Friday, January 13, 2006

What a Shambles!

It seems that the leadership of the ICAEW are intent on digging an even deeper grave for themselves this year.

Hot on the heels of the well deserved trouncing they received for trying to bully us into merging with CIPFA, they then managed to further destroy the ICAEW's reputation by delaying the introduction of the new syllabus, and most importantly the ethics module, for 2006.

Not content with wasting our money on a futile MORI poll asking us why we voted against the merger, don't they read or listen? The ICAEW now intends to add to its ever growing list of strategic and management failures.

Accountancy Age report that the Privy Council will block the proposed name change, which had so angered ICAS and other professional bodies around the world.

This in itself speaks volumes about the quality of leadership at the helm of the ICAEW. However, in case there is any room left for doubt, Accountancy Age also report that the proposed merger with IFA (the merger that ICAEW have yet to officially tell us, the membership, about) may be entering rather choppy waters.

Astute readers will note that IFA have a membership of 9000, it is a body that is even smaller than CIPFA. Yet, in order to prove its machismo, the ICAEW are now seemingly intent on merging with anything no matter how small.

It seems that there are allegations that senior members of IFA may be facing suspension for disciplinary offences.

How will that improve the reputatation of the ICAEW?

Here are few questions that we all need to mull over:
  • When will we be rid of this shambolic leadership?


  • When will the ICAEW learn that it is here to serve the interests of the membership, not the other way around?


  • When will that Victorian anachronistic structure known as Council be removed from office?
Failure to address these issues will see the end of the ICAEW as a legitimate force and respected brand within the profession.

I don't want to see that happen, neither do the rest of the membership. The time for the membership to take control of the ICAEW is now.

6 comments:

  1. Ken,

    Are your readers aware that it is possible to become a member of the IFA by recommendation alone (i.e. without passing any professional examination)?

    The IFA were reported to be in financial trouble(incidentally, they also run a bookkeeping outfit from the same address).

    The plot seems to get deeper and murkier.

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  2. Thanks Disbeliever

    I wasn't aware of that.

    Any other information on IFA would be much appreciated

    Thanks

    Ken

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  3. Ken,

    IFA have some 16 staff and 8 Council members. I do not decry them on that score but it is not that they are in a lower league than the ICAEW; they play a different game. Softball.

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  4. I suggest you look at AccountingWeb to see the behaviour of IFA members. I wouldn't wish this lot on lawyers , never mind you guys.

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  5. ICAEW, IFA and FA should merge to produce an even bigger shambles?

    Could Eric and Sven initially pass an exam with a dense sounding centre?

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  6. I wonder what class of membership would TCAEW grant IFA?

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