The Transformation of Finance Professionals

If you are an accountant serious about your future, a professional qualification would certainly help you get on the fast track. But if you are aiming to develop a truly successful and diverse career in business, just being an accountant may not be the best way to be in sync with the changing business scenario. A professional seminar on "The Emerging Strategic Role of the Finance Professional" was held by HKU SPACE College of Business and Finance on 19 October 2010, where Mr. Aubrey Joachim, the Immediate Past President of Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) was invited to tell us why management and accounting are now inseparable and how management accountants can create more value by applying leading edge finance techniques with a high level of management expertise.

Be a Financially Qualified Business Leader

“Adapting to the changing needs of the business world, the role of tomorrow’s finance professionals should not remain to be a scorekeeper. They should take up the new role as a valued business partner participating in strategy and decision making processes. The question in focus is whether accountants are well prepared with necessary skills and competencies." Mr. Joachim said. He iterated the fact that a transformation is taking place here and now and it is essentially driven by pressures on the CFO brought about by changes of competitive success factors and regulatory environment, and also by the internal demands of managers for better information and support.

One of the topics in hot discussion within the finance sector is a new set of compliance regulations, as discussed in the Risk Management seminar held on 13 October. The concept of management accounting, if appropriately carried out, would bring much value and growth to the business in operational, tactical as well as strategic levels and that would help organizations cope with the changing policies too.

Illustrated with real-life cases, Mr. Joachim elaborated on his point that the roles of finance and accounting have changed over the last few years and will continue to change over the future. “One good example is the visionary strategies of the CEO of Singapore Airlines, with which the company was not cutting cost in midst of fierce competitions, but a reduction in profit instead." Mr. Joachim said, “Cost cutting is just the comfort zone, in this case, and sometimes we have to spend more to make sure our market value exist in the future. In response to the stockholders' queries, the CEO projected a picture in which his company would be in the minds of future customers, after a temporary stage of lowered profit." The point here is that accountants with only technical skills of auditing, reporting will remain controllers, who may be expert but just dealing with past data. Management Accountants are equipped with business skills like risk management, strategic planning, cost control, etc. together with qualified finance background. Mr. Joachim described this change in the finance space as a partnership between finance and operations, “In other words, the emerging role shift is from financial controller to financial business partner, or we can call them – Financially Qualified Business Leaders.”

Focus on Strategies, Not Just Numbers

This term is not just another job title or position, and should be seen as a progressive evolvement of the accounting profession. Mr. Joachim also explained that while management accountants are qualified to take on such a wide range of challenges, they become valuable assets in practically any area of any organization. By making sense of the figures and explaining the consequences of management decisions in a non-financial way, the work of management accountants has a clearer strategic focus and play a key role in formulating business strategies that drive organizations forward, instead of just reporting what has happened.

The Certificate in Islamic Finance programme offered by HKU SPACE aims to provide students with knowledge in the fundamental concepts of Islamic law and contracts and its application to Islamic financial products. Development of Islamic capital market and various features of Islamic financial products would also be covered. Preparatory courses for the CIMA Professional Qualification will be a perfect match with its emphasis on strategic business skills, providing you with the skills to make key decisions in business and advise others of the financial implications.

The pursuit of a lifelong career in the accounting and finance industry will be rewarding, but not without challenges to be tackled in a fierce competition. Understanding the new role of management accountants will help you stay ahead in the trend and stand out from the crowd.

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