Simple Standards Sound Solid

While standard setting in the accounting world is not exactly glamorous, it is, at times, fascinating. This last month the Journal of Accountancy contained an interview with Robert Herz, FASB’s current chairman, where he discussed some of the changes coming down the road. The gist of the article was that everything we learned in school will be different (and hopefully simpler) within five to ten years.

Having experienced the headaches of auditing companies that report using both international standards and GAAP, I, for one, am excited about the eventual convergence of standards. While the road will likely be paved with endless debate, the end result will hopefully be a set of useful standards that can be applied across industries and international borders. In the words of Confucius, “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” Let’s keep moving towards simple standards.