What inspires you? ACCA members share their motivations for qualifying
Success is relative - whether you measure it in terms of personal fulfilment, financial rewards, health and happiness, or sailing through your ACCA Qualification after sleepless nights worrying about the exam question you didn’t answer. One person's success is another person's failure, even if they are both accountants. The following ACCA members have very different measures of success, and were motivated by very different inspirations and aspirations.
Career confidence
Natasha Winn was inspired to become an accountant by a high school teacher who spotted her proficiency for figures. 'It gave me the confidence to enter the profession,' says Winn, and the self-belief to make a commitment very early in her education. 'I decided not to pursue a degree but rather to focus on the ACCA Qualification,' she explains, and it has been a great facilitator. Winn has worked for a number of employers in Trinidad and the US, and is currently living and working in the State of Brunei where she is head of the governance, risk and assurance (GRA) team at Royal Dutch Shell.
But as her career has progressed, her perspective on it has changed. 'When I first started working for Shell at its head office in Houston, Texas, I relished the chance to work for a multinational,' she recalls, 'and I enjoyed the prestige.' Today, she still loves her job, but she is looking elsewhere for inspiration.
'Sometimes, as business professionals, we can become engrossed in our own wealth creation,' suggests Winn, and she is trying to counter-balance this by spending 'quality time' with her family and making room in her busy schedule for charity work. 'I think the training we have makes us prime candidates for running charity drives,' she says, 'and if you plan wisely, there should be ample room to pursue all your aspirations, both career and personal.'
Like Winn, Paul Kehoe knew that he wanted to be an accountant from a fairly young age, and when he left school he was determined to work with the employer that could best support him in this aim. 'I think that a large organisation can offer better training and development support to people who are studying accounting,' says Kehoe, so he joined the Allied Irish Bank. It turned out to be an inspired choice. 'I was expecting lots of opportunities,' he says, and that proved to be the case. 'Working for a large organisation gives you the chance to have a career, not just a job,' he says, and it has enabled him to progress from aspiring accountant to the head of finance for global treasury, without changing employer.
Inspired by India
The inspiration behind the career choices of Vandana Poria came from a number of different sources. 'I qualified in London in the mid-1990s,' she recalls, but she wanted to see more of the world. 'I was a bit bored in the UK so I decided to move to Romania with Ernst & Young,' says Poria, but after 18 months she needed fresh challenges. 'I went on to set up and run the International Division of Europe's largest listed professional training company, BPP Holdings plc.'
Romania was going through a significant process of growth and reform at the time, and Poria relished the opportunity to develop BPP's business in the region. She started by educating multinationals, and some of the Big Four accountancy firms, on the benefits of ACCA training, and then went on to train their employees to take ACCA exams. 'When I moved to Romania there were around 30 to 40 ACCA students, but now there are thousands,' comments Poria.
Although the exercise was a business success, she wanted more from her finance career. 'I was born and brought up in the UK, although my parents are from India,' says Poria, so she decided to relocate, explore her heritage, and do something more fulfilling.
She says: 'I wanted to give back by using some of the skills I had learnt over the years working abroad,' so she started her own business. 'Get Through Guides' specialises in materials and training for people in finance and management. 'We aim to make studying more affordable and fun,' explains Poria, who selected the ACCA Qualification for her first set of guides.
Exploring business
Poria went to India at a very interesting time. 'It is going through amazing changes,' she says, and its burgeoning IT and business process outsourcing industries offer great business opportunities. 'Discerning students are realising that an internationally recognised professional qualification will show that they have the same skills set as a professional in London, Singapore, or Sydney,' she says, adding: 'Nobody ever asks where you did your ACCA - unlike the first question asked about an MBA.' So Poria has high hopes for the future of her enterprise.
Long-term vision has also been vital to the career success of Bernard Dulal-Whiteway, chief executive of Neal & Massey Holdings Ltd, because his decision to join the Caribbean conglomerate back in 1972 was not the obvious way forward. 'It took me three months to decide if I wanted the job,' he recalls, as he was already the senior accounts manager with the oil giant Texaco, the leading company in Trinidad at that time, while Neal & Massey had yet to make its mark. 'Many people thought I was taking a step backwards, but I saw the opportunity for the group to grow and for me to grow with it.'
It turned out to be an inspired move. Within two years, Dulal-Whiteway was appointed to the Board at a subsidiary company, and, after holding various high-level posts, he became CEO in 2000. But as well as growing Neal & Massey into a $2.4bn conglomerate, he tries to give something back. 'There are a lot of people out there who have not been so fortunate in their careers or their life choices,' says Dulal-Whiteway, and he has always felt that it was his professional responsibility to help. He was a co-founder of Tidco, the tourism and industrial development company of Trinidad & Tobago, and he is involved in Vision 2020, an initiative that aims to help the region achieve developed nation status by 2020.
Studying hard
At this point in your career, achievements such as these may seem a long way off from the job of simply passing your exams, but once you have your ACCA Qualification, you will be able to pursue your own unique version of success.
So why not use your dreams of a bright future to inspire you to work even harder in your studies? Like Ben Dickinson, who was awarded the ACCA silver medal for the Professional Scheme exams in December 2004. When Dickinson was studying for his final exams, he had the added excitement of becoming a father for the first time - though even something as inspiring as parenthood can be a mixed blessing. 'Studying for my final exams was quite a challenge,' he says, 'because I had a new baby and a new job,' but as a result, he was doubly inspired to succeed. 'Thankfully, I got plenty of support at home,' he says, and from his employers at Barclays Bank.
But before you race off to plan your future, Dickinson has a few words of advice. 'Learn as much as you can from your colleagues,' he says, and, in an observation that echoes the experiences of Winn, Kehoe, Poria and Dulal-Whiteway, he concludes: 'Technical knowledge and passing exams is important, but it is what you learn through experience and how you apply that knowledge that will determine how successful you are.'
Lesley Meall is a writer on business and technology issues
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