Leslie French Seidman

Leslie French Seidman is an independent director for General Electric and Moody’s corporations where she serves as the chair of the Audit Committee (for both companies), as well as serving on other committees. She was the founding director of the Center for Excellence in Financial Reporting at the Lubin School of Business at Pace University and serves as an advisor to Idaciti, a digital reporting company.

Seidman is a past chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), where she also served as a member of the board (2003-2013). She is also a past member of the board of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and Financial Executives International. Previously, Seidman was an auditor with Arthur Young & Co., a Vice President of Accounting Policy with J.P. Morgan & Co., and a member of the FASB staff.

She has received numerous awards, including the Distinguished Service Award from the Institute of Management Accountants, for launching the innovative Women’s Accounting Leadership program. Seidman has been ranked among the Top 10 Most Influential People in Accounting by Accounting Today and was named to the NACD Directorship 100 for Governance.

Seidman authored the first three editions of Financial Instruments: A Comprehensive Guide to Accounting and Reporting (currently in its 19th edition from Wolters Kluwer).

Seidman graduated from Colgate University in 1984 with a degree in English and earned a master’s degree in accounting from New York University. She is a CPA and is certified in cybersecurity oversight.

Leslie French Seidman is the One Hundred and Fourth member of The Accounting Hall of Fame.