Professional Accountant - Volume 2015, Issue 23, January 2015

Success is one of those concepts that hold a different meaning for every person and organisation. The keys to success, however, tend to be very similar and usually appear in the potent combination of a focused strategy combined with consistent activity.

A number of pupils have excelled in the recent SAIPA/ABASA National Accounting Olympiad. Run by the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA), in conjunction with the Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants of Southern Africa (ABASA), the Olympiad is an annual competition that aims to raise greater awareness of becoming a Professional Accountant (SA) as a career choice.

Do you want to focus your thinking in more conscious and innovative ways in order to be able to achieve more in today's difficult and trying economic times? To do so, you will not only need to confront your own worst enemy, but you also need to recognise that the competitive landscape has changed forever.

Financial headlines are all too often dominated by news of the next big swindle. You'd be forgiven for thinking that financial crimes are more prevalent than ever before - and indeed, you are right. That's according to a cross-section of experts who note a common thread of opportunity, driven by technology, combined with the ancient human weakness of greed.

South Africa's GDP growth rate is expected to recover somewhat to around 2.5% in 2015, up from the strike-afflicted estimated growth of 1.4% in 2014. Some recovery in household spending is foreseen. However, the expected hike in personal income taxes combined with high services costs will leave consumer spending gains below previous upturns. A move towards fiscal consolidation, by railing in government's escalating public sector wage bill, will also pose a drag on South Africa's near-term growth prospects. A significant fall in the international Brent oil price, assuming geo-political stability in the near term, could be positive for both South Africa's inflation and interest rate outlook in the next 12 months.

Deciding on which framework to use for an entity can prove to be a nightmare. Three decades ago, there were only three common types of businesses - companies (private or public), sole traders, and partnerships. During this period, accounting processes were simple: the accounting standards were mainly applied to companies, and both private and public companies required an audit.

Finance is not just the concern of the finance function. It is an individual and collective responsibility across the whole organisation, including public sector bodies' board members. There needs to be a greater recognition of this collective responsibility, as the finance function has a role in making sure financial awareness and appropriate competencies run right through the organisation.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) regularly conducts SMP Quick Polls. The purpose of these surveys is to give SMPs all over the world a way of expressing their views on issues and developments that concern their own practices as well as their clients, most of whom are small- and medium-sized entities (SMEs). IFAC released its 2013 year-end round-up results in early 2014. SAIPA replicated and extended IFAC's year-end SMP Quick Poll and conducted a SAIPA SMP Survey in early 2014.

Regular reports of ethical failure in local and international media continue to highlight incidences of unethical behaviour and its negative costs and consequences. The extent of the challenge is such that managing misconduct is often described as 'a fight', whether against corruption, bribery, fraud or a range of other unethical and illegal behaviours. This illustrates the fact that seeking to reduce or even to eliminate misconduct is not an easy task: it can feel like an ongoing battle. However, this can lead to a major imbalance when organisations focus virtually all their attention in the field of workplace ethics on curbing misconduct. While this focus is vital, it is not sufficient.

If you are running a small business, you might feel overwhelmed by the many regulatory bodies and requirements in South Africa. From labour laws and tax regulations to municipal by-laws, health and safety regulations and consumer protection laws, you will be spending a great deal of your time simply trying to comply with a range of legislative and regulatory demands.

Data privacy has been law in the European Union (EU) for nearly 20 years! In South Africa, the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI) was only passed in 2013. Many companies knew that POPI was coming and have been preparing for it. Some companies with links to the EU had been implementing data privacy already before POPI was passed due to international pressure.

Zee Cele - member profile

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) recently appointed Olivia Kirtley of the United States as its first female president. Kirtley, an American certified public accountant and former chair of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), will serve a two-year term and take over from Warren Allen, the outgoing IFAC president. Not only is Kirtley the first female president, but also the first business member to be appointed as president.

To tell the truth, Morton Finklepock was in a minor state of panic. At the best of times he was anxious about just opening his mouth in meetings, and now he had to present his department's plans for next year at the Monday morning EXCO meeting.