Author Archives: David Tate, Esq.

Can auditors expand assurance to meet investors’ needs?

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Joe Ucuzoglu, CPA, chairman and CEO of Deloitte’s U.S. audit practice, says expanding assurance opportunities would increase the value auditors provide.

Click on the following link for the article: www.journalofaccountancy.com

Tate comment: generally the auditing profession has always avoided going in this direction, although I believe the auditors could already disclose more information and provide greater benefit with some of the information that they already obtain about internal controls and audit risk as part of the audit. We’ll see where this goes. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco/California)

Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide – Completed Initial Edition – 115 Pages Plus Additional Links

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Click on the link at the bottom of this post for a pdf of the completed initial edition of Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide 08042015. The guide is for boards and audit committees of public companies, private companies, nonprofits, and governmental entities. This edition of the guide is 115 pages, plus links to additional resources and materials. The guide is updated regularly as new developments occur, and developments will also be posted to this blog. Please do tell other people about the guide and pass it along. Enjoy, and best to you.

Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco/California)
Click on the following link for the guide: Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide 08042015

Why Cybersecurity Is So Difficult to Get Right

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A Q&A with an IBM security expert.

Click on the following link for the article: hbr.org

A good discussion (you may need to click on the hbr link to get past the initial page). There should be no business or organization or board or governmental entity remaining that isn’t taking cyber security seriously. The article is correct that you cannot ever be 100% safe, but every reasonable effort must be made to prevent, promptly detect, and promptly remedy hacking. That’s it.

Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco/California)

Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide (July 31, 2015, a work in progress)

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For audit committee members and directors, I have attached three links below, the first for my 2007 audit committee chapter for the California Continuing Education of the Bar, the second for the new audit committee guide that is a work in progress but already contains substantial materials, and the third to the cover and table of contents to Accounting and Its Legal Implications.

Using my blog posts, the 2007 audit committee chapter (which is now unpublished, CEB subsequently cancelled the entire Director and Officer binder), and the new audit committee guide you should get a good feel for new developments and guidance about audit committee member functions and responsibilities.

I also ask that you tell other people about this blog and the new audit committee guide.

1. Here is a link to my 2007 audit committee chapter for the California Continuing Education of the Bar (the chapter and the entire D&O publication has been cancelled for some time), CLICK HERE

2. The following is a link to the new audit committee guide which contains substantial materials although it is a work in progress, Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide (July 31, 2015 version), Tate’s Excellent Audit Committee Guide 07312015 CLICK HERE

3. Cover and Table of Contents from Accounting and Its Legal Implications – I expect to scan and post this entire material shortly – although some is outdated, it is still a good read – originally published by Business One/Irwin Publishing, CLICK HERE

Thank you. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California).

My Paper – Information That Compilations and Reviews Can Provide

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The following is a link to my paper about information that compilations and reviews can provide. You don’t hear about this topic much. But why pay for a compilation or review engagement if no useful information is provided. Note that I will update this paper to reflect the changes that will be made by SSARS 21 later this year. However, I don’t expect those changes to reduce the information that compilations and reviews can provide. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California)

Click on the following link for the paper:
Compiled_and_Reviewed_Financial_Statements_Dave_Tate_CPA_Esq

Washington Post report finds fraud, embezzlement at more than 1,000 non-profits

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A startling report in today’s Washington Post shows more than 1,000 of the nation’s nonprofit organizations have each acknowledged losses of a quarter million dollars or more because of theft, investment fraud, embezzlement or other unauthorized use of funds. Joe Stephens, the co-author, reports from Washington D.C.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.pbs.org

Is this really true?  I don’t know. But if it is, where are the internal controls, auditors, executive officers, boards and audit committees?  The article is correct, problems do occur, and that does not mean that the organization is bad. Like anyone else, I would be asking, how and why did it occur, how was it discovered and how long did it take, why was the fraud not prevented, and what has been done to remedy the situation? Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California)

DOL’s Recent Guidance on the “Economic Realities” Test and Effects on Independent Contractor Misclassification in the Energy Industry | JD Supra

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Paying hot-shot drivers by the load or mile? Contracting out repair work to vehicles or machinery? Are individuals who regularly perform work integral to your business being paid…

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.jdsupra.com

Here’s a good discussion for all employers to consider. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California)

How Hard Is Audit Committee Reform? Here’s One Example | Compliance Week

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Never, in all my years of writing about corporate mismanagement and governance gone awry, have I seen unhappy investors survey the wreckage and then holler, “Why the hell was the audit committee’s role so poorly defined?” Instead, they always holler, “What the hell was the audit committee doing?” And in our hyper-capitalist society, where so much of your fortune depends on the value of the assets you own, investors have a right to know.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.complianceweek.com

A good read. “How” to execute audit committee responsibilities is provided by statute, regulation, rule, standards in the community, and the business judgment rule. Knowledgeable, skeptical, inquiring, diligence and decision making, standing up and being heard, integrity, and looking forward.

Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California)

A New Mission for Internal Audit

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Sourced through Scoop.it from: iaonline.theiia.org

“To enhance and protect organizational value by providing risk-based and objective assurance, advice, and insight.”

Tate: my thoughts – too broad – but I don’t have a problem with it. Internal audit needs a targeted marking program to tell people what IA is and how it can specifically help (value added) the board, the audit committee, regulators, the investing shareholders and the public, executive officers, legal counsel, etc. I’m convinced that IA is or can be, and can provide a valuable tool and assistance to the audit committee in satisfying its oversight responsibilities. But how often do you really see that in the press? In the business and investor press? Never? Almost never?

Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California)

Channeling John Steed in Your Tone in the Middle

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A strong tone at the top is essential to maintaining a culture of compliance. Equally as important, however, is tone in the middle. If your middle managers don’t understand or aren’t on board with a commitment to operate with integrity and in compliance, the message they project to their teams won’t likely be reflective of the organization’s values. Are your managers on the same page as you?

Sourced through Scoop.it from: corporatecomplianceinsights.com