News from the General Manager - Simon Grant
 Uncle Sam is struggling!
Again I draw inspiration from CFO.com as the global credit crunch continues. The United States Government has strived to regulate the financial markets with what is called the gentle hand. Yet it appears from the Presidents’ own working group on financial markets that regulators are being pulled in all directions by the worsening credit crisis to use a heavier regulatory hand to intervene directly in the markets. The $USD200 billion extra liquidity poured into the market, the bail out of Bear Stearns and the 0.75 per cent drop in official rates bears this out.
The report from the Presidents’ working group contains recommendations that will increase regulation for everything from rating agencies, banks, institutional investors and mortgage brokers. The report also recommends the regulators intervene with other standard setters ie. the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Basel Committee on banking. Hence my interest in the topic and its inevitable impact for the accounting profession.
The Presidents' report highlights the need for banks to hold greater liquidity and capital cushions and urges a review be carried out for the capital requirements for most structured banking products.
The report also goes on to say that regulators should require more detailed and comprehensive disclosure of off balance sheet commitment at banks which would require banks to increase capital reserves. Financial institutions should be required to hold capital and liquidity cushions commensurate with both on and off balance sheet firm wide exposure to severe market events.
The Presidents’ report also asks the Financial Accounting Standards Board to re-examine consolidation and securitisation. This may result in forcing banks to consolidate securitisation trusts they currently hold off balance sheet which would require an increase to regulatory capital.
Happy days for Chartered Accountants ahead as the ramification of all this plays out in all our markets in terms of cost of funds, regulation and future disclosures.
Cheers
Simon Grant FCA
simon.grant@charteredaccountants.com.au
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News from the State Chair - Mary Boydell
 At a time when there is uncertainty in almost all markets it is worth remembering that Chartered Accountants continue to provide sound advice and consistent service through such cycles. Our profession plays a constructive part in the stability of market and commercial frameworks. Through probity, diligence and skill, Chartered Accountants assist individual businesses to steer a steady course and more broadly contribute to stability. While every cycle is ‘different’, consistency and sound advice will always underpin recovery and this time will be no different.
Uncertainty will create opportunities for some and new challenges for others however our profession overall is well placed to play a positive part in advising and managing through these times.
Coupled with market based uncertainties practitioners will also need to develop wider understanding of the impacts of global and local emissions trading regimes and the attendant new markets that will be created in this space. There are many threads to the emerging environment, many of which, will ultimately depend on reliable numbers to underpin responses. I believe we will see an increasing need for multi-disciplinary approaches and Chartered Accountants will increasingly bring their skills to bear on wider fronts and across more complex issues. This is an important space for Chartered Accountants however it also means we need to ensure that our fundamental and core roles continue to be developed and respond equally well to change. The Institute’s Standards and Public Affairs division led by General Manager Bill Palmer, is active in reviewing areas for the Institute involvement at a policy level, and identifying where members need to be provided with information to assist them with topical issues.
Members will be aware that the Institute’s limitation of liability scheme was gazetted in Queensland on Friday, 25 January 2008 and commenced on Friday, 1 February 2008. Participating members of the Institute scheme are all Certificate of Public Practice holders, affiliate members and practice entity members, except for holders of financial services licenses. These members have been provided with email advice of the new scheme and also links to further information on the website. I encourage any member who is not across this, to visit the website at charteredaccountants.com.au
There have been a variety of education and training opportunities in March and April.I hope you have been able to spare some of your busy time to attend in areas of interest. These forums provide a great opportunity to catch up on continuing professional education and also with a wider group of colleagues. Like you, other Regional Councillors and I attend from time to time - please say hello!
Mary Boydell FCA
mary.boydell@bigpond.com
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Member Services Events
We are pleased to provide details of the next Company Directors Sessions coming up around the region, which the Institute is happy to support.Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast members please be aware of our own Institute local Members Group sessions, invitations for which will be sent out soon for April events.
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Leighton Holdings’ Wal King named 2008 Business Leader Awards winner
 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia together with Perpetual, named Wal King, Chief Executive Officer of Leighton Holdings Limited, the winner of the 2008 Chartered accountants Business Leader Award.
Mr King received Australia’s highest accolade in business at the ninth Business Leader Awards held at Luna Park in Sydney on Friday, 14 March 2008 hosted by Ali Moore and attended by many of Australia’s senior business executives.
This year’s Business Leader Awards was the most hotly contested yet, with more than 170 nominees vying for the title. The nominees represented the wealth of business talent in Australia and were judged on their ability to demonstrate visionary leadership, exhibit best practice, show innovation and take risks, foster positive employee relations and contribution to the community.
