Firm Culture and Governance

Objective

The objective of the project is to develop a culture and governance framework that promotes, supports and reinforces a high standard of ethical behavior by a firm's leadership, other partners, and staff across all of the firm’s services, thereby helping the firm develop a reputation as a highly ethical firm, mitigate the risks of unethical behavior and strengthen public trust and confidence in all of its services.

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PROJECT TEAM
BOARD ADVISORS
IESBA June 2026 Meeting Highlights

The IESBA considered the Project Team’s analysis of key stakeholder feedback gathered from the Firm Culture and Governance (FCG) dialogue series since March 2026, an update on recent coordination activities with the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), as well as a presentation on the findings from two “simulation” exercises for the IESBA viewpoints on FCG from Christine Schaefer, Ph.D. and Enrique Martínez-González, two human behavior experts who facilitated the exercises.

The IESBA also deliberated the Project Team’s proposed options and recommendation on how best to approach the development of the FCG framework in the public interest. After considering all the feedback from the FCG dialogues, the insights from the simulation exercises, the liaison with the IAASB, and the Project Team’s analysis and recommendation, the IESBA agreed to develop a single, high-level, overarching requirement and related application material in the Code to anchor the FCG framework in the Code, accompanied by practical non-authoritative material (NAM) to support implementation of the framework.

The IESBA will consider a first-read draft of the proposed provisions in the Code addressing FCG as well as the proposed work plan regarding the development of NAM at its September 2026 meeting.