Audit Firms and Corporate Clients: How it Works

Wake Forest University Schools of Business will present a unique look inside the relationships between audit firms and their corporate clients as part of the Hylton Lecture Series.

“Partners & Clients: See how it works!” is Thursday, March 24, from 4:15-6:15 pm in the Annenberg Forum located inside Carswell Hall on the Wake Forest University campus. The event is free and open to the public.

Dean of Business Steve Reinemund will serve as moderator of a lively discussion with PricewaterhouseCoopers partners and their clients from American Express and Exxon-Mobil. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for both American Express and ExxonMobil, and will add perspective to the discussion from a board member’s point of view.

“We have assembled a remarkable panel which will reveal how these relationships work,” Reinemund said. “Having an understanding of these important relationships is valuable, regardless of your career interest.”

Panelists will include:

• Joan Lordi Amble: executive vice president and corporate comptroller, American Express Co.
• Ward Hamm: partner in the banking and capital markets practice of PricewaterhouseCoopersLLP
• Patrick T. Mulva: vice president and controller, Exxon Mobil Corp.
• Jonathan H. Mullins: PricewaterhouseCoopers Global Audit Engagement Partner for Exxon Mobil Corp.

Panelists will discuss such topics as: regulations and how they affect clients, auditors and corporate boards; conflict management and resolution; differences in corporate hierarchies and systems; and how to succeed in accounting careers.

The Hylton Lecture Series in Accountancy was established in 1980 to honor Delmar P. Hylton, who started Wake Forest’s accountancy program in 1949 and helped build it into one of the top accounting programs in the nation.