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AUDIT / PRACTICE MANAGEMENT

Most often, ESG business global audit and assurance sustainability and cli-
mate services leader for Deloitte, who works out of
is coming from existing the firm’s Stamford, Conn., office. While a client’s
interest may be in attestation in a particular area,
the firm should be considering much deeper ques-
clients, which makes tions about the client’s governance and reporting
structure and control environments for ESG.
“When you unpack the hundreds of pages of
collaboration across the firm the greenhouse gas protocol, which is the standard
most commonly used, the question is, ‘How are
you going to apply it?’” she asked. “What is the
all the more important. data management flow, from source to report?
How are you accessing that information?”

HIRING FOR ESG
client, with the accountants also developing their Finding the talent to staff ESG teams can be a
own knowledge of certification requirements for challenge. There is only a small pool of people with
the equipment. a background in both accounting and ESG issues,
“We had to go out and find the expertise,” said Joe Holman, CPA, ESG practice leader for
Wilkerson said. “You’ve got to bring together the Withum, who works out of the firm’s New York
right people. It’s a developmental process.” City office.
And that development goes far beyond a single “We’re not finding CPAs, but we would like to.
project, said Kristen Sullivan, CPA, CGMA, the Currently, many CPAs don’t have the knowledge
base, but over time we’ll be looking for CPAs that
have sustainability backgrounds,” he said.
AICPA RESOURCES For now, his team has instead hired young
employees with degrees in sustainability topics,
Articles
pairing them with those from a traditional account-
“Climate Change: What the SEC Proposal Means for Companies, Auditors,” ing background.
JofA, April 1, 2022 Holman himself went back to school to obtain
“ESG Offers Growth Opportunities for 2022,” JofA, Dec. 2021 a certification in sustainability through an intensive
program at Columbia University. The experience
Podcast episode
has shown him that ESG is a natural fit for many
“5 Trends Driving the Importance of Understanding ESG,” JofA, June 2, 2022 in finance.
Online resources “If you look at my career, I was a partner at a
CPA firm at one time, I ran a fund administration
AICPA summary: SEC proposed rule on climate-related disclosures
company, I went into ESG, which seems com-
ESG Reporting and Attestation: A Roadmap for Audit Practitioners pletely different,” Holman said. “But I’ve always
Practice aid: Consideration of ESG-Related Matters in an Audit of Financial done the same thing: I observed, I measured, I
Statements reported, and I verified. That is what I’ve done my
entire career.”

IN BRIEF and governance (ESG) efforts, partly in both accounting and ESG expertise.
response to this proposal. To staff ESG teams, firms are hiring
■ An SEC proposal released earlier this ■ To work in the ESG space, CPA firms sustainability specialists without
year has the potential to increase need to develop expertise in handling accounting backgrounds and are
the roles CPAs play in companies’ sustainability data, which is often very training accounting staff in ESG.
reporting of climate disclosures. Many different from the information they ■ ESG teams often work as in-house
large accounting firms have recently typically work with. consultants who work with other areas
intensified their environmental, social, ■ Currently not many people have of the firm on an as-needed basis.
To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Courtney Vien at Courtney.Vien@aicpa-cima.com.

18 | Journal of Accountancy October 2022