Does IT Outsourcing Affect the Accuracy and Speed of Financial Disclosures? Evidence from Preparer-Side XBRL Filing Decisions

In this paper, we examine the impact of preparer-side XBRL filing decisions on the accuracy and speed of financial disclosures. Specifically, we use the choice between in-house and outsourced preparation of XBRL filings to examine the impact of the decisions on financial disclosures. Using annual and quarterly SEC filings in XBRL format, we test the accuracy and speed of the filings by comparing the number of amendments and reporting delays of the filings that are prepared in-house relative to those prepared by a third party. Our results indicate that outsourcing XBRL filings increases reporting accuracy but does not affect speed. Additionally, several firm-specific characteristics, including the complexity of XBRL filings, have an impact on the accuracy and speed of XBRL filings.