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The future of Accounting & Finance

The LSBU Alumni Association and the Department of Accounting & Finance recently hosted a reception for its alumni, staff and students. Attendees were also treated to a lively panel discussion featuring three leading professionals, looking at the future of the industry.

The panellists included Ewan Willars, Director of Policy at the ACCA, (the global body for professional accountants), LSBU alumna Clementinah Adegbite, Head of Finance at Demos, Britain’s leading cross-party think-tank and Stuart Cruickshank, former Chief Finance Officer of HM Revenue & Customs. The discussion was chaired by Iain Boatman, Head of the Department of Accounting & Finance at LSBU.

The focus of the debate centred on the current changes taking place with the profession. As international accounting standards merge, financial professionals are now expected to do a lot more than number crunching. In a rapidly changing environment, our panellists looked at more developed skills in the areas of communication, critical thinking and risk management that are now required by budding practitioners. Changing skill sets and the effect of globalisation were also discussed and the audience were invited to submit their questions and feedback, occasionally challenging the viewpoints put forward by the speakers.

Following the rousing debate, attendees and panellists took part in a networking session over drinks and canapés. This provided guests with an opportunity to connect with their industry peers, current LSBU students and former tutors.

To help support current LSBU students, we are encouraging Accounting & Finance alumni to provide them with work placements in your organisation. Work placements give students a real insight into commercial environments and help them to develop essential skills to enhance their employability. For more information on work placements, contact Iain Boatman on boatmaia@lsbu.ac.uk.

Reaction from attendees:

“This was an interesting event with encouraging speakers, useful advice and helpful insights into the profession. Thank you for organising this.” Rafael Fasser, MSc. International Business student.

“This was an interesting debate and it was lovely to welcome back alumni of the Department. Tonight's panellists brought a wealth of experience to the debate that encouraged thoughtful debate from the audience." Professor Kenneth Edgar Joseph D'Silva, Director of the Centre for Research in Accounting, Finance & Governance.

“This was an excellent event with an engaging set of speakers and well formulated questions. There was certainly some interesting feedback from the audience. It’s nice to be back at LSBU after a very long time and I look forward to similar future events.”  Yogen Bacha, BA (Hons) Accounting, Finance and Economics (class of 1998).

This panel discussion reflected the views of the panel members and does not necessarily reflect the opinions and policies of London South Bank University.

Survey - Department of Accounting & Finance alumni reception 2014
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1 How satisfied were you with the Department of Accounting & Finance alumni reception and panel discussion?
   



   
2 How could the event have been better organised or generally improved?
   
   
3 What was your favourite aspect of the event?