Inside Standard Setting - Part 7 Reflecting on 2023!

Happy New Year!

The end of the calendar year, for me, comes together with a lot of contemplation and reflection and excitement in anticipation of a new year of accounting standard setting! I’m excited to share some thoughts here. ?

2023 was a very big year for me, as it was my first full year in the role of Chair of the Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) , four months in an interim role while finishing up my role at BDO Canada , and the last eight months as Chair of the AcSB full-time.

Although I was a volunteer member of the AcSB for almost eight years, moving into the role of Chair required me to flex different muscles.? In my role at BDO and even in my role as a volunteer member of the AcSB, the focus was on the application of my technical expertise. This expertise is helpful in my current role, but is hardly the focus. Staff of the AcSB and some of our volunteer Board members do the heavy ‘technical’ lifting while my role is more about building and maintaining relationships and listening.

Standard Setting is a Relationship Game

One of the AcSB’s strategic focuses is to grow our international influence.? International influence comes from our input into the work of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and our relationship with the IASB and other national standard setters. ??

In Canada, we don’t just rubber stamp IFRS Accounting Standards. We are involved in the standard setting process very early on in the process, in some cases before the IASB even begins its own research on a topic.? By being involved early and throughout the standard setting process, we ensure the needs of Canadians are considered as the IASB moves the project forward and that the end product is fit for purpose in Canada.? Over the years, Canada has earned a reputation of “punching above its weight” when it comes to its input to the IASB. Our relationships with interested and affected parties in Canada helps us build and maintain this reputation.? We connect the IASB directly with Canadians that provide high quality input.? We do this both virtually and in person. One of my highlights of 2023 took place in February, when we were able to have several in person meetings in Toronto and Montreal with various groups of interested and affected parties with the Chair, Prof. Dr. Andreas Barckow , and Vice-Chair, Linda Mezon-Hutter , of the IASB.?

The relationship with other national standard setters is also critical.? IFRS Accounting Standards are applied in over 140 jurisdictions and although the AcSB’s focus is the Canadian markets, we have to balance that with the fact that we all benefit from having globally comparable standards. ?Our relationships with other standard setters, is critical to ensure IFRS Accounting Standards are fit for purpose not only in Canada, but globally.? In addition, understanding the issues that exist in other jurisdictions help us better identify issues that are going to eventually emerge in Canada that we may have to address in all parts of the CPA Canada Accounting Handbook.? We also take great pride in sharing what we are doing domestically to improve best practices across the globe.

During 2023, I was able to meet in person with many other standard setters, including hosting the Accounting Standards Board of Japan（ASBJ） and the UK Endorsement Board (UKEB) for meetings in Canada, connecting with the Financial Accounting Standards Board , UKEB, Financial Reporting Council , ASBJ and DRSC - Deutsches Rechnungslegungs Standards Committee e.V. in Berlin and many other national standard setters at events in London and at the FASBs offices in Norwalk.

Proud to say that I have built and continue to strengthen standard-setting relationships across the globe – many I am privileged to know on a one-to-one basis, and some as friends.

Listening with the Intent to Understand

I like to say the quality of the standards we produce directly correlates to the quality of input we receive, however, there is more to it than that.? As standard setters, much of what we do depends on how well we have listened to and understand the feedback we receive. Which, brings me to a quote about listening from Steven Covey, “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”? Listening with the intent to understand is something I have been very focused on and 2023 gave me a lot of opportunity to do this as it was a very big year for outreach.

Our projects on Contributions and Scalability had us speaking to a lot of interested and affected parties both in person and virtually. These sessions were tough – many of you agreed us (which is great to hear) and many of you didn’t, but I truly enjoyed each one of them. Getting mixed feedback always makes the standard setting process more difficult, but the AcSB is focused on understanding the “why” which I believe will ultimately result in better standards. In addition, these sessions not only allowed me to connect with so many of you and build new relationships early in my tenure as Chair of the AcSB, but I was also able to work on my listening skills too!

Top-3 Non-accounting Highlights from 2023

As I have mentioned in many of my posts, I am an accounting nerd, so any opportunity to listen and talk to people about accounting is fun for me.? However, in between those discussions, I do get the opportunity to fit in some other activities that others (non-accounting nerds, that is) consider fun.? Here are three things I was lucky enough to do while travelling in 2023:

• A football match in London.? Going to West London to see the Brentford Bees take on Arsenal was a lot of fun and I am now Brentford supporter!? The train to Brentford is the train to Richmond, so it felt like I was living an episode of Ted Lasso.
• The Paul McCartney Exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London.? My mother was lucky enough to see the Beatles at Shea Stadium in 1965.? Seeing Paul McCartney’s photos from 1963 and 1964 allowed me to better understand the craziness that was Beatlemania and what my mother was able to experience at that iconic concert.
• A running tour of Berlin.? I didn’t even know running tours were a thing, however after doing one in Berlin, I don’t think there is a better way to see a city, especially on a Saturday morning at 6 AM when no one else is around!? Being able to see sites of such historical significance is something I will never forget.

I hope all of you had a festive holiday season and were able to relax and connect with family and friends. I wish all of you a prosperous 2024 – I look forward to meeting more of you, listening to your thoughts and experiences related to standard setting, and continuing to build on and strengthen relationships!