David Gergen To Deliver Keynote At Upcoming KPMG Accounting & Financial Reporting Symposium

NEW YORK, Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm, announced today that David Gergen, an advisor to four U.S. Presidents and a senior political analyst for CNN, will serve as the keynote speaker at its 22nd Annual Accounting and Financial Reporting Symposium being held November 29-30 at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas.

"This year's election will impact business leaders in unprecedented ways – from the future of corporate governance and tax policy to healthcare reform," says Jim Liddy, head of the audit practice for KPMG LLP. "With his experience and insights, David Gergen is the perfect guide for our attendees to the post-election landscape."

KPMG Executive Education's two-day Accounting and Financial Reporting Symposium provides corporate executives with the latest insights on important technical and regulatory issues and developments impacting year-end reporting, along with technical compliance topics and new practices in financial leadership. This year's agenda includes sessions on accounting change and operational risk management, the future of financial statement preparation, and a controllers' roundtable. To learn more about this year's KPMG symposium and to register, go to www.execed.kpmg.com.

In addition to Gergen, noted consultant and lecturer Thomas Donaldson, the Mark O. Winkelman Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and director of the Zicklin Center for Business Ethics Research, will speak about systemic risks that companies face today.

"From the Aspen Ideas Festival to the United Nations, Tom Donaldson has shared his insights business ethics, risk management, and corporate governance in some of the most prestigious venues you could imagine," says Liddy. "His address promises to be a thought-provoking and engaging beginning to the Symposium."

These outstanding speakers will be joined by other industry, accounting and regulatory professionals with extensive knowledge and experience, who will discuss recent guidance from the FASB and SEC and share their experiences in dealing with today's most important leadership issues.

About David Gergen
David Gergen is a senior political analyst for CNN and has served as an adviser to four U.S. presidents. He is a professor of public service at the Harvard Kennedy School and the director of its Center for Public Leadership. In 2000, he published the best-selling book, Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton. Gergen joined the Nixon White House in 1971, as a staff assistant on the speech writing team, and went on to work in the administration of Gerald Ford and as an adviser to the 1980 George H.W. Bush presidential campaign. He then served as Director of Communications for Ronald Reagan and as adviser to Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Warren Christopher on domestic and foreign affairs.

About Thomas Donaldson
Thomas Donaldson has consulted and lectured at many organizations on a wide range of issues related to risk management, including the Business Roundtable, the United Nations, the AMA, the IMF, the World Bank and a host of Fortune 500 companies. He is a regular commentator in electronic and print media, ranging from the Today Show and MSNBC to, the Wall Street Journal and Newsweek. 

About KPMG's Executive Education
From basic and advanced technical accounting courses and seminars for CPE Credit to in-depth conferences, KPMG's Executive Education provides a range of effective continuing education learning experiences for corporate executives and their staffs in the accounting, finance and business management professions. To learn more, and find registration information for the Annual Accounting and Financial Reporting Symposium, go to http://www.execed.kpmg.com.

About KPMG LLP
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.kpmg.com/us), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International.") KPMG International's member firms have 145,000 people, including more than 8,000 partners, in 152 countries.

Contact: Robert Nihen/Kevin Zimmerman
KPMG LLP
201-307-8296/8201

SOURCE KPMG LLP