The SEC and our nation's stock exchanges must encourage, as a best
practice, that public companies conduct a periodic review of their
audit firm. member firm of Grant Thornton
International, a global accounting, tax and business advisory organization. Visit Grant Thornton LLP at
http://www.

The IT Controls GTAG and a pre-release draft of Change and Patch
Management Controls GTAG are currently available in electronic format
(PDF) at www. It serves as the internal audit profession's global voice,
recognized authority , acknowledged leader, principal educator, and
chief advocate.

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Speakers will discuss the
applications of the Manual for investors and analysts.
While the event is complimentary for journalists, space is
limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis. is a non-profit
association founded in 1946 as a forum for the exchange of information
for the investment community. Nusbaum said that the high level of concentration
in the accounting profession is the result of decades of consolidation, the
fall of Andersen, and unchecked liability exposure that prevents smaller firms
from competing.

4.

Sharing best practices - including audit procedures, evaluation of
fraud risk and possibly even audit software - among the leading audit
firms would significantly enhance audit effectiveness and increase
public confidence in quality audits. It also provides guidance for
discussing IT risk management strategies across the enterprise with
senior management and audit committees.org.

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About Grant Thornton
Grant Thornton LLP is the U.

About The IIA

Established in 1941, The IIA has more than 100,000 members
worldwide.

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The PCAOB and the audit profession must implement coordinated best
practices for the audit process, and firms must periodically assess
whether or not they have the requisite attributes to serve specific
clients. Particular emphasis is placed on technologies and
processes likely to be of concern to senior management and audit
committees.
The material provided in the global series includes input from a
wide range of sources including audit and security experts, board
members, chief executives, financial executives , technology providers,
and IT and security executives.

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For Thursday (

Luncheon Event to Mark the Publication of the Corporate Governance of
Listed Companies: a Manual for Investors

WHAT: The Boston Security Analysts Society (BSAS) and the CFA
Centre for Financial Market Integrity invite journalists to
attend a luncheon presentation to mark the completion of
The Corporate Governance of Listed Companies: A Manual for
Investors . Misperceptions among capital markets influencers who believe
only the four largest firms are capable of auditing public companies further
limits company choice, he added.
Through member firms in 110 countries, including 49 offices in the United
States, the partners and employees of Grant Thornton member firms provide
personalized attention and the highest quality service to public and private
clients around the globe.

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com. Auditors must facilitate this
process by reaching out to and increasing their visibility with
gatekeeper groups.

The Institute of Internal Auditors Issues Series of Reports Establishing IT-Audit Best Practices and Organization Workflow; Global Technology Audit Guides Prov

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SPEAKERS: Jeffrey Diermeier, CFA, CEO and president, CFA Institute
Kurt Schacht, CFA, executive director,
CFA Centre for Financial Market Integrity
Skip Berents, CFA, CIO, North American Management Corp. A debate and discussion on the topic of caps on auditor liability
exposure must begin.

Business Editors/High -Tech Writers

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla.

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Grant Thornton LLP Announces Five Steps to Increased Choice and Competition for Public Companies and Auditors

----The
Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA ) has released Global Technology
Audit Guide (GTAG), a series of reports for chief internal audit
executives (CAEs) and their staffs intended to provide
governance-level guidance and thought leadership for specific
technology areas."
"What's lacking is good, non-technical guidance including
practices for assessing and maintaining internal controls that meet
effectiveness, efficiency, and regulatory and best-practice
requirements of any organization," said Jay R.

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We have over 4,000 members, including
portfolio managers, analysts, and members of various associated
professions.

Matching company size, complexity and requirements with firm size and
capabilities, companies may very well reaffirm their decision to
continue working with their current audit firm.

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5. This makes it difficult for smaller firms to compete. It
provides a framework for assessing IT controls and explains the
importance of incorporating audit best practices into IT controls in a
way that allows CAEs to more effectively communicate the need to their
colleagues.

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WHERE: Boston Harbor Hotel
70 Rowes Wharf (near Seaport Boulevard)

TO ATTEND: Please RSVP by April 12 to Dori Pasternak at
dori.

3.

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Luncheon and Presentation: 12:30-2:00 p. Public company boards and audit committees must embrace the new market
realities and "right-size" their audit firm. This cannot be allowed to continue. Firms should be
accountable for their work, but not for the vagaries of market
psychology.

I feel this is really something that has not been available
to CAEs and audit committees in the past -- good, solid IT material in
management's language.

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ABOUT BSAS + CFA CENTRE FOR FINANCIAL MARKET INTEGRITY:

The Boston Security Analysts Society, Inc.

To eliminate this barrier to entry and promote competition in the
accounting profession, the insurance industry , elected officials, the
accounting profession, businesses and others in the capital markets
must work together to implement liability caps.com.
Available free-of-charge electronically , the GTAG series will be a
ready resource for CAEs to use in the assessment of
technology-associated risks, the implementation of recommended best
practices, and the education of members of the board and audit
committee, management, process owners and others who drive governance
of IT resources .

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Companies and other capital markets influencers - including investors,
analysts, commercial and investment bankers, and attorneys - must
recognize the new paradigm between companies and their external audit
firms and open the door to more audit firm choices.

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The Manual is a global, comprehensive guide that
helps investors assess a company's corporate governance
policies, recognize and understand the risks associated
with corporate governance policies and learn where to go to
find relevant information. But, they also may
find that another firm combines the same or better technical expertise
with service , attention and market or industry expertise that makes
for a better fit. Taylor, general
director of Information Technology Audit at General Motors
Corporation.theiia.

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"Effectively matching company size and requirements
with firm size and capabilities allows companies to find the best combination
of quality, service, value and reach, and protects markets by spreading risk
among a greater number of firms," he said. Influencers must reach
out to the broader array of audit firm choices and conduct proper due
diligence before discouraging a company from selecting a non-Big Four
firm better suited to meet its needs.

The possibility of being held responsible not only for the magnitude
of an error but also for the current market psychology and valuation
levers for an individual company creates what could become unlimited
liability . The next guide, Change and Patch Management
Controls: Critical for Organizational Success, will be available this
summer and will provide guidance for evaluating and mitigating
change-management risks, as well as complying with constantly changing
regulatory requirements.

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Business Editors
ADVISORY.m.S. The GTAG series provides practitioners tools that
enable process improvement, enhanced challenge resolution, and
compliance attestation.

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.

Because the best audits are completed when companies and audit firms
are appropriately matched, auditors should also evaluate their
resources in relation to client needs to determine if they are still
appropriately matched in terms of size and service capabilities.GrantThornton.
"The role of the CAE has changed dramatically over the past
decade, influenced significantly by the increased complexity of IT and
the frequency and severity of corporate frauds, compliance mandates,
and cyber attacks," says IIA President Dave Richards.

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Created to develop timely,
practical solutions to global capital market issues, the CFA Centre
advances investors' interests by promoting the highest standards of
ethics and professionalism within the investment community worldwide.

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WHEN: Thursday, April 14 , 2005 - 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm
Registration: 12:15 p.pasternak@ogilvypr.
The CFA Centre for Financial Market Integrity is the research and
policy center of CFA Institute, the global, non -profit professional
association that administers the prestigious Chartered Financial
Analyst(R ) (CFA(R)) program worldwide.
"Sarbanes-Oxley -- not to mention the numerous accounting failures leading
up to it -- has dramatically changed the audit environment," CEO Ed Nusbaum
told members of The National Press Club in Washington on Friday.

As a matter of good governance and good business, companies should be
encouraged to periodically evaluate their audit firm to be sure they
are getting the best combination of quality, service, value and reach
from their firm.

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.
Managing Partner of Strategic Relationships Cono Fusco further explained
that there is an array of firms capable of serving the varying and diverse
needs of public companies . "GTAG helps by cutting through the jargon associated with
IT audits and explaining the risks and key controls in business
language. The Institute monitors legislation, regulations, and
pronouncements of other professional organizations throughout the
world on matters that directly or indirectly impact the practice of
internal auditing It provides the International Standards for the
Professional Practice of Internal Auditing, and offers a variety of
leading-edge professional development opportunities , a comprehensive
certification program, thorough quality assessment services,
benchmarking surveys , and valuable research reports and educational
products through The IIA Research Foundation.

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"But there is
also another, less-reported factor in play, and that's the ongoing
consolidation and resulting concentration in the accounting profession.

2.

There are more than four audit firms capable of serving public
companies, but misperceptions in the capital markets pre-empt company
choices.
Future editions of the GTAG series will address topics such as
assessing controls for change and patch management, continuous
monitoring, and privacy.

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m. The BSAS is a founding member Society of CFA Institute,
an international organization of analysts' societies with over 70,000
members worldwide.
Past standards and guidelines developed by CFA Institute - standards
that will now be overseen by the CFA Centre for Financial Market
Integrity - include the Global Investment Performance Standards
(GIPS(R)), AIMR-Performance Presentation Standards (AIMR -PPS(R)),
Research Objectivity Standards, Soft Dollar Standards and Trade
Management Guidelines

"
The first GTAG, Information Technology Controls, provides an
overview of the key components of IT control assessment with an
emphasis on the roles and responsibilities for key constituents . To ensure the guides written to date
are accurate from legal, insurance, regulatory, and standards
perspectives, several GTAG partners were involved in the review
process including the American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants (AICPA), Center for Internet Security (CIS), Canadian
Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), Carnegie Melon University
Software Engineering Institute (CMU SEI ), International Federation of
Accountants (IFAC), Information Systems Security Association (ISSA ),
National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), and SANS
Institute. Hard copies soon will be available for
purchase from The IIA Bookstore.

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"
Citing a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study, which found that 97
percent of public companies with sales between $250 million and $5 billion are
audited by the Big Four, Mr. "Today's
internal auditors offer the essential controls expertise necessary to
protect critical organizational infrastructure -- from technology to
management workflow.

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ADVISORY/Boston Security Analysts Society and CFA Centre Hosts: ''Understanding and Analyzing Corporate Governance Issues''

WASHINGTON, Calling on regulators, public company
boards and executives, auditors and other capital markets influencers to take
action to protect capital markets and investors, Grant Thornton LLP announced
its Five Steps to Increased Choice and Competition for Public Companies and
Auditors.
To accomplish this objective and to protect markets, Grant Thornton LLP
proposes the following Five Steps to Increased Choice and Competition for
Public Companies and Auditors:

1. The series takes a pragmatic approach by transforming
the mass of information, including many of the numerous control
frameworks organizations are confronted with today, into valuable
guidance for analyzing IT controls.

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