1. Being vocal with the media. It's crucial that the AICPA and its leaders are accessible and vocal on current industry events. CPAs across the country are depending on the AICPA to defend the profession as well as be their voice in the media. If the AICPA doesn't comment, they miss an important opportunity to spread their message about CPAs.

2. Releasing public policy statements. In addition to being vocal with the media, the AICPA should publish position papers on different issues affecting the industry. These statements will provide easy-to-understand overviews of issues as well as a detailed explanation of the AICPA's position. Media as well as members can use these papers to better understand events and the opinions of the Institute.
   
   
3. Buying media time to promote the message. The AICPA is the nation's largest accounting organization, and has the resources necessary to get the message out about the value of the CPA credential. Media spots-from radio commercials to billboards to newspaper advertisements-will jumpstart the process of rebuilding the trust between CPAs and the public.

4. Providing real numbers. Specific facts and figures are an important piece of a successful public relations campaign. And in the accounting profession, numbers are everything. The Enron debacle is a black mark on the profession, but how many hundreds of thousands of other companies have successful experiences with their accountants everyday? The AICPA needs to research and distribute statistics that put the Enron incident in perspective and remind the public of the hundreds of thousands of CPAs out there who are consistently doing the right thing when performing audits.

5. Keeping close contact with members. A grassroots campaign could be the most effective tactic when trying to rebuild the trust that should be associated with the CPA. That means that everyone in the profession-from small firm owners to Big 5 executives-will need support and resources as they spread the message about the profession to their clients and the general public. The AICPA can provide tools and suggestions for these "campaigners" to have the most success. It should also send member letters on a regular basis, encouraging them to do their part as the profession polishes its image.

6. Encouraging continued education in ethics. The incident involving Enron and Andersen happened as a result of sloppy or alleged unethical business behavior at some point in the process, though we may never know exactly how it all happened. Regardless of the details, the fact that it even transpired signifies the importance of professional education in ethics (in appearance as well as substance), wisdom and protecting the public good. The AICPA should develop and support more courses in these areas, and work for more CPE requirements under this category.

7. Working with state CPA societies to develop outreach programs. State societies have a finger on the pulse of their state and its CPAs-they work in close contact with their members and recognize the different needs they have. But they need the support of the AICPA to be successful in their endeavors, especially when it comes to industry-wide challenges. The AICPA can share knowledge with their state counterparts, as well as provide resources and programs to help states deal with the controversy currently surrounding the profession.

8. Providing an online community forum on the AICPA web site. Many CPAs are struggling as they deal with the new distrust of the accounting profession. Others have developed great solutions for dealing with the current state of accounting. The AICPA can serve as a virtual meeting place for members. The institute can establish online forums where members can discuss current industry problems, and share concerns and solutions. This will also allow the AICPA to monitor members' opinions and needs as the industry evolves.

9. Educating the Public with Town Hall Meetings. The AICPA can organize with the state CPA societies to have town hall meetings where accountants can have open discussions with the public about the challenges involved in auditing, especially when a company is trying to hide numbers. The public will walk away with a better knowledge of what CPAs and auditors do-in lay terms-so they better understand the inherent risks involved in the process.

10. Being proactive. This is the most important of all steps the AICPA should take. As an organization, it should constantly be ahead of the curve in the promotion and support of the CPA.

The general public needs to be highly confident in CPAs before crises occur. The ideas above are the beginning of a proactive plan that will have a positive effect on the industry now, and for years to come.

Barbara Hufsmith , 01 March 2002 @ 23:25 PM  Let's find out what happened first. Now the politicians are on the front page of our newspapers getting the public to buy into more regulations for our industry. Isn't that asking the "fox to watch the hen house"? There is no industry more corrupt than government in my opinion! Every industry (even the church) has had egg on their faces at one time, now it's our turn. How we handle it from here will tell the public who we are and what we're made of. The one thing I am explaining to folks who ask is that none of us really knows exactly what happened yet. So let's not start making rules until we know exactly what went wrong and then try to fix it so it doesn't happen again.

Harold L. Katz , 01 March 2002 @ 20:04 PM  Ethics through CPE The suggestion that we will accomplish anything through sending people to courses on ethics is ludicrious. The mind set of the management of the accounting firms that employee the CPAs must first adopt a solid set of ethics, including the fact that the primary responsibility is to the reader of a financial statement and not to the client. I would suggest that the American automobile industry is a perfect example. They spend hundreds of millions of dollars advertising their goal of building top quality automobiles, then they pinch pennies and turn out cars that cannot compare with foreign built autos (source Consumer Reports). It is not enought to talk ethics, you have to walk the talk. This must come first. Then you can send people to classes.

Mario Vicari , 01 March 2002 @ 16:53 PM  CPAs that serve privately owned businesses should not be included in discussion of the Enron fallout I think that the thing that the AICPA needs to keep in perspective is that the problems of Enron and the conflict of most of the Big 5 and international firms don't affect 99% of the other firms in the profession. For most practicioners that work with privately held firms, the client expects and welcomes addtional service and advice from the firm because the cpa firm is the most knowledgeable about their business and is their most trusted advisor. Our firm is commonly asked by audit and non-audit clients to get involved on technology, human resources, business planning and performance issues by our clients. The AICPA and the profession must begin to communicate these issues to the public so that the bulk of the profession does not get swept under the same rug as the large firms that do SEC work. To not allow local and regional firms to do more for their clients (which most clients demand)would do a huge disservice to the thousands of privately held businesses in the country.

