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chief executive officer, United Utilities, UK

John joined the accountancy profession because, as an engineer, he became aware of the importance of understanding the financial side of the business if he was to build a successful career. He decided ACCA was the best option for him.

The benefits which John feels he has gained were a rapid and sustained boost to his career, an improvement in his ability as a manager and a wider career choice than would otherwise have been available.

'There is no doubt,' he says, 'that the time and effort invested in obtaining your ACCA qualification will benefit you for the rest of your life.

'ACCA membership means recognition as a professional with an accounting qualification of international status and the support of a large well-run professional body,' John adds.

'The main qualities required of the modern finance professional are intelligence, integrity, commercial awareness and technical ability.

'What differentiates a typical ACCA member from other finance professionals is that ACCA members tend to be more rounded and have broader experience and operate across a wider range than other finance professionals.'

John's career has taken shape mainly in response to developments in the utilities industry, in particular the privatisation of UK electricity in 1990 and the subsequent waves of M&A that followed. The highlight of his career to date was his appointment in 1999 as CEO of United Utilities.

John feels that the biggest change affecting the accountancy profession over the course of his career has been the enormous growth in the need for financial information in running businesses.

'In parallel to this,' he says, 'the reporting requirement for corporate bodies has expanded significantly. Standards have become more extensive and have taken on an international dimension. Much of this has been facilitated by the technical revolution in IT.'

The challenge for the profession in the wake of the Enron and WorldCom collapses is, in John's view: 'To demonstrate its competence and integrity and hence ability to ensure that financial malpractice will be exposed.' He continues: 'However, there is also an opportunity to capitalise on the need for high quality, reliable financial information on the part of investors, regulators and the general public.

'I hope that the profession continues to grow over the coming years and evolves to meet the needs of business and of all users of financial information, so that it maintains its central role in the commercial and financial world. Responsibility for the accounting profession means performing one's role consistently to the highest technical and ethical standards.'