China (Shanghai) - October 2007
PROFESSIONALISM AND ETHICS SEMINAR, SHANGHAI
POST EVENT REPORT
Over 130 participants including the Lord Mayor of the City of London and his delegation, ACCA members, affiliates, students, as well as ACCA learning partners and approved employers attended the Professionalism and Ethics conference held by ACCA in Shanghai on 18 October.
As part of a global initiative to promote professionalism and ethics in the accounting profession, the event brought together a group of industry leaders, including ACCA president Gill Ball, ACCA chief executive Allen Blewitt, DuPont Greater China regional finance director Daniel Leung (ACCA), Shanghai National Accounting Institute vice president Xie Rong, Nanjing Audit University president Wang Jiaxin, Securities and Investment Institute chief executive officer Simon Culhane, as well as the Lord Mayor of the City of London Alderman John Stuttard, to share their views on the value of creating an ethical business environment to corporations and building a good governance that drives social, environmental and ethical agenda should be the way forward.
The professionalism- and ethics-themed conference began with the keynote address by ACCA Chief Executive Allen Blewitt, who posted a vital question at the beginning his presentation: ‘Can ethics be “operationalised”? Or is it an area of such relativity, defined by a series of personal codes and behaviours, that it is difficult for ethics to be more than a backdrop to organisational decision-making?‘
Allen explained: ‘We believe that rather than being a backdrop, ethics is centre stage in the decision making process. Ethical decision making is now part and parcel of the requirements for professionals and ACCA trying to support its members in the tough choices that they have to make, in the lead that they have to take in setting a good example and in how they should use their “moral compass” to lead their teams and organisations through a challenging terrain. And they may need a different ethical roadmap in future as new marketplaces become more influential. “
Explicably agreed by Daniel Leung who later concurred his view by quoting DuPont Chairman and CEO Charles Holliday: ‘In a high pressure environment, there may be temptations to cut corners. That has never been the way we do things at DuPont. As we compete in the global marketplace, we must never compromise our core value of the highest ethical conduct.’
As China continues to transform itself into one of the fasting growing economy in the world, the challenges being faced by the government are as ever exuberant as the opportunities it creates. This is especially so in the financial market where anything including the intangibles can shake the very foundation of an economy. The recent convergence of the Chinese Accounting Standards and the IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) shows the determination of the central government to strengthen regulation, as well as to bolster investor confidence at home and abroad.
The dynamic progress of the country has won many applauds by spectators from around the world. While the effort of the legislative bodies in crafting a capital market that is fair and transparent should never go unnoticed, the actual implementation of the new standards solely lies in the hand of, not corporate executives, but a group of professional accountants. These people may not be the decision makers of a company; nonetheless, they are the very people who decide what stakeholders see in an annual report designed to review the financial conditions of an organisation.
The implementation of good governance lies in the heart of these very individuals. The need to train qualified professional accountants, therefore, is as imperative in China as in every part of the world.
Speaking about the expectation of an accountant, the Lord Mayor said: ‘…it all gets back to the ethics of formal and transparent accountancy, including audits, and that relies on the professionalism of the accountants involved,’
The Lord Mayor concluded: “I became an accountant some 40 years ago and I am still as excited about the opportunities to help businesses and organisations prosper now as I was then. And if playing such a pivotal role appeals to you, then obtaining an internationally recognised qualified qualification, such as ACCA, with its constant emphasis on ethical behaviour, is your first step.”
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For further inquiries:
Charlene Koi
PR & Communications Manager
ACCA Shanghai
T: +86 21 6391-6777 ext 25
charlene.koi@cn.accaglobal.com