Alex Peal became a member of the IFAC Small and Medium Practices Advisory Group (SMPAG) in January 2019 having previously served as a technical advisor to the Committee. He was nominated by CCAB in the UK.

Alex is a Partner and Joint Managing Partner at James Cowper Kreston a SMP accounting practice based in London and the South of England. He has over 20 years of experience in the accounting and audit profession and is responsible for a wide ranging portfolio of clients including owner-managed UK companies, not-for-profit entities such as charities and schools and small listed companies. He is an active member of Kreston International and regularly performs quality reviews on behalf of the Kreston network as well as presenting on technical matters at conferences.

Alex is a member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW) Audit Faculty Board and attends the ICAEW Technical and Practical Auditing Committee as an alternate. He has delivered lectures and webinars on behalf of ICAEW.

Alex holds a Bachelor of Science degree and is a Fellow of the ICAEW. He also holds the ICAEW Diploma in Charity Accounting.

Professional accountants have a meaningful opportunity to enable more effective Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) within their organizations, according to a report published today by IFAC (the International Federation of Accountants).

Businesses face rapid change and increasing uncertainty driven by a myriad of factors, including geopolitical events, volatile financial markets, technology developments, cybersecurity, data privacy concerns, and climate change. According to the report, professional accountants can play an amplified role within their organizations to identify, measure and mitigate emerging risks through robust ERM practices.

The report underscores the reality that risk management remains underdeveloped in many organizations. A survey of mainly US-based organizations, conducted by North Carolina State University and the American Institute of CPAs, found that less than 20% of organizations view their risk process as being integrated with strategy and objectives, and 69% of organizations do not have a comprehensive ERM process in place.

To drive more effective ERM, management must draw upon the Chief Financial Officer and finance function to ensure risk management practices provide a holistic understanding of opportunity and risk linked to objectives and value creation.

“This is a particularly uncertain time for businesses as the global economy experiences heightened volatility and rapid change. In this environment, proper risk management will be increasingly important for organizations to ensure their resiliency and success over the long term,” said Kevin Dancey, IFAC CEO. “Professional accountants are well positioned to better serve the organizations they work for by enabling effective enterprise risk management that identifies both risks and opportunities for the business.”

CFOs and accountants with clear risk management responsibilities are in a better position to make individually and functionally greater contributions to risk management. The report identifies three ways in which CFOs and finance functions can enhance their contribution to ERM:

• Align risk management with value creation and preservation;
• Drive insights and enable decisions through provision of risk modeling and analytics, data governance and identification of organizational risk appetite; and
• Enable integration and interconnectivity by breaking down siloes across the organization to share information.

Enabling effective ERM will require accountants to employ various competencies, including strong leadership and interpersonal skills, and to commit to lifelong learning on risk management and emerging risk issues. In the coming decades, it will be critical to better integrate risk management into professional education and training for accountants, and to improve the relevance and quality of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). 

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 over 175 members and associates in more than 130 countries and jurisdictions, representing almost 3 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

Ardiana Bunjaku became member of IFAC’s PAO Development & Advisory Group in January 2024, having previously served as a member of the Advisory Group for two terms (2011-2016) as well as a technical advisor (2017-2019). She also served on IFAC’s Compliance Advisory Panel from 2019 to 2020.

Ms. Bunjaku is executive Director of the Society of Certified Accountants and Auditors of Kosovo (SCAAK) as well as a board member and audit committee member of NLB Bank.

Ms. Bunjaku has led SCAAK since it was established in 2001, including introducing Kosovo to the concept of an accountancy profession and professional education. Since 2001, she has establish SCAAK as a center of excellence by expanding its service portfolio with diverse certifications for private, public accounting profession, general audit office, insolvency practitioners, and internal auditors.

Ms. Bunjaku is actively engaged in various national and international committees and organizations, including the Kosovo Development Strategy Committee, the Kosovo National Qualification Framework working group, and the Advisory Committee to the Tax Administration Authority.

Ms. Bunjaku played key roles in higher education reform at the University of Prishtina and served as a chair of the Universities Council. Additionally, she served on the quality assurance committee in the Kosovo Board for Standards and Financial Reporting and held positions on the board of the American University in Kosovo, American Chamber of Commerce. She is also a founder of the Kosovo Women's Chamber of Commerce - G7.

Ms. Bunjaku holds a doctoral degree in Economics and Management, an Insolvency Practitioner's Certificate, is a member of INSOL International, and is licensed as a First-grade Appraiser in Kosovo.

Dr. Gabriela-María Farías-Martínez is a member of IFAC's International Panel on Accountancy Education since September 2019, nominated by Instituto Mexicano de Contadores Públicos (IMCP) where she is a member of its Education Commission.

