ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2010 - ICAEW

CHAIRMAN’S REPORTalso seen steady growth with the faculty’s LinkedIncommunity, which now boasts a network of 644finance and management professionals.‘I am pleased to report another successfulyear for the faculty as we supportedmembers through 2010.’2010 has clearly been a difficult year for financeand management professionals dealing with theinevitable challenges presented by the downturn.While the outlook remains uncertain with the end ofstimulus packages and the gradual impact of publicsector cuts, there is hope that government plans tosupport the private sector will bring about muchneeded growth in the future. Throughout this periodof transition, the faculty has been quick to respondto the changing needs of members, providingpractical advice and support on a range of topics.In addition to the faculty’s highly-regarded andwell-established events programme covering subjectssuch as practical financial modelling and masteringforecasting, the faculty introduced a roadshow onthe subject of influencing and negotiating skills,which visited seven UK locations. Another particularhighlight of the year was the evening we arrangedwith Lucy Kellaway. The journalist and FinancialTimes management columnist revealed some ofmanagement’s silliest expressions and discussed her‘pyramid of piffle’, which ranks HR at the top andaccountants at the bottom.I have been particularly impressed with the specialreports issued in 2010. The reports, which providean in-depth look at a major topic, such as starting abusiness or finance transformation – the outsourcingperspective, are a useful source of information for abroad range of businesses.I am also delighted to report that good progress hasbeen made with the electronic delivery of servicesto members, which is particularly beneficial to ourgrowing international membership. We are buildingon the success of our extensive web resource andmonthly electronic bulletins to provide webcastsand edited recordings of faculty events. We haveThe faculty has continued to drive theFinanceDirection thought leadership programme,which encourages debate around the challengesfacing the finance function and its leadership, thefinance director, or CFO. The focus in 2010 wasto present and discuss ideas on finance functioneffectiveness with various stakeholder groups.Our work facilitated successful engagement withacademic and practitioner audiences from the UK,US, Europe and Asia.Despite all of this good work, the faculty hasnot been immune to the economic climate andgrowing membership has been a challenge. Facultymembership numbers at the end of 2010 were 8,131(8,758 in 2009) which under the circumstances isrespectable. We are acutely aware of the pressuresfacing members in the current environment andas a result held the faculty subscription rate for thesecond year running. The faculty finances remain inrobust health thanks to a combination of increasedevent revenue and cost savings, which were achievedwithout reducing the quality of services.Looking forward to 2011, I expect it will be anotherbusy year for the faculty. It is clear that membersand their businesses will continue to be stretched inmany ways and challenged to adapt to new marketconditions. The faculty will endeavour to be asresponsive as ever, providing timely and appropriatepractical support and technical advice to supportmembers through these uncertain times. Our aimis to continually evaluate and evolve our service tomeet the needs of members and we would of coursewelcome your feedback (fmfac@icaew.com).Underpinning much of what the faculty provides formembers is the work of the faculty committee andof course the faculty staff. I would like to take thisopportunity to express my sincere thanks to thevolunteers who have contributed so much time andeffort to the faculty’s success in 2010, and the facultyteam for making it all happen.Carolyn BreshChairman, ICAEW Finance and Management FacultyFinance & Management Faculty Annual Report And Accounts 20103