Common Content Dominique Ledouble Chairman, Common Content Project.

Common Content

Dominique Ledouble

Chairman, Common Content Project

Common Content

A joint project of nine premier accountancy bodies to unify, to unify, as far as possible, their national entry level

qualifications for professional accountants while ensuring that those national qualifications meet the

expectations of clients, employers and the public and

are attractive to the best graduates

Participating Institutes

France Compagnie Nationale des Commissaires aux Comptes (CNCC)Order des Experts-Comptables (OEC)

Germany Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer (IDW)Wirtschaftsprüferkammer (WPK)

Ireland Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI)

Italy Consiglio Nazionale dei Dottori Commercialisti ed Esperti Contabili (CNDCEC)

Netherlands Koninklijk Nederlands Instituut van Registeraccountants (NIVRA)

United Kingdom Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW)Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)

Common Content Model for National Professional Qualifications

Common content (with an international focus and agreed jointly)

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National content(with a national focus and determined nationally)

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National professional qualification(with an international and national focus and national membership and

practice rights)

Common Content: a Three Stage Approach

What do clients, employers and the public expect of professional accountants?

What aspects of the services of professional accountants should entry-level professional accountants be able to

provide?

What knowledge, competences and skills do entry level professional accountants require to provide these

services?

What knowledge, competences and skills do entry level professional accountants require to provide these

services?

Common Content Approach: Stage 1

What do clients, employers and the public expect of professional accountants?

What Do Clients, Employer and the Public Expect of Professional Accountants?

• Provide services – assurance and related services– performance measurement and reporting– strategic and business management– financial management– taxation and legal services

• Have integrity and a commitment to the public interest

• Observe the highest ethical standards

What Do Clients, Employer and the Public Expect of Professional Accountants?

• Have high quality assurance, business and finance skills that meet or exceed– international requirements for professional accountants and

statutory auditors– EU examination requirements for statutory auditors

• Take an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach • Apply international and national knowledge

Common Content Approach: Stages 2 and 3

What do clients, employers and the public expect of professional accountants?

What aspects of the services of professional accountants should entry-level professional accountants be able to

provide?

What knowledge, competences and skills do entry level professional accountants require to provide these

services?

What knowledge, competences and skills do entry level professional accountants require to provide these

services?

What Services Are Provided by Entry-level Professional Accountants?

• Entry-level professional accountants should be able to provide those aspects of the services of professional accountants that are specified in– the common learning outcomes in all jurisdictions– the national learning outcomes relevant in those jurisdictions in

which they wish to obtain practice rights or membership rights

What Knowledge, Competences and Skills Do Entry-level Professional Accountants Require?

• Entry level professional accountants should– have acquired the professional and other knowledge necessary

to achieve the common and national learning outcomes – have acquired the interdisciplinary and other competences and

attributes necessary to achieve the learning outcomes– be able to adopt an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach to

the provision of services

Skills Framework

Education and Assessment for Entry-level Professional Accountants

• The acquisition of entry-level qualifications requires– the completion of a programme of professional education* – at least three years practical experience in the work of a

professional accountant – the formal assessment* of knowledge, competences and

attributes at the agreed academic level

* in accordance with the national framework

Possible Cooperation on National Education Frameworks

Common content (with an international focus and agreed jointly)

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National content(with a national focus and determined nationally)

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National qualification(with national membership and practice rights)

Common education and training

Implementing Common Content inNational Professional Qualifications

• Institutes with the responsibility to grant their qualifications– commit to implement

directly

• Institutes without the responsibility to grant their qualifications– commit to use their best

endeavors to achieve implementation through government agencies, universities and other relevant bodies

Institutes must support the implementation of Common Content requirements in their national qualifications

Implementing Common Content inNational Professional Qualifications

• Institutes must participate in an oversight process that confirms the implementation of Common Content requirements in national qualifications

• The oversight process consists of– a self-assessment by each Institute – a review of self-assessment by the project steering group– public assurance provided by an oversight committee which

includes independent members (Jules Muis and Jens Wüstemann)

Implementing Common Content inNational Professional Qualifications

• Current status in participating Institutes– self-assessments (completed, 2008)– reviews of self-assessments (completed, 2008)– steering group conclusion that all participating Institutes achieved

high degree of consistency and met requirements for continued membership (November 2008)

– public assurance by oversight committee (March 2009)

Expanding the Membership to Other Institutes

• Expand the membership to other Institutes which– share the membership values of Common Content, in particular

the “national qualification” model, the benefits of working together and mutual trust

– have implemented Common Content requirements in their national professional entry-level qualifications

Using Common Content to Improve Qualifications

• Assist other Institutes which aspire to improve their entry-level professional qualifications and which– share the membership values of Common Content, in particular

the “national qualification” model, the benefits of working together and mutual trust

– aspire to membership of the Common Content project– wish to achieve compliance with Common Content requirements

or use significant parts of Common Content requirements to improve the equivalent parts of their national qualifications

Mobility Through Mutual Recognition

Common content +

National content=

National qualification(with national membership and practice rights)

Foreign national content=

Foreign qualification(with foreign membership and practice rights)

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Common Content Project

Dominique Ledouble

Chairman, Common Content Project