Purpose In Action: Accountants building a better world

"Simple steps make a big difference when it comes to living, and working, ethically." Clare Levison, CPA, CGMA, is a member of the AICPA Professional Ethics Executive Committee and founder of Inspired Responsibility, a consulting company that delivers organizational education via positive messages and meaningful content. She joins host Kim Nilsen to share tips about ways to deal with ethical risks. TALKING POINTS The conversation touches on: LINKS AICPA Conceptual Framework.Inspired ResponsibilityAICPA.org. CONNECT LinkedInKim Nilsen, Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

While the show is paused for the holidays, here’s a sense of what’s to come from new presenter Kim Nilsen. Purpose in Action is taking a holiday break and the show has big plans for 2023. We’ll start the year on Jan. 25 with the first in a series of episodes exploring the many aspects of ethics. To get more on ethics until we’re back, check out Episode 4’s look at building an ethical career, or Episode 6’s discussion of the role we all can play in detecting and preventing fraud. LINKS AICPA.org.LinkedIn Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

In a sense, everyone is an accountant, and therefore everyone is a fraud detective. We all have a role in preventing and detecting fraud, and it starts with treating compliance activities as more than just a check-the-box exercise. On this episode of the Purpose in Action podcast, global fraud detective Nigel Iyer, FCMA, CGMA, describes ways that everyone can contribute to the prevention and detection of fraud. Iyer, a founder of the firm B4 Investigate in Oslo, Norway, explains: Connect with our guest, Nigel Iyer and take the B4 Investigate Fraud Detective Challenge, a 5-minute test of what kind of fraud detective you are. Find out how accountants are protecting against money laundering amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. You can also learn how accounting professionals are working in cybersecurity roles to keep the public safe. For more on the work of accountants in the public interest, visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

Fraud perpetrated against seniors can cause tremendous harm. But family, friends and accounting professionals can help. Older adults can be inundated with suspicious communications from potential fraudsters these days. That's why this episode is a must-listen for older adults who are worried about being susceptible to fraud, as well as for their family members and friends who want to protect them. Mitchell Freedman, CPA/PFS, and Ann Marie Milinazzo, CPA/PFS, share insights on fraud schemes to watch for. They also outline tactics that can be used to protect older adults from fraud. You'll hear: Connect with our guests, Ann Marie Milinazzo and Mitchell Freedman. For more on the work of accountants in the public interest, visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

The workplace is a great place to build character and integrity. Hear more from an expert in organizational behavior, professor Isaac Smith of Brigham Young University. Looking at time spent at work as an opportunity to build character as well as profit is a good way to make the world a better place. Many people spend more than half of their waking hours during the week at work, so they can develop a stronger moral fiber by making the effort to build an ethical framework for their career. Although leaders have a responsibility to give employees the ability to “pursue the good” at work, ethics expert Isaac Smith of Brigham Young University explains that people also have their own duty to work to be better. Smith is an associate professor of organizational behavior and human resources at BYU, and in this episode of the Purpose in Action podcast he explains: For more on audit and audit quality, visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Connect with our guest, Isaac Smith. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

Continuous auditing is an increasingly popular practice that delivers more timely results for clients and the public. Samantha Bowling, CPA, CGMA, of Garbelman Winslow, and Paul Johnson, CPA, of Wipfli, explain how continuous auditing brings substantial benefits. As technology continues to make information available faster than ever, a developing practice known as continuous auditing promises to provide enormous benefits to the public. If a deficiency develops in a company’s internal financial controls, continuous auditing has the potential to detect the problem far quicker than a yearly financial statement audit. Likewise, continuous auditing in an IT audit can discover a vulnerability quickly enough that a company can correct it before a breach occurs. In this episode, we discuss: For more on audit and audit quality, visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Connect with our guests Samantha Bowling and Paul Johnson. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

Critical professional licensing laws are under attack in legislatures throughout the nation. But CPAs are fighting back to protect the public interest. Legislators on both sides of the aisle have been pushing for laws that would eliminate professional licensure requirements in a handful of states across the country. Accounting professionals and state CPA societies have been fighting to preserve professional licensing rules because they protect the public. Licensing rules give consumers comfort that when they hire a CPA, they will be working with a professional who is held to high standards of expertise, training, and continuing professional education. In this episode, CPA society leaders Judy Proctor, CPA, CGMA, and Ron Gitz, CPA, CGMA, explain how the public and members of the CPA profession can rally around licensure provisions. Proctor (West Virginia) and Gitz (Louisiana) have been on the front lines of these efforts in their respective states. TALKING POINTS To find out more about multidisciplinary efforts to protect CPA licensure, please visit the ARPL site at responsiblelicensing.org. Visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Connect with our guests Ron Gitz. and Judy Proctor. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

As of September 2021, the U.S. federal government had more than $34 trillion in liabilities and less than $5 trillion in assets, according to the federal financial statements for fiscal year 2021. Expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic have added to the federal deficit, and rising interest rates make it more difficult to pay off what is owed. Greg Anton, CPA, CGMA, a BDO partner and former chair of the AICPA Board of Directors, has long been an advocate of federal fiscal responsibility. He joins us to explain the severity of the deficit problem, which has the potential to spiral and create economic conditions unfavorable for businesses, investors and the public at large. Anton also offers his own suggestions for responsible federal budgeting. TOPICS • How the federal financial statement works, and the difference between the financial statement and the budget. • What the federal balance sheet says about the government’s assets and liabilities. • What rising interest rates may do to the deficit in the coming years. • What the public can do to advocate for responsible budgeting. TAKE IT FURTHER For more information on the challenges to U.S. federal government fiscal sustainability, visit aicpa.org/whatsatstake. Read about how government finance leaders delivered critical services to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. Connect with our guest Greg Anton Visit our Purpose In Action page at AICPA.org. Feedback and comments welcomed at podcast@aicpa-cima.com This is a podcast from AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.