The Division continues to monitor how companies are disclosing the effects and risks of COVID-19 on their businesses, financial condition, and results of operations and is supplementing CF Disclosure Guidance Topic No. 9 with guidance regarding additional disclosure considerations. We continue to encourage companies to provide disclosures that allow investors to evaluate the current and expected impact of COVID-19 through the eyes of management and to proactively revise and update disclosures as facts and circumstances change. These disclosures should enable an investor to understand how management and the Board of Directors are analyzing the current and expected impact of COVID-19 on the company’s operations and financial condition, including liquidity and capital resources.

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected governments, businesses, and the public globally. Government responses and the COVID-19-related financial and economic consequences will need to be considered in financial reporting of public sector organizations.

Review the non-authoritative guidance on the PSAB's website.

This document highlights the heightened risks of money laundering, terrorist financing and cybercrime in the COVID-19 environment. It describes the implications for both professional accountants in business and public practice.

Review the press release and publication on the IESBA's website.

COVID-19 Checklist: 51 Issues for public company directors and officers to consider

The COVID-19 pandemic has grown into a health crisis with unique risks that are disrupting business operations and leaving public companies with many questions. While “known unknowns” need to be understood and managed, it is the “unknown unknowns” that need to be surfaced and considered.

We have set out 51 issues we have been addressing for Canadian public companies concerning the impact of COVID-19 on their financial results, operations and cash flows, as well as the price or value of their securities in public capital markets.

Fortune 500 GCs discuss how to be a strategic asset through the pandemic

As the country settles into the new routine of social distancing and working from home, and the pandemic begins to show early—if subtle—signs of subsiding, boards and management are beginning to shift their focus from responding to the crisis to reopening their physical plants amid continued safety concerns. This complex process is dependent on many variables, from worker safety to differing county and state standards for reopening.

Internal auditors prepare for the return to work post-coronavirus

Most internal audit leaders have been getting involved in preparations at their organizations for returning to the workplace, especially in assessing risks and consulting activities, according to a new survey, but relatively few are actually performing reviews of critical risk areas, such as health and safety.

5 things companies should do in tough times

Straight to the point, tough times call for tough measures. Or do they? It all depends on how you define tough measures and how appropriate they really are for the circumstances. As companies currently face a unique situation in modern history and are evaluating continued operations, balancing profits with acceptable levels of loss, functioning with massively more remote work and trying to make up for any economic disruptions, the first thought tends to be “How can we cut costs?”

Accountants can help companies set strategy to deal with coronavirus

Management accountants and CFOs can play an important role in guiding companies through the strategic options available to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.

A recent Statement on Management Accounting report, “Strategic Analysis—Methods for Achieving Superior and Sustainable Performance,” discusses how management accountants and CFOs can lead strategic analysis and planning to improve the performance of their organizations for the long term, during and after the current pandemic eventually subsides.

Good leaders can overcome institutional inertia in a crisis

Although Covid-19 is clearly a catastrophe, it offers what every social scientist craves: a “natural experiment” that allows us to compare different responses to similar shocks. We have already learned much about what does and doesn’t work in tackling the virus itself. We can also glean profound lessons about the role of leaders.

Your CEO succession plan can’t wait

“We really need to have a name in the envelope as soon as possible.” So begins many of the discussions we’ve been having lately with board members who are frantic about CEO succession planning. Given that the median age of S&P 500 CEOs is 58 — putting many executives at higher risk of Covid-19-related illness — it’s no wonder that inquiries we’ve received from companies around the world focus intensely on best practices in running a “quick” CEO succession process.

Challenges and opportunities in the post-COVID-19 world

While a global pandemic has been a looming risk for decades, COVID-19 has come as a shock to society, health systems, economies and governments worldwide. In the midst of extraordinary challenges and uncertainty, and countless personal tragedies, leaders are under pressure to make decisions on managing the immediate impact of the pandemic and its consequences, decisions that will shape the state of the world for years to come. What might be the silver linings in the crisis and how might leaders use this moment to build a more prosperous, equitable and sustainable world? 

COVID-19 risks outlook a preliminary mapping and its implications

As countries seek to recover, some of the more lasting economic, environmental, societal and technological challenges and opportunities are only beginning to become visible. While societies, governments and businesses collectively grapple with these possibilities, it is vital to anticipate the emerging risks generated by the repercussions from the pandemic.

Green Swan 2 – Climate change and Covid-19: reflections on efficiency versus resilience

Policymakers are increasingly concerned about climate-related risks as manifested in more frequent and more destructive weather catastrophes, causing significant losses to people, firms, banks and insurance companies, and hence posing a growing threat to financial stability. This is one reason why central banks and supervisors have put climate change on their agenda. In the last two years, 65 central banks and financial supervisors have joined the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) (as of 16 April 2020). But climate risks have also caught the attention of society as a whole, as well as that of large investment firms and asset managers.