Sydney-based Mr King has headed Leighton, Australia’s largest project development and contracting group, for more than 21 years. In that time he has overseen a transformation in Leighton, from a mid-tier contractor, with a market capitalisation of $100 million, to one of the leading contractors in the Asia/Pacific region.
Receiving the award, Mr King said he was honoured to be chosen as the 2008 business leader, particularly from such an impressive field of nominees.
"It is a great pleasure to receive this award which reflects the successes we have achieved as a team at the Leighton over many years. But we aren’t going to rest on our laurels”, said Mr King. “Ultimately in business, you grow or you die. So we are continuing to pursue a number of strategic initiatives that will allow the Leighton to keep growing and for shareholders to be rewarded.”
The Outstanding Chartered Accountant in Business Award winner was awarded to Michael Ullmer, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, National Australia Bank, who is based in Melbourne.
Other winners on the night included Sydney based Andrew Mohl, former Chief Executive Officer, AMP who won in the Banking and Finance sector and Melbourne based Owen Hegarty, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Oxiana, won the Mining and Resources sector.
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Business Forum 2008 is almost here – Register Now
The Institute’s annual premiere event, Chartered accountants Business Forum is set to tour around the country and will be hosted at the Hilton Hotel, Brisbane from Monday, 21 – Wednesday, 23 April.
This is an opportunity for members to join the business industry as they gather to hear the latest updates, review current issues and plan for the future.
With a powerful, practical and flexible schedule delegates can also create tailored packages by selecting from over 60 sessions, earning more than 20 qualifying hours.
Sessions available range from business management, financial planning and leadership to accounting, SMEs and professional development programs just to name a few.
A special feature this year will be the option of scheduling a free one-on-one session with the Institute’s local business manager at Business Forum. This consultation will provide delegates with the opportunity to develop a customised training plan for their team covering personal development, technical or general business skills.
Don’t miss out - sessions are filling fast for this event.
Register or find out more information about Business Forum 2008 today. Regional delegate discounts are available.
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Certificate Presentation
 The Queensland Certificate Presentation took place Tuesday, 26 February in Brisbane at Rydges South Bank.
With 150 people in attendance to congratulate six merit award winners and welcome 48 new members, it was a great opportunity to formally recognise achievement in front of family and friends.
Russell Banham CA, Head of Audit Function in Caspian Region (regions included the following countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan) gave an inspiring speech about life on Kazakhstan and the exciting places the Institute can take you.
The night was enjoyed by all.
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2008 Golf Tournament – Date Saver
 After a false start to the new annual Golf Tournament, it’s coming back in 2008 bigger and better than ever.
The date and venue are confirmed so mark your diary now to avoid disappointment - numbers will be limited.
Venue: Hillstone St Lucia
Date: Tuesday, 27 May 2008
The Institute invites members, guests and colleagues to enter the tournament for a challenging afternoon of golf at the beautiful Hillstone St Lucia Course.
Individuals can register or companies may field teams of four and compete from a shotgun start. A tasty light networking lunch will be provided on arrival while members register. Drinks and snack buggies will be offered to players throughout the afternoon. The day will conclude with a gourmet BBQ and celebratory drinks while prizes and trophies are presented to the tournament winners.
Full information will be emailed to members including notice that registrations have opened. As it has been several years since this event has been held, interest will be high and registrations will sell out fast.
As numbers will be strictly limited, be sure to register fast to avoid disappointment!
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Trivial Trivia Night
In which forest is Robin Hood said to have made his home? What continent has the most countries? How did Yogi Bear describe himself?*
If you know the answers to these, then you should be at the Chartered Accountants Trivial Trivia Night. If not, make sure you are on a table with someone who does – so you can share the winnings!
Visit the website to download the registration form and register today.
Date: Thursday, 17 April 2008
Location:Institute training rooms – Level 32, 345 Queen Street, Brisbane
Time: 5:30pm – 8:30pm (trivia starts at 6.00pm).
Price: $15 per person (inc GST)
Finger food and beverages will be provided.
*Answers: Sherwood Forest, Africa, Smarter than the average bear
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Business Manager, Training & Development Update
In-house Training Solutions
Can’t find time to leave the office to attend training? Let the Institute bring the training to your firm or to a group of firms in your area.
In addition to the tax updates and special tax topics already available through in-house, the Institute is pleased to announce that the following sessions can be delivered to offices – reducing time out of the office and allowing all staff to update their knowledge and skills at the same time – and at a surprisingly reasonable cost.
Practical Aspects of Self Managed Superannuation Funds
This session covers the following aspects:- Introduction to a SMSF. What is it? Who is it for? Legal aspects, advantages and disadvantages, how to establish – the basic requirements and what is in the Trust Deed? Here he walks through exactly what is involved and whose responsibility it is.
