Unaccountable: How the Accounting Profession Forfeited a Public Trust - Hardcover

Brewster, Mike

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471423629 ISBN 13: 9780471423621

Publisher: Wiley, 2003

Synopsis

This is a vivid snapshot of the role of accounting firms in the twenty first century. The pitfalls of the flawed U.S. auditing system crystallized in the Enron/Andersen debacle and other audit failures have prompted the nation's investors to ask, time and time again: Where were the auditors? In "Unaccountable", business journalist Mike Brewster explores the fascinating transformation of CPAs from independent voices on behalf of the shareholder to Corporate America's best friend. He examines the implications of this shift for investors, the industry, and the economy. Brewster's brash style and his incisive examination of the key issues facing the profession make for fascinating reading as he explains how the profession became one of the most universally respected in the Western world, only to throw away this public trust for double digit growth and power. Brewster questions the dubious practices of the nation's leading accounting firms, including: their history of providing consulting services to the same firms they audit; their push in the 1990s to open investment banks and law firms; their unprecedented political and lobbying power; and their tremendous influence in the boardroom. "Unaccountable" turns the heat on an already beleaguered profession, but also shows how the best and brightest within the profession can still save the day by implementing reform and serving not their paymaster, but the investing public. Mike Brewster (New York, NY) is the coauthor of "King of Capital: Sandy Weill and the Making of Citigroup" (0 471 21416 7) and a respected writer, editor, and financial services professional. Formerly the editor of "LeadersOnline", Brewster spent seven years as the communications director at KPMG.

About this title

Product Description:

Paperback. Pub Date: 2003 Pages: 328 Publisher: John Wiley for thousands of years. Those who Controlled and monitored society's Finances-Accountants-were often the most powerful. Respected and influential Members of the community. From the collectors at communal granaries in the ancient Middle East to the scribes who monitored Queen Victoria's Exchequer. the accountant's role has been to preserve the integrity of financial systems.In the United States. twentieth-century accountants played a vital role in shaping the transparency of US capital markets. counseling the Allies on financial matters in both world wars. advising Congress on the creation of the federal income tax. and inventing the concept of the gross national product.Yet by 2003. the reputation of the public accountant was in tatters. How did the accounting profession in America squander its legacy of public servi...

From the Back Cover:

For thousands of years, those who controlled and monitored society's finances-accountants-were often the most powerful, respected, and influential members of the community. From the collectors at communal granaries in the ancient Middle East to the scribes who monitored Queen Victoria's Exchequer, the accountant's role has been to preserve the integrity of financial systems.

In the United States, twentieth-century accountants played a vital role in shaping the transparency of U.S. capital markets, counseling the Allies on financial matters in both world wars, advising Congress on the creation of the federal income tax, and inventing the concept of the gross national product.

Yet by 2003, the reputation of the public accountant was in tatters. How did the accounting profession in America squander its legacy of public service? What happened to the accountants that presidents, senators, and captains of industry turned to for advice? Why did auditors stop looking for fraud? How did this once revered profession find itself in this unlikely and humiliating state?

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0471423629
• ISBN 13: 9780471423621
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 328