Former EY principal Marjorie Rollinson spent a quarter-century at EY, rising to principal, before joining the IRS in 2013. She spent five years with the agency before returning to EY, where she spent three years as deputy director of national tax before retiring in 2022.
During Rollinson’s earlier IRS stint, she worked in the Office of Chief Counsel and rose to associate chief counsel for international. In that role, she led a team of 100 lawyers, issuing guidance and providing technical expertise on international tax rules.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said in a statement that Rollinson comes to the position with impeccable credentials.
“You don’t earn those job titles without real expertise in tax law, down to the finest details that leave most of us scratching our heads,” Wyden said. “All this experience is a big reason why she got bipartisan support in the Senate Committee.”
Job seekers have been banned from using ChatGPT and other AI tools to write their applications amid fears it will help them cheat the system.
The crackdown on AI applications has been driven by fears the tools can be used to unfairly help people improve their odds.
Job hunters applying to KPMG and Deloitte must now confirm they have finished online tests without external tools such as AI.
PwC said it is reviewing applications to check for activity, which “undermines the integrity” of its recruitment operation and will take action against rule breakers.
A PwC spokesman said: “While AI, including GenAI, can be useful in research, we tell candidates they should not use these tools during any assessment.”
BDO, the UK’s fifth largest accountancy firm, said graduates and school leavers were “strictly prohibited” from using AI-driven platforms such as ChatGPT under recently updated application guidelines.
Did I miss the memo that AI content detectors are actually good now? Because last I heard they’re ass.
Offshore is “innovating” now. EY published this piece on Global Capability Centers (GCCs):
Embracing the future: GCCs spearheading innovation with new-age services
Global Capability Centers (GCCs) have experienced significant evolution over three decades, driven by technological progress and the growing demand for digital skills. They have transformed from technical back-office functions to embracing a solution-oriented mindset, placing a strong emphasis on operational excellence and innovation. Today, GCCs play a crucial role in driving global business growth by adeptly facilitating technologies, upskilling the workforce, and leading business process transformations.
To expand their suite of offerings, GCCs incorporate new-age services into their portfolios. We explore these new-age services across business, knowledge, and enablers, encompassing AI, and Data and Analytics.
Jobs outlook stirs anxiety among aspiring UK consultants
Last year, Deloitte said it was making 150 junior consultancy roles redundant in the UK. In the US, meanwhile, EY deferred starting dates by a year for new graduates “based on emerging business conditions”. Starting salaries at some of the biggest firms, McKinsey and Bain, have been frozen.
This has fostered anxiety among applicants, says Dabin Choi, a second year undergraduate studying business management at the London School of Economics and head of marketing at the university’s consultancy society. She aspires to work as a consultant.
“Students in my year have been stressed about getting a role,” says Choi. “Some of my friends are looking elsewhere . . . applying for roles that might not suit [their] interests.” She is also looking into postgraduate study, in case she needs to defer her consulting plans.
“It has been a period of worry for some young consultants,” agrees Tamzen Isacsson, chief executive of the Management Consultancies Association (MCA). “Many of them haven’t seen the sector making redundancies before.”
A Spanish High Court judge proposed on Monday that former Banco Popular chairman Angel Ron and 12 former executives stand trial on charges of investor fraud related to a 2016 capital increase, a court document showed.
Judge Jose Luis Calama proposed trying Ron, the executives and consultancy firm PwC for allegedly defrauding investors and committing false accounting on a 2.5 billion euro ($2.71 billion) capital increase in 2016 in which investors were “deceived”, the 178-page document seen by Reuters said. The judge said that Popular’s board and audit committee approved the capital increase without a thorough debate.
Ron said he would appeal the court decision as it did not match what had been investigated in the more than six-year probe, “it contradicts the accounting rules and its conclusions are not supported by facts.”
A spokesperson for PwC said they were still analysing the court decision and would react in due time.
The chief accountant for an Inland Empire property management firm was sentenced Friday to four years, nine months in federal prison for embezzling close to $1 million from clients.
According to prosecutors, the defendant [Jenev Boyd, 60, of Corona] was director of accounting for Corona-based Encore Property Management, which serves homeowners’ associations in the Corona area and elsewhere.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that from January 2012 to August 2020, Boyd used previously inactive client accounts in Encore’s software program to “falsely reflect that these were still active clients.”
