Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today. Having been to more than dozen countries in the last few months, it is a pleasure to speak "at home" with long-standing colleagues and friends. It is through meetings such as this that the International Federation of Accountants can keep a pulse on the concerns of firms, and network firms in particular, which play such a critical role in our global profession. It also gives IFAC an opportunity to inform you about our expanding role and initiatives to support the profession in delivering quality and in meeting its public interest responsibilities. I am well aware that quality is a word that is frequently bandied about, but not always defined.
When I speak about quality with respect to accounting firms, I am really talking about three fundamental criteria:
- Acting with integrity;
- Achieving high quality standards; and
- Demonstrating professional competence.