Off the Books

Join Steve Soter, Catherine Tsai, and Mike Gravagno for the final episode of Off the Books! Reflect on five incredible years of exploring accounting, finance, and risk (and so much more). Dive into the history of the show, laugh (or not!) along with the accounting memes, and celebrate nearly 200 episodes.

In our final episode, Matt Kelly of Radical Compliance helps us make sense of the recent executive order that paused enforcement of the  Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Funny enough, it does not in fact mean you can bribe anyone, Matt warns. While you couldn't bribe us to make more episodes of Off the Books, you can definitely check out seven seasons' worth of past episodes at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast. Follow the Workiva channel to catch the next podcast that Off the Books producer Mike Gravagno is cooking up next.

We want to hear from you! Email us at offthebooks@workiva.com 

Take a look back at the rise, fall, and resurrection of MoviePass as we discuss “MoviePass, MovieCrash.” After we recorded this episode, former MoviePass CEO Ted Farnsworth pleaded guilty to defrauding investors. Find past conversations at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast, including our episodes about the best accounting movies.

Executive orders are starting to show up in 10-K filings, says Nick Mazing of AlphaSense. Hear how, as Steve and Catherine also ask Nick about what companies are saying on generative artificial intelligence, tariffs, inflation, and more: Find past episodes at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast. We want to hear from you! Email us at offthebooks@workiva.com with your thoughts and feedback. For more from our sponsor, Workiva, visit workiva.com.

Who sets the agendas in your 1:1 meetings? What do you appreciate about the managers you enjoy meeting with regularly? Please let us know in the comments and if you'd like to tell us about it on the podcast.You can find more conversations of us surfing the uncharted waters of accounting, finance, risk, and wherever else the waves take us at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast.

Find past conversations at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast

Find more survey insights at workiva.com/benchmark-2025

How is the shifting political landscape affecting environmental, social, and governance issues? Is ESG dead? Steve and Catherine ask Brandon Buhler, Chief Accounting Officer for Playa Hotels and Resorts, and Esther Toth, Senior Industry Principal at Workiva, about the future of sustainability. Read some original research on this topic at workiva.com/benchmark-2025

Enjoy this episode? Find past conversations of us surfing the uncharted waters of accounting, finance, risk, and wherever else the waves take us at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast

To wrap up season 6, we react to four topics we haven't discussed yet, including a penalty for DraftKings over social media posts. Check out resources mentioned in this episode:Blog post on the SEC's cybersecurity disclosure rule https://www.workiva.com/blog/sec-cybersecurity-rulePCAOB resource for audit committees https://assets.pcaobus.org/pcaob-dev/docs/default-source/documents/2023-audit-committee-resource-spotlight.pdfEDGAR® Next https://www.workiva.com/resources/edgar-next-with-workiva Find past conversations at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast. 

Xavier Justo spent 547 days in jail after providing investigators information about billions of dollars missing from 1MDB, the state investment fund set up by Malaysia's former prime minister. Hear what he would tell potential whistleblowers!

Joining Steve to give their initial reactions are Chelsea Hall, Workiva Industry Principal for SEC reporting and financial reporting, and Mark Mellen, Workiva Industry Principal for sustainability reporting.

Internal auditors can be a not-so-secret weapon for strengthening an organization's ability to create value. We caught up with Ahmed Shawky Mohammed and Matej Drašček at the IIA International Conference, where they talked about purpose-driven function internal audit teams.

Recently, the courts struck down the SEC's private fund adviser rule. We turned to former SEC enforcement attorney Ron Geffner for an overview of the rules, the court's decision, and the potential ripple effects—plus, other challenges facing the SEC and possible changes with a new SEC chair.

Switching companies is one thing. Switching roles is another. Chelsea Hall was a corporate controller and Alyssa Zucker was a chief sustainability officer before they joined Workiva as industry principals. Today their backgrounds help Workiva develop solutions specifically tailored to serve people in Chelsea's and Alyssa's former roles.While they're still new to Workiva, we asked their advice for stepping into a new job and a role that not everyone knows exists.

Charley Nelson is an environmental policy major who joined a technical accounting team at Etsy. Hear why that makes perfect sense and what Charley's learned in his time working with accountants. This episode was recorded at the Workiva Amplify conference for accounting, finance, risk, and sustainability professionals.

When Alex Davis followed a former boss to a 7-year-old company, he found it had different data management challenges than the legacy insurer where he once worked.

We caught up with Matt Kelly of Radical Compliance at the annual Workiva Amplify conference for his thoughts on that and a look at what the Securities and Exchange Commission said about SolarWinds. Matt's opinions in the podcast are his own, and do not represent Workiva.Find more episodes at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast. 

Dig into the findings in this crossover episode of ESG Talk and Off the Books.Find the full report here: https://www.workiva.com/resources/csrd-era-of-transparency

Find more episodes at newsroom.workiva.com/esg-talk and  workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast.Subscribe to catch all our upcoming episodes of both ESG Talk and Off the Books.

Hear from Ahmad Abdallah, David Anderson, Brandon Buhler, Jonathan Gregory, Leanne Groenewegen, and Rachael Staab about:Generative AIAssured integrated reportingHiring

Internal auditors are in a key position to both benefit from and promote psychological safety at work. But what does having psychological safety at work mean? Ignatia Mannoe and Manja Knevelbaard—two of the co-authors of the new “Psychological Safety Tools for Internal Audit” IIA Netherlands publication—join us to discuss it all in this episode, recorded at the IIA International Conference.

BF Borgers, the audit firm whose clients included Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., got called a “sham audit mill” by the SEC's top enforcer. White tells us how that affected BF Borgers' clients.

Find more episodes at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast.Subscribe to catch all our upcoming episodes.

How can leaders and their internal auditors manage the risks and enjoy the rewards of using generative artificial intelligence? Marc Eulerich of the University of Duisburg-Essen, David Wood of BYU, and their co-authors recently published a new enterprise risk framework for gen AI that might help. Marc answered questions about that framework when we caught up with him at the IIA International Conference. 

Edith Wong has taken her experience in forensic accounting into the world of sustainability. We caught up with her at the IIA International Conference to talk about her career and what she calls the “green audit trail.” Listen in.

In honor of National Whistleblower Day, we talk with WorldCom whistleblower Cynthia Cooper about finding the courage to speak up. We ask her why her story is still so relevant today, roughly two decades after WorldCom's CFO and CEO were sentenced over a multibillion-dollar fraud. Read more in Cynthia's book, Extraordinary Circumstances. See Cynthia in person in Denver at Amplify 2024, the conference that brings together audit, risk, accounting, finance, and sustainability professionals. 

Hit that "subscribe" button and follow us to catch all of our upcoming episodes with speakers from the 2024 IIA International Conference. Learn more about the IIA Global Internal Audit Standards hereRead this article to see how you can leverage tech to enhance audit quality and conform with the new StandardsCheck out the "Conformance Readiness Assessment Tool" from the IIA here.

We're riding the waves of change with KeyBank Chief Accounting Officer Stacy Gilbert in this episode recorded outside the New York Stock Exchange.Stacy talks with us about finance transformation, generative AI, and how accounting leaders are in a position to lead their organizations through change.Hit that "subscribe" button to catch all of our upcoming episodes with more accounting and finance leaders. 

Today Chris Pettit is the Vice President of Accounting at Keurig Dr. Pepper Inc., but he's been an accounting leader for years. In this episode, recorded in front of the New York Stock Exchange, he shares how networking, trust, and listening have each played a role in his career—plus suggestions on all of the above.He also tells Off the Books co-hosts Steve Soter, Catherine Tsai, and Mike Gravagno one important aspect of a future accounting leader.Subscribe or follow us wherever you catch your podcasts so you don't miss our next upcoming episode outside the NYSE. 

The Hershey Co. North America Controller Jonathan Gregory is back to talk about the many flavors of transformation, from finance transformation to career growth and the evolution of technology. Hit that little “subscribe” button to watch all of our upcoming episodes from outside the NYSE. 

Hit the "subscribe" button to watch all of our upcoming episodes from outside the New York Stock Exchange!

From outside the New York Stock Exchange, Steve talks to Nick Mazing of AlphaSense about that special something that keeps capital markets going: transparent financial reporting. They get into IPOs, the evolution of financial reporting, and AI. Check out the full episode.

See what Nancy Golembiewski said when she was asked what she would do differently from her first initial public offering.Missed the first part of our chat with Nancy? Find it here!

Taking a company public is no small feat. Nancy Golembiewski had been through one initial public offering before she joined Duolingo as a controller to help with its IPO. Listen as she takes us back to her very first IPO.“Follow” us or subscribe so you don't miss Part 2 of our chat with Nancy.

