NQ magazine October 2016
P10
THE VOICE OF ALL NQs Contact us
email: graham@pqaccountant.com twitter: @pqmagazine facebook: pqmagazine.com call: 020 7216 6444
PROFILE Meet Craig Harman, a man on a mission
ALL THE NEWS YOU NEED
P8 Mapping the sustainability reporting landscape
and a whole lot more Pages 4 and 7
Lost in the right direction
IT’S AWARDS TIME! YOUNG ACHIEVERS celebrate their success Page 14
BOOK REVIEW We review four great books that you really must read Page 22
OUR SISTER MAGAZINE PQ ACCA REPORT HOSTS THE BEST AWARDS We outline the IN THE BUSINESS. SO WHY findings of a report NOT ENTER OUR NQ OF THE into climate change YEAR CATEGORY? P12 and sustainability
AN ETHICAL DILEMMA What you should do when you suspect malpractice by the trustees of a charity
P16
staying one step ahead Financial Accountant
Management Accountant
Surrey
Surrey
£50,000 + car allowance + benefits
£40,000 + benefits
• Preparation of external statutory reporting under IFRS meeting advanced reporting deadlines. • Monthly management reporting packs for a number of Group entities. • Annual budget and forecast providing commentary on variances to budget. • Support Group Reporting, Tax & Treasury teams to ensure treasury transactions such as derivatives, FX and borrowing are captured accurately. • Responsible for Oracle system administration including bank, general ledger and other interfaces. • Completion of supporting analysis for Group Tax for inclusion in annual tax returns.
• Attached to the FP&A team with responsibility for budgeting and forecasting. • Production of monthly management accounts including detailed variances analysis. • Identify cost saving, profitability and business enhancement opportunities. • Working with FP&A team in the preparation and delivery of business cases and other ad hoc analysis. • Accurate accounting for income and costs; balance sheet reconciliations. • Mentoring and coaching of more junior finance team members.
redefining financial recruitment T +44 (0)20 8408 9999 E info@walkerdendle.co.uk www.walkerdendle.co.uk
COMMENT
NQ magazine EDITOR’S COMMENTS
You too can be a young achiever! Welcome to the latest issue of NQ magazine. I hope you are enjoying our e-magazine. One of my favourite features this time is all about a young man called Craig Harman. At the tender age of 26 he has become a partner at chartered accountants Perrys. His key advice to fellow NQs who want to get to the top is to make sure you speak to your employer and let them know your aspirations. Check out his story on page 10. Another inspirational young accountant can be found on page 14. Rimla Akhtar was recently unveiled as the winner of the 2016 ICAS One Young CA and star of the 35 CAs under 35 awards. She is the first Muslim woman to sit on the FA Council and is chair of the Muslim Women’s Sport Foundation. Oh, and she has an MBE for her exceptional work championing equality in sport. So now it’s your chance to shine! Our sister publication PQ magazine has just launched its 14th annual awards. It needs to give a prize to the NQ of the Year – could that be you? Even getting shortlisted will help make your CV stand out. We know that it can sometimes be hard to praise yourself, but as the song goes “to love yourself is the greatest love of all”. Now who sang that? And there are lots of other categories up for grabs. What about the ‘Accountancy Team of the Year’ or ‘Training Manager/Mentor of the Year’? All those shortlisted will be invited to our gala awards night at London’s Café de Paris in February next year. See page 12 for all the details. That’s it from me, see you in December, and please help spread the word about NQ magazine for us. Graham Hambly, Editor (graham@pqaccountant.com)
NUMBER CRUNCHING
$9.3m
the amount EY paid to the SEC over its failure to ensure two partners didn’t get too close to their clients P7
26
the age that ACCAqualified Craig Harman was made a partner at Perrys. Find out his secrets for success P10
th PQ awards.Could you 14 be our NQ of the Year? We are now open for nominations, and there are lots of other categories you could enter P12
86%
of CIMA members believe that information gathering will increasingly become automated. Should you be afraid? P18
30 days
read our book reviews to discover how to launch your own money-making idea in less than a month P22
NEWS
Nothing to fear from automation
Last year’s winner Sharon Harris with Walker Dendle’s Lisa Dendle (left) Forget the doomsday scenario, financial professionals welcome the rise of artificial intelligence, automation and robots, according to the latest survey by CIMA. Some 83% of CIMA members apparently support automation if it saves time and money or helps with indecision in their organisation. CIMA believes that this indicates that accountants regard the impact of new technologies as an opportunity rather than a threat. Most respondents (86%) believe information gathering will increasingly become automated. They were less sure about the process-based aspects of financial accounting, where just 55% think automation will be key to progress. Nearly a third of management accountants believe that the increased automation will lead to a loss of jobs and therefore greater inequality. Interestingly, one in five CIMA’s believe a reliance on automation/technology has led their organisation to make the wrong decision in the past five years. A further 40% said that this has not happened as they understood they could not solely rely on automated processes. CIMA CEO Andrew Harding said: “While it is possible to imagine a nightmare scenario where advances in technology lead to mass redundancies, the world’s finance departments have a less alarmist view. Our members believe that artificial intelligence… will alter, but not destroy, the jobs of accountants and other professionals.”
How likeable are you? New research from the ICAEW found ‘likeability’ is one of the key skills you need to have to get to the top. A survey of over 500 FDs and CFOs discovered that being a people person was even more important than having commercial awareness and an entrepreneurial mindset, although these skills are also paramount. Technical skills were seen as the foundation for success at senior level roles, but being technically competent is seen as ‘a given’ at this level. But it appears that if you can’t give a good presentation and don’t have a bit of emotional intelligence then you could be left counting the beans. Those surveyed also believed trustworthiness and personal integrity was another key quality you will need to achieve success. 4
Be our NQ of the Year
We want to recognise all your hard work with our ‘NQ of the Year’ award. Being a winner can really make your CV stand out from the other CVs hitting employers’ inboxes. Becoming the NQ of the Year for 2017 will certainly give you something to talk about at your next interview, too! The NQ of the Year is awarded each year by our sister publication PQ magazine, and nominations are now open. You have until mid-December to get your entry in, and if shortlisted you could be attending the awards night at London’s famous Café de Paris. ● Find out more on pages 12 & 13.
