UA alumni among experts offering advice to finance professionals

Where do area professionals turn when seeking advice on some of today’s most challenging issues in corporate finance? The University of Akron, of course.

For several years, in fact, UA’s George W. Daverio School of Accountancy has hosted an Emerging Issues symposium that features a panel of top-level finance executives – including UA alumni –who offer insights on up-and-coming issues in financial reporting, security, and assurance.

The 2014 symposium, sponsored by KPMG and The J.M. Smucker Company, was held March 28 at UA’s InfoCision Stadium and attracted more than 200 financial reporting, audit and assurance, finance, treasury, and technology professionals from throughout the region.

Attendees at the event, which is free, had an opportunity to discuss challenges facing today’s chief financial officers by engaging with a roundtable of CFOs from global, multibillion-dollar corporations, including:

• Mark Belgya ’82, ’93
  Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
  The J. M. Smucker Company
• Phil Fracassa
  Chief Financial Officer
  The Timken Company
• Sean Hennessy ’80
  Chief Financial Officer
  The Sherwin-Williams Company
• Laura Thompson ’87, ’92
  Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
  The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

John McIntosh, managing partner of KPMG’s Cleveland office, moderated the roundtable.

The symposium also featured Megan Zeitsman, member and representative of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), who discussed key challenges and opportunities in setting international auditing standards. IAASB is the global organization that sets the standards used by professional accountants in auditing financial statements prepared by corporations in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, Australia, and Canada.

In addition, attendees heard presentations by various professionals and leaders on such topics as current accounting standards, SEC, and global audit and assurance standards; best practices for implementing business intelligence; and financial integration issues commonly encountered during mergers and acquisitions. Presenters included:

• Solomon Jones ’89
  VP and Assistant Controller
  The J. M. Smucker Company 
• Steve Miller
  Principal
  KPMG 
• Christian Peo
  Partner
  KPMG 
• Marybeth Shamrock
  Managing Director
  KPMG 
• Brian Yeager
  Director
  KPMG

The George W. Daverio School of Accountancy has a long history of partnering with national leaders in the accounting, auditing, and tax professions to offer top-quality professional outreach programs, including the International Tax Conference (March 19, 2014), the Northeast Ohio State & Local Tax Conference (August 1, 2014), and the National Tax Conference in honor of Al Lieberman (September 23, 2014). The outreach events contribute greatly to the School’s mission of preparing competent and responsible accounting professionals and business leaders. The School offers nationally recognized accounting and tax programs, including the B.S. Accounting, the M.S. Accounting, and the Master of Taxation (MTax). Beginning in the fall of 2014, the School will offer its renowned MTax program directly to students’ desktops via the Web. Students may complete the program in as little as 15 months. Visit http://MtaxDirect.uakron.edu for more information about this highly innovative program.

The George W. Daverio School of Accountancy is a unit of The University of Akron’s College of Business Administration (CBA). The CBA is consistently ranked nationally as a top business school by The Princeton Review, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, and U.S. News & World Report and has recognized programs in professional selling and direct marketing.