In its new standard concerning the use of specialists, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) wants auditors to move away from a checklist mentality and use more professional judgment. Wendy Stevens, a member of the board’s Standing Advisory Group, says the PCAOB doesn’t want rote procedure; it wants quality. The auditor must still consider factors such as the objectivity and expertise of the expert, but the new standard includes things such as laying out the specific requirements for when an auditor can engage an outside expert; procedures to evaluate a company specialist’s use of data, significant assumptions, and methods; as well as the reliability of the specialist’s work and its relationship to the relevant assertion. Although the standard goes into effect at the end of next year, she warned that implementation should begin as soon as possible because it will probably take time to fully put it into practice. Stevens made her remarks at the Foundation for Accounting Education’s November 14 Auditing Standards Conference.