The International Federation of Accountants^® (IFAC^®), the global organization for the accountancy profession, today announced the election of Rachel Grimes (Australia) as its President, for a two-year term effective through November 2018. Ms. Grimes is IFAC’s second female President. IFAC also announced the election of In-Ki Joo (South Korea) as Deputy President.

“I am honored to serve as IFAC’s President at a time of great global challenges. There are also remarkable opportunities to strengthen the accountancy profession and further the adoption of global standards in the public interest,” Ms. Grimes said. “As President, I look forward to working with our member organizations and other stakeholders as we continue to put trust at the heart of all we do, and at the heart of the global economy.”

Ms. Grimes is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and a Fellow of CPA Australia. She is CFO of Technology at Westpac, a multinational financial services firm, and previously served as Director of Mergers and Acquisitions. She brings more than 25 years of experience across the financial services sector, at Westpac/BT Financial Group as well as at PwC. Ms. Grimes has served the Australian accounting profession for over a decade, having been elected in 2011 as President of Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand (formerly the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia) after serving on its Board since 2006. An IFAC Board member since 2011, Ms. Grimes was elected Deputy President in 2014 and previously chaired IFAC’s Planning and Finance Committee.

Dr. In-Ki Joo is Professor, Emeritus, of Accounting at the Yonsei University School of Business, after serving as Dean of various departments. He has served as President of a number professional institutions in Asia, notably the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants, the Korean Accounting Association, and the Korean Academic Society of Business Administration. He was a member of the Advisory Committee to the Republic of Korea General Audit Bureau and the Vice President, International Affairs, at the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants (KICPA). A member of both the American Institute of CPAs and KICPA, Dr. Joo received the Decoration of Excellent Achievement from the President of Korea in 2004 and Honor from the Deputy Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance and Economy in 2001. As an IFAC Board member since 2012, he has chaired the Governance Committee and served on the Nominating Committee. As Deputy President, he will chair the Planning and Finance Committee.

New Board Members Elected
The IFAC Council elected three new members to the IFAC Board: Philippe Arraou (France), Tommye Barie (United States), and Idesio da Silva Coelho (Brazil). Wienand Schruff (Germany), Michael Hathorn (UK), Gail McEvoy (Ireland), and Sebastian Owuama (Nigeria) were reappointed for a second term of service.

IFAC Admits New Members
The IFAC Council admitted three new members (previously IFAC associates):

• Mauritius Institute of Professional Accountants;

• Ordem dos Contabilistas Certificados (Portugal); and

• Union of Accountants, Auditors and Financial Workers of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

For a full listing of IFAC members, see the membership section of IFAC’s website.

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 more than 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.

Idésio S. Coelho became a member of the IFAC Board in November 2016 after being nominated by the Instituto dos Auditores Independentes do Brasil (IBRACON) and Conselho Federal de Contabilidade (CFC).

Mr. Coelho is a Brazilian certified accountant and auditing professional. He is a senior partner leading the risk management for EY in Brazil, where he has worked for more than 30 years. He has experience in local and cross-border listing activities, in quality matters and inspection activities of audit firms.

Mr. Coelho is also a past president of IBRACON and an active member of the Federal Accounting Council (CFC). He is also the Chair of Trustees of the Foundation supporting the Brazilian Accounting Pronouncements Committee (CPC). In his multiple years and roles serving the accounting profession through IBRACON, CFC, and CPC he has supported the convergence and adoption of the International Auditing Standards and International Financial Reporting Standards in Brazil.

Mr. Coelho is graduated from the Fundação Santo André, Brazil with an accountancy degree.

Tommye E. Barie, CPA, joined the IFAC Board in November 2016. She was nominated by the American Institute of CPAs.

Ms. Barie is a recently retired partner of one of the 100 largest full-service accounting and consulting firms in the US. After more than thirty years as an audit and assurance partner, and as her last charge before retirement, she launched the firm’s Client Advisory Services practice.

Ms. Barie recently joined Succession Institute as Executive Vice President of Leadership Development where she works with CPA firms, other small businesses, and CPA state societies, primarily in the areas of succession management, strategy, change management, conflict resolution, team building, people development and leadership.

Ms. Barie has an extensive history of service to the accountancy profession. From 2003-2006 and 2009-present, she served as a member of the American Institute of CPA’s Governing Council and from 2010-2016 she was a member of the AICPA’s Board of Directors. She served as chair of the AICPA Board of Directors for 2014-2015. Ms. Barie previously served as chair of the Florida Institute of CPAs. In 2014, she was recognized as one of the top 100 most influential people in accounting by Accounting Today. She currently serves on the board of the US National Association of State Boards of Accountancy’s Center for Public Trust. She also serves on the Board of Advisors for Stetson University’s College of Business.

Ms. Barie received her BBA in Accounting from Stetson University (US).