hire ifrs accounting experts

hire ifrs accounting experts

The Importance of Hiring IFRS Accounting Experts

1. Introduction to IFRS Accounting

Since 2001, various countries have implemented a significant transformation in accounting standards. The change in accounting standards is from Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). IFRS is issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). IFRS becomes a concern and an urgent issue due to the increasing cross-border investment and business. In a country where reporting is based on IFRS, many companies want to employ foreign investment or have many investments in overseas subsidiaries. Externally, investors, corporate analysts, and others would like to have a consistent and understandable accounting statement, regardless of the company’s original country.

Recently, Thailand has issued Thai Accounting Standard No. 42, which is similar to IFRS 1. This standard is scheduled to be the first statement to apply in 2003. After that, all companies should report following Thai Accounting Standard No. 42. Therefore, some accountants in a Thai company have to know about IFRS. The objective of this journal is to present the importance of accounting experts who have the ability of IFRS. Moreover, we would like to make known the effect and the change in the preparation of the accounting report. Furthermore, this journal suggests the fundamental factors that should be provided in the curriculum or know-how in accounting for higher education organizations.

2. Benefits of Hiring IFRS Accounting Experts

There are numerous benefits to hiring IFRS accounting experts when looking to convert from GAAP to IFRS. Small companies will generally have a much easier time with the conversion since they typically already reap many of the benefits of a conversion. Large companies, however, are the ones that need to be most concerned as the process can be difficult and take a significant amount of time. For these cases, it is definitely in the best interest of the company to hire IFRS accounting experts. The task ahead will become easier, quicker and far less stressful, which will allow the company to carry on with all of its daily activities without missing a beat. This is important, as business must continue after such an undertaking, at least for public companies.

For companies who take financing assistance from the EU and plan to go public, a good IFRS conversion is not just a choice; it is a necessity. Experts will have the ability to help companies implement their own processes, programs and procedures that will ensure the conversion is successful. Customized conversion from someone who knows what they are doing will allow the process to take into account nearly all issues that a company may face in terms of differences in financial statements, regulatory changes and cross-border funding requirements. Furthermore, customized solutions will prevent them from having to retool business processes after the transition, offer the ability to close quarterly and yearly financials on time, mitigate and address risk issues and maintain regulatory compliance with IFRS.

3. Key Qualifications and Skills of IFRS Accounting Experts

This is a brief description of the key qualifications and skills of experts that will assist in the assessment of their capability in a particular system. Requirements in the market vary greatly. There may not be an absolutely ideal candidate, and relevant skills can be supplemented by training. It is important to distinguish between the necessary skills for their general role and those that are desirable in terms of the specific accounting role.

Experts should have a combination of the right technical competences and needed personal skills. Specific technical skills are required in areas such as IAS and IFRS, other associated technical tasks, and any other associated regulatory duties. They should have a fair general understanding of the banking industry and a good appreciation of the risk management framework of credit institutions. The performance of an accounting expert in IFRS requires that he or she has a number of personal and business skills. It is valuable that the expert keeps up-to-date with current developments in the field, specializing in both technical and skills live developments. It is important that the expert has the ability to adjust their analysis and communication to the context of the institution, being capable of exposing and explaining their views clearly and persuasively to a broad and diverse range of other professionals, including experts from prudential and supervisory areas.

4. Challenges and Solutions in Hiring IFRS Accounting Experts

We acknowledge the fact that user requirements evolve, that new accounting standards are periodically released and thus, the services of IFRS accounting experts are by no means limited to just the initial adaptation of the standards. The growing services required include: a) continuous advice regarding correct interpretation, b) advice on an entity’s possible options under the standards, e.g. for recognizing revenue, c) advice on accounting and disclosure of specific transactions, d) training of accounting staff, e) timely completion and/or review of quarterly financials, half-year and final annual financials, f) due diligence for mergers and acquisitions, g) prospectus audit services, and h) any other specialized services. Any entity or controlling shareholder should thus seriously contemplate the necessity for continuous accounting technical expert support in the ever-evolving world of accounting standards, itself effectively driven by global financial literacy concerns and the many varied stakeholder interests.

One of our objectives in this paper is to offer a solution to this challenge, which cannot only involve costly replacement of the accounting professional but also possible regulator sanctions, fines, and other forms of reputational damage. Not great for business! We seriously advocate that IFRS concerned entities start to acknowledge that the required regulation of an IFRS entity’s financials results in the recognition that specialist IFRS expertise is required in the management of the financials during both times of crisis and times of relative calm. In other words, the need for IFRS accounting expertise has matured beyond just the early years of implementing the IFRS standards.

5. Conclusion and Recommendations

After more than ten years of continuous change and challenges in the accounting field, today the international accounting and financial environment is closer to achieving a single accounting language. Based on the perception of a large number of countries and accounting specialists, this accounting language is IFRS. In 2014, about 140 countries already accepted or declared their intention to adopt IFRS in the near future, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, Japan, and South Africa. But are all of these countries ready for the IFRS challenge? The knowledge of accounting professionals through constant technical upgrading is essential for the success of the implementation process and for overcoming the numerous and diverse accounting problems posed by economic events that do not respect international boundaries.

No country can consider numerous recent changes in IFRS, along with the case-by-case changes introduced in their own legal system, as well as the rapid evolution of economic and financial markets features, to be enough to ensure that accounting professionals are always prepared to face the accounting challenges posed by the market. Different levels of economic and institutional development and/or distinct accounting maturity can have an impact on the degree of difficulty encountered in the IFRS adoption process.