CIMA felicitates two world prize winners

By Cassandra Mascarenhas

CIMA Sri Lanka proudly felicitated the outstanding performances of two students from Sri Lanka who had achieved the great feat of winning three world prizes between them at the CIMA examinations held in November 2011.

Honouring their achievements at the CIMA Convocation held at the Cinnamon Grand yesterday, CIMA’s Global President Harold Baird first presented 19-year-old Mowhiba Mowlana for accomplishing the best performance in the world in Performance Operations and Financial Operations. Anushka Madurasinghe was then presented with an award for the best performance in the world in the CIMA Professional Gateway Assessment.

In addition to these three awards, 15 students were presented with national awards and over 300 students were recognised for successfully passing through the current batch.

CIMA’s Global President Harold Baird who was also the Chief Guest at the Convocation briefly addressed the gathering, firstly congratulating all the students for their hard work and specially acknowledged the performances of the world and national prize winners, stating that this has put them amidst the upper echelons of the accountancy profession not just in Sri Lanka but globally.

“As you are aware, the global business arena today is under a great deal of economic uncertainty. This is particularly so for the West and against this background I would argue that there has never been a better time to be a management accountant,” Baird said.

“First and foremost, CIMA’s international presence is stronger than ever before and business leaders around the world are recognising that the unique skills and insights gained from the CIMA qualification have become a central part of a business’s success. To successfully compete you have to be passionate about business and finance. The CIMA examination process is exactly and specifically designed to set the thinkers from the bean counters.”

He added that CIMA ensures that its members are endowed with the skills and knowledge to drive businesses forward to long and sustainable success. With over 195,000 members and students in 176 countries around the world, it is vital that we have continuous development. To ensure this, CIMA conducts detailed research into the qualities that contribute to sustained business success and have identified nine core areas which include clear strategy, leadership, planning, innovation and good project management.

“The very shape of the business world is changing dramatically thanks to new technology and a widening international talent pool. Nowhere is this more so than in the finance function. Businesses are now able to recruit the best people around the world to meet the increasing demands of shared services and outsourcing. Management accountants are strategically placed to play an increasingly key role in the finance sector,” Baird went on to say.

The Global President then stated that their key focus is to ensure that their members are equipped with the knowledge and skills to work in the international arena. He added that this is even more important now that CIMA has entered a joint venture with the American Institute of Certified Professional Accountants.

“The AICPA is the largest professional accounting body in the world and CIMA is the largest institute representing management accountants. This new partnership combines the strengths of the AICPA in North America with CIMA’s presence in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and of course Europe. Together we have created the Chartered Global Management Accountants which was launched at the end of January of this year.”

Their aim to ensure that CGMA is recognised as the most prestigious global designation for management accountants in today’s business environment as it is essential that organisations employ finance professionals who can operate on a global scale.

“As the Sri Lankan economy grows from strength to strength you are in an ideal situation to forge rewarding and successful careers both nationally and internationally,” he concluded.

 – Pix by Upul Abayasekara