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Experience in various roles helps professional accountants Vital Skills in the Current strengthen the attitude and mindset that enables them to enhance their performance within organisations and, as a Environment result, the performance of the organisations themselves. There are a number of skills that we deem critical for finance professionals to have at the moment. We are What Employers Can Do to operating in a constantly changing environment, so change management and project management skills are highly Make Professional Accountants useful. We also want to ensure our finance professionals More Effective have a very good understanding of the global business and Professional accountants in business will pursue various its value chain, that they are good at strategic planning and career paths, with some starting their training in an have well-rounded partnering skills such as communicating, accountancy firm and later working in an organisation. influencing, and negotiating skills to make a significant Others may start their training by gaining practical difference to our business. Understanding the organisation’s experience in an organisation from the outset. After priorities and having clear knowledge of how we deploy starting a career in one of the key areas of the finance and the business plans in practice are also important priorities 14 accounting function (e.g., planning and control, decision at the moment.” — John McLafferty, head of Professional support, treasury, tax, audit, accounting operations), Development for Finance, Rolls-Royce many professional accountants branch out into broader commercial and operational roles. Professional Accountants in Business Employers can support the training and continuing Driving Sustainable Value Creation professional development of finance and accounting Employers’ expectations of professional accountants staff and make them more effective by moving them into will be derived from the roles and activities they should different and more value-added roles inside and outside of be able to perform to support and help drive the finance. This can be achieved by ensuring that professional development of sustainable organisational success. With accountants gain exposure to key areas of the organisation, the context of the drivers of sustainable organisational such as sales, customer services, marketing, operations, and success (see Part 2, “The Drivers of Sustainable research and development. This will enable them to apply Organisational Success”), the expected key areas of their professional training and business acumen in different competency are highlighted in the matrix below under situations, so they acquire and develop a diverse range of skills, perspectives, and experience. each of the four broad roles professional accountants play: creators, enablers, preservers, and reporters of sustainable Many leading organisations establish competency value (see Part 3, “The Key Roles of Professional frameworks to structure the development of finance Accountants in Business”). and accounting staff so they develop the necessary professional skills, which include intellectual skills; technical The matrix in chart 3 provides an overview of the expected and functional skills; personal skills; interpersonal and key areas of competency for professional accountants, communication skills; and organisational and business against which IFAC members and associates are invited to management skills. Competency frameworks complement benchmark their education (including qualification and diverse learning approaches, such as formal education and training) frameworks, programs and assessment, practical training—including continuing professional development experience requirements, and continuing professional programs provided by professional accountancy education offerings. IFAC’s PAIB Committee is undertaking organisations, mentoring, and coaching—to ensure that case studies to highlight how professional accountants the roles and activities of finance and accounting staff are support their organisations in practice in these key areas of aligned with the needs of the organisation. PAIB competency. January - March 2018 The Pakistan Accountant 55