- Simple Super – the changes. Dealing with the new changes effective 1 July 2007.
- Future strategies – here we deal with what a SMSF can do under the new rules and why?
- Audit of SMSF – the practical aspects as well as legal requirements
- Australian Taxation Office overview of SMSF. This deals with what the ATO is doing and looking at.
This training lasts about five hours and is very cost effective. The presenter has offered to include/add other modules onto this list depending on member needs.
Audit Training Series
In consultation with expert practitioners, the development of the following series is well underway and covers the various aspects of the audit process and will begin rolling out from April. All sessions are available individually.
A practical road map to the fundamental concepts and techniques of auditing – full day session (more details soon).
In addition, here is a list of our new half-day series which will cover the relevant Auditing Standards:- Understanding and interpreting the new audit standards (Content - ASA 100 / ASA 200)
- Quality assurance (Content - ASA 220/ APES 320/ APES 110/CLERP 9)
- Audit Documentation and Evidence (Content - ASA 230/ ASA 500/Corporations Act 2001/AGS 1038)
- Planning Phase (Content - ASA 300/ ASA 315/ ASA 330/ ASA 320/ ASA 240/ ASA 250/ ASA 550)
- Reporting and Assertions (Content - ASA 700/ ASA 701/ ASA 800/ ASA 260)
- Systems, Internal Controls and Management Letter (Content - Documenting and reporting client systems, evaluating internal controls, delivery the message and writing the management letter).
For more information on these sessions or to discuss development of a training plan for your staff please call Elizabeth Wilmot on (07) 3233 6506 or email elizabeth.wilmot@charteredaccountants.com.au
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Corporate: Key announcements from the Global Accounting Alliance
Summary of the key announcements from the New York Board meeting in February.
IFAC attendance
International Federation of Accountants President Fermin Del Valle, Deputy President Bob Bunting, and Chief Executive Officer Ian Ball attended part of the Global Accounting Alliance (GAA) meeting to discuss items of mutual interest such as the importance of their standard setting function and their activities over the coming year. The IFAC leadership team has a standing invitation to join the GAA Board at future meetings.
Accounting for sustainability
The GAA and its constituent member institutes are now formally members of the Prince of Wales Accounting for Sustainability forum from which a report of the same name has been produced. The Accounting for Sustainability forum is made up of businesses, investors, public sector organisations, accounting firms, and other relevant stakeholders.
It is envisaged that the forum will meet annually with the next meeting in December 2008 being a conference-type event with a keynote speech from the Prince.
The forum is coordinated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales and includes all members of the GAA together with the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy.
Mutual recognition
The Institute has completed work to confirm our mutual recognition of seven institutes’ (all except AICPA) qualifying programs reciprocity with the Chartered Accountants Program.
Background
The Global Accounting Alliance has been formed by the world’s premier accounting bodies to promote quality professional services, support the global membership, share information and collaborate on international accounting issues. The GAA represents 700,000 members worldwide making the qualification one of the most widely accepted accounting designations. The Institute is the only Australian accounting body within the alliance that includes professional accounting organisations from America, Canada, Hong Kong, England & Wales, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand and South Africa.
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Corporate: Key announcements from the International Innovation Network
The International Innovation Network (IIN) held its bi-annual conference in Amsterdam last month to establish the vision, mission and key objectives for the next three years.
IIN Chairman, Jan Pasmooij, from Royal NIVRA highlighted that the network has proved to be a valuable vehicle to facilitate networking and information sharing between its members.
'The IIN has evolved from a focus in its early days on products and services to an international network providing members with outstanding opportunities for knowledge exchange, sharing strategies and building relationships,' said the Chairman.
Stimulated by learnings from participation with the IIN, the Institute carried out an internal restructure and created a Membership Marketing division earlier this year with a focus on providing value to members at every stage of their careers. This was based on the effective member support model used by fellow IIN member American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
The conference covered key industry issues for accounting bodies such as:- How to meet the needs of female members
- Best practice in delivering online Training and Development, and the
- Research results from the IIN public practice and business surveys.
It was resolved that the main purpose of the IIN is to continue to focus on information sharing, research and networking between the 16 member institutes in areas of relevance to members. The key areas of relevance cited were attracting students to the profession, providing valuable products and services to members, and branding.
Background
The IIN comprises 16 national accounting institutes from the Asia Pacific region, Europe and the Americas. It was formed in 2002 with the aim of fostering innovation and enhancing quality in the products and services offered to and by its members. The Institute is the only Australian member of the IIN.
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News from the Knowledge Centre
Welcome to the latest news update from the Knowledge Centre; where you will find information on the LexisNexis free trials program, a retirement and estate planning resource, our book sale, new titles and a list of relevant Australian articles.
