For at least the last two decades the AICPA and CICA have been reporting that the accounting profession is going through profound changes. These findings were formalized in the report of the Special Committee on Assurance Services (frequently referred to as the Elliott Committee after its chair, Robert Elliott). The report indicated that traditional A&A (accounting and auditing) were becoming commodities and that revenue growth for these services was flat. Instead of recommending that practitioners pursue totally new areas of services, the report recommended building on current reputation and skills. Practitioners have the reputation for being independent, objective, and trustworthy. In addition, they have the skills necessary to conduct attestation, assurance, and audit engagements. Prior to the publication of the Elliott Report an increasing number of practitioners were already conducting attestation and assurance engagements outside the traditional domain of financial audits. The report encouraged even more attestation and assurance activities. The report listed over 200 types of potential assurance engagement that it collected from the Committees interviews with practitioners and corporate representatives. The report discussed six potential assurance engagements in more detail, including: