The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the global organization for the accountancy profession with 173 members and associates in 129 countries, today released the results of its 2012 IFAC Global Leadership Survey of the Accountancy Profession.

The survey elicited respondents’ opinions regarding perceptions of the accountancy profession and the most significant issues facing global accountancy in 2013. Of the 22 issues that were presented for consideration, respondents identified five top concerns: the needs of small- and medium-sized practices and small- and medium-sized entities; the reputation and credibility of the profession; issues related to the European Union (EU) draft legislation; public sector financial management and sovereign debt issues; and the difficult global financial climate.

“The sovereign debt crisis and the current financial climate have contributed greatly to the changing role of the accountancy profession,” said IFAC Chief Executive Officer Fayez Choudhury. “Professional accountants are now more visible, and the profile and responsibility of the profession will only continue to grow. Similar to last year, respondents continue to express their view that IFAC should seek to maintain and improve the public’s perceived views of the accountancy profession; reputation and credibility of the global profession was ranked as one of the most significant issues for 2013.”

About the Survey
The 2012 IFAC Global Leadership Survey of the Accountancy Profession asked officers (most frequently presidents and chief executive officers) from IFAC’s member bodies, associates, affiliates, regional accountancy organizations and acknowledged accountancy groupings, and Forum of Firms members a variety of questions regarding the accountancy profession. The survey results include data from 113 respondents from 72 countries and jurisdictions who took the survey from October 10, 2012 to December 10, 2012.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) welcomes the G-20 Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ decision to address “transparency and comparability of public sector reporting” in the final communiqué issued for their February 15-16 meeting.

The G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors called on the IMF and the World Bank to further explore the issue and provide appropriate updates, declaring that “strengthening the public sector balance sheet is needed to better assess risks to public debt sustainability.”

“We are very encouraged by these developments, as we had anticipated the G-20 under Russia’s leadership would view improved public sector financial management as a priority,” said IPSASB Chair Andreas Bergmann. “The IPSASB looks forward to continuing its constructive dialogue and cooperative efforts with the G20, the IMF, and the World Bank.”

The IPSASB has been setting standards for financial reporting of governments since 2001. Currently, it has published a complete suite of 32 standards for the accrual basis of accounting, as well as one cash basis standard for countries preparing for the move to accruals. Nearly 80 countries and many international governmental organizations, including the United Nations, NATO, OECD, the European Commission, and ASEAN, are currently using or have firm plans to use the standards.

More information can be found in the Feb. 16 news article, “The first G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Banks Governors' Meeting took place in Moscow,” which includes a link to the communiqué.

About the IPSASB
The IPSASB develops accounting standards and guidance for use by public sector entities. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by IFAC. The IPSASB receives support (both direct financial and in-kind) from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations, and the governments of Canada, China, New Zealand, and Switzerland.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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After more than 10 years, Ian Ball has stepped down as chief executive officer (CEO) of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). He will continue as a principal advisor, in a volunteer capacity, representing IFAC as a member of the board and as chair of the Working Group of the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC).

During his tenure as CEO, IFAC’s presence, outreach, and global influence experienced remarkable growth, addressing the challenges the accountancy profession faced during a turbulent period for both the profession and the global economy. A strong and vocal proponent of transparency in government management and financial reporting, Mr. Ball also fostered the debate defining the public interest; shaped the case for, and advocated the importance of, convergence of global professional standards; and played a key role in developing the arrangements between the accountancy profession and the regulatory community for oversight of the independent standard-setting boards in auditing and assurance, ethics, and accounting education.  

Mr. Ball’s accomplishments have been recognized throughout the profession. He is a recipient of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy’s President’s Medal and the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants’ Life Membership distinction, and he has been named a “Top 10 Influencer” by International Accounting Bulletin.

“It was a real privilege to lead IFAC during a period of great challenge and great opportunity for the global accountancy profession,” said Mr. Ball. “As integrated reporting receives more and more attention and the IIRC continues to make significant progress, I am looking forward to focusing on these new endeavors and working with the IIRC and IFAC.”

