning: http://ostrowskiquantities.com and www.wiley.com/go/ostrowski/estimating

A clearer, more accurate performance management strategy Over the past two decades, performance measurement has profoundly changed societies, organizations and the way we live and work. We can now access incredible quantities of data, display, review and report complex information in real time, and monitor employees and processes in detail. But have all these investments in collecting, analysing and reporting data helped companies, governments and people perform better? Measurement Madness is an engaging read, full of anecdotes so peculiar you'll hardly believe them. Each one highlights a performance measurement initiative that went wrong, explains why and – most importantly – shows you how to avoid making the same mistake yourself. The dangers of poorly designed performance measurement are numerous, and even the best how-to guides don't explain how to avoid them. Measurement Madness fills in the gap, showing how to ensure you’re measuring the right things, rewarding the behaviours that deserve rewarding, and interpreting results in a way that will improve things rather than complicate them. This book will help you to recognize, correct and even avoid common performance measurement problems, including: Measuring for the sake of measuring Assuming that measurement is an instant fix for performance issues Comparing sets of data that have nothing in common and hoping to learn something Using targets and rewards to promote certain behaviours, and achieving exactly the opposite ones. Reading Measurement Madness will enable you to design a simple, effective performance measurement system, which will have the intended result of creating value in your organization.

Get up to date on the latest FASB, SEC, and AICPA guidelines and best practices Fair Value Measurement provides hands-on guidance and the latest best practices for measuring fair value in financial reporting. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) have all updated their guidelines for practitioners, and this book details the changes from a practical perspective. This new third edition includes a discussion on Private Company Council accounting alternatives for business combinations and impairment testing, with a detailed example of the Market Participant Acquisition Premium (MPAP), including European and Asian examples and expanded discussion of IFRS. Ancillary materials including end-of-chapter questions and answers, PowerPoint slides, and a test bank help you quickly grasp the concepts presented, making this book ideal for both classroom and practitioner use. Fair value measurement guidelines continue to evolve, and this comprehensive reference provides a valuable, up-to-date resource for preparers, auditors, and valuation specialists. Adopt the best practices for implementing the FASB's Topic 820 Learn the latest reporting requirements for fair value measurements Understand accounting alternatives for business combinations Examine the details of MPAP in Europe and Asia Applying fair value measurements to financial statements requires a move away from rules-based standards and toward application of professional judgment. This controversial shift has led to a reliance on valuation specialists, who face their own challenges in applying Topic 820 amidst an economic downturn and recovery, leading to an ever evolving set of best practices. Practitioners must stay up to date, and be aware of the changes as they occur. Fair Value Measurement provides the most recent information and a practical approach to this area of financial reporting.

Measurement in Health Behavior offers faculty, students, researchers, and public health professionals the information they need to improve their knowledge of instrument development and testing and their understanding of reliability and validity testing discussed in articles and reports. The book also helps improve students’ and professionals’ ability to conduct basic tests for reliability and validity and hones their skills in interpreting the results of data analysis. Based on data collected from the author’s more than ten years of research and program development, Measurement in Health Behavior provides realistic examples from the public health arena to clearly demonstrate the book’s concepts.

Explore different measures of ex-post risk-adjusted performance measurement and learn to choose the correct one  In the newly revised Second Edition of  Practical Risk-Adjusted Performance Measurement , accomplished risk and investment expert Carl R. Bacon delivers an insightful, accessible, and real-world guide to ex-post risk measurement. The author bridges the gap between theory and practice, showing you how to apply the former to the latter without introducing unnecessary mathematical complexity.  The book describes the fundamentals of risk in the asset management context and the descriptive statistics used to describe it. It builds on that foundation with detailed examinations of concepts like regression, drawdown, and partial moments, before moving on to topics like fixed income risk and Prospect Theory.  With helpful additions that include recently developed measures of risk, supplementary explanatory sections, and six brand-new chapters, this book also offers:  A practical classification of all ex-post risk measures and how they connect to one another An explanation of how risk-adjusted performance measures impact performance fees A discussion of risk measure dashboard designs Instructions on how appraisal measures should be used for manager selection Perfect for portfolio managers, asset owners, risk controllers, and investment performance analysts,  Practical Risk-Adjusted Performance Measurement  is an indispensable resource for anyone looking for a hands-on exploration of the buy-side, asset management perspective.

