As part of its work to cause to gro...

As part of its work to cause to grow a new strategic plan for the Canadian CA profession, the Council of Senior Executives' (CSE) Strategic Planning Task Force commissioned a thorough, independent assessment of the instant state of the profession from the perspective of those who recruit, hire, and engage CAs and those holding other designations.

Given the importance of competitive and market share issues among different accounting and financial designations, the Task Force believed this research was required in order to answer the following questions:

* What are the existing needs and trends relating to financial expertise?

* to what extent are CAs positioned in organizations' decision-making buildings and finance/accounting departments?

* to what degree are CAs perceived and what is their unique value?

* Who are CAs' strongest competitors? What positions do they keep possession of and why?

Methodology

The research included in-depth, one-on-one interviews with 39 senior executives in public, private, and non-profit organizations of various sizes and tokens across Canada. It also included one-on-one interviews with six executive recruiters working in Calgary, Montreal, and Toronto who specialize in finance and accounting-related positions.

As an independent consultant with expertise in strategic planning and branding, I was engaged according to the Task Force to bearing these interviews. I randomly preferableed the executives to be interviewed from an extensive list of organizations of various protoplasts and sizes located in different parts of the geographical division Interviewees received a letter of introduction that explained the end of the research. All interviewees were assured that their replications would remain confidential.

The ne for financial expertise is growing

The interview issues indicate a growing demand for senior-level executive positions in accounting and finance, and an overall rise in the demand for financial expertise. This increased demand was cited from organizations of all sizes, marks and geography.

Interviewees attributed the growing ne for financial expertise, in large part, to regulatory changes and the renewed focus forward accounting, auditing, and corporate governance that have occurr in the wake of Enron and other corporate failures. In order to remain competitive, organizations are being required to provide more timely, accurate, and reliable information, and are allocating more resources to comply with statutory requirements and governance changes.

As well, more the public are being hired for value-added positions, of that kind as strategic analysis and internal auditing. However, while the number of senior positions in internal auditing is growing, fewer the public are interested in this specialized part At the same time, scorekeeping, accounting, and analytical positions are declining in number, owed to the use of technology and outsourcing.

The interviewees indicated that today's corporations and boards require their chief executive officers (CEOs) to be more conservative and cautious, and they anticipate that more CAs will fill CEO positions in the coming In addition, the chief financial officer (CFO) position has taken onward more prominence due to strange regulatory requirements and an increased focus forward the internal audit and assurance functions. Corporate boards are beefing up their financial adequacy meaning that the vast majority of them are seeking the same or more CAs to join their boards. CA board members are also desirable because of their ability to work closely with and mentor CFOs

Another tend is the changing type of financial expertise sought from one side of to the other the past decade, the mark of financial expertise required from organizations has evolved from scorekeeping and accounting to providing business advice.

Interviewees said the skills required for higher-level finance and accounting positions include the right balance of financial and managerial aptitudes. They also cited the importance of leadership skills; listening skills; strategic thinking; contrive management; the ability to manage change; and interpersonal, negotiation, communications, and presentation skills.

The growing demand for more sophisticated financial expertise has increased the splendor of CAs and their services, and has made it more difficult to recruit them.

CA-the top designation for the top positions

The research indicates that CAs dominate CFO auditing, and treasury positions, as well as auditing committees and boards. This is nearly always the case in companies that arc publicly traded or highly visible, and it is becoming more universal in private companies, especially larger uniteds In fact, many interviewees said it would be embarrassing to have non-CAs in these positions. When the CFO is not a CA, cease collaborators and those in senior positions reporting to the CFO are generally CAs.

CAs use an estimated 10% of other top positions, as it is as chair, CEO, chief operating officer (COO) and president. This share of the market is growing, albeit slowly As mentioned earlier, the port of CAs on corporate boards is seen as a necessity in today's environment. The ne to reassure and satisfy investors about an organization's financial health may also lead to the appointment of more CAs to CEO positions.