EN
The paper presents different legal and illegal methods of managing profit and maximising owner wealth in small and medium-size Polish companies. The strategies analysed included the modifying of net profit at the end of the accounting year, and the achieving of the desired level of earnings during the year. The author also discusses further economic consequences of such practices, including the loss of informational value of income and loss statements and profitability ratios, problems with valuation and difficulties in determining the credit capacity of small firms.