"As the CEO of IFAC during a critical time for the international profession, Ian Ball’s leadership has served as a catalyst for a decade of momentum and achievement. Thanks to Mr. Ball, as a global organization, IFAC has never been better positioned as an authoritative, highly respected voice on global economic issues,” noted Warren Allen IFAC president.

Former World Bank executive and member of the Public Interest Oversight Board Fayezul Choudhury assumed the role of IFAC chief executive officer on February 1, 2013.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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Presenting at “The G-20 Agenda Under the Russian Chairmanship,” a high-level public-private sector conference organized by the Institute of International Finance in partnership with the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, International Federation of Accountants Outgoing CEO Ian Ball called on Russia to use its G-20 Presidency to strengthen global financial stability by supporting adoption and implementation of International Public Sector Reporting Standards (IPSASs).

In particular, Ball called on the Russian Presidency to:

• Create a better understanding of the need to significantly enhance the quality of accounting by governments;
• Urge the Financial Stability Board (FSB) to adopt IPSASs as one of the core sets of standards; and
• Direct the FSB to research the effectiveness of different institutional arrangements for fiscal management and governance.

As early as 2007, IFAC stated that it “is concerned that the standards and regulations governing sovereign issuers are not of sufficient quality to protect investors and ensure the stability of capital markets.” Consistent with its past submissions to the G-20, IFAC calls for urgent research and action to address this critical, but neglected, component of the international financial system. The G-20 should actively encourage the adoption of accrual-based accounting and budgeting by governments and public sector institutions, which will promote greater transparency and accountability in public sector finances and allow for monitoring of government debt and liabilities for their true economic implications.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the global organization for the accountancy profession with members and associates in 129 countries, opened the nominations period for the 2013 IFAC International Gold Service Award today.

Established in 2010 and presented annually, the IFAC International Gold Service Award recognizes outstanding contributions to the global accountancy profession, including protecting the public interest; exemplifying professional conduct and ethics; exceptional quality of work; and/or contributions to a particular accountancy project or initiative. Past recipients of the awards include such luminaries in the accountancy and finance profession as Professor Mervyn King, Sir David Tweedie, and Professor Stephen Zeff.

Candidates for the IFAC International Gold Service Award may or may not be members of the accountancy profession and contributions may or may not have been made through IFAC.

Nominations from IFAC member bodies must be submitted to the IFAC chief executive officer by April 1, 2013, and consist of a completed nomination form, available on the IFAC website, with a cover letter explaining the nominee’s credentials signed by the president and/or chief executive, or their equivalents. Additional supporting material is welcomed, but should not exceed two pages. Nominations received in a format other than the nomination form will not be considered.

The IFAC Nominating Committee will also identify and recommend candidate(s) for this award. The Nominating Committee will review the nominations, make the necessary inquiries, and recommend candidate(s), if appropriate, to the IFAC Board, which will make the final selection(s), if any, during its meeting in September 2013. The IFAC chief executive officer will notify the selected candidate(s) in writing, and the IFAC president will present the award(s) at the annual IFAC Council Meeting, to be held November 13-14, 2013, in Seoul, South Korea.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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An erratum to the Call for Nominations for Boards and Committees in 2014 regarding nominations to the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) was made available today.

The Call for Nominations contained an error when it was first published on January 15, 2013. The number of vacancies on the IPSASB for 2014 was incorrect—there will be five vacancies on the IPSASB in 2014, including at least one vacancy for a public member. The Call for Nominations originally indicated four vacancies and no vacancy for a public member.

Consequently, the deadline for submitting nominations for the IPSASB for 2014 has been extended to April 5, 2013. The erratum, which provides updated information regarding vacancies, qualifications, and deadlines, is available on the IFAC website.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this error might cause.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The latest IFAC SMP Quick Poll, conducted in late 2012, showed that the smallest accounting practices and their clients are not immune to macroeconomic instability. With the continuing sovereign debt crisis, a double-dip recession in the Eurozone, and rising inflation in some regions, economic uncertainty pervaded many of the responses to the poll of small- and medium-sized accounting practitioners (SMPs). Despite these concerns, SMPs remain cautiously optimistic, showing their resilience and perseverance during challenging times.

