Definition of authority

authority

the right (usually by virtue of position or rank) to use resources to accomplish a task or achieve an objective

CFTC

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is the federal agency created by Congress to regulate
futures trading. The Commodity Exchange Act of 1974 became effective April 21, 1975. Previously, futures
trading had been regulated by the Commodity Exchange authority of the USDA.

Discretionary account

Accounts over which an individual or organization, other than the person in whose
name the account is carried, exercises trading authority or control.

European Union (EU)

An economic association of European countries founded by the Treaty of Rome in
1957 as a common market for six nations. It was known as the European Community before 1993 and is
comprised of 15 European countries. Its goals are a single market for goods and services without any
economic barriers and a common currency with one monetary authority. The EU was known as the European
Community until January 1, 1994.

Federally related institutions

Arms of the federal government that are exempt from SEC registration and
whose securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government (with the exception of the
Tennessee Valley authority).

Reserve currency

A foreign currency held by a central bank or monetary authority for the purposes of
exchange intervention and the settlement of inter-governmental claims.

internal accounting controls

Refers to forms used and procedures
established by a business—beyond what would be required for the
record-keeping function of accounting—that are designed to prevent
errors and fraud. Two examples of internal controls are (1) requiring a
second signature by someone higher in the organization to approve a
transaction in excess of a certain dollar amount and (2) giving customers
printed receipts as proof of sale. Other examples of internal
control procedures are restricting entry and exit routes of employees,
requiring all employees to take their vacations and assigning another
person to do their jobs while they are away, surveillance cameras, surprise
counts of cash and inventory, and rotation of duties. Internal controls
should be cost-effective; the cost of a control should be less than
the potential loss that is prevented. The guiding principle for designing
internal accounting controls is to deter and detect errors and dishonesty.
The best internal controls in the world cannot prevent most fraud
by high-level managers who take advantage of their positions of trust
and authority.

cost center

a responsibility center in which the manager has
the authority to incur costs and is evaluated on the basis
of how well costs are controlled

empowerment

the process of giving workers the training
and authority they need to manage their own jobs

investment center

a responsibility center in which the manager
is responsible for generating revenues and planning
and controlling expenses and has the authority to acquire,
dispose of, and use plant assets to earn the highest rate
of return feasible on those assets within the confines and
to the support of the organization’s goals

matrix structure

an organizational structure in which functional
departments and project teams exist simultaneously
so that the resulting lines of authority resemble a grid

organizational structure

the manner in which authority and
responsibility for decision making is distributed in an entity

organization chart

a depiction of the functions, divisions,
and positions of the people/jobs in a company and how
they are related; it also indicates the lines of authority and
responsibility

Central Bank

A public agency responsible for regulating and controlling an economy's monetary and financial institutions. It is the sole money-issuing authority.

Federal Reserve System

The central banking authority responsible for monetary policy in the United States.

Probate

Letters probate represent judicial certification of the validity of a Will and judicial confirmation ofthe authority of the personal representative who is to administer the Will. Essentially, probate fees are a tax on a person's estate and except for the provinces of Quebec and Alberta, there is no limit to this tax.

Management

Management refers to the individuals in an entity that have the authority and the responsibility to manage the entity. The positions of these individuals, and their titles, vary from one entity to another and, to some extent, from one country to another depending on the local laws and customs. Thus, when the context requires it, the term includes the board of directors or committees of the board which are designated to oversee certain matters (e.g., audit committee).

Related to : financial, finance, business, accounting, payroll, inventory, investment, money, inventory control, stock trading, financial advisor, tax advisor, credit.