Accounting
Audit firms urge SEC to reject PCAOB firm and engagement metrics and reporting standards
Auditing firms are asking the Securities and Exchange Commission to reject the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s recently adopted standards on
The PCAOB
“The rule introduces a new public oversight model to issuer audits that, in our opinion, has not been adequately studied and is based on metrics susceptible to misinterpretation and misuse that will be costly to produce,” said a
“We continue to believe that the PCAOB has not sufficiently demonstrated how the metrics within the Release directly relate to or enhance audit quality, which should be the primary objective of any PCAOB rule or standard,” said a
The firm and engagement metrics standard would require firms to disclose more information about partner and manager involvement in audits; workload; training hours; audit and industry experience; retention of audit personnel; allocation of audit hours; and restatement history. The PCAOB made some changes to the original proposal, reducing the number of metric areas to eight from 11; refining the metrics to simplify and clarify the calculations; increasing the ability to provide optional narrative disclosure (from 500 to 1,000 characters); and changing the effective date.
“We appreciate the revisions the Board made in its final rules in response to comments received,” said a
Some firms objected to the hurried process behind the new standards. “The speed with which the final rule was approved suggests that sufficient due process was not undertaken, and we believe certain concerns raised by commenters, including tangible operational challenges, were not adequately addressed by the Board in the final rule,” said a
The firm reporting standard also underwent modifications from the original proposal in response to comments, reducing the fee disclosure requirements, as well as streamlining disclosures about firm governance and network arrangements. But again the modifications did not go far enough for slime firms.
“While certain noteworthy improvements have been made to the final rules, concerns persist that elements of the reporting procedures will undermine the confidentiality framework in SOX,” said a
Another Big Four firm, Deloitte, pointed out that the burden on smaller firms would be especially acute, particularly in tandem with other recently approved PCAOB standards.
“These challenges will be compounded by the need for all PCAOB registered firms to simultaneously focus on numerous other new or revised PCAOB requirements currently being considered, or that were recently adopted,” said Deloitte in a
The American Institute of CPAs has also
The Center for Audit Quality pointed out that any last-minute standards approved by the SEC at the close of the Biden administration could be overturned by the incoming Trump administration or by Congress under the Congressional Review Act. “Notably, any final order approving the rule would be subject to review by a new session of Congress and a new President,” wrote CAQ CEO Julie Bell Lindsay in a
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has also come out against the rules, as it did last year in conjunction with the
“The Proposed Rules mandating disclosure of audit firm and engagement metrics represent rushed and problematic due process at the PCAOB,”
With SEC chair
The standards did win support from some investor and consumer groups. “There needs to be transparency throughout the process that results in the appointment and oversight of the audit firms and the audit process to ensure there is accountability to investors by the PCAOB (the regulator) and the audit committee which is charged with protecting investors interests,” said a
“CII, therefore, supports the Commission approving the Proposed Rules because we believe the final metrics represent an important, albeit long overdue, step forward in responding to investors’ information needs relating to the audit,” said a
The Consumer Federation of America expressed its support. “Current PCAOB rules and standards do not require registered audit firms to publicly disclose firm or engagement-level information,” said a
“We applaud the PCAOB’s efforts to modernize its annual and special reporting requirements for audit firms,” said a
The Financial Accounting Foundation today formally opened the search for several leadership roles.
The FAF Board of Trustees’ Appointments Committee is seeking nominations for these positions, which include chair and members of the Board of Trustees, the FAF’s executive director, Financial Accounting Standards Board member, and chair of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council.
FAF executive director
Current FAF executive director John Auchincloss announced in December 2024 that he will
The executive director leads a team of 45 who provide support services to the FASB and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, including communications and public affairs, legal, IT, human resources, publishing, financial management and administration. The role supports the FAF Trustees, who ultimately oversee the FASB and GASB Boards and their advisory councils. The executive director, in collaboration with the FAF chair, also sets the organization’s U.S. and international outreach strategies.
A full description of the FAF executive director role can be found
FAF Board of Trustees chair
The chair of the FAF Trustees is involved in all major Trustee decisions related to strategy, appointments, oversight and governance, and in representing the organization with high-level stakeholders and regulators.
The new chair will be appointed for a three-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2028, and can stand for reappointment to a second three-year term beginning in 2029.
A full description of the FAF Board chair role can be found
FAF Board of Trustees at-large member
The FAF Board of Trustees oversees and supports the FASB and the GASB, and exercises general oversight of the organization except regarding technical decisions related to standard setting.
The FAF is recruiting several “at-large” trustees — individuals with business, investment, capital markets, accounting, and business academia, financial, government, regulatory, investor advocate, or other experience.
A full description of the FAF trustee role can be found
FASB member
FASB members develop financial reporting standards that result in useful information for investors and other financial-statement users. The FASB member roles are full time and based in Norwalk, Connecticut.