LexisNexis update
Many LexisNexis products are now available to members and candidates via the website as part of our free trials program, which is updated monthly. We are keen to get your feedback on these products. Access LexisNexis free trials program
The latest edition of the Retirement and Estate Planning Bulletin is now available. This bulletin provides expert analysis of retirement and estate planning issues in areas including superannuation, wills and probate, testamentary trusts, and business succession. Access the LexisNexis Retirement and Estate Planning Bulletin
Book sale
We had a large delivery of new books in February, which meant it was time to remove previous editions. These items are in great condition, have fantastic content, and are now available for purchase by members. To find out which books are available for sale this month visit our website
New books in the Knowledge Centre
The latest book titles added to the Knowledge Centre's collection are listed below. Brief reviews of these items can be found in the Knowledge Centre area on the Institute's website. New books include:- Anti-Money Laundering Handbook
- Killer CVs and hidden approaches: give yourself an unfair advantage in the job market
- Linkage Inc's best practices for succession planning: case studies, research, models, tools
Access the book summaries
Australian Articles March 2008
Follow the link below to access articles from around Australia on a wide range of general interest, accounting and business topics. The Institute’s copyright licence precludes us from supplying these articles electronically, however print copies can be ordered from the Knowledge Centre. Summaries on these articles can be found in the Knowledge Centre area of the Institute's website Selected articles include:- Inside their heads (self-managed superannuation funds)
- Integrating superannuation strategies and estate planning
- Foreign tax credits and overseas investment: more reform necessary?
- Harmonised breach reporting for superannuation trustees
- Deadlines then fines (carbon management)
- Product design emerges as key (superannuation fund product offerings)
- Avoiding thumbs down (executive remuneration packages and shareholder opinion)
- What women want (women in executive positions)
Access article summaries
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Chartered Accountants Local News – Queensland
Contents - News from the General Manager
- News from the State Council Chair
- Member Services Events
- Business Leader Awards
- Business Forum 2008
- Certificate Presentation
- 2008 Golf Tournament
- Trivial Trivia Night
- In-House Training Solutions
- Global Alliance Accounting
- International Innovation Network
- News for the Knowledge Centre
- Chartered Accountants Advisory Group
- New Members
- Have you seen these members?
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Editor: Jane Carr
Ph: 07 3233 6516
jane.carr@charteredaccountants.com.au
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Chartered Accountants Advisory Group
Are you facing unfamiliar or challenging professional circumstances, uncertain about a career decision or under pressure to act unethically?
Talk to someone who knows. Contact the Chartered Accountants Advisory Group in Queensland. This is a confidential and free service, staffed by highly experienced and specially trained senior Chartered Accountants from the local region.
If you have a professional or ethical issue you are unsure how to address, please do not hesitate to call and discuss it with one of the group members.
To be placed in contact with a Chartered Accountants Advisory Group counsellor for guidance, contact Wendy Perriman on 07 3233 6515 or email: wendy.perriman@charteredaccountants.com.au
(The Chartered Accountant Advisory Group counsellors will not address technical matters or personal issues.)
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New Members
Congratulations to the following new members who were admitted to the Institute in March 2008.
Ingrid Adams
Graeme Bembrick
Stephen Brake
Karl Brosnan
Matthew Campiutti
Nicholas Choy
Scott Clout
Wesley Coote
Andres Diaz Marin
Tijen Dogan
Tanya du Preez
Benjamin Farrands
Megan Gaudry
John Geles
Jacky Gu
Storme Kapuya
Prue Lawson
Ryan Maddock
Michelle Major
Peter Meiklejohn
Vanessa Mills
Allison O'Leary
Jennifer Robinson
Arun Shandil
Rainer Stork
Kimberly Wojcik
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Have you seen these members?
In our efforts to ensure we maintain up-to-date records for all our members, the Institute is seeking your assistance in contacting the following 'lost' Queensland members or members whose last address was overseas. If you have knowledge of any of these members, can you please contact the Chartered Accountants Service Centre by phone on 1300 137 322 or email: service@charteredaccountants.com.au.
Mr Sydney George Gould
Mr Peter James Manttan
Mrs Rose Elizabeth Ellwood
Mr Peter Martin Bradfield
Mr Aaron Paul Thorn
Mrs Claudette Maree Finch
Mr Gerard James Ruddy
Ms Belinda Lauren McCoy
Mr Peter Ronald Bentley Hemery
Mr James Alexander Hutchinson
Mr Tommy Chun Bing Lui
Mr Victor Hok Wan Choi
Ms Christine Jodie Vickery
Mr Neil Price
Mrs Andira Cook
Mr Luke Christopher Targett
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