Accounting

Accounting News & Professional Insight

Accounting Today delivers news, rankings, thought leadership, and analysis for accounting professionals so they can navigate change in standards, firm strategy, technology adoption, talent, and the overall business environment.

Accounting professionals are facing rapid transformation, including shifting professional standards, demographic change, technology disruption, practice consolidation, and changing expectations for advisory services. Our coverage surfaces these strategic dynamics and provides insights and analysis for firms, leaders, and the accounting profession.

Accounting standards

Speeding toward convergence

The pace of accounting standards convergence is accelerating, and is being driven primarily by an investment community that is rapidly embracing International Financial Reporting Standards.

February 11
Audit

Former KPMG Consulting Principal Settles SEC Charges

Larry Rodda, a former principal and managing director of KPMG Consulting, has agreed to pay an $80,000 penalty to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle charges that he deceived investigators over accounting fraud at Peregrine Systems.

February 8
Audit

FASB to Delay Fair Value Effective Date

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has decided to issue final guidance that would defer for a year the effective date on which private and public entities would have to account for fair value measurements.

February 8
Audit

SEC Advisory Committee to Meet on Report

An advisory committee to the Securities and Exchange Commission intends to make its decision on Feb. 11 on whether to issue an eagerly anticipated report on improvements to financial reporting.

February 8
Regulatory actions and programs

IASC Sets Funding Principles

The IASC Foundation has set four principles for a funding system in 2008 for its activities, which include its work overseeing the International Accounting Standards Board.

February 6
Accounting standards

AICPA Weighs in on Retirement Plan Regulations

The American Institute of CPAs has written to the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service about proposed regulations for automatic contributions to 401(k) plans, as well as cafeteria plans.

February 5
Accounting standards

With This Firm, It's REALLY All in The Numbers

Every once and a while you come across a firm that knocks your socks off. Dezan Shira & Associates (dezshira.com) is just such a firm.

February 5

Resources

The latest Accounting Today research and discussion:

Predicting the next 15 years in accounting

Take a look at what the accountant and the accounting firm of the future will look like with AICPA chief Mark Koziel.

Sponsored by BILL
The changing world of government financial reporting

The serious new pressures facing governments of all sizes are changing their financial reporting, says GASB Chair Joel Black.

Sponsored by Intuit Quickbooks
Special Report Technology and CAS

Handling the compliance work that is the foundation of modern CAS while also creating time and insights for the advisory overlay that really drives its value to clients requires the careful deployment of a suite of technology tools — and that suite is constantly evolving, meaning accountants need a strategy to keep up.

Sponsored by Canopy

Accounting: Key Questions & Analysis

What are the key trends and strategies emerging from accounting industry leaders?

Top leaders are focused on structural challenges facing firms, including succession planning, evolving service mix, and long-term sustainability of traditional models.

How are accounting firms positioning themselves for the profession’s next phase?

Firm leaders are redefining and evaluating their strategy for growth. This includes investing in people and systems as well as rethinking how firms deliver value to address changing client needs and competition.

What role does professional identity play as accounting continues to change?

Debate continues over how accounting defines itself. This is due to accounting expanding into advisory, consulting, and technology-enabled services. These changes can raise questions about standards, training, and long-term credibility.

How are accounting firms managing leadership and succession risk?

Demographic shifts are accelerating in accounting. This means more firms are confronting leadership transitions and ownership succession which can create critical strategic risks that influence growth, culture, and valuation.