Last month IMA (Institute of Management Accountants) announced the establishment of a Sustainable Business Management Global Task Force (IMA.SBM.GTF) to speak on behalf of the management accounting profession, accountants, and finance professionals in business.
This comes as governments, regulators, and standard-setters debate the future of accounting and a range of new corporate reporting requirements ahead of the November 2021 UN Conference of Parties 26 in Glasgow, with major announcements expected from several authoritative bodies.
“Just about all of the emphasis today with respect to sustainable business is on external ESG reporting,” said Brigitte de Graaff, CMA, CSCA, Chair of the IMA.SBM.GTF. “While this is important, it is not the whole story. We want to lead by emphasizing the role of management accounting and finance in facilitating the building of resilient, sustainable businesses. We aim to be the voice of the profession to make sure management’s perspective in these significant changes to accounting are not overlooked but prominent.”
As one of its primary objectives, the Task Force is defining a set of fundamental principles for building a successful and sustainable accounting ecosystem.
In fully supporting the formation of the task force, Jeff Thomson, IMA President and CEO, said, “As the world continues to change, so too must business change to focus more holistically on sustainable business management for long term value creation.
IMA is making the case that sustainable business is good business in a complex, uncertain, and multi-stakeholder environment. We’ve shown the world accountancy for the 21st century — how the CMA certification is different because the body of knowledge emphasizes strategic thinking, analytics, decision making, and business leadership across an organization for both tangible and intangible value creation.”
The Task Force will look to:
• Advocate on behalf of the profession before governments, regulatory authorities, and other organizations on sustainable business management and the perspectives of accountants and financial professionals in business.
• Educate IMA members and the global business community on the role of accounting and finance professionals with respect to sustainable business information and management.
“IMA is uniquely positioned to address the critical role of the profession in building sustainable businesses,” said Shari Littan, IMA director of corporate reporting research and policy. “As this area continues to evolve, we will develop thought leadership and education to support our professionals, who will be assuming important responsibilities for meeting these evolving demands. We aim to support this in a way that builds value for all stakeholders, promotes trust, and facilitates meaningful action.”
IMA is one of the largest and most respected associations focused exclusively on advancing the management accounting profession. Globally, IMA supports the profession through research, the CMA (Certified Management Accountant) and CSCA (Certified in Strategy and Competitive Analysis) programs, continuing education, networking, and advocacy of the highest ethical business practices.
IMA has a global network of about 140,000 members in 150 countries and 350 professional and student chapters. Headquartered in Montvale, N.J., IMA provides localized services through its four global regions: The Americas, Asia/Pacific, Europe and Middle East/India.
For more information about IMA, visit imanet.org.
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