What price ethics? Auditors stand to lose earnings in exchange for integrity

August 19, 2019 / 41:52/E105

Blake and David explore the high cost of integrity in the audit profession, a survey showing that accounting firms are hiring more non-accounting grads, and why it's so hard for AI startups to be straightforward about the human component. Also: How Apple Card will create headaches for bookkeepers, whether Square is doing just enough or too much innovation, and what's new with Xero's updated App Marketplace. In other news, learn about the winners of the 2019 CPA Practice Advisor Tax & Accounting Tech Innovation Awards, and other riveting headlines from the world of accounting and bookkeeping!

Show Notes

01:25 – Happy Birthday, Blake!
03:26 – David takes QuickBooks Online Accountant for a spin the real world
05:30 – The new titanium-flavored Apple Card – all hype, no substance? | ZDNet
07:45 – A few of QBOA’s underperforming features - the Accountants Apps Program and Slack - are getting the boot as Intuit keeps searching for a more perfect integration
12:04 – Xero’s Marketplace gets a new look, and some shiny new toys! | Digital First
- *Correction: Jonathan Misfud is the author of this Digital First article. Blake mistakenly credited Sholto Macpherson. Apologies for the mix-up!
14:03 – Is Square biting off more than they’ll eventually be able to chew?
- Square is taking a bite out of the hassle of managing a multitude of third-party food-delivery orders with their new orders platform | Square
- With constant development of new tools, APIs, and features, Square aims to be the middleman between everything from orders to accounting systems.
18:18 – Meet the winners of CPA Practice Advisor’s Tax & Accounting Technology Innovation Awards, which includes a win for BQE Software – one of our sponsors. If you missed it earlier this year, check out our interview with CEO Shafat Qazi, and an excellent demo of BQE’s award-winning Core Intelligence AI.
24:05 – No magic here, just smoke and mirrors – yet another AI startup, Engineer.ai, is less than straightforward about human v. AI workload | The Verge
27:14 – What’s behind the allure of hiring non-accounting grads at CPA firms? Expansion of services, requiring more skill-diversified staffs, or the declining quality of a formal accounting education? | Journal of Accountancy
30:29 – The high cost of being an ethical, and skilled auditor – an eight-percent reduction in fees? | Accounting Today
35:14 – “We” is getting people Worked up over their IPO, some wonky financials, and their standard operating procedure | LinkedIn

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