IASB makes changes to IFRS 4 The International Accounting Standards Board has issued amendments to its existing insurance contracts standard, IFRS 4. The amendments address concerns over the implementation of the new financial instruments standard, IFRS 9 and the temporary volatility in reporting results. Two approaches have been introduced – an overlay approach and a deferral approach. The amended standard will: ● Give all companies that issue insurance contracts the option to recognise in other comprehensive income, rather than profit or loss, the volatility that could arise when IFRS 9 is applied before the new insurance contracts standard IFRS 4 is issued. ● Give companies whose activities are predominantly connected with insurance an optional temporary exemption from applying IFRS 9 until 2021. The entities that defer the application of IFRS 9 will continue to apply the existing financial instruments standard – IAS 39. IASB chairman Hans Hoogervorst (pictured) said: “Both the new financial instruments standard and the upcoming insurance standard will improve the quality and comparability of financial reporting. However, we understand that there may be transitional challenges and have given companies who deal with insurance contracts two voluntary options for dealing with these.” NQ Magazine October 2016
SECRETS TO SUCCESS WHAT’S NOT TO LIKE? We have access to some of the UK’s top companies from a wide range of sectors to give you a head start in your finance career. Whether you are looking for career guidance or an insight into the current jobs market, we can provide you with the latest information in your area. Join the conversation and take advantage of our expert insight about career development as a newly qualified finance professional. Hays Future of Finance Forum - UK Hays Accountancy & Finance UK
hays.co.uk/nq
NEWS
Non-doms pay £6.6bn tax UK-based non-doms contributed £6.6bn in income tax in 2014/15, highlighting the significant contribution the group makes to the UK economy, says Pinsent Masons. The law firm has worked out that the revenue collected an average of £56,589 per non-dom in income tax over the year, compared with the average £5,152 collected for the rest of the population. Pinsent Masons says there is concern that this substantial tax revenue could be lost if the government’s proposed changes to the status prompt too many to leave the country. From April 2017, long-term non-dom status will cease to exist and any non-dom taxpayer resident in the UK for 15 or more out of the past 20 years will be deemed domiciled for income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax purposes. In addition, all UK residential property owned via an offshore company or other structure will be subject to UK IHT. ● There are currently 116,100 non-dom taxpayers in the UK.
IN BRIEF HMRC CORNER
ACCA agm report Member Andrew Lin brought not one but 15 resolutions to the recent ACCA AGM, held at its new Adelphi home in John Adam Street. Among the resolutions was a call for half the members of the executive team to be ACCA members and for emerging industries, such as mobile internet and fintech, to be introduced into the syllabus. Unfortunately, Lin could not make the meeting and all resolutions were soundly defeated. The number of proxy votes used to elect Council still upsets some members. The President was given over 2,000 to exercise, which means she effectively elect two-thirds of candidates. ACCA will be pleased that more members got involved in voting this year, and it is hoping to keep up this level of interest. So which member won the most votes? It was Ireland’s Michelle Hourican, whose involvement with ACCA began in the local student society. She became an ACCA member in 1997.
¢ Taxman raids on the increase The number of raids carried out by HMRC as part of criminal investigations has shot up over the past year by 28%. Some 761 premises were searched by HMRC in the course of the year to March, with 593 raids the year before. Law firm Pinsent Masons predicts that these raids will continue to rise as HMRC looks to secure more convictions.
¢ Ten-time winner HMRC has won its tenth successive case against tax avoidance schemes promoted by NT Advisors. This means that HMRC’s court successes against the promoter have now protected £916m in tax. Previous victories include the defeat of the controversial Working Wheels scheme, where participants claimed to be second-hand car dealers. The Court of Appeal has ruled that NT Advisors’ latest scheme consists of a series of circular payments and self-cancelling transactions involving alleged overseas securities. These purported to create substantial tax deductions where in reality no economic loss had been suffered.
¢ Collect the money upfront HMRC has collected £3bn by forcing those under investigation for tax avoidance to pay up disputed tax immediately. The Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Jane Ellison, revealed that 60,000 accelerated payment notices (APNs) have been issued since new rules were introduced in 2014, forcing tax avoidance scheme users to pay billions of pounds of disputed tax upfront while their tax affairs are investigated by HMRC. NQ Magazine October 2016
Don’t get too close! EY has agreed to pay a whopping $9.3m to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle charges that two of its audit partners “got too close to their clients on a personal level and violated rules that ensure firms maintain their objectivity and impartiality during audits”. SEC investigations discovered that one senior partner, Gregory S. Bednar, on an engagement team for the audit of a New York-based public company, maintained an improperly close friendship with its chief financial officer. Bednar and the company’s CFO stayed overnight at each other’s homes on multiple occasions and travelled together with family members on overnight trips with no valid business purpose. Both Bednar and EY have consented to the SEC order without admitting or denying the findings. The firm agreed a sanction of $4.975m and Bednar, who no longer works at EY, must pay $45,000. Meanwhile, a different partner, Pamela Hartford, caused auditor independence rule violations at EY from March 2012 to June 2014 when she maintained a romantic relationship with financial executive Robert Brehl while she served on the engagement team auditing his company. In this case, EY agreed to a $4.366m sanction and Hartford and Brehl agreed to pay penalties of $25,000 each. 7
ACCA REPORT
Sustainability reporting: lost in the right direction? Jimmy Greer outlines the finding of a new ACCA report into sustainability and climate change
I
n December 2015, the UN COP 21 Paris Climate Change Summit agreed a ground-breaking and legally binding climate deal, called the Paris Agreement. Ahead of that meeting, we joined other accountancy bodies to confirm that professional accountants have an obligation to act in the public interest, which must now include helping organisations to address climate change. The profession’s expertise can help effect meaningful change – especially in the fields of corporate and social responsibility, sustainability reporting and integrated reporting. Accounting is central to successful decision-making. Professional accountants can provide relevant analysis, reporting and assurance to help organisations generate and preserve value. We are therefore influential in driving sustainable behaviours. But despite pressing global concerns about climate change and growing understanding of the impact of business activities on the planet, sustainability reporting is failing to fulfil its potential. This was the key finding from a new report from ACCA and CDSB (the Climate Disclosure Standards Board), which suggests that despite progress made in sustainability reporting and its growing importance, the fragmentation of the discipline is weakening its impact. ACCA’s and CDSB’s report ‘Mapping the sustainability reporting landscape: lost in the right direction’, examines
8
the changing corporate sustainability reporting landscape, outlines its components, addresses current challenges and proposes development opportunities. It provides a considered overview of the trends, levers and drivers influencing the reporting landscape. The direction sustainability reporting takes matters for the profession. Being on the front line of corporate reporting activity, for their clients or the companies for which they work, the accurate measurement of performance by professional accountants – including sustainability and other non-financial considerations – is essential. Over the next decade there will be more regulation, more frequent and more demanding corporate disclosures on sustainability issues, and increased awareness of the interconnectedness of financial and non-financial reporting. Professional accountants will need the ability to communicate a more comprehensive view of corporate reporting, especially as many have told us in our ‘Professional accountants – the future’ research that many expect integrated reporting gradually to become mandatory globally.
Meeting stakeholder demands The reporting landscape points to a future where there are many stakeholder demands, all clamouring for meaningful reporting. Our report shows that the landscape is made up of a myriad of components. For example, the motives for
NQ Magazine October 2016
ACCA REPORT introducing reporting requirements vary, and have different perspectives. There are also differences in the format, content and origins of their requirements and the channels through which information is reported in response to these requirements. Sustainability reporting underpins the understanding of a company’s long-term value and contribution towards a more sustainable world. From the creation of the Michael Bloomberg chaired Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures to the agreement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, audiences are increasingly keen for corporate sustainability reporting to better inform a growing range of important decisions designed to support a more sustainable future. Our report suggests that evolving expectations about corporate performance, new measurement criteria and the changing means by which companies are assessed, are calling into question the role of the corporation and the definition of corporate performance. Over recent years, we’ve also seen the rise of a new order of corporate reporting that has increased awareness of and reporting on a number of complex and vital issues. But the growing number of frameworks, requirements and indicators lack coherence. And these could be said to have diluted or impaired the usefulness of information for readers, and may lead to distorted views of corporate performance. This is not only burdensome for the end user, but also for the companies who have to undertake this reporting activity. Report preparers must decide which reporting requirements to answer, which audience to address and which reporting channel to use. Some are happy to live with the dilemmas and to accept them as a natural stage in the development of reporting. Nonetheless, at the moment, all parties seem to find the landscape difficult and there is uncertainty about how greater clarity can be achieved and lead to better information, decisions and actions to support a sustainable future. So which way is sustainability reporting going? In our report, we offer six proposals for the way ahead, some of which are already being pursued, and which aim to bring more order and coherence to the reporting landscape. The first is to leverage shared objectives, bringing order to the diverse objectives of requirement developers and in so
NQ Magazine October 2016
doing enhancing the ability of those reporting to achieve these multiple, far-reaching objectives. Secondly, we suggest a comprehensive mapping of the sustainability reporting landscape to categorise its many components. We need to agree the scope of the sustainability reporting landscape, identifying what types of reporting it covers (eg accounting, financial, governance and risk), and whether – and if so to what extent – sustainability reporting needs to be mapped against the mainstream reporting model. Thirdly, we propose identifying technical issues that are challenging. We need to understand better the types of technical issue that need to be resolved to advance and bring order to sustainability reporting. Fourthly, we propose that more work is done to align, link and reciprocate information requests across reporting requirement guidelines including CDP, SASB, GRI, and the UNGC. Fifthly, we propose agreement of the stewardship of sustainability reporting. We suggest that bilateral and collective public agreements would delineate the work of the people involved and demonstrate how they all contribute to the overall sustainability reporting landscape. Our sixth proposal is to consider a type of agreement that sets out a standardisation roadmap that brings about the aforementioned alignment and focus, and much needed coherence. What we have seen over recent years is the need – demand – by investors for corporate reporting that meets a need for creating enduring social, environmental and economic prosperity. Mapping the It’s through this report that sustainability reporting landscape we want to prompt discussion among professionals involved in reporting who seek standardisation, rationalisation NQ and order. Lost in the right direction
● Jimmy Greer,
Sustainability lead, ACCA
9
MAKING PARTNER
going places
We spoke to Craig Harman about how he came to be made a partner in his firm, Perrys, at the tender age of 26 When did you know you wanted to be an accountant? During my final years at school I knew that I wanted a career in finance. My strongest subject at GCSE level was maths and I enjoyed business studies and economics at A-level, so accountancy seemed like a perfect mix of the two. A big positive for going into accountancy was the fact that you can gain a well-recognised qualification while obtaining work experience and without having to go to university.
Why ACCA? The broad syllabus is a great fit for our firm and the type of work that we do. We have a wide range of clients of various sizes and operating in a number of different sectors. The ACCA syllabus covers a mix of financial accounting, management accounting, audit and tax, all of which is relevant on a day-to-day basis. It is also a globally recognised and well respected qualification.
How did you find the ACCA exams?
different type of studying to what I had been used to. The ACCA exams aim to provide a good level of knowledge for a wide variety of areas, while the CTA exams are focused on knowing a specific subject in a lot more detail. The time pressure within the CTA exams was a lot more difficult to cope with as you are required to look up relevant tax legislation (which is huge) and refer to it in your answers.
What is it about tax that you like so much? I enjoy the fact that the tax legislation is constantly developing. Although this results in a lot of CPD work, it does create variety and means that I always have matters to discuss with clients. Structuring a client’s affairs in a tax efficient manner or dealing with an enquiry on their behalf can be very rewarding.