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT Practical Guidance and Implementation «Writing Fair Value Measurement was a monumental task fraught with controversy not only in the U.S., but also abroad. Having coauthored a book with Mark as well as written one myself, I was even more impressed that Mark was able to navigate these fair value minefields and produce a work that will be a tremendous help to accountants and non-accountants alike. If you are looking for a 'one-stop' book on fair value measurement, this is it!» —Neil J. Beaton, CPA/ABV, CFA, ASA, Managing Director, Valuation Services, Alvarez & Marsal «In recent years, the FASB and the IASB have added many requirements for various assets and liabilities to be measured at fair value. In this book, Zyla clearly describes how to implement fair value measurement and how investors and creditors should interpret it. The crisp writing and illuminating analysis will help readers to grasp the essence of fair value accounting and to apply it wisely.» —J. Edward Ketz, Associate Professor of Accounting, Pennsylvania State University «The focus of the book is on fair value measurement based on level 3 inputs. This is a critical area of valuations for financial reporting due to a false comfort given by routine application of evaluating models and assumptions without real possibilities of calibration. Mark Zyla offers an extraordinary help in understanding the reliability of the inputs and the outputs of the different methodologies and the inherent biases in each of them. The book is a precious support for better valuation both in U.S. GAAP and in IFRS fair value reporting.» —Mauro Bini, Full Professor of Corporate Finance, Bocconi University; Chairman, Management Board OIV (Organismo Italiano di Valutazione) Essential guidance on the fair value measurement process Now in a second edition, Fair Value Measurement: Practical Guidance and Implementation helps you succeed in understanding the fair value accounting rules that entities must follow. The result is a resource that you can rely on to understand the importance of valuation and the concepts that define it. In basic, nontechnical language, author Mark Zyla presents practical direction for best practices of financial valuation as well as for understanding the many FASB pronouncements involving fair value. An essential guide for auditors and valuation specialists, Fair Value Measurement: Practical Guidance and Implementation, Second Edition brings you up to speed on what fair value really means.

The most cutting-edge read on the pricing, modeling, and management of credit risk available The rise of credit risk measurement and the credit derivatives market started in the early 1990s and has grown ever since. For many professionals, understanding credit risk measurement as a discipline is now more important than ever. Credit Risk Measurement, Second Edition has been fully revised to reflect the latest thinking on credit risk measurement and to provide credit risk professionals with a solid understanding of the alternative approaches to credit risk measurement. This readable guide discusses the latest pricing, modeling, and management techniques available for dealing with credit risk. New chapters highlight the latest generation of credit risk measurement models, including a popular class known as intensity-based models. Credit Risk Measurement, Second Edition also analyzes significant changes in banking regulations that are impacting credit risk measurement at financial institutions. With fresh insights and updated information on the world of credit risk measurement, this book is a must-read reference for all credit risk professionals. Anthony Saunders (New York, NY) is the John M. Schiff Professor of Finance and Chair of the Department of Finance at the Stern School of Business at New York University. He holds positions on the Board of Academic Consultants of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors as well as the Council of Research Advisors for the Federal National Mortgage Association. He is the editor of the Journal of Banking and Finance and the Journal of Financial Markets, Instruments and Institutions. Linda Allen (New York, NY) is Professor of Finance at Baruch College and Adjunct Professor of Finance at the Stern School of Business at New York University. She also is author of Capital Markets and Institutions: A Global View (Wiley: 0471130494). Over the years, financial professionals around the world have looked to the Wiley Finance series and its wide array of bestselling books for the knowledge, insights, and techniques that are essential to success in financial markets. As the pace of change in financial markets and instruments quickens, Wiley Finance continues to respond. With critically acclaimed books by leading thinkers on value investing, risk management, asset allocation, and many other critical subjects, the Wiley Finance series provides the financial community with information they want. Written to provide professionals and individuals with the most current thinking from the best minds in the industry, it is no wonder that the Wiley Finance series is the first and last stop for financial professionals looking to increase their financial expertise.

Offers quantity surveyors, engineers, building surveyors and contractors clear guidance on how to recognise and avoid measurement risk. The book recognises the interrelationship of measurement with complex contractual issues; emphasises the role of measurement in the entirety of the contracting process; and helps to widen the accessibility of measurement beyond the province of the professional quantity surveyor. For the busy practitioner, the book includes: Detailed coverage of NRM1 and NRM2, CESMM4, Manual of Contract Documents for Highway Works and POM(I) Comparison of NRM2 with SMM7 Detailed analysis of changes from CESMM3 to CESMM4 Coverage of the measurement implications of major main and sub-contract conditions (JCT, NEC3, Infrastructure Conditions and FIDIC) Definitions of 5D BIM and exploration of BIM measurement protocols Considerations of the measurement risk implications of both formal and informal tender documentation and common methods of procurement An identification of pre- and post-contract measurement risk issues Coverage of measurement risk in claims and final accounts Detailed worked examples and explanations of computer-based measurement using a variety of industry-standard software packages.

Includes a CD-ROM that contains Excel workbooks and a Matlab manual and software. Covers the subject without advanced or exotic material.