Statement from the Board 8 June 2021

Public practice conferences

The recommencement of face-to-face events in Australia saw the return of the 2021 Victorian Public Practice Retreat and the Public Practice Forum NSW being held in May under COVID-safe conditions. In line with capacity restrictions for the respective events, about 120 members attended the conference in Lorne, Victoria, while more than 90 members attended the NSW event at the Art Gallery of NSW.

These events provided a welcome opportunity for members to come together to share insights and discuss the major issues affecting the sector. The Victorian conference included the presentation of the 2020 and 2021 Henry Fox award to Brent Szalay and Robyn Jacobson respectively as part of the Paul Drum Memorial dinner, named in honour of the late Paul Drum, long-time employee and media spokesperson for CPA Australia. Featured sessions for the Public Practice Forum NSW featured updates from the NSW Treasurer’s Office, the ATO and a session on self-care at work. The next event will be the Public Practice Virtual Conference to be held on 19 August which will feature a compelling program of world-class speakers on the latest industry trends and topics.

Australian Federal Budget coverage

Coverage of the Australian Federal Budget is an important part of CPA Australia’s policy and advocacy activity each year. In May CPA Australia provided members with expert commentary and detailed analysis of the 2021 Australian Federal Budget, including a media release highlighting the major announcements, a detailed report on tax and superannuation measures and articles in INTHEBLACK – including a summary of winners and losers from the budget. There was also a podcast and webinar in which CPA Australia’s policy experts discuss the implications of the budget for the profession and the public interest. Independent media monitoring indicates that the potential reach of our budget coverage more than doubled in May compared to the October 2020 budget, due to a more deliberate focus on major media outlets. Members can access our Federal Budget commentary 2021-22 on the website.

CPA Australia mentoring program

The 2021 mentoring program is underway in Australia and New Zealand with 588 pairs of mentees and mentors commencing the program in April. There are two streams: early career and mid-career. In addition, two pilot programs have been established in 2021: the public practice pilot that commenced in April with 20 pairs of members and the international pilot which commenced this week with 92 pairs of members from across Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, United Kingdom, Singapore and Vietnam. The mentoring program is one of CPA Australia’s key strategic initiatives and is a valuable learning and development experience for participating members. The Board welcomes the participation of all members taking part, especially our mentors who are generously giving their time to support the development of the next generation of business and finance professionals.

CPA Member Connect reaches milestone

CPA Australia’s online community platform CPA Member Connect, which launched in September 2020, has reached a key milestone with 10,000 members now registered on the platform. This is a positive level of engagement that shows members value the opportunity of connecting with each other as part of a professional network in a secure closed online environment.

Members can access CPA Member Connect here.

Upgraded My Capability Plan and Learning Management System released

As part of CPA Australia’s Finance and Accounting Capability Framework, we have recently released the upgraded My Capability Plan – an online self-assessment tool that enables members to identify individual strengths and areas for personal development. Exclusive to CPA Australia members, the My Capability Plan helps members to assess their career development needs and focus future learning activities by evaluating competency across six main areas of the profession:

• Integrity
• Financial fluency
• Adaptive learner
• Data and digital
• Business professional
• Leadership

More information is available on the My Capability Plan page on the website. Individual My Capability Plans will suggest courses to cover new skills and competencies that are available on the upgraded Learner Management System with many of the suggested professional development courses complimentary to members.

 

Merran Kelsall FCPA
President and Chairman
On behalf of CPA Australia’s Board of Directors