This Week in XBRL: What Makes an XBRL Expert?

In a continued effort to educate on the development of XBRL technology in industries such as financial services (and beyond), Merrill Corporation will share articles and columns published on the topic.

The Global XBRL Team at Ernst & Young is looking for an XBRL specialist. We already have a job, but we thought it would be interesting to see what qualifications are required for the lofty title of ‘XBRL Specialist.’ The job posting begins with the kind of language one would expect:

Candidates for this role need a real enthusiasm for the technical aspects of financial reporting. They should be able to communicate fluently, both written and verbal, to audiences in accountancy circles.

After that, the group gets a little more specific.

The role:

Internationally focused

IFRS-focused XBRL Taxonomy design and review

Tagging of model IFRS financial statements

Analysing and consuming data from IFRS statements in XBRL

Writing and testing business rules

Evaluating software

Training and supporting clients required to report their IFRS financial statements in XBRL

Supporting the IASB, EBA and related international working groups.

What you will need:

A degree educated candidate, achieving 2:1 or above

Qualified accountant (ACA or CIMA) with good exam record

Experience working on the production of statutory accounts in IFRS

Flexibility for frequent international travel

Real technical facilitation experience - advantageous

A real enthusiasm for information technology

Broad experience applied in problem solving

Highly PC literate, with a knowledge of MS-Excel & Word

Assertive and proactive approach to the delivery/implementation of projects

Demonstrable project management experience a real advantage

Real technical facilitation experience an advantage

Strong communication skills written and verbal, communicating at all levels, in a clear, concise and fluent manner as dictated by the needs of the audience.

Intimidated? One thing you may notice with a second look is that very few of these requirements involve XBRL. One would assume that a job posting for an XBRL specialist would ask for someone to be a specialist in XBRL! Perhaps there is a reason for this oversight. Perhaps, XBRL isn’t that complicated after all.

FierceComplianceIT.com has collated a list of ten tips for anyone wanting to be an XBRL expert. The most important tip is number 4.

Recognize that XBRL is simply a different way of expressing the same financial information. - The SEC, HTML and XBRL filing formats are two different mediums for expressing exactly the same information. With the XBRL format, however, you can use automated computer processes to check that information ticks and ties correctly.

XBRL can be a daunting language to approach blindly, and the year two requirements have many companies and consultants scratching their heads. With a little research, a little help, and a little planning, you can breeze through your XBRL filing this year.

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Merrill Corporation is proud to offer XBRL Complete, a suite of services that meets - and has options to exceed – the mandated requirements for XBRL for mutual funds. For more information, please click here or call 866-367-9110.