FOREWORD Over the years, the Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Committee of the Inter- national Federation of Accountants (IFAC) has published a number of theme booklets in addition to an annual collection of articles of merit from published member body journals or their websites, discussion papers and studies, International Management Account- ing Practice Statements (IMAPS) and various guides for practitioners. All PAIB Committee publications are available through the IFAC website at hitpuiwww.ifac.org, Past theme booklets and discussion papers have included Setting Strategic Directions in ‘Small and Medium Enterprises, A Profession Transforming: From Accounting to Man- agement, Managing Risk to Enhance Stake- holder Value, The Role of the Chief Financial Officer in 2010 anu Enterprise Governance. Getting the Balance Right. PAIB Committee members are often asked “What exactly does an accountant in business do?” Most members of the public have some Figure 1 — The Diverse Roles of Professional Accountants in Business CEO, Independent Directors Educators PEO Ce iu ecru Eran Crees “Gtrategic Governance Accounts y Srey AN ae igus Finance CU a S Sor Cre Hie ac i) Oe ol Cone Lela Td rears 7 a foes Management _~ ary ULE Consultants Advisors Members in other Roles The Diverse Roles of Professional Accountants in Businessperception of the traditional work carried out by accountants but with regard to those working outside that sphere, they seem unsure. The PAIB Committee produced the diagram in Figure 1 in an effort to demon strate the many areas in which accountants work in and for business. Professional ac- countants in business include those who work in commerce, industry, the public sector, education and the not-for profit sector. It seemed sensible to expand on this and to demonstrate the variety of work carried out by professional accountants in business and the many ways in which they add value. Robert Bruce, a leading accountancy journal ist, was therefore commissioned to conduct a number of telephone interviews with profes- sional accountants and others with corporate accounting responsibility in a variety of roles throughout the world. Themes of eth- ics/integrity, and views on continuing profes- Pa C20 BILL CONNELL, sional education were interwoven into all the discussions. The range of people interviewed has been extraordinary and in itself provides impetus to the idea that accountants in business are a hugely varied bunch, Robert talked to, amongst others, the chairman of one of the biggest banks in China and the third in com- mand of the FBI. He talked to an accountant ina small Australian family business and the head of investor relations at one of the big- gest US corporations, for example. The result is a fascinating read. Finally, my thanks to the members of the PAIB Committee who provided names and details of people for interviewing. Many suggestions were made and the PAIB Con+ mittee had the difficult task of selecting the sixteen eventual interviewees intended to provide as wide a range of jobs and locations as possible, Chairman, Professional Accountants in Business Committee Members of the Professional Accountants in Business Committee 2004: Bill Connell, Chairman, United Kingdom. John Petty, Australia Robert W Dye, Canada Patrick Rochet, France Edward K F Chow, Hong Kong Rajkumar $ Adukia, India Ghasem Fakharian, Tran Brian Keamey, Ireland Yeo Tek Ling, Malaysia Bashorun J K Randle, Nigeria Recep Pekdemit, Turkey William L Brower, USA The Diverse Roles of Profe sional Accountants in Business