“These are senior and prestigious appointments, demanding not only a high degree of technical accounting expertise but also a high level of understanding of the global financial reporting environment,” the FAF announcement reads.
The official start date for the position would be July 1, 2026, but the newly appointment member would be expected to start some time earlier than year to ensure a successful transition. The five-year term extends through June 30, 2031, at which time the member would be eligible to be considered for reappointment.
A full description of the FASB member role can be found
FASAC chair
The chair is the principal officer of the FASAC and advises the FASB on projects on the FASB’s agenda, possible new agenda items and priorities, procedural matters that may require the attention of the FASB, and other matters. The chair is responsible for guiding discussion at FASAC meetings and for implementing and directing the broad operating processes of the FASAC.
The chair may be appointed for up to a four-year term, or a shorter period of time as agreed upon, and may be eligible for reappointment.
A full description of the FASAC chair role can be found
Courtesy of the FAF, FASB and GASB
Top 10 Firm Grant Thornton announced that its CEO, Seth Siegel, is stepping down from his position after 30 years with the firm, though will still remain involved as a senior advisor.
“I have called Grant Thornton home for almost three decades and am proud to have been part of this amazing team and organization, which has solidified its standing as the destination of choice for clients and talent alike,” said Siegel in the firm’s
The new CEO will be Jim Peko, current chief operating officer of Grant Thornton Advisors LLC.
“I thank Seth for all he has done to help transform Grant Thornton so adeptly for the future. He has been a colleague, mentor and friend to so many of us, and a tireless advocate for the firm’s best interests. As CEO, my priorities will focus on accelerating our current business strategy and solidifying our standing in the marketplace as a unique global platform, driven by quality, culture and differentiated capabilities. We will continue to be the employer of choice for the industry and always capitalize on compelling opportunities before us as we drive meaningful growth,” said Peko.
Siegel expressed his confidence in Peko, saying he has worked closely with him for many years.
“Jim and I have worked closely together for many years, and he is the right leader for this new chapter — one who knows Grant Thornton well and has been integral to our many recent accomplishments and our quality-focused delivery,” he said.
Siegel became a partner in 2006, became managing partner of South Florida in 2020, and
The announcement comes shortly after the
Grant Thornton
Accounting and business solutions provider
“Modern accounting firms are growing quickly, expanding their service lines and client bases,” said Jim Dunham, president and general manager of IRIS Americas. “However, this rapid growth often introduces technology sprawl, added costs and complexity. To tackle today’s challenges, firms need an all-in-one solution that simplifies operations and helps them scale their business. That’s why we created IRIS Firm Management — purpose-built from strategic acquisitions and shaped by four decades of collaboration with our customers.”
IRIS IFM’s integrated document management solution allows for storing, organizing and retrieving critical documents, for compliance with complex regulatory requirements. Today’s update also allows the solution to automatically retain documents for standard periods of time; provides template forms to maintain document consistency and integrity; and produces a detailed audit trail — tracking who accessed which documents and any actions taken, and when. This means firms can securely share encrypted files with clients using drag-and-drop upload functionality.
In addition, customers can now create unlimited customizable reports with step-by-step guidance in order to gain real-time insights through interactive analytics dashboards and data visualization. Using drag-and-drop tools and filtering options, users can refine views, organize and analyze data sets—such as client, geography, accounts receivable, work-in-progress—to create a unified account view.
The update also allows for streamlined hierarchical menus to replace dropdowns for better accessibility and consistency. It also features a new period-lockdown feature which prevents changes to key functions in order to bolster security. Meanwhile, the solution also supports cloud-based receipt storage to simplify setup, as well as options for user preferences allow for tailored workflows.
Finally, IRIS IFM sports a new Configuration Management Component, which offers 140 multilevel configuration options across 40 modules, along with a library of ready-to-use templates. Real-time updates let users enable or disable features without disrupting existing workflows, ensuring seamless, personalized implementations for each client.
Centralized Customer Success Function
IRIS also
The new function is meant to increase touchpoints to engage customers at critical moments that matter, as well as enhance the overall customer experience through establishing a unified approach across products and customer lifecycle stages and expanding customer-centric, outcome-based KPIs to drive impact.
This function will be led by Dave Burns, a newly appointed chief customer officer who previously served as interim chief revenue officer at IRIS Software Group. In his new role, he will oversee a unified team and collaborate closely with global leaders across client-facing teams.
“At IRIS, our customers are our top priority. We design and improve our products based on customer feedback and we strive to deliver exceptional customer experiences throughout our customers’ end-to-end lifecycle,” said Burns. “The launch of this new Customer Success function is just another way that IRIS is continually working to ensure our customers have a seamless and convenient experience from start to finish. We are excited about this evolution and confident it will significantly benefit both our customers and IRIS.”
FAF seeks nominations for leadership, advisory roles
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