Eye on Leadership
Chartered Accountants Leaders Unite To Urge Political Progress It’s one of those years when Northern accents rule the roost at Chartered Accountants Ireland and its Ulster Society at the same time. Niall Harkin, Chair of the Ulster Society, and Feargal McCormack, President of Chartered Accountants Ireland, talked to Richard Buckley about their respective roles, the challenges facing accountants and business leaders... and they’re united on the thorny question of the local political logjam.
RB – So what are your individual agendas for your periods of office? FM – I see it as a seamless transition. There are no solo runs in this job. You’re carrying on a policy which will go on after you’ve left. I see the principal role being an ambassadorial one....as well as a chairman’s function. My core objectives are the same as the Institute’s....to attract the brightest and the best to this profession and to be relevant to our members. It’s a diverse membership. We’ve got 3,000 members working overseas, 49% of our trainees are female, and female membership as a whole is now over 40% where it used to be 10%. Our voice is crucial. We see it as our role to comment on public policy. And all of that fits in to an overarching role which is to make a positive contribution to the economy and the community.
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NH – We’re part of the overall Institute, of course, and we have around 4,500 members here in Northern Ireland. I came in under a theme of ‘Adapt & Engage’ and there are a number of strands to that. Firstly, engagement is crucial and we see it as key to engage with political parties and leaders like the Secretary of State and her junior ministers. Our membership is broad, roughly a third in business, a third in practice and a third in public sector roles and the third sector. As Feargal says, the voice is important. As well as engaging with politicians, we’ll engage with the media and we’ll comment as we see fit. On Brexit, for instance, we’ll try to inform the debate and, as Brexit becomes a reality, we see our role as being a very important one. The skills and attributes of a chartered accountant are more relevant than ever. But the
market for recruiting talent is becoming more challenging, and that’s crucial. We have to secure the future of this profession. What makes the Ulster Society tick? We’ve got a series of committees, all of them manned by about 140 volunteers. FM – And that’s what gives us credibility. That accountants are willing to give of their time to contribute their views and inform the debate. Our views are sought....and regularly so. We’re a regular contributor to all sorts of consultation processes. RB – You mention talent. Is there a shortage of young accountants coming through? FM – We have a record membership. However, the demand for graduates and apprenticeships has never been
higher and we’re in a competitive marketplace. This profession is a lot broader than it used to be. Audit and accounts these days would account for less than 50% of activity at practicing offices. This is a talent management industry. So we need to attract and retain talent. We’re not about training accountants. We’re about training business leaders of the future. If you look at the empirical evidence, there is no better foundation than an Irish chartered accountancy qualification. Even after qualifying, the level of flexibility is phenomenal. Look at leaders of industry, of business, of sports organisations, of health services, utilities....you name it. Our members are in the leadership roles. In fact, it’s worth noting that accountancy practice represents 25% of our membership on the island.
