CIMA elects new President
06 June 2009
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) has elected its first Asian-born President. Aubrey Joachim, FCMA, CGMA, was elected President with global responsibilities at the 90th CIMA Annual General Meeting held at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, London, on 6 June.
Aubrey Joachim was born in Sri Lanka of Portuguese descent and is now an Australian citizen. Having commenced his working career at Unilever Sri Lanka in 1973, Aubrey has enjoyed a successful international career in finance and accounting with leading employers across a range of sectors. In 2005 Aubrey founded his own boutique consultancy running strategic financial and management accounting workshops, courses and conferences across the world. He is now a management coach, mentor and management training provider, contracted to leading global conference, seminar companies and professional bodies, to provide training programmes across Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and Southern Africa. He has been a prolific presenter and conference speaker for over 14 years and regularly authors articles on management topics for professional journals.
On becoming CIMA President, Aubrey Joachim, said:
'Now, more than ever, the overriding challenge for a global professional organisation like CIMA is to remain relevant. As the only international professional accountancy body with a sole focus on business, we are certainly that. But we must ensure we continue to build on our relevance to all our current and future stakeholders - members, employers, students, potential students and all those with whom the institute hopes to interact in the future, both in established and new markets. In this context, that means being operationally efficient and effective and having a streamlined governance framework that delivers results quickly.'
He continued:
'I look forward to working with our dynamic and visionary Council and management team to build on our success and lead our continuous programme of change and improvement, for the benefit of our stakeholders globally.'
The other honorary officers elected at CIMA’s AGM were George Glass FCMA, CGMA, who was elected Deputy President and Harold Baird FCMA, CGMA, who was elected Vice President. George Glass is finance director for the Balfour Timber Group. Harold Baird is a management accounting and business adviser to SME companies and not-for-profits including charities. He is also financial controller to S J Anderson & Sons Limited, a construction and property company.
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Notes to editors
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, founded in 1919, is the world’s leading and largest professional body of Management Accountants, with 171,000 members and students operating in 165 countries, working at the heart of business. CIMA members and students work in industry, commerce and not-for-profit organisations. CIMA works closely with employers and sponsors leading-edge research, constantly updating its qualification, professional experience requirements and continuing professional development to ensure it remains the employers’ choice when recruiting financially-trained business leaders. CIMA is committed to upholding the highest ethical and professional standards of members and students, and to maintaining public confidence in management accountancy. CIMA is proud to be the first professional accounting body to offer a truly global product in the fast-moving area of Islamic Finance.
According to independent research conducted by the University of Bath School of Management, CIMA’s syllabus and examination structure are the most relevant to the needs of business of all the accountancy bodies assessed. See the CIMA Difference report for further information at www.cimaglobal.com/thecimadifference. CIMA has been awarded Superbrand status in the UK for a third year in a row this year and for the first time in Sri Lanka.
Aubrey Joachim was born in August 1954 in Colombo Sri Lanka to parents of the burgher community – of Portugese descent.
Educated at two of the leading Catholic Boys colleges in Colombo – St. Joseph’s College and St. Peter’s College, Aubrey was a top performing student and regular prize winner. After A’ levels he opted to go into the workforce and forge a career through a professional qualification pathway. His career began in 1973 in the Finance department of Unilever in Colombo, Sri Lanka from a field of 3000+ applicants. This critical choice led him down the CIMA path. Ironically, it was Lord Leverhulme, founder of Unilever who was also the first President of CIMA. Aubrey enrolled as a CIMA student in 1975, following the path of many other Unilever trained management accountants. He took a break from CIMA exams and Unilever in 1977 for a period of 2 years to join the Sri Lankan Air Force as a Volunteer Commissioned Officer. After a brief stint as accountant of a leading export garment manufacturing organisation in Sri Lanka from 1979 to 1982, he joined the Dubai (UAE) operations of McDermott International Inc. – a major US Conglomerate involved in the energy & oil and gas industry globally, as asset accountant rising to senior Finance Manager with responsibilities in the Middle East region as well as South East Asia (Singapore). Aubrey completed his CIMA exams in1984 while in Dubai and was admitted directly to Fellowship of CIMA in 1986. In 1988, he led a team of three accountants from McDermott (including another CIMA member) to win the finals of the Benson & Hedges Middle East Management Challenge beating a field of top quality (expat) professional managers from 12 other middle eastern countries, amply demonstrating the use of CIMA skills and competencies.
In 1991, Aubrey won the CIMA / Reed Global Management Accounting Competition (designing a management reporting system for Oxfam) and was flown by CIMA from Dubai to London to receive the award at the annual Charities Conference held at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (ironically the venue for the 2009 CIMA AGM), and in the presence of the then British PM John Major.
In 1992 Aubrey transferred to McDermott International’s European operations in London as Projects Finance Manager
In 1993, Aubrey emigrated with his family to Sydney, Australia and became an Australian citizen. In 1994 Aubrey joined Sydney Water Corporation, the largest water / waste water organization in the southern hemisphere and 5th largest in the world) as a senior manager in finance, implementing strategic management concepts and driving transformational change. In 2005, Aubrey set up his own boutique consultancy, running strategic financial / management accounting workshops, courses and conferences across the world – Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China, Sri Lanka, India, Dubai, Iran, Zambia and South Africa.
Aubrey, attained CIMA Fellowship status in 1988 and has been an active member since 1994, when he became a committee member of the New South Wales Branch in Australia and then served as Branch Secretary and Branch President. From 1998, he has been on the CIMA Australia National Council. Aubrey was elected to Council in 2001 to represent Australasia and been on International Committee and the Chairman of the Members’ Services Committee and is a member of the Executive Committee.
Other involvements:
Aubrey has been on the conference speaker circuit since 1997 presenting for Australian, Singaporean and Malaysian accounting bodies as well as leading conference companies – for both the private and public sectors.
He is also a finance trainer for the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has regular articles in professional journals for the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia, CPA Australia and the National Institute of Accountants Australia. He also blogs on sporting topics – mainly cricket.
Other qualifications:
Aubrey holds an MBA from the Sydney Graduate School of Management
He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors
Family:
Aubrey is married to Nelum Joachim and has two sons aged 27 and 25 who also have careers in finance.