You also have a Certificate in Probate and Estate Administration. Is this a growing area for the firm?
I’m fortunate that I tend to cope with exam pressure quite well, which is often half of the battle. The syllabus is wide and covers a range of different topics, some of which were more relevant and therefore came more naturally than others. I think, as with any exams, that if you are willing to put the work in they are entirely passable.
Yes it is, applying for the Grant of Probate is a reserved legal activity and therefore previously could only be completed by solicitors. However, around two years ago the ICAEW became an approved regulator so that accountancy firms could be licensed. We regularly look at Inheritance Tax planning with our clients so being able to complete Probate enables us to provide a complete service to our clients.
You seem to be collecting qualifications. How did you find the Chartered Tax Advisor exams?
Tell us a bit about Perrys and what you do there.
The Charted Tax Advisor exams involved an entirely
Perrys is a chartered firm of accountants with seven offices
10
NQ Magazine October 2016
MAKING PARTNER spread across London and Kent. We offer a wide range of accountancy services from bookkeeping, through to tax planning and audit. Due to my CTA qualification my role is predominantly tax based. I generally deal with the more complex tax returns and planning across the firm. A large part of my time is spent on inheritance tax planning and overseeing the Wills and Probate department.
Twenty-six is very young to become a partner. What was the first thing you did when you found out about the promotion?
CRAIG IN BRIEF What are you reading? I have just finished the second book in the Game of Thrones series. Last CD bought/downloaded? I can’t remember, I normally stream music through Spotify.
Although I felt like telling everyone I met, I had to keep it to myself while I went through the formalities involved. Initially, I only told my fiancée and close family until it was announced to the firm as a whole. I think I found out on a Tuesday too so I can’t imagine the celebrations were too outrageous.
What tips would you have to any newly qualified accountants who want to become a partner? Firstly and most importantly, speak to your employer and let them know your aspirations. Becoming a partner isn’t necessarily for everyone, so employers may not automatically assume this is the route you want to take. Find out from your employer the skills, knowledge and experience that they would expect you to demonstrate in order to become a partner so that you have clear targets to work towards. I also found the ACCA practising certificate very useful for identifying the skills required and ensuring the necessary experience was obtained.
You seem to have done so well so soon. Where do you see yourself in five years’ time? Still a partner at Perrys for a start! The Probate and Estate Administration is still a relatively new service so I am very much looking forward to being such a key part of a growing area.
What’s your favourite TV show? This would have to be Game of Thrones again, I only started to watch it this year and I’ve been hooked since. When was the last time you laughed out loud? I think it was while watching Impractical Jokers. If you haven’t seen it, you have got to give it a try.
What was the best advice you ever had? It was along the lines of ‘you are better off trying and failing than never trying at all’. After completing my ACCA exams I was unsure whether to continue studying and had doubts whether I would be able to motivate myself to complete the CTA exams.
We all know all accountants are interesting, so what do you do to ensure you are? I try to play sport on a regular basis to keep me out of the office. I play football twice a week for my local team and have recently taken up golf after an eight-year break, although I think I will always be a fair weather golfer. NQ
Harman: ‘structuring a client’s affairs in a tax efficient manner or dealing with an enquiry on their behalf can be very rewarding’ NQ Magazine October 2016
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AWARDS 2017
ARE YOU
OUR NEXT
NQ WINNER?
12
NQ Magazine October 2016
AWARDS 2017
Get your entries to us for the NQ of the Year – we are now open for nominations!
D
o you know an NQ with the ‘X factor’? Or perhaps you work for a team that deserves a top night out at a top London venue? Well, if the answer is yes to either of these questions then we have the ideal solution for you! Our sister publication PQ magazine is now open for nominations for its awards and one top category is NQ of the Year. There are also awards for the Accountancy Team of the Year and Training Manager/ Mentor of the Year. London’s Café de Paris is the home for the PQ awards night and it was rocking earlier in the year for our 13th ceremony. It is now dusting itself down to get ready for our 14th awards night, but it won’t be the same if you aren’t there with us! In all there are 18 coveted ‘PQs’ up for grabs, so come on get writing those nominations and get them in early. Our current NQ of the Year is Agchem Project Consulting’s Sharon Harris. Becoming an accountant has really changed her world, and as she said: “If I had told my 16-year-old self that, at the age of 52 I would be a chartered accountant with an honours degree I think I would have asked them what they had been drinking!” Well, to top it all off our judges also made her the ‘NQ of the Year 2016’. The PQ awards are definitely the place to be seen. Among our 250 guests
in February was Mark Protherough, the ICAEW director of learning, CIMA’s new CEO Andrew Harding and ACCA director of learning Dr Mary Bishop. So, what do we need from you? All you have to do is write 250 words (provide any supporting evidence separately) on why your nominee should be shortlisted for one of our awards. Remember, you can nominate yourself, so this is not a time to go all shy on us. All nominees get to come along to the best awards night there is in accountancy! But do remember that we are all about quality and not quantity. Those with the most entries don’t win – just one nomination form goes into the judging room. To get started just download our application form from the website – go to www.pqmagazine.co.uk and click on the ‘pq awards’ bar. Alternately, just email us your entry directly, making it clear which category you are nominating. It is important that we have all your details too, because we may need to invite you to the Café de Paris. Once you have everything ready send it to awards@pqmagazine.com or you can post your form to: The Editor, PQ magazine, 4th Floor, Central House, 142 Central Street, London EC1V 8AR. Deadline for all nominations is Friday 16 December 2016.
AWARDS – THE CATEGORIES • NQ OF THE YEAR • ACCOUNTANCY TEAM OF THE YEAR • ACCOUNTANCY PERSONALITY • TRAINING MANAGER/MENTOR OF THE YEAR • PQ OF THE YEAR • ACCOUNTANCY APPRENTICE OF THE YEAR • DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENT OF THE YEAR • STUDENT BODY OF THE YEAR • ACCOUNTANCY BODY OF THE YEAR
NQ Magazine October 2016
• ACCOUNTANCY COLLEGE OF THE YEAR – PUBLIC SECTOR • ACCOUNTANCY COLLEGE OF THE YEAR – PRIVATE SECTOR • ONLINE COLLEGE OF THE YEAR • LECTURER OF THE YEAR – PUBLIC SECTOR • LECTURER OF THE YEAR – PRIVATE SECTOR • STUDY RESOURCE OF THE YEAR • INNOVATION IN ACCOUNTANCY • BEST USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA • EDITOR’S SPECIAL AWARD
The NQ of Year, sponsored by CIPFA
2016 SHARON HARRIS Sharon Harris is CIMA qualified and works for Agchem Project Consulting as its finance and operations manager. There is never a typical day at APC and when she won NQ of the Year she was still growing into the role with guidance and support from the MD and other directors and boards members. Outside work she is the treasurer of Solent and District Land Rover Club, so spends most weekends driving around the countryside – when the Land Rover doesn’t need fixing! She admits that she burst into tears when she discovered she was an NQ and then spent the rest of the day smiling.
2015 KYLE TYRELL ACCA qualified Kyle Tyrrell was head of finance at AXA Global Protect the last time we talked. His day begins when his alarm goes off at 5am and he drags himself to the gym. He arrives at the office at around 8am. His weekends are taken up with his bespoke catering business called MyLK, which he started with a friend. He said the feedback on winning the award was amazing. He received congratulatory messages from many of AXA’s MDs and FDs, and his CFO blogged the news to the whole UK finance and strategy team. Even the ACCA phoned to congratulate him and he was invited onto its Leaders of Tomorrow progam NQ 13
YOUNG ACHIEVERS
Rimla Akhtar
MBE named ICAS One Young CA 2016 Eleanor O’Neill & Fiona Pollock report on an awardwinning night for a number of talented and ambitious young chartered accountants
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Rimla Akhtar with ICAS president Ken McHattie 14
imla Akhtar was named the winner of the 2016 ICAS One Young CA and 35 CAs under 35 awards at the London CA Dinner recently. Akhtar was picked from a pool of 35 exceptional finalists to be the best young CA representing ICAS and the chartered accountancy profession to the wider world. ICAS CEO Anton Colella presented the award at Gibson Hall on 7 September as part of the CA Dinner and One Young CA Awards. He said: “Earlier this year, ICAS launched an exciting search to find the best and brightest young members in our profession. The top 35 CAs under 35 list recognises the most outstanding young CAs who are leading and inspiring the next generation of ICAS. “Rimla is a fantastic example of all that is good in a young CA. She has powerful values, ambition, commitment and a will to serve our wider society.’ Akhtar is an Inclusion & Diversity Consultant at RimJhim Consulting, based in London. She is the first Muslim woman to sit on the FA Council and is Chair of the Muslim Women’s Sport Foundation. Her work spans grassroots involvement with community groups, to liaising with the government, and takes her as far afield as the US, Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and across Europe. NQ Magazine October 2016
YOUNG ACHIEVERS She was named Sky Sports and Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year in 2013, FA Grassroots Hero in 2013, and was a member of the 2009 Muslim Women Power List. Akhtar’s MBE was awarded in 2015 for her exceptional work championing equality in sport. She will now represent ICAS and the chartered accountancy profession at the One Young World Summit in Canada. This event brings together inspiring young people who are committed to making a positive difference. She said: “Being selected as One Young CA from such a clearly talented group is really humbling. To be rewarded by ICAS is such an honour and I’m really looking forward to representing them at One Young World and beyond.”
All the winners on the night
The 35 CAs under 35 winners As well as her success in the overall ICAS 35 CAs under 35 competition, Akhtar also won the Influence & Innovation category of the awards. The Entrepreneurship category, which recognised those who have the passion and drive to succeed in business, was won by Joel Watt CA, Founder of Jack Taylor and VISTEM. Watt set up his first business in partnership at just 24 years of age. Jack Taylor, a fishing trade company, now has an international customer base and a turnover of £5m a year. In 2014, he founded VISTEM, makers of customised products and tools for heavy industry. The Leadership category, rewarding the CAs who inspire and motivate others, was won by Colin McLellan CA, Finance Director at Skyscanner. He relocated to Tokyo earlier this year to fill the role of interim CEO of a joint venture between Skyscanner and Yahoo! Japan. He developed a team there for the improvement of product and drive growth and, during that time, more than doubled monthly visitors and revenue. The Sustainability & CSR category, honouring those who display a high regard for social awareness and professional responsibility, was won by Thomas Gillan CA, CFO of Social Investment Scotland (SIS). Gillan impressed the judges with his passion and dedication to his work at SIS, who invest in businesses with a strong commitment to moral responsibility. He also recently set up SIS Community Capital, the UK’s first mass participation social investment fund backed by social investment tax relief. NQ Magazine October 2016
ICAS President Ken McHattie presented each category winner with a trophy and a Longines watch, generously provided by Brian Duffy CA and Watches of Switzerland.
Special honours Two additional awards were announced during the ceremony, created due to the high calibre of entrants in the competition. The award for Global Influence, intended to reward a CA who is going above and beyond in promoting the CA profession on an international level, was presented to Mark Spiers CA. He travelled from Brazil, where he operates as CFO and Partner of Trocafone, to attend the awards. He moved to South America while working at Deutsche Bank to lead a major transformation of local accounting teams and processes. The Chief Executive award was given to Rachel Singh Davies CA,
‘Rimla is a fantastic example of all that is good in a young CA. She has powerful values, ambition, commitment and a will to serve our wider society’ who particularly impressed ICAS CEO Anton Colella with her commitment to using her professional skills to further causes close to her heart. She works with the Shell Foundation as CFO, an organisation she joined after turning down a corporate promotion to follow NQ her passion. 15
ETHICAL DILEMMA
a charity
case
You suspect malpractice over unauthorised payments made by the trustees of a charity. So what should you do? 16
NQ Magazine October 2016
ETHICAL DILEMMA Professional behaviour: You must comply with relevant law and regulations. What are your responsibilities? How should you proceed so as not to discredit yourself or your profession?
