At-large trustee heads FAF.Manuel H. Johnson Dr. Manuel H. Johnson is Co-Chairman of Johnson Smick International, a consulting firm in Washington, D.C. that specializes in economic and political policy effects in global financial markets. Dr. Johnson received his Ph.D. in economics from Florida State University. has been elected chairman of the board of trustees board of trustees Politics The posse of thugs who oversee an institution's administration. See Board of directors. and president of the Financial Accounting Foundation, which oversees the Financial Accounting Standards Board Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Board composed of independent members who create and interpret Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is currently the source of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) used by State and Local governments in the United States of America. . A relative newcomer to the FAF, Johnson joined it in 1996 as one of the at-large, or public, members following negotiations on the board's composition between the FAF and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Johnson's immediate predecessor, J. Michael Cook, chairman and chief executive officer of Deloitte & Touche, remains on the board. "Cook will be a tough act to follow," said Johnson in a public statement, "He was an outstanding leader of the FAF" Cook also praised his successor: Johnson is a great choice to lead the FAF" Johnson, who has a PhD in economics, is cochairman of Johnson Smick International, a Washington, D.C., consulting firm that provides policy and economic analysis to US. and foreign financial institutions. He was assistant secretary of the treasury from 1982 to 1986 and vice-chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System The managing body of the Federal Reserve System, which sets policies on bank practices and the money supply. from 1986 to 1990. "Standard setting belongs in an independent private organization," Johnson told the Journal. "To that end, I see part of the FAF's role is making sure the process is perceived as fair." The problem -- as exemplified by the furor over the proposed derivatives standard despite extensive exposure -- may be one of public relations: "The FASB FASB See: Financial Accounting Standards Board FASB See Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). has been unfairly attacked. It's not as if the derivatives project was a big surprise to anyone; it's been debated and discussed for a long time. We need to help financial statement preparers and users understand and support the process -- a lot of them simply may not have been paying attention." Another issue with its share of controversies is international accounting, which Johnson said would be a key concern for the FAF over the next few years. "The world is changing quickly -- the standard-setting process is speeding up, and that makes some people uncomfortable." He said the FAF could help the FASB, SEC and other groups coordinate their efforts in addressing international GAAP GAAP See: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles GAAP See generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). . |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion