accounts demystified Based on these parameters, you can see why the management can claim to be doing a reasonable job. All four parameters are rising steadily. The question, of course, is whether these are the right parameters to be look- ing at. Summary Ingeneral,thegreatertheriskofaninvestment,thegreatermustbe thepotentialreward.Otherwise,peoplewillsimplynottaketherisk. Companiesmustthereforeofferareward(or`return')whichis commensuratewiththerisktotheinvestor. Thefinancialobjectiveofacompanyistomaximisethereturnonthe moneyinvestedinit,whilemakingappropriatetrade-offsbetween: ­ theshort-andlong-termperspectives ­ profitabilityandliquidity. Fromafinancialviewpoint,wecandistinguishbetweentheenterprise