CONSIDERATIONS Identify relevant facts: The former trustees have committed fraud. You have brought this to the attention of the board and provided your recommendations. The priority of the board is to protect the charity’s reputation, and so it appears likely that the charity will amend its procedures but will not take action against the former trustees who have misused the charity’s credit card. Consider the published ethical policies of the charity, and also any applicable law and regulations. Quantify the extent of the fraud, and ensure you have sufficient evidence. Identify affected parties: Key affected parties are you, the former trustees and the board. Other affected parties may be the current trustees, and the beneficiaries of the charity. Who should be involved in the resolution: You should involve the board and one or more of the current trustees.
POSSIBLE COURSE OF ACTION
OUTLINE OF THE CASE You are a self-employed consultant, engaged by the executive board (‘the board’) of a charity to write an internal report concerning the operation of the charity’s internal controls. The board manages the charity on behalf of the trustees. You are concerned that unauthorised payments have been made by former trustees using the charity credit card for their personal use. Therefore, in your report, you have suggested various policies and procedures that should be put in place to prevent this practice in the future, and have recommended that the individuals in question should be investigated by the appropriate authority. You have presented your report to the board, but you suspect that it will not act on your recommendations, as it would prefer to avoid negative publicity. You are unsure whether to take this matter forward yourself or leave it to the charity to address.
KEY FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES Integrity: Having presented your report, can you overlook these unauthorised payments by the former trustees and still demonstrate integrity? Confidentiality: To whom should you turn for advice? Do you have whistleblowing obligations? NQ Magazine October 2016
You are right to be concerned about the ethical implications of this situation. You have met your responsibilities to the charity in providing the board with an objective report. However, you have knowledge of an illegal act, and you must consider your whistleblowing responsibilities. First, you must check the relevant facts. You know that the former trustees have misused the credit cards in their possession but, if possible, you should quantify the extent of the fraud, and evaluate the evidence you have. The fact that the charity is concerned about negative publicity suggests that the extent of the fraud is not insignificant. You are required to have regard to the interests of the charity and its beneficiaries, as well as the wider public interest. If the board has already discussed your report, you should request a meeting with the board, at which you should highlight and explain some of the report’s contents. If you are still of the opinion that the illegal acts of the previous trustees will not be properly addressed, and you consider the extent of the fraud to be significant, you should discuss your responsibilities with one or more members of the board. If you cannot reach agreement, you should consider how you might best address the board of trustees. Ultimately, you should determine whether it is either required by law or in the public interest to disclose the fraudulent activity to a third party. Where the public interest is involved, you should bear in mind the need to balance the interests of the charity and its beneficiaries with the wider public interest. However, if you have a legal obligation to whistleblow, your judgement of the public interest becomes irrelevant. You must consider your responsibilities according to civil and criminal law. You may seek assistance from your professional body, and it may be necessary to obtain independent legal advice. You should document, in detail, the steps that you take in resolving your dilemma, in case your ethical judgement is challenged in the future. ● Thanks to CABA for this case study
NQ 17
TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE
Through the
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TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE
looking glass Rebecca McCaffry explains the challenge that being transparent brings to an organisation, and how these can be overcome
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ptimising performance and productivity isn’t just a challenge for business – it’s a challenge for the public sector, too. Like many other institutions and organisations they have had to focus on meeting environmental challenges and targets as well as increasing efficiency. But the backdrop for a public sector organisation is often more complicated, involving potentially very vulnerable stakeholders, prominent regulation and complex funding issues. According to past research from CIMA – ‘Transformation and Transparency: Managing local government performance’ – meeting these needs required most authorities to refocus on four things, the ‘Four Ts’: transformation, technology, talent and transparency. Many governments recognise their transformation has been crucial to ensuring their ability to continue to deliver services now and in the future despite funding issues and various pressures from stakeholders. Transformation laid the foundations for many governments to maintain their service levels while simultaneously driving performance improvements. Alongside transparency and problems communicating with the public regarding services delivered and money spent, other areas of concern included productivity, innovation, meeting public demand and delivering services effectively and efficiently. The recent CGMA report, ‘The Future is now: Transparency in government performance’, shows how in some way many of these issues could be in part improved by transparency. While at first glance of the Four NQ Magazine October 2016
Ts ‘transparency’ can seem to be the hardest for finance professionals to impact on and also not as critical as the others, the finance function does have a crucial role to play here. According to CIMA’s Chartered Global Management Accounting Principles, transparency sits in the Principle of Communication and relates to clarity and breaking down complexity. Effective transparency relies on the communication of robust and reliable information but some organisations struggle with elevating it from a tick-box necessity. This can mean it becomes just another task added to the list, rather than the mutual benefit it can be. Furthermore, good transparency is not just an ethical issue – it helps to ensure reliable reporting, another accounting responsibility. So finance professionals working in government are well placed to provide management information which can both aid an organisation in its duty to be transparent, and help it succeed at the same time. At a junior level there is still a lot you can do. You may be charged with helping to gather data and compiling reports that may be made public or used by others outside your organisation and if you are CIMA-qualified you will know that the principles of integrity and objectivity, from your code of ethics, are central to supporting the public interest here. You can ensure you uphold your code by guaranteeing that both the management information you provide and the information made available publicly is accurate and true. By working in this way you can help your organisation deliver true transparency that isn’t just a tick-box exercise or, simply a reaction to a problem. As