Joseph Smith , 01 March 2002 @ 15:10 PM  10 ideas require leadership These ideas would be on target if our profession had real leadership. The first thing we need is an idependent leadership that has the interest of our profession as their primary purpose. The mere fact that the leadership had to try to argue there were not conflicts of interest show there was and is a conflict. The CPA2Biz story is not generaly known. Most of us thought it was entirely owned and operated as part of the AICPA. How did that Enronism happen?

Paul Cobb , 01 March 2002 @ 13:51 PM  Email to James Castellano Following is a copy of an email I sent to James Castellano on February 15, 2002. I am not quite sure but I tend to think the AICPA might have problems similar to that of Enron. In this I mean that it appears that management of the AICPA has been doing pretty much what they want and the board is either asleep or doesn't have much control over what is going on. Cases in mind are the fact of poor custome service when we call. The formation of the CPA2biz with assets that were once part of the AICPA and supported by the membership. XYZ which was soundly voted down by the membership. It just seems that those in a position of authority within the AICPA are not listening to the membership for their wants and needs. It would seem to me that right now the AICPA would be focusing on a broad form of damage control. As of yet I haven't heard from the AICPA in any sort of forum that will be heard by the majority of the people we serve.

Harold L. Katz , 01 March 2002 @ 06:30 AM  Ten ideas do not go far enough Going out and talking about the good guys in the profession is not going to cut it with the public. That is too close to "spin" and does not face the issues. The profession must do at least two things. It must take an oath to go back to the way we practiced when I first started, that is acknowledging the dicotomy of our assignment, the client pays us, but our obligation is to the reader of the financial statements. Too many firms, especially the Big 5 have sacraficed this concept for the bottom line. Even if it is legal, if we know its ethical fraud we should not be a party to it. The second thing we have to do is disavow the concept that the old rules of economics no longer apply to our modern economy. I call our new economy "the new cotton candy economy." It looks good, it taste good, there is nothing there and if you eat too much you get sick. The old rules of economics I learned in high school in 1950 will continue to apply until they reverse the rules of gravity. If you have an intangible asset and it is diffiuclt to value, it has no value. SPEs must be limited to their original purpose. The AICPA must take the lead, but in my opinion I simply believe they cannot do it, they are too locked into the practice of protecting the powers that be. We have to face up to our mistakes, say we have learned our lesson and then talk about those of us out here who have continued to practice in an ethical manner, with integrity. We are not alone in this, but we must take the lead as we are the major targets. Financial analysts, the legal profession, investment bankers, etc. are as gulity as the CPAs who condoned, if not invented, the misleading procedures.

fcscpa , 27 February 2002 @ 13:13 PM  aicpa One of the problems is the focus of the aicpa. As far as concern for the accounting profession, I am not sure the current aicpa leadership does care, except to maintain a dues base. Witness the xyz debacle of the last two years. They were so out of step with the profession that they assured us that the membership would overwhelmingly approve cognitor. Well after an admitted $5 million and who knows how much aicpa staff time, and numerous propaganda mailings, xyz was able to muster only a paltry 50,000 votes out of a membership of 330,000. Now post enron, where are our so-called leaders? I see no visible evidence of as Paul Harvey used to say, "the rest of the story." On how many nightly news shows has "the aicpa declined to provide a spokesman?" If one looks at the list of ten steps proposed above, how many has the institute initiated? They seem to mostly be busy with c2biz which does nothing for the membership, but may do much for our leaders. Remember the vision, web trust, cognitor, specialization, and so on? In almost any business organization in this country, a leadership with as dismal a record as their's would have been summarily dismissed by now. Fred Shelton, CPA, MBA, CVA

andrew blackman , 26 February 2002 @ 18:34 PM  Ten Ideas the AICPA Can Use To Help The Profession I ask that accountingweb begin and advertise a forum on this subject (similar to what was done with XYZ)to have AICPA members comment on the list of ten ideas. Personally, I feel betrayed by the AICPA, because all of the ten ideas should have already been part of the AICPA plan and if the leaders of the AICPA think they have done these ten things, they certainly botched them all miserably. If you ask me, the leaders of the Institute lost their way a long time ago. Having been a volunteer for many years and having risen to leadership roles at the committee level, I can tell you that any opinions that conflict with Mr. Melancon and his hand-picked stooges are not only rejected, but the voice that spouted them is sent packing. The AICPA needs a make-over starting at the top. I truly believe the membership is the least of the problem, as most CPAs I know are true to the concepts and ideals of trust, independence, fairness, disclosure, and client service and do a tremendous job of balancing them all whenever there are conflicts among them. The accelerating pace of CPAs in large firms forgetting these ideals is a reflection of the lack of moral leadership at the AICPA. I hope you invite every visitor to join in with their opinions on cleaning up the few bad apples in the orchard. Thank you for offering a place to comment.

Roger Brown, CISA, MBA , 26 February 2002 @ 14:36 PM  Simple Solution for Questionably Independent Audited Financial Statements When the AICPA Code of Independence was originally written, most public accounting firms were centrally run and managed, so the limit of 5 or 10% of firm revenues coming from one client actually meant something. Now with almost all Big Five "city offices" separate profit centers, the original effect of the code is just plain gone. Ask yourselves (seriously) what % of Andersen's Houston office profit came from Enron. Then ask yourself if you could be independent when one client had so much effect on your income? If the AICPA or SEC reinterpreted the % of revenue/income limit at the office level rather than the firm level, wouldn't we automatically have less ethical problems? If the AICPA doesn't self regulate, someone else will. Guess what, they may not be as interested in the Accounting Profession as the AICPA is or should be. A career auditor, Roger T. Brown, CISA, MBA