On November 14 2008 Robert Bunting became the newly elected President of IFAC for a two-year term ending in November 2010.
Robert Bunting is a Partner at Moss Adams LLP, a member of Praxity, where he served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from 1982 to 2004.
Robert Bunting was formally Chairman from 1998 to 2004 of Moores Rowland international and currently sits on Praxity’s Membership Committee.
About IFAC
IFAC is the worldwide organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to:
- strengthening the worldwide accountancy profession
- contribute to the development of strong international economies by establishing and promoting adherence to high-quality professional standards
- furthering the international convergence of such standards and speaking out on public interest issues where the profession's expertise is most relevant
IFAC is currently comprised of approximately 158 professional accountancy bodies in 122 countries, representing more than 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry and commerce. IFAC, through its independent standard-setting boards, sets international standards of ethics, auditing and assurance, education, and public sector accounting.
Further information about IFAC is available on the IFAC website. About IFAC
Robert Bunting made the following comment after his election to the IFAC presidency:
IFAC’s role in the global financial climate
“The financial crisis has clearly demonstrated how interconnected global markets are. This makes IFAC’s initiatives to achieve convergence of international standards ever more urgent. Convergence to a common set of high quality accounting and auditing standards is essential to assuring the quality of the profession’s services and is vital to the effective operations of markets and to promoting cross-border trade and investment.
“I believe that IFAC has a key role to play in restoring confidence in the markets,” emphasizes Robert. “We must demonstrate that our standard-setting processes are rigorous. And we must continue to promote strong corporate governance and the highest quality practices by the world’s accountants, whether they work in public practice or in business and industry. Additionally, we need to scrutinize ourselves and look at what we can do better or differently. And lastly, we must be even more engaged with all market participants and actively collaborate with them in identifying and implementing the solutions that can prevent future crises.”
Strategic plan for 2009–2012
The Strategic Plan has been formulated to identify and articulates the strategic direction of the International Federation of Accountants’ (IFAC’s).
An updated strategic plan for 2009–2012 supporting new goals and a fresh approach on tackling the financial crisis has been approved by the IFAC Council. This plan increases the focus on implementing international standards, on enhancing the relevance and sustainability of the profession, and on communicating more vigorously on regulatory, financial management, financial reporting, corporate governance, and other issues.
Robert’s comment about IFAC’s Strategic Plan
“Another area of focus in the strategy and one to which I plan to give my attention is meeting the needs of small and medium practices (SMPs) and enterprises (SMEs),” adds Robert Bunting. “The SMP/SME community did not cause the current financial crisis, but they will be very much affected by it. We must do what we can, including ensuring that they are not subject to overly burdensome regulatory requirements, to contribute to their health and effectiveness.”
The IFAC Strategic Plan for 2009-2012 is available on the IFAC website.
More about Robert Bunting – President of IFAC
Prior to becoming the President of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), he served as Deputy President of IFAC from November 2006 to November 2008 and as a member of the IFAC Board since November 2005.
As Deputy President, Robert Bunting served as Chairman of IFAC's Planning and Finance Committee, where he led the organization in the development of its operational and strategic plan for 2009-2012.
From 2004 to 2005, Robert Bunting was Chairman of the Board of Directors of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). He previously served as a member of the AICPA Board of Directors and is a Past Chairman or member of several AICPA committees, including the Audit Committee, Board of Examiners, and SEC Practice Section Executive Committee.