Professor Ed Ketz of Penn State joins the show to discuss audits' current state and future. We delve into the relevance of audits and explore the value of unqualified opinions in making audits meaningful. The discussion also touches on the overstandardization of audit reports and how this can lead to investor misunderstandings. Professor Ketz brings a unique perspective, sparking a debate on whether the existence of the unqualified opinion creates value rather than the content within. The episode ends with a brainstorm on potential regulation improvements to improve audit quality and usefulness. Meet Our Guest, Ed Ketz Website: https://directory.smeal.psu.edu/k55 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-ketz-7982421a7 Need CPE? Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.com Get in Touch Thanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and write a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Call us and leave a voicemail; maybe we'll play it on the show. DIAL (202) 695-1040. Sponsorships Are you interested in sponsoring the Cloud Accounting Podcast? For details, read the prospectus. Need Accounting Conference Info?  Check out our new website - accountingconferences.com Limited edition shirts, stickers, and other necessities TeePublic Store: http://cloudacctpod.link/merch Subscribe Apple Podcasts: http://cloudacctpod.link/ApplePodcastsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAccountingPodcastSpotify: http://cloudacctpod.link/SpotifyPodchaser: http://cloudacctpod.link/podchaserStitcher: http://cloudacctpod.link/StitcherOvercast: http://cloudacctpod.link/Overcast Classifieds Want to get the word out about your newsletter, webinar, party, Facebook group, podcast, e-book, job posting, or that fancy Excel macro you just created? Let the listeners of The Accounting Podcast know by running a classified ad. Go here to create your classified ad: https://cloudacctpod.link/RunClassifiedAd Transcripts The full transcript for this episode is available by clicking on the Transcript tab at the top of this page