Steve and Catherine got to ask a former SEC regional director two big questions: Just how much should a CEO know about operations? What's up with the SEC climate disclosure rule now that it's stayed? David Peavler of Jones Day shares his perspective and blows their minds! Listen now.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board's NOCLAR proposal has caused quite a stir in the audit community.  Matt Kelly, Editor and CEO of Radical Compliance, joins Steve and Catherine to share more about what the NOCLAR audit proposal is, why many audit firms are expressing concerns about it, and what audit committees are asking about it. Tune in to get all the details! Read Matt Kelly's article on NOCLAR here: https://www.radicalcompliance.com/2024/02/27/noclar-audit-proposal-keeps-going/Hear more from Matt Kelly on the SEC's climate-related and cybersecurity disclosure rules: https://www.workiva.com/resources/reading-tea-leaves-predictions-cybersecurity-chatgpt-and-more, https://www.workiva.com/resources/audit-and-risk-prep-sec-climate-rule

Now that the SEC climate disclosure rule is final, Off the Books hosts Steve Soter and Catherine Tsai bring Matt Kelly of Radical Compliance back on the show to dive into what it means for internal audit and risk teams.Hear more from Matt on the SEC cybersecurity rule in this podcast episodeLearn more about how audit and risk teams can prepare for ESG assuranceGet a full summary of the SEC climate disclosure rule in this blog post

Off the Books takes on two movies up for our consideration as the best accounting movie of all time, and they're both documentaries—Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room and All the Queen's Horses. Hear what Steve, Catherine, and Mike think of these two films.For a look back at all the movies in the running for best accounting movie, check out the original episode (and movie bracket).For more accounting fun, follow us or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts so you don't miss any new episodes.

After working with global companies, Nick Gerostathos got into the venture capital and private equity game, helping companies on the road to going public. Today he's the Chief Accounting Officer and Corporate Controller at Talkdesk. Catherine Tsai and Josh Gertsch ask him about challenges facing private companies.

Tom Rams, Charles Silvey, and Waseem Samaan stopped by the Off the Books Studio at Amplify to talk about the state of global audit. The three internal audit leaders shared their thoughts on ESG, curiosity, gen AI, career advice, and so much more. Tune in!

In light of the SEC's new climate-related disclosure rule, the ESG Talk and Off the Books podcast crews huddled to make sense of it all.In this episode, Steve Soter asks Mandi McReynolds, head of ESG at Workiva, and Andie Wood, Vice President of Regulatory Strategy at Workiva, for their thoughts.Then Jonathan Gregory, North America Controller at The Hershey Co., and Alan Wilson, Partner at WilmerHale, share their initial reactions, what surprised them in the rule, and some of their questions about the rule in the weeks and months to come.Subscribe to ESG Talk and Off the Books as we continue the conversation in the year ahead.

It's another movie episode! Could Stranger Than Fiction, a quiet, metatextual Will Ferrell indie rom-com actually be the best accounting movie? Will Mike get too defensive about one of his favorite movies? Can a movie about writing a novel capture the life of an IRS auditor? Tune in!

Follow Off the Books so you don't miss any of our upcoming interviews of accounting and finance leaders!You can find all our episodes at workiva.com/off-the-books-podcast.

Follow Off the Books so you don't miss any of our upcoming interviews of accounting, finance, and risk leaders at Amplify.

Believe it or not, a dental hygienist helped nudge Amy Hafen of AstraZeneca down the path to becoming a financial controls director. Mike and Catherine caught up with Amy at the Workiva Amplify conference to ask her more about it on this episode of Off the Books. Follow Off the Books so you don't miss any of our upcoming interviews of accounting, finance, and risk leaders.

Off the Books is back with updates on a few hot topics, including the SEC cybersecurity rule and SEC comment letters on climate-related disclosures. Nicola White of Bloomberg and Nick Mazing of AlphaSense pop in to tell Steve, Catherine, and Mike what's new.Hit that “Follow” button for Off the Books wherever you hear your podcasts to catch updates on these topics and more throughout the year.

Matt Kelly of Radical Compliance returns! Catherine and Steve pepper him with questions about defining a material cybersecurity event, whether or not ChatGPT is going to replace us all, new regulations, and more! Tune in.

Arthy Kumar, Workiva Industry Principal for Investments and Financial Services, stops by to answer producer Mike's questions about the SEC! What's the deal with the SEC private fund regulations? How is it changing the private fund industry? What's the SEC approval process for naming funds? Find out:

When Thermon Inc. Vice President and Corporate Controller Greg Lucas plotted his course for becoming a CFO, controller, or finance leader, he thought about it from the perspective of a hiring manager.“I wanted to almost take away every excuse that a hiring manager would have not to hire me,” he quipped.Steve and Catherine asked Greg to share his list of six things hiring managers look for when filling accounting and finance roles. Listen in!