Ian Ball
IFAC Chief Executive Officer
Ian Ball has been the Chief Executive Officer of IFAC since March 2002. In this role, Ball has responsibility for developing and managing the execution of IFAC’s strategy. He leads a staff of professionals who support independent standard-setting boards in the areas of auditing and assurance, ethics, accounting education, and public sector financial reporting. IFAC staff is also involved in developing guidance and in delivering a range of other programs to support professional accountants worldwide in providing high-quality service to their clients or employers.
Ian Ball previously served as a member of IFAC’s Nominating Committee and as Chairman of its Public Sector Committee. In the latter role, from 1995 to 2000, he initiated the development of international standards for public sector financial reporting. Prior to assuming his current position, he was Principal of Public Sector Performance (NZ) Ltd. and Professor of Accounting and Public Policy at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, a position he still holds. From 1987 through 1994, he was with the New Zealand Treasury, first as Director of Financial Management Policy and then as Central Financial Controller.
Ball is a Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants, where he served as a member of the Council and of the Executive Board, and of CPA Australia. He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy in the United Kingdom. He has degrees in accounting from Victoria University of Wellington and a PhD from the University of Birmingham, England.