“She then changed the selected vendors’ information to reflect her own name and address,” according to an agency statement. “Through manipulation of Encore’s internal accounting software, Boyd was able to mask payments to herself from client accounts as vendor payments. Boyd kept the monthly amounts in line with other vendor payments, therefore hiding the embezzlement.”
And:
In its sentencing memorandum, the agency said the defendant “abused the trust of friends and coworkers,” causing them to feel “blindsided and betrayed.”
The UK audit watchdog has fined KPMG £1.5m for “serious failings” after it didn’t spot an accounting scandal at ad agency M&C Saatchi.
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) on Monday reprimanded the Big Four firm and supervising partner Adrian Wilcox for lacking “professional scepticism” when auditing the advertising agency’s 2018 accounts.
It follows a five-year investigation into serious accounting blunders at M&C Saatchi, which is known for its work with the Conservative Party.
The FRC launched its inquiry in 2019 after M&C Saatchi discovered £25.8m worth of accounting errors and misjudgments, including £14m of overstated profits.
The accounting profession in the United States is predominantly white, with this demographic representing 84 percent of all Certified Public Accountants (CPAs). In contrast, Black professionals constitute a mere two percent of the CPA population, as highlighted in a 2019 report by the Association of International Certified Public Accountants. As in most instances, the lack of representation is not taboo nor is it a new finding. The truth of the matter is that it’s far too common especially in fields that propels the future of Black people such as financial institutions.
In 1921, John W. Crowell, Jr. marked a significant milestone as the first Black Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in the United States, establishing his practice in Washington, D.C. Despite this breakthrough, the accounting profession has been marred by persistent barriers that disproportionately affect Black accountants. Research from the Journal of Accountancy indicates that before 1969, a mere fraction, less than 0.15%, of all American CPAs were Black.
Detroit’s history of shattering conventional boundaries finds a notable chapter in the story of the 1941 certified public accountant firm Austin, Washington, and Davenport that is now known as George Johnson & Company (GJC) since the re-organization in 1971. Founded in 1941 by Richard H. Austin, a trailblazing Black man who not only became the first African-American Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Michigan but also the 11th in the entire United States. In 1971, George G. Johnson, CPA, laid the foundation for what would become George Johnson & Company, establishing the firm as a sole proprietorship right in the heart of Detroit.
Lastly, a little Twitter discussion you may have missed. Someone posted a counter in r/Big4 over the weekend.
As was pointed out in the comments, this is what happens when you OFFSHORE all the fking work.
The pandemic didn't help either.
And not to sound like a boomer but 24/7 internet is rotting all our brains (she said, typing on her phone).
• IRS audits fewer corporate taxpayers: critic [Reuters]
According to a Syracuse University research group, Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (“TRAC”), the IRS is doing fewer audits of large corporations, using the Service’s own data to report its conclusions. TRAC looked at “number of hours spent on cases that had been closed in any given year,” saying the the IRS has cut the audit hours of companies with $250 million+ in assets by a third.
Business Looks to Republicans to Block Rules, Taxes [Bloomberg]
The Republican gains in Congress mean U.S. companies from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to Wellpoint Inc. may be able to weaken or block what they consider President Barack Obama’s anti-business policies on health care, the environment, taxes and financial reform.
Republicans will use their perch as the new majority in the House of Representatives to try to eliminate funding for parts of Obama’s health care bill opposed by business as well as curb regulations and government spending, Jay Timmons, senior vice president of the National Association of Manufacturer d lobbying group, said in an interview before the election.
PwC Completes Acquisition of Diamond Management & Technology Consultants, Inc. [PR Newswire]
wC US has completed its acquisition of Diamond Management & Technology Consultants, Inc. following approval today from Diamond’s shareholders. Per the terms of the agreement, all outstanding shares of Diamond were acquired for $12.50 per share in cash.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Why Democrats Lost [HuffPo]
For the less-politically inclined.
With Recent Change, GAAP, IFRS Differ on How to Treat Debt [A&A Update/Compliance Week]
The International Accounting Standards Board recently finalized a change in International Financial Reporting Standards that tells companies to measure most liabilities at amortized cost, or the historical cost written down over time based on a schedule. Where a company might exercise an option to measure a liability at fair value, any changes in value would flow to equity via the “other comprehensive income” section of the income statement rather than profit and loss.
Major State Tax-Related Election Results [Tax Foundation]
Among them, Prop 19 (aka legalizing pot and taxing the hell out of it) failed.
Election 2010: What the Democratic Debacle Means for Fiscal Policy [TaxVox]
Washington is divided into two camps—those who believe divided government will open the door to compromise on tough fiscal issues, and those who don’t. Put me squarely in the second camp. We are already hearing conflicting messages from both President Obama and House Speaker-to-be John Boehner (R-OH). They give lip service to “working together” and the need for deficit reduction, but will do little of either. Here are five reasons why:
Frank reelected to 16th term [On the Money/The Hill]
But will lose the HFSC Chairmanship. Bob Herz might be enjoying this more than anyone.
GM Could Be Free of Taxes for Years [WSJ]
General Motors Co. will drive away from its U.S.-government-financed restructuring with a final gift in its trunk: a tax break that could be worth as much as $45 billion.
Knicks Postpone Home Game Before Tests Reveal No Threat From Absestos [Bloomberg]
All clear!
New accounting rule would ease Greek pain: IASB [Reuters]
European Union banks would have more breathing space from losses on Greek bonds if the bloc adopted a new international accounting rule, a top standard setter said on Tuesday. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) agreed under intense pressure during the financial crisis to soften a rule that requires banks to price traded assets at fair value or the going market rate.
Obama Summons G.O.P. and Democratic Leaders for Deficit Reduction Talks [NYT]
Mr. Obama, who met secretly with Sp r at the White House on Sunday to try to advance the talks, called House and Senate leaders from both parties to the White House for further negotiations on Thursday. And he rejected talk of an interim deal that would get the government past a looming deadline on raising the federal debt limit without settling some of the longer-term issues contributing to the government’s fiscal imbalances.
U.S. Will Probably Adopt IFRS Standards, IASB Chairman Says [Bloomberg]
The U.S. will probably adopt International Financial Reporting Standards, said Hans Hoogervorst, the new chairman of the London-based accounting organization IASB. The U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board, which wanted to expand the use of fair-value accounting to all financial assets, has dropped that model and “that has made talking to each other a lot easier,” Hoogervorst told delegates at an IFRS conference in Zurich today.
Antitax Extremism in Minnesota [NYT]
More than 40 state agencies have closed, including the state parks over the July Fourth holiday. Courts and public safety agencies are operating, but essential services for the poor, like food pantries and child care subsidies, have evaporated. Many parents say they may have to quit their jobs if state-subsidized child care does not resume quickly. The shutdown will cost the state money, since many of the 22,000 laid-off workers will receive unemployment benefits and health insurance, while the treasury is unable to collect on tax audits, lottery tickets and park fees.
IFRS Is for Criminals [Grumpy Old Accountants]
Possible prerequisite for using principles-based accounting: walking on water.
Obama’s Twitter Town Hall: He’ll Take Questions in 140 Characters or Less [Bloomberg]
President Barack Obama will take questions today in what White House officials are calling his first Twitter town hall, complete with a “Tweetup.” Users of the social networking service can post questions for Obama before and during the event, which starts at 2 p.m. Washington time. Questions should fit Twitter’s 140-character limit and include the hashtag #askObama.
Casey Anthony, acquitted of murder in toddler’s death, faces IRS tax lien [DMWT]
I still don’t know who this woman is but she sure is popular on Twitter.
What does my boss want from me? [Accountant by Day]
Short answer: your soul. ABD has a slightly longer answer.
SEC Gauging U.S. Global Accounting Readiness [CFOJ]
The long road to determining whether U.S. companies will ever adopt international accounting rules will take another turn this week as U.S. securities regulators hold three roundtables to try to assess how ready the world’s largest economy would be if it goes forward with a plan to adopt IFRS. While the U.S. Securities and Exchange has spent most of the past two years slowing down an earlier plan that would have had U.S. companies using IFRS as soon as 2014, it aims to decide in the next year whether even a slower incorporation of IFRS is a feasible option.
Americans Rank Airlines Lower Than the IRS [ABC]
Overall, the U.S. airline industry scored a 65. That’s lower than the satisfaction score for Domino’s Pizza. Lower than the Post Office. Lower than the IRS. Well, lower for electronic tax filers, anyway, according to the most recent government rankings.
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