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Kapitol Dome Newsletter ~
October 2017
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Greetings! (Your member # is n/a)
Are you an entrepreneur in the making? Network with us and earn two CPE credits on October 11 while considering whether you could be an entrepreneur.
Looking for a review course or just want to know more about the CMA credential? Invest 45 minutes of your time to attend the live online Information Session from The CMA School on October 12th. Happy Learning!
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- October 11, 5-8:15 pm NCC Dinner Meeting: "Entrepreneur: Could this be you?" Reserve
See our
events page
for the full list of upcoming events. We hope to see you soon!
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Dear Members,
As we look forward to October, a big thank you to those who attended our September 13 CPE meeting on fraud. Members will find interesting statistics at the
ACFE web site
. Fraud is a risk for all organizations. Watch for it! Have a plan to mitigate the risk!
Please, plan to attend our CPE program on
Wednesday, October 11, at the Holiday Inn Rosslyn
. Table topics will focus on the business of self-employment, including reporting and compliance. The official program will focus on the entrepreneur! Our speaker, Bob Smith, will discuss changing roles, reading signs, and planning. Please join us with convenient hotel garage parking or an easy walk from the metro!
Kathleen Sobieralski
President
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Welcome New Chapter Members
Jonathan Ward
Bogdan Sandru
Colin Campbell
Raymond Pierce
Brittney Bynum
Stephanie Adams
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Member Milestones
50 Years:
B. New
40 Years:
Dale Elam
30 Years:
Allan Williams
20 Years:
Kerry Walters
10 Years
: Eric Nelson
New CMA Congrats
Brittany Lynn Thorp
Randa Hassan Osman
Denise Bossard
Peter O'Hara
CMA Milestones
20 Years:
Alan Mayer-Sommer
10 Years:
Raymond Nan
CFM Milestones
20 Years:
Cynthia Simpson and Mark Borchardt
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Do You Need Help Planning Your Career?
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Planning to take your career to new heights? It's easier than ever to stay in the driver's seat with IMA's career management tool, CareerDriver®. Create your personalized development plan today!
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Have Corporate Board of Directors Lost the Art and Ability to Govern?
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The Board of directors has always been thought of as industry titans that over the years evolved from an all males club to an elite group of men and women.
A
Board of directors must possess skills and experiences to
- set high level policies;
- review the enterprise condition; and
- form a deep understanding of the business, and its current economic presents.
These principles are essential to navigating an enterprise in an ever challenging global economy where a company can experience loss of market share, underperformance, internal fraud, and ethnical shortcomings. In the wake of market share erosion and underperformance in many industries and companies, Boards of directors have adapted to actions to show up these results. Either divestures or acquisitions appear to be the preferred strategies. We can look at what’s going on at International Business Machines (IBM), over 5 years without a profitable quarter, or
Hewett Packer (HP) core business is still underperforming after 6 years under its current CEO. With repeated fraud allegations, don’t look too far, there’s Well Fargo, and the lack of a code of conduct and ethics standards, Uber or Fox News immediately comes to mind. And we are reminded about the common theme “the tone at the top.”
Externally
there has not been any major federal government regulatory or legislation enforcing standards or guidelines upon corporate board of directors since 2002 Sarbanes Oxley Act.
Internally
most boards are structured with subcommittees to handle current impediments, i.e. executive compensation, risk assessment, or auditing.
It’s no longer acceptable to have figure heads as members of the Board of directors.
Today, corporate management and board’s oversight experiences are being challenged by investor activists, both individuals and hedge funds entities. These challenges and fights are normally over proxy votes and negotiation of the number of board seats being pursued. Board seats should not be thought of as an entitlement or a glamour award, i.e. a business Oscar. In the '80s and '90s there was Carl Icahn, and today William Ackman, as popular known individual activists. Boards are either busy accommodating the activists' request or working with the executive management to deny and prevent losing any control to the activists.
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Reshaping the governing body with the proper focus and accountability is the responsibility of the shareholders. Shareholders should no longer accept short-term dividends while sacrificing long-term growth. If the business model changes, some subsidiaries may not fit the strategic business plans. Then of course perform due diligence and eliminate the unpopular or underperforming units.
