Dear members,
This month, I had an enjoyable afternoon welcoming over 100 new Institute members to the profession on 12 May. Their enthusiasm and joy at joining the profession and receiving their CPA designation reminded me fondly of my experience at the start of my career. Those of us who are senior members should ensure we offer them the guidance and support they need for successful careers in our profession. It is also important that the Institute makes sure all members are offered the relevant and insightful continuous professional development activities they need for career success as “accountants plus.”
I want to thank the 180 members who attended the Members’ Forum for Small- and Medium-Sized Practitioners (SMPs) on 11 May. Members raised their concerns about the new anti-money laundering guidelines and the Institute is developing plans and new materials to help support practitioners with the introduction of the new requirements. Members can read more about how the new regulations affect SMPs in the accounting feature this month Playing Detective.
I joined our representatives at the Recreation and Sports Club for Hong Kong Professional Bodies annual dinner and singing competition at the end of the month, where our talented singers competed against representatives from other professional bodies. I am pleased to report that Natalie Tam sung beautifully and won the solo category. I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to see how talented our members are outside of their professional work. Our singers performed admirably and I greatly enjoyed their performances.
“It is also important that the Institute makes sure all members are offered the relevant and insightful continuous professional development activities they need for career success as ‘accountants plus’.”
I want to highlight some other dedicated and hard-working CPAs engaged in important outreach. This month, the Institute’s two Vice-Presidents, Patrick Law and Johnson Kong attended the Hong Kong Council of Social Service’s (HKCSS) NGO Directors’ Luncheons on 4 and 11 May, where they represented the Institute and spoke with representatives from government, HKCSS and NGOs. These luncheons are sponsored by the Institute’s Charitable Fund and help to inform NGO board members of the importance of good governance for achieving sustainable development – vital to the success not just of the NGOs themselves, but those they support in the community.
This month, representatives from the Ministry of Finance were in Hong Kong for the World Chinese Accountants Conference and they made time in their busy schedule to meet with us. We exchanged views with them on recent developments in the accounting profession in both Hong Kong and the Mainland. They also learnt about the progress of the new Qualification Programme and recent regulatory reform in Hong Kong.
Members in business should consider enrolling in the Institute’s Financial Controllership Programme (FCP), which is launching its third run in June. The FCP can help aspiring financial controllers gain the skills they need for successful careers, adding value to their employers. If you’re interested in learning more then you should read this month’s Work and Life article featuring graduates of the FCP, The Career Controllers .
Eric Tong
President
