Out of Focus

Today, I was part of a focus group.

For those of you unfamiliar, a focus group is a group of people called upon to opine about something.

This group consisted of about 8 people and me. All of us were certified public accountants. Yes, strap yourself down, the excitement might be too great.

We were ushered into a room and were met by a "leader". I'm really not sure if leader is the right term. Anyways, the guy wouldn't tell us who his client was. My recollection was that I was told the client was the AICPA, the American Institue of Certified Public Accountants, when I was recruited for this. We were also told there were people behind the mirror watching us. I made a mental note not to pick my nose or pull or scratch anything.

At the beginning we went around the room introducing ourselves. "I've been a CPA for 32 years, have two kids and enjoy farting on alternate Thursdays." OK, I exaggerate a bit. I made a decision not to mention that I act in my spare time and have a blog where I post about things I do (or don't do).

The people speaking were so monotone and dull. I made a choice to be as outrageous as humanly possible. Besides, I had an audience behind the mirror to entertain. Firstly, I suggested that the AICPA should be like the Teamsters for CPAs. If Jimmy Hoffa would have been a CPA he would have been found by now. We watched a video about why International Accounting Standards should subsume US Accounting Standards (aka Generally Accepted Accounting Principles aka GAAP). zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Wake up, dammit! I suggested the video was promoting this by utilizing UK people w/cool accents. Lastly, I suggested the profession was failing to meet the expectation of the public which is why they keep getting sued. As the public thinks an audit shows there is no fraud, the audit techniques s/b upgraded to meet those expectations. That didn't sit well with some people but so be it.

Years ago, I graded CPA exams for the AICPA. It was a part-time job. You would get paid hourly based upon signing in/out on a sign-in sheet. The last time I did this, some asshole in charge of grading decided to have us punch a time clock instead. I raised my hand and asked him if he punched a time clock. I then asked if he thought we were any less professional than him. Needless to say, that was the last time I graded exams for the AICPA.