@Forbes: Bankruptcy Examiners and The GM IPO

I’m writing a new column at Forbes.com.  It’s called, “Accounting Watchdog” because traditional media is so innovative! Actually, I wanted to broaden my scope a little –  if going from Big 4 auditors to accounting, in general, can really be considered expanding my horizons. But I do have, more or less, carte blanche to comment on […]

Treasury Votes To Reappoint KPMG As Auditor of Citigroup

The US Treasury recently affirmed reappointment of KPMG as Citi’s auditor for the 41st consecutive year. Maybe Treasury married KPMG all over again because they’re cheap compared to what Goldman and AIG are paying PwC. Or maybe Treasury feels like the mother who puts up with a gold digging daughter-in-law because said daughter-in-law saw mom kissing the tennis pro and mom knows her son has slept with the baby-sitter…

Accounting Watchdog: A New Column In Forbes

I’m now writing for Forbes twice week, Tuesday and Thursday, under the title, Accounting Watchdog. My first two columns were published this past week.

“Sarah Palin: The ‘Stepford’ Feminist?” And A Review of Wall Street 2

Two new columns at my weekend gig, Sundayed. I hope you will take a look. The Talking Heads song “Home” plays over the closing credits and I start bopping in my theater seat.  Sorry to say, this tune was the best thing about the movie, Wall Street 2.  That’s not to say the film wasn’t visually […]

@FEI Blog: The Problem With The Non-CPA CFO

I made another guest post at the blog for Financial Executives International.  My BBF (best blogger girlfriend) Edith Orenstein is on vacation.  The post is cross-posted over at accountingWEB, because Edith is so good and so popular.  She’s been my go-to girl for a while when it comes to technical accounting support and general navigation […]

Guest Post @FEI Blog: PCAOB Open Meeting August 5th, 2010

On Thursday August 5th, I covered the PCAOB’s Open Meeting and wrote up a report for the FEI Blog. I’d like to make a few more comments about the meeting yesterday.

I was both surprised and very pleased when Chairman Goelzer announced that he’ll request Congress to amend Sarbanes-Oxley to open the PCAOB’s disciplinary proceedings to public view, in line with the SEC. I was also gratified. I made this suggestion and many times have pointed out the challenge to investors’ right to know about an important gatekeeper – the auditors.

Asking The Difficult Questions: An Article About Audit Committees For The IIA’s Internal Auditor

Audit committees must proactively probe management and the auditors to gain insight and to make necessary oversight decisions. This is an article that appeared in Internal Auditor’s June 2010 issue.

If I Had More Time, It Would Have Been Shorter…

My new essay is up at Sundayed.com, the side project I’m contributing to with a few friends including Jason Moriber from Wise Elephant who helps me run this site. This weekend I’m talking about the “Summer Fiction: 20 Under 40” issue of The New Yorker.   The fiction I read is varied, but I’m not […]

Please Check Out Sundayed.com

I’ve joined with a few friends to produce some completely different kinds of writing at Sundayed.com. I will be contributing once or twice a month as my schedule permits. Jason Moriber, the Editor, describes it as such: Sundayed.com is a short menu of provocative weekend reading.  It’s a platform for our contributors to discuss/illustrate/define/opine on […]

@Going Concern “Will Hustling The Big 4 On Salary Hurt Your Chances?”

My new column is up @Going Concern. I get calls. I get letters. And now I even get lots of requests to meet. Talking to readers is one of my favorite things to do. It makes my opinions and ideas real. I also, of course, learn much from you about what’s really going on. I […]

@Going Concern “Piling Onto The Scrum: Big 4 Auditors Want A Piece of the Credit Ratings Action”

My new column is up @Going Concern: They lead a charmed life. • A government sanctioned franchise to provide their services to the largest global companies. • Oligopolistic pricing and an annuity-style constant pipeline of business because of significant barriers to entry resulting in a license to print money. • Historic immunity from scrutiny and litigation […]

Good News. Bad News. AIG’s Cassano Snitches On PwC

The US Federal government has been propping up AIG with hundreds of billions of dollars and AIG has been, in turn, protecting its auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers.