Regulatory reform, risk management rise.

• Author: Hollein, Marie
• Position: President's page

For many people, October marks the start of "busy" season, whether you are a retailer gearing up for the fall-winter holiday season, or financial executives and auditors gearing up for fourth quarter and the year-end financial close and audit.

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Speaking of retail sales, they have picked up lately, with various indicators leading Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke to announce in mid-September that, from a "technical" standpoint, the recession has "very likely" ended. However, he noted the economy will still experience some weakness, and we know the road to recovery is not always smooth.

Obama Wants Financial Regulatory Reform This Year

With the economic crisis hopefully moving further behind us, President Barack Obama warned Wall Street in a speech in September, that while "we are beginning to return to normalcy ... normalcy cannot lead to complacency." He added that he hopes to have financial regulatory reform legislation passed by the end of the year. FEI's Washington, D.C., office is closely following these developments, to keep you informed through our various newsletters, committee meetings and this magazine, and to advocate on your behalf with legislators, standard-setters and more.

Ethics Starts Here; COSO Steps Up

Among lessons learned from the economic crisis, risk managment is receiving increased attention. We know that effective risk management cannot be imposed solely from regulation or outside forces--it needs to come from within, as part of an organization's culture.

Along with risk management, ethical practices have always been a cornerstone of FEI. It starts with our Code of Ethics, which we ask all members to sign each year, and continues with active programming at chapter meetings, national conferences and webcasts and various publications, including this magazine, and publications of the Financial Executives Research Foundation.

In addition, as many of you know, FEI is one of the founding sponsors of the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission, known as COSO. Together with the American Accounting Association, American Institute of CPAs, The Institute of Internal Auditors and Institute of Management Accountants, we strive--through collaboration with COSO members--to provide thought leadership on issues involving fraud prevention and detection, internal control and risk management.

As FEI's president, I have had the pleasure of attending COSO board meetings to share...