After keeping up with new regulations and standards, three issues related to the health of the economy—attracting and retaining clients, pressure to lower fees, and rising costs—topped the list of challenges faced by SMPs. Similarly, respondents indicated that their clients, small- and medium-sized entities (SMEs), are most challenged by regulations followed by economic uncertainty. Respondents generally expect little change in business performance in the coming year; however, slightly more SMPs (5 points more) indicated they expect business to improve in the coming year compared to those who said the same at the end of 2011. They expect this growth primarily to be driven by revenue from new clients.

While respondents identified the reputation and credibility of the profession as a top issue facing the profession in 2013, they generally ranked public perception of the profession in their country/jurisdiction as average to above average and expect this perception to improve by 2025.

“As drivers of growth and development, small businesses are extremely important to the health of local and global economies. We must not underestimate the value of this sector and the role that accountants play in supporting SMEs as trusted business advisors. Therefore, regulators and standard setters need to be mindful of the impact their requirements have on SMPs and SMEs; as the poll results show, this is an area that continues to challenge both small businesses and their accountants,” said SMP Committee Chair Giancarlo Attolini.

The poll report includes notable variations by region and size of practice in addition to trend data based on previous polls where available. 

The year-end 2012 poll received 3,767 responses and was conducted in 17 languages from November 21 to December 31. The poll, conducted twice in 2012, is intended to take a snapshot of key challenges and trends influencing SMPs globally; since the responses were not geographically balanced, the results are not necessarily representative of SMPs on a global or regional basis. IFAC wishes to thank the many member and regional organizations that helped with translation and distribution of the poll. 

About the SMP Committee
The SMP Committee of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) represents the interests of professional accountants operating in small- and medium-sized practices (SMPs). The committee develops guidance and tools and works to ensure the needs of the SMPs are considered by standard setters, regulators, and policy makers. The committee also speaks out on behalf of SMPs to raise awareness of their role and value, especially in supporting SMEs, and the importance of the small business sector overall.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Committee of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the global organization for the accountancy profession with members and associates in 129 countries, has issued new International Good Practice Guidance, Principles for Effective Business Reporting Processes. This principles-based guidance establishes a benchmark for professional accountants in business to establish more effective business processes in the organizations in which they work.

"An organization’s sustainable success depends on the support of stakeholders and the quality of their decision making,” said Roger Tabor, chair of the PAIB Committee. “High-quality reporting is essential to both, and needs effective business processes to deliver it."

This guidance is directed at all organizations wishing to enhance their reporting processes—no matter their size or structure, or whether they are private or public, as all organizations should have effective reporting processes to provide high-quality reports for their internal and external stakeholders.

“Professional accountants in business are often involved in the design, planning, execution, audit, evaluation, and improvement—or, in short, the implementation—of their organizations’ reporting processes,” said Karyn Brooks, chair of the PAIB Committee’s Business Reporting Task Force. “This International Good Practice Guidance covers the primary issues professional accountants in business should address in implementing effective reporting processes in their organizations.”

About International Good Practice Guidance
International Good Practice Guidance (IGPG) issued by the PAIB Committee cover areas of international and strategic importance in which professional accountants in business are likely to engage. In issuing principles-based guidance, IFAC seeks to foster a common and consistent approach to those aspects of the work of professional accountants in business not covered by international standards. IFAC seeks to clearly identify principles that are generally accepted internationally and applicable to organizations of all sizes in commerce, industry, education, and the public and not-for-profit sectors. Previously issued IGPGs are available on the IFAC website, including Preface to IFAC’s International Good Practice Guidance.