During annual shareholders meetings, management should be brought in to explain
- the most urgent impediments,
- their associated risks, and
- mitigating solutions.
These subjects or impediments are glossed over in the annual Management Discussion Analysis.
Shareholders should require and insist on strong governing policies. Board of directors’ tenure should be predetermined. In a dynamic global economy, the focus is no longer social, economics, or political goals and survival. Good example, assessing and defending against cyber-attacks were not common 10 to 15 years ago. Skills for ecommerce or rapid technology initiatives are more prevalent today. And this expertise and talent formally did not exist among Board members.
Shareholders should become familiar with the skills and abilities of Board members to provide appropriate oversight under current business conditions. Maintaining a balance of experience is essential for future long-term growth and existence.
Submitted by:
Erv Basdon, Director at Large, Nation's Capital Chapter
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Rapid Automation and AI: Invest in the CMA!
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Do rapid advances in automation and artificial intelligence have you concerned about losing your job to machines?
"With the rise of new technologies, there's uncertainty about the future of accounting," said IMA President and CEO Jeff Thomson, CMA, CAE. "Preparing professionals for the future is not just a campaign; it is integral to IMA's vision and mission. The CMA prepares professionals for these challenges by enabling them to both improve an organization's performance and create a competitive advantage."
Future proof your career. See the new CMA ad campaign below, and
get started
!
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Get to Know Our President-Elect: Derek Fuzzell
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Derek Fuzzell, CPA, CMA
serves as the President-Elect of the Nation’s Capital Chapter and as Vice President-Finance at Northwest Federal Credit Union in Reston, VA.
How did you decide on a career path in Finance/Management Accounting?
I honestly fell into the profession after completing a bachelor’s degree in Economics at the University of Houston. I chose my industry first working in the Credit Union industry for one of the largest credit unions in the country. From there I made a move from Operations to Finance.
What is your favorite aspect of the Finance/Management Accounting Profession?
I love numbers. Further, I love helping businesses work better, more efficiently, and strategically to reach their goals. That is the key role of financial and management accounting professionals and will only become more important as technology continues to reshape the profession.
What has been the most fulfilling aspect of your career in Finance/Management Accounting?
So far, it has been the honor of being nominated for the Next Top Credit Union Exec award presented by the Credit Union Executive Society for a project educating non-financial managers on the fundamentals of financial management. I have made it to the finals of the competition and will give my final presentation in Las Vegas on October 11
th
. Win or lose, it has been an honor to make it this far in the competition..
Do you have any advice to new members or people starting their career in Management Accounting?
My key piece of advice is to take on new challenges and learn everything you can. Each new challenge will prepare you for new and exciting opportunities which are yet to come. Working in operations was one of the best preparers for the work I do today.
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What do you believe is the best way an individual can find their ideal career path?
I think the key is to try everything you can within reason. It was obvious to me that I loved numbers but not journal entries. Piecing these pieces together helped me to decide that finance and management accounting were the perfect fit for me.
When and How did you first become involved with the IMA?
In 2013, as I was researching how to make the shift from operations to finance, I researched all of the options out there and discovered that the IMA was the best fit for what I wanted my career to be. From there, I actually became involved with the Global Advisory Committee on Diversity & Inclusion around the same time of getting involved with the Nation’s Capital Chapter.
What has been the most fulfilling aspect of volunteering with the IMA?
Serving the IMA in various capacities has been so rewarding through building my professional network, gaining experience, and through giving back to the profession.
As an IMA volunteer, what has been your greatest accomplishment?
There are two key highlights which really stand out for me. First, I was honored to serve as the Chair of the Young Professional Forum which was an ad hoc committee to assist IMA Global in selecting both the Young Professional of the Year Award presented by the Stuart Cameron McLeod Society and to select the five finalists in the CMA video contest earlier this year. The second volunteer accomplishment is ongoing as I serve as the Chair for the Conference Program Committee for the 2018 IMA Annual Conference & Expo to be held in Indianapolis in June.
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