ISCA Breakfast Talk. By Sarjit Singh. Man vs Machine

Transcription

1 Man vs Machine The Future Economy Preparing Accountants in the Global Game of Change Sarjit Singh BBM, PBM, FCA (Australia), FCA (Singapore) Executive Chairman Ardent Associates LLP Mobile: +(65) Copyright 2017 Sarjit Singh All Rights Reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means. Reproduction or translation of this work is unlawful. Welcome and Introduction Name: Sarjit Singh Tel: +(65) Executive Chairman, Ardent Associates LLP Winner for Best Practice Award (SMP), Singapore Accountancy Awards 2016 PricewaterhouseCoopers 16 years Chief Financial Officer, AIA 5 years Chief Financial Officer, Aviva Asia 3 years BBM, PBM, FCA (Australia), FCA (Singapore) Chartered Valuer and Appraiser, Institute of Valuers and Appraisers of Singapore (IVAS) District Councillor and Chairman of Finance Committee, Central Singapore CDC Chairman, Learning and Assessment - FP, Singapore Accountancy Commission (SAC) Board of Education and Examiners, Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) Master Facilitator for Singapore CA Business Value, Governance and Risk Module Board of Advisors NTU Investment Interactive Club President of Nanyang Business School Alumni Committee on the Future Economy Legal and Accounting Services Working Group National Honours : Public Service Medal (PBM) 2007 & Public Service Star (BBM) 2011 University Award : Nanyang Alumni Achievement Award in

2 The Ardent Story Humble Beginning 2008 Paperless Accredited Audit Training Software Organisation Winner of 2 Singapore Accountancy Awards Admitted as member of Kreston Int l + New Office Winner of the Best Practice Award 2016 Winner of the Best Practice Award (2016) Winner of the Practice of the Year Award (2014) Winner of the Excellence in People Development (2014) Sarjit Singh sarjitsingh@ardent.com.sg Tel: Find Me on 2

3 What s Happening at ISCA Breakfast, Today! Finding the Alignment Building a Strategy Developing Future-Ready Skills What Inspires You? Talk to Your Neighbour Please spend 2 minutes to introduce yourself to your neighbour If still got time, discuss either: What Inspires YOU on this topic? What is it that YOU want to get from this Breakfast Talk? Your Wish List. 3

4 Be a Future- Ready Accountant, Today! Here s Your Opportunity To Be A Future-Ready Accounting Genius 4

5 First Team to Complete Two (2) Straight Lines - One Across and One Diagonal WINS! We Are FUTURE- READY! Remember Together as One Team, You SHOUT be engage & proactive ask questions have fun 5

6 Building a Strategy We Have Several Things Going For Us First, we are where the growth is. We are right smack in the middle of the biggest upcoming demand for professional services. Asia is the world s fastest growing economy and ASEAN is the world s seventh largest economy. With a combined GDP of US$2.5 trillion in 20163, ASEAN is projected to rank as the fourth largest economy by The CAGR of the global accountancy market is forecast to grow at a rate of 3.7% from 2016 to Similarly, the Asia-Pacific accountancy services market is expected to grow at a higher CAGR of 6.5% in the same period. All these figures add up to one thing - huge potential demand. 6

7 We Start with a Position of Strength Singapore s trusted brand. Hub status - we are a hub for many things, including finance, transport, infrastructure, intellectual property and professional services. Connectivity - geographically, logistically and digitally, Singapore is the best place from which to connect with people and places in Asia. Strength of our accounting profession - Singapore accountants are highly regarded for their professionalism, strong substantive knowledge and skills, and reputation for quality, honesty and integrity. These are precious assets which have taken years to bring about. Where We Want To Be Singapore as a trusted global exchange for financing, brokering, structuring and dispute resolution for international transactions. Accounting professions moving beyond the domestic market to provide professional services to the region and Asia. Accounting practices being transformed: Larger ones becoming regional and global in practice. Medium sized ones breaking into the next tier or developing niche specialisations. Smaller firms becoming more productive, leveraging on shared resources to grow their businesses. 7

8 Where We Want To Be Our accounting profession developing new areas of practice, acquiring new skills and capabilities to meet new needs. Widespread technology adoption for greater productivity, cost reduction and time savings. More business innovation and our firms leading professional practice in Asia. It s a big vision. Can we get there? We think so. It won t be easy. There will be the inevitable challenges. But everything starts from a vision of where we want to be. Then we work out how to get there and do it. Finding the Alignment 8

9 Getting There To achieve this vision, the Working Group identified four key thrusts for accounting services in alignment with the CFE strategies, namely: Strengthening our global market position; Transforming our accounting sectors; Equipping accounting professionals to be future-ready; and Building thought leadership. Nine High Growth Practice Areas 9

10 Some Personal Observations People do business with people they know, like and trust. Relationships make us what we are. So our professional values of trust, responsiveness, quality, integrity and collaboration underpin everything we do. Technology will not replace the professional but it will change how accountants work, client expectations of their professional advisors, and what clients are willing to pay for. More importantly, it will differentiate the professional. Are we agile enough to dance with this rapid change? Can we find our focus in this world of disruptions? Developing Future-Ready Skills 10

11 Equipping Accounting Professionals to be Future-Ready Clients say what is needed over and above core attributes (eg high integrity, strong domain and technical knowledge) are accountants with: Multi-jurisdictional capability who can provide crossborder advice, project management and coordination; Ability to provide integrated cost-effective solutions (i.e. solutions which are cheaper yet better. It s a big ask, but that s what the clients say they want and they will go to the ones who can deliver it); Strong industry knowledge, who can see round the corner, and anticipate and advise clients on new trends. In Short, Clients Want More Value-Add Singapore plans to build capability and competencies to meet demand in a variety of ways: Cross-disciplinary and practice oriented curricula and internships in universities; Executive programmes for professionals who are already working; and On-the-job training through secondments to clients and other industry players. 11

12 ISCA Breakfast Talk DIFFERENTIATE yourself In Conclusion The path ahead will not be without challenges. Some things we can do immediately. Others will be years in the making. This is a shared endeavour. Whether we succeed in achieving our vision or not will depend greatly on mindset, attitude, execution and implementation. However this is a journey worth undertaking. 12

13 Q&A Clarifications of Fuzzy Points Remember Be a Future- Ready Accountant, Today! 13

14 Who Wants to be a Future-Ready Accountant? Let the Game Begin It s Quiz Time! 14

15 It s Feedback Time! Greatly Appreciate it!! Thank You for Your Wonderful Support. It s Truly Inspiring! Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere ~ Chinese Proverb 15

16 About the Trainer Prof Sarjit Singh Sandhu FCA has extensive experience working within the financial markets sector in Asia. He has deep technical knowledge covering listed companies, multinationals, initial public offerings and mergers and acquisitions due diligence gained over 17 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He was also the CFO of AIA Singapore and Aviva Asia for over 8 years. He is a Fellow Chartered Accountant in both Australia and Singapore, and has provided advisory services to many public listed companies, multinationals and GLCs on the development of financial reporting standards. He has won many awards, accolades and recognitions as a CFO and educator. Prof Sandhu is a highly sought after speaker at financial seminars and courses around the world and has authored and contributed many publications on corporate governance, risk management and international accounting standards. He is highly rated by participants who have attended his programs. He is particularly well-known for his ability to translate complex and difficult financial concepts into plain language, and the use of real life experiences, easy to understand illustrations and case studies. Prof Sandhu adopts a highly interactive approach in his workshops which makes learning both fun, enriching and memorable. My Key Notes Price is what you pay, value is what you get Warren Buffett 16