The governing council of the American Institute of CPAs voted at its Fall Meeting of Council in Maui, Hawaii on Wednesday to approve a resolution authorizing an additional pathway to the Charted Global Management Accountant designation in the U.S., and officially elected Tim Christen of Baker Tilly Virchow Krause LLP as its new chairman.
The pathway would allow other qualified professional candidates who satisfy rigorous education, examination and experience requirements to obtain the CGMA besides management accountants.
“Business and finance are increasingly complex and therefore employers are seeking professionals with a skill set that is aligned with the CGMA competency framework,” said AICPA senior vice president pf management accounting and global markets Arleen Thomas in a statement. “By giving these qualified professional candidates the opportunity to earn the CGMA designation, we’re accelerating the professionalization of the management accounting space and creating a system that delivers greater consistency and quality.”
All holders of AICPA designations or credentials are required to meet CPE/CPD requirements and adhere to the AICPA code of conduct.
Separately, the AICPA Council officially named Tim Christen, chairman and CEO of Baker Tilly Virchow Krause LLP, as its new chairman on Wednesday for a one-year term.
Christen, 56, spent the past year as AICPA vice chair, and is a past member of the Institute’s board of directors and Council. He is a former chairman of an AICPA group that addresses major firm interests, and also served as a member of the AICPA’s compensation and political action committees, as well as the institute’s member advisory panel.
“Will we be the ones to take charge of our destiny and lead our profession to greater relevance and opportunity?” said Christen during a speech Wednesday. “Or will we be mere passengers, sitting in the back seat of a bumpy ride to an unknown destination? I vote for the driver’s seat.”
Christen said the accounting profession must take four steps to ensure relevancy:
1. Modernize its services. Beyond adopting new technology, this means being a step ahead of what the marketplace demands.
2. Increase “the speed of everything,” from service delivery to competency building to the development of new fields of expertise.
3. Increase collaboration with others outside the CPA profession. “CPAs and other qualified professionals are playing more strategic, interconnected and critical roles in business than at any time in history,” Christen said. “Today, we talk less about ‘CPA firms’ and more about ‘firms led by CPAs.’”
4. Create the professional environment of choice for the most trusted advisers of the 21st century. CPAs of the future will demand a more dynamic personal and professional experience, and the profession must be prepared to provide it to attract the best and brightest job candidates, according to Christen.
See our other stories from the AICPA Council Meeting:
