Accounting resources and professional development in the field

Accounting Resources

In any industry, it is important to keep up-to-date with the ongoing changes in other firms, consumer trends, and other factors that affect the way business in the industry is conducted. In few sectors is this more apparent currently than in the field of accounting, where the recent spate of bank failures and other company collapses brought on -- in whole or in part -- by "creative accounting" practices has brought new scrutiny, new methods, and new legislation to bear on accounting practices. In order to keep abreast of these and other ongoing changes in the field of accounting, subscriptions and/or regular monitoring of certain scholarly journals, trade magazines, and online blogs is not only advisable, but is a near necessity. Like other industries, accounting demands constant attention.

Recommendations

Journals:

Accounting and Business Research

Accounting and the Public Interest

Trade publications:

Accounting Today

Accounting Technology

Blog:

The practicing CPA

Scholarly Journals

Scholarly journals can be distinguished from other media by several key criteria, most notably the fact that they are peer-reviewed, meaning that the articles submitted to these journals for publication are read through and verified, inasmuch as possible, by respected figures that work in the industry and/or hold positions in the academic world. This does not mean that these journals represent objective fact, and in the realm of accounting this is all but impossible in many cases. The system of peer review, however, does ensure that all opinions have been validated by empirical evidence and/or accepted methods of analysis. This last point is especially important; while other media also generally attempt to retain objective standards, scholarly journals utilize accepted methodologies for testing validity.

One such journal that has been in print for several decades is Accounting and Business Research, which includes both empirical studies and analytical articles relating to the accounting filed and other aspects of business and finance. Though published in London and specifically geared towards firms and clients in England and Wales, this journal also carries an abundance of internationally relevant information, including articles concerning pension payments standards and practices from an international perspective, the continuing debate and discussion of ethics in the accounting field, and other issues in accounting that are relevant regardless of the readers' country of origin or work (Accounting and Business Research 2009). The international perspective of the journal actually makes it more appealing than others, as it provides a more objective and varied view.

Accounting and the Public Interest has not been in publication as long as Accounting and Business Research, but its very specific focus makes it an excellent subscription choice for the modern progress of ethics in the accounting field. Though sometimes fairly technical and esoteric, there would be no considerable issue for anyone working in the field of accounting or studying the field to understand the articles contained herein. The public interest focus might initially appear to be aimed at a niche market, but as the past has shown us (with an especial vengeance in the past several years), all accounting must be conducted with the public interest in mind. The articles contained in Accounting and the Public Interest are not aimed at specific companies or endeavors, but rather apply fully to accounting practices throughout the business world from the public interest perspective.

An equally scholarly journal, but one that is less useful to professionals currently working the field of accounting, is the Accounting Historian's Journal. The articles here are all just as valid and arguably even more objective and empirically-based than current studies published in other journals, if only because of the additional and more concrete data available to the historical perspective. Despite the relevance that some of the articles have on progressions in the accounting field today, however, this article tends to deal with the past rather than the resent or the future, and in the world of business -- though it is important to know where one is coming from -- knowing what's happening in the here-and-now is of primary importance. This journal is more geared towards, and therefore will be more appreciated by, those studying accounting from an academic rather than a practical perspective.

Blogs

There is no denying the changes that the Internet has wrought in almost every single industry in the world, and the field of accounting is no exception. The fact that trade information is now regularly published online is perhaps one of the more minor changes to the accounting world that the Internet has brought about, yet it still has a significant impact on the field. Both the rate and the breadth of information available in the accounting field have grown tremendously due to the Internet (as has been the case in most industries), and this has many benefits as well as a few pitfalls to those seeking reliable, current information. While most trade publications must remain at least somewhat objective to remain profitable and viable, blogging takes almost no expense and fewer credentials.

One Internet resource tat can be trusted is The Practicing CPA, a weekly email newsletter and online news service that is produced by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Though limited in scope, the information contained in this newsletter can be trusted far more completely than in many Internet resources, as the authors are al vetted members of the AICPA, and the industry organization itself is the publisher. This does tend to politicize the content of the newsletter to a degree, which is also expected of blogs and other Internet resources, but it does not sacrifice truth and objectivity for invective and readership, as many other Internet publications do. There is also a somewhat disappointing lack of the ability to comment on news items and other developments in the field of accounting, which is the hallmark of many blogs, but this does serve to keep the information contained in the newsletter more reliable, if less diverse.

Then again, even the sites that allow for such commentary often don't receive any. PwC IFRS hasn't received any comments in the past month on any of its articles, for instance, though it does provide accurate and fairly up-to-date information. Part of the reason for this could be the fact that this blog, like many others in the accounting world, are run by large firms -- Price Waterhouse Coopers, in this case. Though this does not mean there is necessarily a bias at work in the blog, and indeed certain differing opinions are allowed, the fact that the information on such blogs is so directly under the control of a single for-profit entity means it must be regarded as at least slightly suspect. As these resources are also free, however, there is no harm in regularly browsing them.