About the PAIB Committee
The PAIB Committee serves IFAC member bodies and professional accountants worldwide who work in commerce, industry, financial services, education, and the public and the not-for-profit sectors. Its aim is to promote and contribute to the value of professional accountants in business by increasing awareness of the important roles professional accountants play, supporting member bodies in enhancing the competence of their members, and facilitating the communication and sharing of good practices and ideas.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today released for public comment a new Consultation Paper addressing audit quality. A Framework for Audit Quality seeks input from stakeholders internationally who have an interest in continually enhancing audit quality, including regulators, audit committees, investors, and audit firms.

Through the proposed framework, the IAASB aims to raise awareness of the key elements of audit quality, encourage stakeholders to explore ways to improve audit quality, and facilitate greater dialogue between key stakeholders on the topic.

“While the IAASB recognizes that high-quality auditing standards and well-qualified, competent, skeptical auditors are essential to a quality audit, there are many factors that contribute to maximizing the likelihood of quality audits being consistently performed,” said Prof. Arnold Schilder, IAASB chairman. “There is value in identifying and describing these factors and, thereby, encouraging audit firms and other stakeholders to challenge themselves to think about whether there is more they can do to increase audit quality in their particular environments.”

The IAASB is seeking responses to several questions listed in the Consultation Paper, in particular, whether the framework is clear, comprehensive, and useful. In developing the framework, the IAASB has also identified, with the input of stakeholders, a number of areas for consideration by both auditors and other participants in the financial reporting supply chain that may benefit audit quality on a global basis.

“The proposed framework describes the input and output factors that contribute to audit quality at the engagement, audit firm, and national levels. It also demonstrates the importance of appropriate interactions among stakeholders and the relevance of various contextual factors,” explained James Gunn, IAASB technical director. “We hope that A Framework for Audit Quality will generate discussion and that its active use by various stakeholders will result in positive actions in the public interest to achieve a continual improvement to audit quality.”

How to Comment
The IAASB invites all stakeholders to comment on the consultation paper. To access the document or submit a comment, visit the IAASB’s website at www.iaasb.org. Comments are requested by May 15, 2013.

About the IAASB
The IAASB develops auditing and assurance standards and guidance for use by all professional accountants under a shared standard-setting process involving the Public Interest Oversight Board, which oversees the activities of the IAASB, and the IAASB Consultative Advisory Group, which provides public interest input into the development of the standards and guidance. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IAASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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The Nominating Committee of IFAC has today issued the Call for Nominations for Boards and Committees in 2014. This announcement represents the beginning of the period for submitting nominations for available positions on the independent standard-setting boards* and the IFAC Board and committees. The period for nominations ends on March 15, 2013.

For 2014, there are 46 vacancies on boards and committees, including two leadership positions—the chairs of the Professional Accountancy Organization Development Committee and the Professional Accountants in Business Committee.

“The independent standard-setting boards and the IFAC Board and committees attract extremely talented and qualified individuals with wide-ranging experience, which contributes to their authority,” said IFAC President Warren Allen. “We thank all our stakeholders, including our members and the Forum of Firms, for their continued support and look forward to receiving their nominations.”

The Nominating Committee is looking for highly-qualified nominees who possess knowledge of the subject matters considered by the relevant board or committee, are proficient in English, and are willing to commit between 300 and 600 hours per year, depending on the board or committee. Nominations from the Africa-Middle East and the Latin America-Caribbean regions, as well as BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) are particularly encouraged, as are nominations of female candidates.

All vacancies on the independent standard-setting boards are open for nominations by the public, including, for the first time, the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board. For more information regarding open vacancies, requirements for membership, and how to apply, please refer to the Call for Nominations.

The Nominating Committee follows an open and transparent process in selecting the best candidates for the available positions, while also aiming to achieve gender, regional, and professional balance. For more information about the Nominating Committee, its due process, or guidance in selecting the best candidate, please visit www.ifac.org/about-ifac/structure-governance/nominating-committee.

IFAC encourages all members and associates to share the Call for Nominations with their membership in order to solicit the most talented professionals.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. It is comprised of 173 members and associates in 129 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

 *The independent standard-setting boards are the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB), International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), and International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB).

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