your career develops the need for transparency will not dissipate. Instead you may find it just as important, when, depending on seniority and knowledge of your organisation, you are asked to help develop the key performance indicators your employer will use to make sure they stay on track and deliver against performance goals. The CGMA report ‘The Future is now: Transparency in government performance’ also highlights a great example of transparency in action. In New York, the local government operates a real-time reporting system, meaning the public can check performance whenever they like. This is complemented with a biannual ‘report card’ that measures performance and service delivery. A second example cited is the government of Seoul, South Korea, which provides information across all social media channels, with the ultimate goal of improving its citizens’ quality of life. This begins with first identifying the most significant economic, social and general indicators and then responding to them appropriately. This shows just how useful social media can be in offering citizens the opportunity to affect policy decisions. As time progresses, stakeholder demands increase and technology improves capabilities governments will operate at increasingly high levels of transparency – and this can only benefit them and the communities they serve. At the heart of this movement will be finance teams gathering relevant information and joining-the-dots. NQ ● Rebecca McCaffry is Head of
Public Sector research at CIMA 19
YOUR CAREER
TIME TO
SHINE
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YOUR CAREER
Is your CV achievement based? If not then it should be, say the experts from CABA
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t’s a satisfying feeling knowing that you’ve passed your accountancy exams. The seemingly endless cycle of revision, the sleepless nights and perseverance paid off, and now you feel ready to pursue your ambition to move up the career ladder. While passing exams is a milestone, in reality you have only crossed one hurdle to achieving your goal. Now you have to wow potential employers with your skills, qualifications and passion. In truth, you’re up against stiff competition, as there are numerous routes aspiring chartered accountants can take to get onto the career ladder - and a degree is of course no longer a necessity. In fact, the Association of Graduate Recruiters revealed that the job market is shrinking for new graduates, presenting a sharp reversal after four years of growth for graduate jobs. It is perhaps important to remember that you may never have a perfect CV. You just have to learn to make the most of what you have got and what you have done. So it’s important to highlight skills that give you the edge during the interview stage. The CV is just the first step towards getting your ideal job. You want a CV that gets you an interview, because it is the real you, not the one on a piece of paper, that is going to ultimately win you your dream position. The ICAEW recommends an achievement based CV. Present your career history as far back as you can. It’s worth alluding to any courses you have taken too. Display qualifications, achievements and responsibilities directly below your name, make sure you also include contact details and a brief profile of yourself too. The ICAEW advises following a STAR format, which is an effective way of showcasing achievements, and useful for competency based interviews. STAR structures your experience like a story: Situation: This is the back story – the who, what, where and when. Task: What was your role? What challenges did you face? How did you turn any challenges into opportunities? Action: How did you approach challenges, and what steps did you take to solve them? Was there anything unique about your actions or method you wish to highlight? Result: Outline your tangible results. How did your actions influence an outcome? What did you learn about yourself? Recruiters want to read about experiences which tested you, driving you to exercise your skills, or learn new ones, with impressive results. They want to understand the thought process behind your problem solving. If you have stayed with the employer who paid for your accountancy training draw on any assignments or projects you worked on to help you show a wider set of skills. ACCA recommends demonstrating the below skills. Try to reference these in the job you’re applying for: 1. Strategic decision-making: Individuals who have commercial skills, and use their insight and understanding to improve business-decision making, are deemed very valuable NQ Magazine October 2016
2. Strong industry-specific knowledge and awareness of regulations 3. Software experience, from Microsoft Excel to SAP or Oracle. Candidates need to be technically savvy in the latest versions of relevant programmes 4. Communication: A confident communicator, who can clearly get their points across to colleagues, clients and partners, will be in high demand 5. Be an ambitious self-starter; show initiative and a drive to progress in accountancy 6. Be open to change and embrace new ways of working, whether its technology changes or general working practices 7. The accountancy industry is fast-paced. In order to progress, the ability to prioritise a workload and meet deadlines is crucial 8. Commitment: Exhibit dedication to an organisation through the length of time spent there, or impact made 9. Creativity: you may have the technical skills, but employers will be looking for innovative suggestions to improve their business 10. Solid customer service skills, as these will retain current customers and bring in new clients We recommend articulating these skills using past participle action words. Ensure you are clear on definitions; otherwise you may be pulled up during an interview. Consider the following list of suggested verbs to give your CV additional flair: 1. Analysed 2. Audited 3. Implemented 4. Delivered 5. Negotiated 6. Budgeted 7. Generated 8. Managed Now you have the content, it’s time to review. Here at CABA, we recommend employing the third person, rather than ‘I’ or ‘my’. Always write in short, concise sentences and avoid repetition. Never over-elaborate – be prepared to support verbally everything you have written down. Finally, proof, proof, proof – reading your CV aloud is an effective way of spotting spelling or grammar mistakes and, if in doubt, give it to a friend or family member to review. View your CV as a sales tool to demonstrate to potential employers that you’re the ideal candidate for the job. Once an employer is won over by your achievements on paper, you simply have to be ready to elaborate on them in an interview, convey your personality and further reinforce the point that you would make a valuable addition to their team. Most of all enjoy the process as this will NQ shine through. ● Thanks to CABA for this article 21
BOOK REVIEWS
Book reviews We review the books you should be reading if you’re serious about getting ahead at work Screw Work, Break Free: How to launch your own money-making idea in 30 days John Williams (Vermilion, £12.99)
Stretch: How to FutureProof Yourself for Tomorrow’s Workplace Karie Willyerd and Barbara Mistick (Wiley, £17.99) There’s a quote early in this book that rather neatly sums it up: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn” (it was said by American author Alvin Toffler). Whether we like it or not, the world is a rapidly changing place, and by extension so is the world of work. It’s no longer enough to develop one set of skills for a particular career; we all need to be developing new ones as the demands on us change, sometimes having to dump some of the older skills on which we’ve relied on for so long. This book explains how you can do this – and why you should. Although we are all kept incredibly busy keeping up with the day-to-day (life and work) that we sometimes neglect to prepare for tomorrow. Stretch: How to Future Proof Yourself for Tomorrow’s Workplace will give you the confidence and knowledge you need to achieve your goals. Willyerd and Mistick – experts and winners of dozens of awards in the field of personal development and learning – offer evidence-based guidance on obtaining the skills you will need to thrive in tomorrow’s workplace. In brief, you need to know how to: • Learn in any situation. • Open your thinking to a world beyond where you are now. • Connect to the people who can help you make your future happen. • Seek experiences that will prepare you for tomorrow. • Stay motivated through the ups and downs of a career so you can bounce forward. Stretch: How to Future Proof Yourself for Tomorrow’s Workplace offers five practices to help you start, enhance, and lengthen your career by anticipating the needs of tomorrow’s work environment. Don’t become obsolete. Instead, stretch to achieve your potential.