Cost of compliance: New decade, new challenges

Financial-services firms were already facing an inflexion point in regulatory compliance for 2020, even before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the industry worldwide, according to the 11th annual cost of compliance survey by Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence.

Tightening of risk and compliance budgets, regulatory and cultural change and the possibility of increasing personal liability all provided evidence of a cyclical turn from the post-financial crisis years. It is too early to tell how the novel coronavirus will influence that inflexion over the long term, but already regulators are issuing a flurry of revisions to rules, and firms are asking for the postponement of various regulatory initiatives so they can focus on managing events.

From surviving to thriving: Reimagining the post-COVID-19 return

In this article, we suggest that in order to come back stronger, companies should reimagine their business model as they return to full speed. The moment is not to be lost: those who step up their game will be better off and far more ready to confront the challenges—and opportunities—of the next normal than those who do not.

There are four strategic areas to focus on: recovering revenue, rebuilding operations, rethinking the organization, and accelerating the adoption of digital solutions.

The guidance provides a helpful list of illustrative questions that companies should ask themselves when preparing disclosure documents. The guidance also addresses insider trading concerns, as well as considerations for earnings releases. When it comes to earnings disclosure, Corp Fin touches on several issues, one of which is non-GAAP financial data.

Review the guidance on the SEC's website.

This pulse poll shows that boards have confidence in management to support their employee populations and deal with the early stages of the crisis. Directors give their organizations high marks for their initial crisis response and collaboration with the board. They have confidence in the ability of management to handle the near-term effects of crisis and are satisfied with what they see.

Review the results on the NACD's website.

CAQ COVID-19 Resource: Key auditor and audit committee considerations

This resource is intended to provide high-level financial reporting considerations for auditors and audit committees as certain audits near completion, quarterly reviews are occurring, and during planning for 2020 audits. This resource is also, intended as general information and should not be relied upon as being definitive or all-inclusive. The CAQ encourages audit firms and audit committees to refer to the rules, standards, guidance, and other resources in their entirety.

Interim financial statements included in Form 10-Q: Auditor responsibilities and COVID-19 considerations for investors and audit committees

SEC Regulation S-X specifies that the interim financial statements included in Form 10-Q must be reviewed by an auditor in accordance with PCAOB standards. PCAOB Auditing Standard 4105, Reviews of Interim Financial Information establishes standards and provides guidance on the nature, timing, and extent of the procedures to be performed by an independent auditor when conducting a review of interim financial information. The general standards related to independence, training and proficiency and due professional care also apply to auditors conducting interim reviews.

COVID 19: Considerations for internal controls over financial reporting

The COVID-19 pandemic poses unique and novel challenges to publicly-traded retailers, particularly with respect to design and testing of both internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. We recommend that retailers assess what has changed in the current financial reporting environment, consider whether existing controls are sufficient to prepare financial statements and disclosure documents at the reasonable assurance level, and determine what new controls (if any) are necessary to reduce the risk of errors and fraud.

Leveraging AI to battle this pandemic — And the next one

An alternative approach for policy makers to consider adding in their mix for battling Covid-19 is based on the technology of personalized prediction, which has transformed many industries over the last 20 years.  Using machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) technology, data-driven firms (from “Big Tech” to financial services, travel, insurance, retail, and media) make personalized recommendations for what to buy, and practice personalized pricing, risk, credit, and the like using the data that they have amassed about their customers.

A lot of attention has been paid to potential actions governments and individuals can take. However, to ensure that their firms are able to weather the crisis, boards should discuss the critical areas with their management teams. Given the evolving nature of this crisis, it is understandable that the priority will be to ensure business continuity, if not survival.

Review the blog on the NACD's website.

In speaking about future developments, companies can deprioritize issues and engagement not related to COVID-19, which is the topic most important to investors in this moment. As stated by one major investor group, such engagement “should be postponed where not related to COVID-19 to allow management and boards the ability to focus on crisis management.”

To help directors and their management teams understand the current landscape of COVID-19 risk disclosure, NACD mined data from MyLogIQ—Multidimensional Public Company Intelligence to identify trends in 10-K filings from January 1 to March 30, 2020 using the search terms “coronavirus” and “COVID-19.”

Review the blog on the NACD's website.

As the COVID-19 outbreak continues, communications leaders face the growing challenge of supporting the safety of staff, the reputation of the company, and the viability of operations. At the same time, the risks of missteps are significantly compounded by social media activism, misinformation and the critical gaze of international observers.

Listen to the podcast on the Conference Board's website.