PCAOB chair Jim Logothetis has been on the job since February 10—in finance parlance, more than a quarter. At the Institute of Management Accountants’ 2026 Accounting and Finance Conference in Tampa, Florida, earlier this month, he shared what he’s learned and his priorities for the board going forward.

Reputational concerns. Logothetis raised concerns about the visibility and reputation of the PCAOB. During his first months on the job, he “was also surprised in a negative way, you might say, at the credibility of the organization,” he said, noting that that board has become too political. “Unfortunately, from what I can tell,” he said, “the organization, just like many regulators, has been politicized.” The PCAOB, he argued, needs to be apolitical and retain its focus on professional skepticism and what’s best for investors.

Logothetis also said that “many people around the country, from politicians on down to preparers, don’t really know enough or much about the PCAOB.” The organization “should not be kind of a black box,” he said. To address this issue, he plans to increase stakeholder engagement with the board, noting that it recently solicited public comments on its strategic plan for the first time in its 24-year history.

“We received 80, I would say, significant comment letters, and I have them all off my desk, and it was eye-opening,” he said, adding that he and his staff plan to, with the help of AI, summarize the comments and map them to a first draft of the strategic plan.

The lack of technology investment by the PCAOB is a problem.—CV

Half full or half empty? CFOs said: Por qué no los dos?

CFOs continue to spend big on technology investments despite waning economic confidence, according to a new Grant Thornton survey, which polled 232 finance leaders from April 28 to May 11.

Those with the half-empty point of view now outnumber the half-full folks: Only 37% of CFOs expressed optimism about the US economy in the next six months, marking the lowest level recorded for that question since the survey began in Q3 2021. That’s a distinctly half-empty take.

All the while, 67% of finance leaders anticipate increasing their IT and digital transformation spending. Taken together, the two stats point to “a growing disconnect between investment ambition and confidence in execution,” per the report’s authors.

The glass is half empty elsewhere, too. Confidence in meeting supply chain needs dropped to 43% from 58%, while just 42% of respondents (compared with 51% last quarter) said they felt confident about their ability to meet cost control goals. Still, a large majority (87%) plan cost reduction initiatives, up from 71% in Q1.

But what are their projections for inflation and profits?—NP

When SpaceX went public on June 12, some 4,400 employees were expected to become millionaires, according to an analysis shared on X by the founder of Hill Markets, an investment platform.

Now that SpaceX has officially debuted with the biggest IPO in history, employees that have amassed equity in the company over the years have to figure out what to do with shares worth millions of dollars.

Employers can offer a variety of benefits to support workers with equity after a major liquidity event like this, sources told us. In addition to helping employees manage a windfall of new wealth, HR teams have to consider how to retain these workers, as well.

The most pressing questions for employees. When a company goes public, “the IPO itself is actually the starting gun, not the finish line,” Nick Avery, chief people officer with Carta, a platform for managing private capital, told HR Brew via email.

HR Brew on how to support and retain new millionaire employees.—CV

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