A consortium of U.S. governance organizations is calling on public company audit committees to enhance reporting about their activities. Increasing transparency about the audit committee’s roles and responsibilities could increase investor confidence, according to the organizations’ new Enhancing the Audit Committee Report: A Call to Action. The Center for Audit
Advertisement
TOPICS
Management accounting
Fed change won’t improve economy, U.S. finance execs say
Although U.S. CFOs and finance chiefs say a Federal Reserve chairman has the ability to significantly affect the world’s economy, they are not optimistic that the coming change in Fed leadership will hasten the economic recovery. Nearly six in 10 (59%) of 688 U.S. CGMA designation holders surveyed in October
Affordable Care Act holds opportunities, challenges for internal auditors
Health care regulations associated with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), P.L. 111-148, have created new opportunities for internal auditors. But internal auditors may need to get more familiar with PPACA’s provisions to help their organizations understand the risks associated with the law and their organization’s preparedness to
Why accountants should own Big Data
Many organizations recognize the value in harvesting data, whether the information is about customers’ buying habits or employees’ performance measures. But some companies haven’t been able to tap into the full potential of business intelligence—that is, getting the right information from the data to make better business decisions. Donny Shimamoto,
How to value a CPA firm for sale
One of the key components of a CPA succession plan is the sale or transfer of the retiring CPA’s ownership interest. How is the value of that interest determined? In most circumstances, the value of an owner’s interest is different when selling to an external buyer than it is in
Strategic planning leads list of finance priorities
Harnessing data for strategic planning, streamlining processes, and bracing for heightened regulatory concerns are the top priorities for CFOs and the finance function, according to a new survey report. Finance executives were asked to rate how different issues and capabilities ranked among their priorities in business consulting firm Protiviti’s 2014
New opportunities for CPAs in proposed crowdfunding rules
Rules on crowdfunding proposed by the SEC on Wednesday would create opportunities for startups and small, private businesses to raise cash through internet-aided sales of securities—and would create opportunities for work by CPAs. The SEC commissioners voted 5–0 to propose the rules that are designed to comply with a provision
A leadership tutorial from education innovator Sal Khan
Sal Khan’s story has many of the markings of a classic Silicon Valley narrative. Khan, an investment analyst working in Boston at a hedge fund, in 2004 began using Yahoo Doodle and phone calls to tutor a faraway cousin struggling with math. That evolved into posting simple video lessons on
Smart ways to tap accountants’ business process acumen
It’s not unusual for organizations to run into problems when they implement business solutions. Some organizations cannot launch the software at all. Others struggle with cost overruns or lose revenue because a software malfunction, inadequate training, or improper configuration leads to business interruptions, said Bob Gaby, CPA/CITP, CGMA, principal of
Internal auditors get modest raises in U.S., Canada
U.S. organizations gave internal auditors slightly more generous base-salary increases in the past 12 months, but the magnitude of raises fell slightly in Canada, according to a new survey report. The percentage of U.S. organizations that gave internal auditors base salary increases of 4% or more grew to 16% from
U.S. CFOs confident in finance teams’ compliance skills
Accounting and finance teams possess the skills to handle current regulatory compliance tasks, according to a new survey. Nearly half (45%) of 2,100 U.S. CFOs said their accounting and finance teams possess “excellent” regulatory and compliance expertise, according to a survey developed for finance, accounting, and business systems talent provider
Six techniques for building a strategic finance department
Finance teams want to perform strategic duties in their organizations, but new research shows many of them are not building the right competencies to fulfill these duties. Typical finance teams are weak in the nontechnical competencies that matter the most, according to a white paper reporting results of a survey
Forward roll: How companies can move beyond traditional budgeting
For more than a decade, Tim Quinn, CPA, CGMA, negotiated the tedious, back-and-forth magic of building the annual budget for Northern Quest Resort & Casino. Every year, it was the same time-consuming endeavor: Quinn, the company’s vice president of finance, would send out budget worksheets to 45 department heads. The department
Anti-corruption steps
Regulators in many parts of the globe have increased enforcement of anti-corruption laws. Anti-corruption experts offered the following tips on how companies doing business overseas can step up vigilance to reduce corruption risks. Assess internal and external risks. Enforcement actions by the Department of Justice and the SEC highlight
Saving face in the Facebook age
Businesses are focusing more on reputational risk today than in the past. But many companies do not vigorously monitor social media and lack processes to calculate the financial impact of not managing reputational risk. Seventy-six percent of the 1,300-plus CGMA designation holders who took part in a recent survey said businesses in
How to do as the Chinese when you’re in China
Four years after expanding into China, Merkle, a U.S. company that specializes in customer relationship marketing, employs more than 200 people in Shanghai and Nanjing. Sally Shanks, CPA, vice president and controller at Merkle, will always remember one of the challenges she encountered doing business in China: The document to
SEC proposes rules to compare pay of CEO, median employee
A rule proposed Wednesday by the SEC would require U.S. public companies to disclose the ratio between what companies pay their CEOs and their median employee. SEC commissioners voted 3–2 to propose the rule, which was mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, P.L. 111-203. If
How finance and accounting can boost innovation
Five years ago, Jimmy Keeter, CPA, was concerned about what he saw after performing a worst-case scenario analysis on the trucking operations of Daylight Donut Flour Co. of Tulsa, Okla., which he serves as CFO. The company, which provides ingredients and equipment to licensed doughnut shop operators in 38 states
Hiring optimism up among U.S. finance professionals
U.S. companies expect to make more money, and spend more of it, in the year ahead—and that could translate into more jobs. At the same time, finance executives’ outlook of the overall economy has cooled. Those are the key takeaways from the third-quarter Business & Industry Economic Outlook Survey, released
The opaque CFO bonus
Get a B on a math test, and you understand how that grade was determined: You got 88% of the answers correct. Get a B on an art project, and you’re wondering exactly what could have been better or what the instructor was looking for. CFOs would rather be graded
Features
FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
Making the right choice when no one is watching
The true test of one’s character is the decision made when no one is looking over your shoulder. Learn how CPAs can uphold ethical standards and take actions that help limit liability risk.
From The Tax Adviser
April 30, 2026
Current developments in taxation of individuals: Part 2
April 30, 2026
