How the right performance management solution can help you meet the coming deadline

BPM Partners, November 2008

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Table of Contents

• Executive Summary
  
• Introduction – Background
  
• Differences between IFRS and GAAP
• Importance of IFRS
• Advantages of Adopting IFRS
• Disadvantages of Adopting IFRS
• Steps to Prepare for Transition
• What to Look For in an IFRS / Performance Management Vendor
  
• How Companies Have Converted to IFRS
• Financial Services Example: Unicredit
• Media Example: Mediaset
• Manufacturing Example: Artemide Group
• Conclusion
  

Executive Summary

A worldwide changeover to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) from different accounting standards around the globe – including US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) – is well underway. Over 12,000 companies are estimated to have adopted IFRS, motivated not only by regulatory mandate, but also by globalization of business and the need for transparency and consistent reporting across multiple companies and countries.

IFRS is not merely a different way of reporting. It is, like GAAP, a performance measurement system unto itself. Conversion to IFRS will have an impact, direct or indirect, upon most business decisions. IFRS will probably become a near-universal standard for accounting and business reporting. For the strategically minded CFO, conversion to IFRS presents an opportunity to improve, unify, and standardize the finance organization, particularly its processes and software standards. continue...