A Multi-Cultured Profession

In September, over the Labour Day Weekend, I will be speaking at the NETip North American Annual Conference, in downtown Toronto, as a guest speaker, (http://www.netipconference.org/torontosite).

I will be addressing the Accounting members of the audience - in a break-out session - on where I see the Accounting profession going in the future, and what developments we are likely to see in ten years time, both in industry and in public accounting.

NET ip, as their name implies, is a networking group for Indian Professionals, their members are mostly doctors, dentists, lawyers, accountants and similar professionals from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and other South Asian countries - Ex-Pats, who practice their profession here in Canada but want to remain connected to their roots and their heritage through their professional network.
This got me thinking about how multi-cultural our accounting profession is, here in Canada, and how lucky we are to have such a rich blend of cultures in our everyday lives. But I think it is something we all take for granted at some time or other.

Accounting is a natural profession for the migration of workers from one country to another. After all, debits are still by the door, and credits by the window, no matter which country you learn the basics in, right?

Add to that the impact of IFRS, and people will, I believe, become even more portable.

But many new immigrants come to Canada believing that their hard-earned (foreign) designation will put them ahead of the employment queue and help them find suitable employment in short-order.

It doesn’t.

Indeed, our Canadian professional bodies do not offer much in the form of reciprocity to many, if not all, of their South Asian counterparts.

I guess the reason is that they see a substantial gap in the technical standards of the members of professional bodies in those parts of the world, due I believe, to the different cultural aspects of business life in South Asia.

Having been there myself – I spent over 2 weeks in Bangladesh a few years ago, working with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh and also their Association of Accounting Technicians – I can see why.

Public Accounting plays a very different role over there. It is mostly the role of Auditor, mostly with a ‘Big Four’ firm, or local associate firm thereof.

And their clients are usually local branches of huge multinational corporations.

Very few independent businesses or individuals use an accounting firm to deal with their tax affairs, as most people have ‘other methods’ of dealing with their personal tax issues.

And thus, we have a problem.

In the recruiting side of my business, we see many a bright young thing come to Canada full of hope and wonder, struggle to find a position of a similar level to that which they enjoyed back in their homeland.

The reason? Most candidates from these countries are not very familiar with the personal tax side of our culture here in North America, and there is a huge learning curve for the new immigrant to navigate.

As such, many employers – particularly smaller practices – do not want to take the risk of employing someone whose previous experience has been in a bullpen of a very large firm dealing with very large clients.

I see this as something of a mistake.

Look at the individual first, their background second.

If you see that drive and ambition in their eyes that we all know is so important to the success of any individual’s career, then that is what we should be focused on.

Now, let me ask you a simple question.

If someone is prepared to move their family thousands of miles to build a new life, no matter what the reason, don’t you think that is a prime example of some of the very attributes we should be looking for in candidates?

Technical skills can be retrained, and in relatively short time frames in many cases.

After this initial period, you will have a very loyal and dedicated team member who could make a substantial contribution to the growth of the firm.

Indeed, I have seen many a CA from India (for example) go through the whole process of becoming a Canadian CA over a three year period, and I have the utmost respect for those who come here with foreign designations who go through the retraining required to become a Canadian CA or CGA etc.

Just look at NETip as an example. I know that many business deals are struck between members every day simply by virtue of each party’s membership of the network, and their leverage of such to allow individuals and businesses alike to get in front of people that they might not otherwise be able to.

I have seen, for example, a Chartered Accountant from India, move here on his own, leaving his family behind, finding a job as a bookkeeper/technician with a small firm over here, and save until he could afford to bring his wife and children over here.
During this time, he also got promoted and today is a senior manager at the very same firm. Clients love him, and he has been able to grow his own book of business that he handles at the firm by virtue of his connections to his own community and the networking opportunities that present themselves if you go looking for them.

So, I’d like to end my column this month with a question... where do you think the accounting profession will be in ten years time?

What significant changes or developments do you feel we will see, and what benefits will they bring to practitioners and clients alike?

How portable will people be?

What new technological developments do you anticipate?

Will outsourcing stimulate one country’s economy at the expense of another’s?
Do tell - I’d love to get your thoughts.