The Indiana CPA Society has released a second white paper on the topic of the future of competency for CPAs, prepared by a board-level task force on that subject. 

Kent Williams

The white paper defines competency, considers broad-based education changes, looks at higher education and standards for continuing professional education, envisions the future CPA, addresses what is learning, and offers conclusions.

"Conventional wisdom in how we develop our competency should be challenged so that we are prepared to meet the needs of those whom we will serve and to ensure we do not miss future opportunities of service,” said task force chair and INCPAS vice chair Kent Williams, an assistant business professor at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind. “As professionals, our future will depend upon us collectively and individually improving the art of how we will strive to enhance our competency. We hope that this paper will plant the seeds of ‘The Future of Competency’ for the CPA profession."

The white paper aims to benefit Indiana CPAs, the entire CPA profession, along with anyone else with an interest or involvement with accounting education, both at the college level and in professional development. Two other INCPAS board task forces studied related CPA profession topics during the same time period—integrated reporting and hyperspecialization—and also prepared white papers on those subjects.  The integrated reporting white paper was released last week (see Indiana CPAs Study Integrated Reporting). The hyperspecialization white paper will be released soon.