Kevin Stevenson
Biography
After graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne in 1970, Kevin Stevenson joined the then firm of Fell & Starkey (antecedent of the present-day Ernst & Young), first working in audit and then establishing their technical research department. He completed a Master of Business Administration from the Melbourne Business School in 1976. From 2015, he also worked closely with the department as a Professorial Fellow and then as an Enterprise Professor and director of the Department’s Centre for Accounting and Industry Partnerships (until 2023). He served as a member of the Department’s Executive from 2015 till 2022.
In November 1976 Kevin joined the Australian Accounting Research Foundation (AARF), becoming Technical and Executive Director from the end of 1979. In the ensuing 10 years, Kevin was intimately involved in furthering the establishment of standard-setting in Australia and in building its reputation internationally.
In 1989 Kevin joined the then Coopers & Lybrand as their National Technical Partner. He later served as the Senior Technical Partner in the merged firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). As the Victorian Regional Industry Partner and National Partner for Government and Services Industries he was heavily involved in advising government during the major privatisation activities from 1995 to 1998. Never far from his standard-setting background, Kevin continued to organise annual conferences through the Coopers & Lybrand Accounting and Education Foundation on public interest topics bringing together academics, practitioners and public servants. With Professor Peter Brownell and Professor Bob Officer, he established the Coopers & Lybrand Visiting Professor Programme to assist universities to develop their research skills. He was the first non-academic elected to the board of what was the then Accounting Association of Australia and New Zealand (now Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ)).
In 1999 with Warren McGregor, Kevin established the boutique advisory firm of Stevenson McGregor to provide high level advice to international clients and governments thereby utilising their detailed knowledge of the international accounting scene. This included working with the Asian Development Bank supported by the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia (ICAA) to establish the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Nepal (ICAN). The firm ceased to exist in 2001 when Warren McGregor was appointed as the Australian board representative to the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in London. Soon after, Kevin was appointed Director of Technical Activities at the IASB. Between 2002 and 2005 Kevin led the technical division of the IASB during the seminal period that established IFRS standards globally.
Kevin was also, from 2002 to 2005, the Foundation Chairman of the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC), dealing with the jurisdictional issues arising from the implementation of IFRSs. He contributed to international developments around IFRS versus US GAAP, conceptual frameworks, measurement, business combinations, structured finance and entities, revenue recognition and lease accounting. He was also exposed to the political interventions in accounting standard-setting at the international level. His activities included management of IASB's 2005 Platform, significant involvement in all IFRSs and International Accounting Standards on issue and all but a few IFRICs, origination of the current conceptual framework project, management of the convergence process, management of the agenda and proceedings of the IASB's Advisory Council, liaison with world standard-setters, IASB/Federal Accounting Standards Board coordination, chairman of the Share-Based Payments Steering Committee, Coordinator of the IASB's Analysts Advisory Committee and participant in financial instruments round-tables.
On his return to Melbourne in 2005, Kevin re-joined PwC as the Senior Partner, Melbourne for their Global Capital Markets Group in a corporate advisory role. He played a leading role in the group’s IFRS activities in the Asia-Pacific.
Kevin was the appointed Chair and CEO of the AASB from 2009 until 30 June 2014. In view of his AASB role, he was also a member of the New Zealand Accounting Standards Board and a Member of the Financial Reporting Council. In these roles he is responsible to the government for the application of the IFRSs in Australia thereby playing a central role in the accountability and transparency of entities producing general-purpose financial reports. He held those roles to 30 June 2015.
Kevin was involved in the establishment and development of the Asian-Oceanian Standard-Setters Group (AOSSG) which provides an important forum for the (currently) 26-member jurisdictions from the region, and maintains a close relation with the IFRS Foundation, the IASB and other international bodies. As the Chair and CEO of the AASB, he fostered cooperation between the AOSSG working groups by providing technical input to the Accounting Standards Advisory Forum (ASAF) of the IASB. He promoted the formation of a Centre of Excellence in Nepal through the Nepal Accounting Standards Board. As one of the 12 national standard-setters appointed to ASAF, which commenced in April 2013, he was directly involved in IASB agenda discussions, including those on the revision of the conceptual framework.
In 2012, Kevin served as the first executive-in-residence in the Department of Accounting at the University of Melbourne.
In 2015, Kevin and Warren McGregor recommenced their consulting firm, specialised in financial reporting advice.
Also, in 2015, Kevin became a part time Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne, and from 2017 a Melbourne Enterprise Professor at that University (60% fractional), helping to connect the academe and business.
Kevin is a Fellow of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia and CPA Australia and is a member of AFAANZ. He has held honorary roles at the University of Queensland, Monash University and, prior to his current roles, in the Department of Accounting, the University of Melbourne, his alma mater.
Awards/citations:
*Business Review Weekly's "Accountant of the Year 1988" for contribution to standard-setting. (1988)
*The Australian Financial Review's "Accountant of the Decade 1989" for his contribution to standard-setting. (1989)
*Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia Meritorious Service Award (2001) for contribution to practice.
*University of Melbourne Medal (2006) for delivering the University of Melbourne/CPA annual research lecture.
*Chamber of Commerce Exhibition (final year B.Com.) and Sir Alex Fitzgerald Exhibition (final year MBA), The University of Melbourne.
*Inducted into the Australian Accounting Hall of Fame. 2013.
* In 2015, Kevin was admitted to the Order of Australia as an AM.
Seminars
Seminar 1 - The research needs of Accounting Standard Setters - Opportunities for linkage with various fields of academic research
Seminar 2 - "IFRS 2" - the next wave of financial reporting requirements: Opportunities for pre and post research
Training Materials
Kevin headed a team that rewrote the training materials used by the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs to instruct candidates wishing to practice in accounting.
Research Interests
Kevin engaged in research, with his colleague Prof Mat Pinnuck, into the use by standard-setters of academic research.,
Among other topics he researched the accounting in Australia for the liabilities arising from asbestos exposure. This he did with Prof Naomi Soderstrom, Mr Warren McGregor and Associate Professor Brad Potter.
Downloads
Analysing Financial Statements (PDF)
Auditing Interpretation and Assurance (PDF)
Corporate Reporting - Standard-setting processes and programmes (PDF)
Research needs and opportunities coming from standard-setting (PDF)