Dr. Farías-Martínez is a Director of Faculty Development of the Business School of Tecnológico de Monterrey and Professor of the Academic Department of Accounting and Finance. She is a Doctor in Educational Innovation from Tecnológico de Monterrey, with Master's degrees in Administration and Master's in Marketing from EGADE Business School, specializing in accounting from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Dr. Farías-Martínez has been recognized as a distinguished professor of Accounting by the state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and by the firms Deloitte and EY. She has received recognition for her research in accounting education by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). 

Dr. Farías-Martínez is a Certified Public Accountant by the Mexican Institute of Public Accountants (IMCP), a Certified Internal Auditor and certified in Internal Control Evaluation by the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA).

Prof. Andrew Conway, FIPA, FFA, joined the IFAC PAO Development & Advisory Group in January 2019 after being nominated by the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA).

Prof. Conway has been the Chief Executive Officer of IPA since May 2009, which at the time made him the youngest CEO of a public entity at the age of 28. He has been recognized for IPA’s transformation from its former name, National Institute of Accountants, into a leading and legally recognized professional accountancy body in Australia and the region. His leadership of IPA led to the organization’s recognition as the most innovative accounting body in Australia in 2012 by BRW.

Prior to working with IPA, Prof. Conway was an Australian Government Treasury Ministry Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor. In 2001, he was awarded the Centenary of Federation Medal through the Order of Australia and in 2011, he was awarded Australian Young Professional of the Year and appointed a Professor of Accounting at the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (honoris causa). That same year he was appointed by the Governor of Victoria as a Director of Eastern Health.

Prof. Conway was awarded the Australian Financial Review, Boss Magazine Young Executive of the Year in 2014. And in 2015, he was awarded the Deakin University Young Alumni Award for his outstanding and significant contribution to the profession and to the community. The following year, he was presented with a Distinguished Fellow award by the Vice-Chancellor of Deakin University and appointed as an Adjunct Professor at the University where he lectures for Deakin's MBA program.

A long-standing advocate for small business, Prof. Conway has been championing the cause of small business policy and is regarded as one of the key activists of the future of small- and medium-sized entity policy in Australia.

00:12 - Introduction: Diane Jules, IESBA Deputy Technical Director
00:56 - Highlights & Key Developments: Stavros Thomadakis, IESBA Chairman
03:38 - Non-Assurance Services: Richard Fleck, IESBA Deputy Chair
05:00 - Role & Mindset: Richard Fleck, IESBA Deputy Chair
06:17 - Technology: Patricia Mulvaney, IESBA Member
09:57 - eCode: Don Thomson, eCode Working Group Chair
12:04 - Alignment of Part 4B with ISAE 3000: Caroline Lee, IESBA Member
16:03 - Final thoughts: Stavros Thomadakis, IESBA Chairman
16:36 - Closing Remarks: Diane Jules, IESBA Deputy Technical Director

The IPSASB held its fourth and final meeting of the year from December 4-7, 2018 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Highlights from the IPSASB's December 4-7 meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

• 00:10 Welcome and introduction: John Stanford, Technical Director
• 00:56 Chair’s meeting overview: Ian Carruthers, IPSASB Chair
• 02:40 Social Benefits, Collective and Individual Services, and Emergency Relief: Paul Mason, Principal
• 04:20 Revenue (IFRS 15 Alignment) and Amendments to IPSAS 36 and IPSAS 41: Amon Dhliwayo, Manager
• 05:20 Grants and Transfers (Time requirements): Joanna Spencer, Manager
• 06:23 Leases: Joao Carlos Fonseca, Principal
• 07:34 Approval of Strategy and Work Plan: Ross Smith, Deputy Director
• 08:40 Chair’s concluding comments: Ian Carruthers, IPSASB Chair
• 11:05 Closing remarks: John Stanford, Technical Director

The global search for an exceptional individual to lead the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has been restarted and applications from qualified candidates around the globe are now being accepted.

The Chair leads the IAASB’s strategic direction and development of high-quality international audit standards, as well as facilitates the consultative processes that underpin the board’s credibility and activities. The Chair develops and maintains effective relationships with international oversight authorities and regulatory bodies, national standard setters, investor and preparer communities, the audit practitioner community and other key stakeholders.

The successful candidate has significant, senior-level experience and is well recognized within professional and regulatory communities. He or she has effective leadership, diplomacy, communication and strategic skills; demonstrated professional competency; and a strong commitment to the IAASB’s public interest mission. He or she also understands the significant travel commitment involved.

The IAASB Chair is appointed for a renewable three-year term, commencing May 1, 2019. A complete job description, along with application instructions, is available on the IAASB website. Applications are due January 31, 2019.

This global search is being conducted by the Interim Nominating Committee, which was formed in February 2018 to conduct the process for the next IAASB Chair. The search has recently restarted after the designated appointee decided not to assume the post for personal reasons. More information on the Committee is available online.

The latest edition of the handbook includes: