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Terry Colip
Terry Colip, Chief financial officer-
of Cell Point is the corporate officer primarily responsible for managing the
financial risks of the business or agency.
This officer is also responsible for
financial planning and record-keeping, as well as financial reporting to higher
management. (In recent years, however, the role has expanded to encompass
communicating financial performance and forecasts to the analyst community.) The
title is equivalent to finance director, commonly seen in the United Kingdom.
The CFO typically reports to the Chief Executive Officer, and is frequently a
member of the board of directors. ,
The United States federal government has seen a
trend in recent years to incorporate more elements of business-sector practices
in its management approaches, including the use of the CFO position (alongside,
for example, an increased use of the CIO title within public agencies).
The Chief Financial Officers Act (or CFO Act) was signed into law by President
George H.W. Bush in 1990.[1] For each of 23 federal agencies, the position of
chief financial officer was created. Since that time, federal efforts have been
intended to improve the government's financial management and develop standards
of financial performance and disclosure.
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) holds primary responsibility for
financial management standardization and improvement. Within OMB, the Deputy
Director for Management is the chief official responsible for financial
management in the United States Government; the position was established by the
CFO Act.[2]
The Office of Federal Financial Management (OFFM) is specifically charged with
overseeing financial management matters, establishing financial management
policies and requirements, and monitoring the establishment and operation of
federal financial management systems. OFFM is lead by a Controller.
The CFO Act also established the CFO Council, consisting of the CFOs and Deputy
CFOs of the largest federal agencies and senior officials of OMB and
Treasury.[3][4] Its mandate is to work collaboratively to improve financial
management in the U.S. government and "advise and coordinate the activities of
the agencies of its members" in the areas of financial management and
accountability. The Council is lead by the Deputy Director for Management of
OMB; members are: the Controller of OFFM, the Fiscal Assistant Secretary of
Treasury, and the CFOs of 23 large and significant federal agencies.
OMB Circular A-123 (issued 21 December 2004) defines the management
responsibilities for internal financial controls in federal agencies and
addressed to all federal CFOs, CIOs, and Program Managers. The circular is a
re-examination of the existing internal control requirements for federal
agencies and was initiated in light of the new internal control requirements for
publicly-traded companies contained in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
[edit] Performance
While "significant progress" in improving federal financial management has
reportedly been made since the federal government began preparing consolidated
financial statements, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that
"major impediments continue to prevent [GAO] from rendering an opinion." [5] In
December 2006, the GAO announced that for the 10th consecutive year, the GAO was
prevented from expressing an opinion on the consolidated financial statements of
the government due to a number of material weaknesses related to financial
systems, fundamental recordkeeping, and financial reporting.
At the same time, in calendar year 2007, the CFOC announced that for the second
consecutive year, every major federal agency completed its Performance and
Accountability Report just 45 days after the end of the fiscal year (2006).[6]
Terry
Managing Partner & CFO
Cell>Point, LLC
7120 E. Orchard Rd., Suite 355
Centennial, Colorado 80111
www.cellpointweb.com
(303) 689-9693
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