At its fall 2003 meeting, the AICPA governing Council passed a resolution to retain the AICPA’s Personal Financial Specialist (PFS), Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP), and Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV) specialty credentials. As part of its approval, Council affirmed an increased investment by the AICPA in the overall personal financial planning, information technology and business valuation and forensic and litigation services specialty practice areas, focusing on building the bodies of knowledge and disciplines that serve as the foundation to the specialty credentials and the related membership sections.

The AICPA will integrate activities of the National Accreditation Commission (NAC), relevant Executive Committees and AICPA staff in meeting credential holders’ professional needs. As part of this effort, the AICPA will also develop tools and resources to help credential holders succeed in their professional activities. The resources include toolkits, advanced training, and specialized newsletters.

Member feedback central to process
Council’s resolution was in response to recommendations by the AICPA Board of Directors’ approval of a recommendation from NAC, based on an in-depth review of each credential program. The review process included exploration of all possible retention and exit strategies, including outsourcing to third party organizations or elimination. Substantial feedback was also gathered from credential holders, section members, and general AICPA members through a series of research programs, including online surveys, town hall teleconferences, and an Invitation to Comment document.

For more information about AICPA specialty accreditations, visit www.aicpa.org and click on “Accreditations” in the column on the left.