Fed up with working for the man? Want to ditch the 9-5 for the excitement of doing your own thing? Then you need John Williams’ selfhelp guide! This book will teach you how to get up and running with a money-making idea you love in just 30 days – even if you haven’t yet found your killer concept. Within these pages The three-step ‘Killer Idea Crash Course’ is designed to help you find your very own idea and turn it into a moneymaking machine. These are:
NQ rating
NQ rating
No matter what stage you are at in your career this book will help you
Inspirational stuff from the career guru who founded The Ideas Lab
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Step 1: Generate dozens of ideas in record time Do a brain dump first of every possible idea that interests you and don’t evaluate them at this this stage. Be willing to write down a few crazy dream ideas.
Step 2: Choosing the right idea Here are three questions to help you choose the right idea: • Does it excite you? Don’t expect every moment of your project to be fun but even the most brilliant and lucrative idea won’t succeed unless you get some enjoyment doing it. • Do you bring something to it? A project is even better if it includes you in it. That means you bring something to it: your skills, your knowledge, your talents, your contacts, the stuff you’re good at, your interests, your life experience, or just your particular personality traits. • Does it have value to others? Can you see how your project could be interesting or useful to other people, creating value for a specific audience?
Step 3: Idea Alchemy Turn your idea in a 30 day-project – and dive straight into the actual doing of it. No need for project plans and business plans or perfecting your logo. Take action out in the real world. You’ll find out quickly whether this idea suits you and whether it’s of interest to other people, all without spending months of your time (or your life savings). So what are you waiting for? Go for it!
NQ Magazine October 2016
BOOK REVIEWS Learning Leadership: The Five Fundamentals of Becoming an Exemplary Leader James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner (Wiley, £16.99)
Big Data in Practice: How 45 successful companies used big data analytics to deliver extraordinary results Bernard Marr (Wiley, £29.99)
The over-riding message from this new book from award-winning authors James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner is neatly encapsulated in the blurb on the book’s jacket: “The truth is that the best leaders are the best learners.” But how do people learn leadership, and how do they learn to become leaders? As the book’s strapline indicates, Kouzes and Posner have created a framework to help individuals become the best leaders they can be, divided into five distinct sections, which they call ‘fundamantals’. They argue that we are all born with the capacity to lead, and so provide a practical steps and specific coaching tips for harnessing that potential and the conditions in which they can excel. So what are the five ‘fundamentals’? They are: • Believe in yourself: This, say the authors, is the essential first step in developing leadership competencies. The best leaders are learners, and they can’t achieve their potential until they truly decide that inside them there is a person who can make and difference and learn to be a better leader than they are right now. • Aspire to excel: To become an exemplary leader, you have to determine what you care most about and why you want to lead. Leaders with values-based motivations are the most likely to succeed. They also must have a clear image of the kind of leader they want to be in the future – and the legacy they want to leave. • Challenge yourself: Challenging yourself is critical to learning leadership. Leaders have to seek new experiences and test themselves. There will be inevitable setbacks and failures along the way that require curiosity, grit, courage and resilience in order to persist in learning and becoming the best. • Engage support: It is vital that you get support and coaching on the path to achieving excellence. Whether it’s family, managers at work or professional coaches, leaders need the advice, feedback, care, and support of others. • Practice deliberately. No one gets better at anything without practice. Exemplary leaders spend more time practising than ordinary leaders. Simply being in the role of a leader is insufficient. To achieve success, leaders must set improvement goals, participate in designed learning experiences, ask for feedback, and get coaching. They also put in the time every day and make learning leadership a daily habit.
The best-selling author of ‘Big Data’ is back, this time with an indepth insight into how companies across the globe use the power of big data. In the world of business, big data is one of the hottest topics. Everyone understands its power and importance, but many fail to grasp the actionable steps and resources required to utilise it effectively. This book, which consists of 45 short case studies, fills the knowledge gap by showing how major companies and organisations are using big data every day, from an on-the-ground perspective. From technology, media and retail, to sport teams, government agencies and financial institutions, the author explains to the reader the strategies and processes being used by companies to learn about their customers, improve manufacturing, spur innovation, improve safety – and so much more. Each chapter follows the same structure, giving you the information you need quickly. For each company profiled, you can learn what data was used, what problem it solved and the processes put it place to make it practical, as well as the technical details, challenges and lessons learned from each unique scenario. Read this book and you will: • Learn how predictive analytics helps Amazon, Target, John Deere and Apple understand their customers. • Discover how big data is behind the success of Walmart, LinkedIn, Microsoft and more. • Learn how big data is changing medicine, law enforcement, hospitality, fashion, science and banking. • Develop your own big data strategy by accessing additional reading materials at the end of each chapter. One of the most interesting chapters is about the BBC’s use of a facial recognition technology called Preview Screen Lab. In one trial a number of households in Australia were monitored to capture the reaction to viewers as they watched en episode of Sherlock. BBC’s researchers discovered that viewers who went on to rate the show highly showed a greater reaction to events in the drama tagged ‘surprising’ or ‘sad’, rather than ‘funny’. This led the programme’s producers to include more dark, thriller elements in the show in favour of less comedy. This easy-to-read, dip-in-and-out book offers a fascinating insight into Big Data. As Achim Granzen, chief technologist analytics at Hewlett Packard, puts it: “If you are searching for the missing link between Big Data technology and achieving business value – look no further! From the world of science to entertainment, Bernard Marr delivers it – and, importantly, shares with us the recipes for success.”
NQ rating
NQ rating
Highly recommended by business leaders from across the globe – and from NQ magazine
Fascinating, albeit a bit scary, with its ‘Big Brother’ overtones
NQ Magazine October 2016
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