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Irene TengRegional DirectorSouth East Asia and Australasia

CIMAmembers and students

Dear

As we usher in 2013, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year and sincere best wishes for a good year ahead.

This issue of SE Asia Voice gives you an overview of the SE Asia regional activities for the last four months of 2012. We consolidated our partnerships with several universities and colleges in Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to offer the CIMA programme. The highly successful student conference in Penang, Malaysia, last October drew an overwhelming crowd of 1500 students. In the same month, we held a roundtable on integrity with the Malaysian Institute of Integrity to further champion the ethics agenda. CIMA’s Convocation took place in November where we celebrated the successful admission of new members into the institute and acknowledged the achievements of top scorers in the CIMA exam. In this issue of our newsletter, we also highlight new reports and tools for CGMAs to keep up to date with their profession.

We are proud that SE Asia is one of the regions that showed positive growth for both members and students in 2012 and a higher expectation of performance is expected in 2013. In addition to enhancing student recruitment and membership growth in 2013, we will also focus on student

progression to membership, increasing exam activity and a closer engagement with members. Building a strong CIMA brand in the region will also help us to meet our growth targets for 2013.

In terms of governance, the formation of Country Branch Committees in Singapore and Malaysia has been completed. These committees will assist the South East Asia Regional Board (SEARB) in delivering CIMA Council’s objectives for growth in SE Asia.

We are honoured that Michael Eow, Chairman of the SEARB, was conferred the honorary title of Dato’ by his Royal Highness, the Sultan of Pahang, Malaysia, on 14 December 2012, for his contributions to the industry and society. Our heartiest congratulations to him!

We will continue to provide regular updates on CIMA’s progress in the region in future issues of SE Asia Voice. Once again, our very best wishes for the new year.

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Building partnerships in SE Asia

As a new market for CIMA, student recruitment in Vietnam has exceeded the target for 2012. Further progress has been made in building partnerships with the relevant institutes and universities in this country. On 19 October, Andrew Harding, Executive Director of CIMA, signed collaborative documents with the Vietnam Association of Certified Public Accountants (VACPA), Hanoi University and Hanoi Vocational College of Technology (HACTECH).

Andrew was also a keynote speaker at the CIMA-Ernst & Young luncheon talk on ‘Driving business value through the performance of the finance function to Vietnamese enterprises’. CFOs from leading companies in Vietnam and representatives from VACPA attended the talk.

Forum discussion at the CIMA-Ernst & Young luncheon talk in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Professor Dr Wilson Tay Chuan Hui (left), Dean, Faculty of Business, Communications and Law, INTI International University, exchanging the signed MoU documents with Andrew Harding.

CIMA member, Hugo Walkinshaw, speaking on his CIMA experience during the MoU signing between CIMA and the Chartered Institute of Technology, Singapore.

Pgs.Ts NguYen Dinh Luan, President of Hanoi University (left) and Andrew Harding signing the MoU between CIMA and Hanoi University, Vietnam.

We also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chartered Institute of Technology (CITECH) in Singapore. CIMA member, Hugo Walkinshaw, took the opportunity to speak to CITECH students on how the CIMA qualification added value to his career.

In Malaysia, an MoU was signed with INTI International University to offer the CIMA programme, with further

potential for growth in Indonesia and Thailand, as INTI is part of the Laureate International Universities.

Andrew Harding (2nd from left) exchanging signed MoU documents with Dr. Tran Van Ta, President of VACPA (3rd from left).

CGMA thought leadership

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As Chartered Global Management Accountants (CGMAs), keep yourself up to date with our latest publications and tools below. More are available at www.cgma.org

ToolsReports

One finance: Building tomorrow’s talent strategy

This report discusses the need for a unified, ‘one finance’, approach to talent management in light of increasing capabilities and skills requirements as finance operating models and finance structures change.

Integrating risk into performance: Reporting to the board of directors

This research looks at how performance and risk are integrated in management reporting to the board of directors and ways to enhance performance management with risk, so board members can perform their strategic monitoring role.

Talent pipeline draining growth:Connecting human capital to the growth agenda

This report explores how effective management and measurement of human capital influences an organisation’s ability to implement its strategy and increase growth.

CGMA global economic forecast: Q3, 2012

The CGMA Global Economic Forecast is a leading indicator of global economic growth and contraction based on global financial executives’ evaluation of corporate prospects, tangible performance data, and first-hand knowledge of company staffing, spending and financing plans.

How to develop non-financial KPIs

This tool provides guidance for identifying and designing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for non-financial performance measures.

Strategy mapping tool

Strategy maps allow organisations to describe and communicate their strategies concisely and succinctly to close the gap between formulation and successful implementation of strategy.

Calculating the cost of retention and replacement: COLT© and CORT©

Organisations need to know the underlying cost and impact of losing and replacing talent. Cost of Losing Talent© (COLT©) and Cost of Replacing Talent© (CORT©) are tools that help HR and finance assess the contribution and value of employees to organizations.

How to improve your finance organisation’s effectiveness

The roles of finance professionals are changing. The AICPA and CIMA have created three tools to help finance organisations effectively address these changes. They can be used singly or in combination by an individual or the entire finance team.

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CIMA SE Asia and the Centre for Governance, Institutions and Organisations (CGIO), NUS Business School, National University of Singapore, jointly hosted a breakfast forum on sustainability on 15 November at the Ritz Carlton, Singapore. The forum focused on whether there was a need for a Sustainability Index in Singapore and how companies in Singapore can prepare themselves for such an index.

The 78 forum participants comprised mainly CFOs and finance directors from MNCs and Singapore listed companies. They actively participated in an interactive poll where they cast their votes on how involved their companies are in carrying out sustainability initiatives.

Corporate leaders meet on sustainability in Singapore

Embedding ethics into the corporate culture

Senior business leaders at the breakfast forum.

Before the interactive poll, Professor Kenneth Richards, Musim Mas Professor of Sustainability, NUS Business School, set the tone for the forum through his keynote address on ‘Global and corporate sustainability indices: the challenges and benefits for Singapore’. There was also a panel discussion moderated by Professor Lawrence Loh of the NUS Business School. The panelists, Graham Owens (Director of KPMG Advisory), Thomas Thomas (Executive Director of Singapore Compact for CSR) and James Bruce (CFO of Unilever) brought different perspectives on sustainability to the audience which enriched the quality and value of the forum.

Signatories of the Malaysian Institute of Integrity’s (IIM) corporate integrity pledge got together at a CIMA-IIM roundtable on 15 October to discuss how ethics can be embedded into the corporate culture. Global companies like Siemens and Alcatel as well as local SMEs shared their experiences within their companies and the key recommendations were to ‘communicate, communicate, communicate’ and take action when something is wrong.

Tanya Barman, CIMA’s Head of Ethics, moderated the roundtable. She was also one of the key speakers at an ethics breakfast forum in Kuching on 19 October. IIM was represented by Norhaslinda Salleh, Head of Corporate Affairs in the Corporate Planning and Policy Division of the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM).

Ethics breakfast forum in Kuching.

Bringing ethics to students of TAR College.

Ethics roundtable in Kuala Lumpur.

Tanya Barman also brought ethics closer to students of TAR College and Universiti Teknologi Mara by speaking on ‘Ethics: cost or return?’ on 17 October. The objective was to promote an understanding of the importance of ethics for finance professionals and the growing importance of responsible business globally. The students were made to understand the types of pressures and the appropriate responses should they face ethical issues in the future.

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Membership in an hour

Francis Chan (right), receiving a token of appreciation for his leadership as Divisional President of CIMA Malaysia (2010-2012) from Venkkat Ramanan (left), Head of South East Asia.

New CIMA members pose for a memorable photo.

A new CIMA graduate cherishes a happy moment with his family.

Top achiever, Wee Yien Khang (right), receiving his trophy and certificate from Michael Eow, Chairman of the South East Asia Regional Board.

The banquet hall of the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club was filled with excited new CIMA members on a Sunday morning, 11 November 2012, as they came to celebrate their successful admission as Associate members of the Institute and to proudly carry the new global designation ‘Chartered Global Management Accountant’. Students who have completed their CIMA exams were also present for the occasion. Both these groups received their scrolls and certificates from Michael Eow, Chairman of the SE Asia Regional Board.

Among the highlights of the convocation was a speech by Vanitha Parasingam, CIMA’s Top Achiever for 2011, who shared her success story with the audience. To her, ‘Failure was not an option’ when she was studying for CIMA. This year’s Top Achiever was Wee Yien Khang who was the best overall student in Malaysia and among the top 3% globally for CIMA’s case study exam paper.

New members celebrate their achievement

Another outstanding student, Syuqry Sheikh Ismail from Universiti Teknologi Mara, won two awards for Paper E1 and Paper P1. There was a winner for each CIMA exam paper, including the CIMA Masters Gateway Assessment.

We thank our Gold Sponsor, TAR College, for their support of CIMA’s Convocation 2012.

Karen Newbury, Chair of the Membership Committee, was in Malaysia on 29 September to conduct the face to face membership assessment for exam completed students from Malaysia and Singapore. In total, 45 students from Malaysia and Singapore were admitted as new Associate members. 15 students

who completed T4 Part A also had their practical experience approved and they will be admitted as members upon successful completion of T4 Part B. Assisting Newbury were Global Assessors Tan Chee Wan, Lim Beng Horng and Alex Koay, and local assessors, Lim Kian Hui and Felix Chin.

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‘Celebrating success’ in Penang

Roadshow to promote CIMA

Members’ Christmas party

The crowd of students kept streaming into the conference hall during the two day event hosted by CIMA in collaboration with Universiti Sains Malaysia on 5-6 October. In total, we welcomed over 1500 students from universities and colleges in the states of northern Malaysian. Aside from listening

to the speakers, the students enjoyed a variety of games.

The conference mascot putting his signature on the success story board.

A musical performance helped liven up the conference.

MRSM students learn about management accounting through a CIMA business game.

CIMA SE Asia’s team went on a roadshow on 4 October to promote the CIMA qualification to students of MARA Junior Science Colleges (MRSM) in Kelantan. The team conducted mini business games to explain the concept of management accounting to the students. The INTEC-CIMA programme was also promoted. Upon successful completion of the one year programme, students will gain a dual qualification - the INTEC Apprentice Programme in Professional Business Accounting and the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting. Subsequently, they can progress to the professional level of the CIMA qualification.

Themed ‘Celebrating success’, the conference was designed and organised by the students. They chose the speakers and identified activities they were interested in. One of the highlights was the popular Gangnam dance performed by the organising committee members. As part of the conference agenda, the students also brought 120 packets of pre-packed lunch for the elderly and infirmed at Penang House.

Among the speakers were Sheila Wong, an image consultant and Sathis Manoharen, Regional Head of Cargo for Air Asia and Air Asia X. CIMA members, Boonsiri Somchit-Ong and Raveendhar Vasu, both senior management professionals in MNCs shared on their work experience and the value of CIMA. Other speakers included consultants and professional trainers, Dr Yeoh Gim Chye and Richard Koh.

CIMA members in Singapore celebrated the year end with a Christmas party at the Ritz Carlton Hotel. It was a relaxed evening for everyone over drinks and a sumptuous spread of food. Eugene Lim, Chairman of the Country Branch Committee, welcomed the dinner guests with a speech that highlighted the 2012 achievements for CIMA in Singapore.

CIMA SE Asia’s team went on a roadshow on 4 October to promote the CIMA qualification to students of MARA Junior Science Colleges (MRSM) in Kelantan. The team conducted mini business games to explain the concept of management accounting to the students. The INTEC-CIMA programme was also promoted. Upon successful completion of the one year programme, students will gain a dual qualification - the INTEC Apprentice Programme in Professional Business Accounting and the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting. Subsequently, they can progress to the professional level of the CIMA qualification.

Supporting your CPD

GBC global final in South AfricaThe excitement begins for the CIMA Global Business Challenge (GBC) 2013! The GBC 2013 global final will be happening in Johannesburg, South Africa, in July or August next year. So calling all undergraduates in Malaysia – here’s your chance to visit this exotic country, famous for safaris, gemstones and more, by participating in GBC 2013.

Put on your thinking caps, figure out solutions and recommendations for a business case study on a toy manufacturer, present your findings to a panel of judges and if you win your local competition to represent your country, you’re on your way to South Africa! GBC’s partnership with global sponsor, Barclays, will also provide internship opportunities as well.

25 countries will be taking part in the GBC global final. So far, a total of 62 teams from SE Asia have registered their participation.

More about GBC is available at www.cimaglobal.com/gbc2013 or join www.facebook.com/cimagbc for regular updates.

Continuing our support for GOLDCIMA SE Asia supported a charity run organised by students of the Sunway University Business School on 11 November to raise funds for GOLD. A total of RM24,000 was raised. GOLD is an association that caters to children with learning disabilities.

GOLD’s lovely hand designed mugs once again graced CIMA’s event at the new members’ convocation held at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club on 11 November. All members and guests who attended the convocation received a mug as a door gift.

Volunteers support a charity run for the disabled children of GOLD.

As members of CIMA, continuing professional development (CPD) is an i m p o r t a n t c o m p o n e n t o f y o u r professionalism and we are here to support you with CPD training programmes. For t h e 2 0 1 3 C P D c a l e n d a r , p l e a s e visit http://www.cimaglobal.com/en-gb/Our-locations/Malaysia/CPD-calendar/

There will be several in-company training programmes in 2013 geared towards meeting the training needs of companies. These will be in the areas of management accounting, financial accounting, business skills and IT skills (financial modeling series). CIMA SE Asia will provide suitable trainers for the training to be conducted on site, in a company’s premises. For more i n f o r m a t i o n , p l e a s e c o n t a c t karen.yeap@cimaglobal.com

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