ICMAI president CMA Ashwinkumar G. Dalwadi, CMA Hima Vidya Sanagavarapu and Dr K.CH.A.V.S.N. Murthy the central council member addressed the media in Hyderabad on 20th of April 2024. The president of ICMAI said that the role of cost accountant had undergone a drastic transformation. The reason for the transformation is the changing business environment. Cost accountants are serving the policymakers, government, corporate world, and industry. Cost accountants take care of the internal system, operations, risk management, objectives and control systems of the corporates. Cost accountants help for improving the performance and productivity of the companies. Cost accountants frame tax policies, and pricing strategies, and monitor the cost control system. The blog propagates the words of the ICMAI president and sheds light on the value of the cost accountancy profession in recent days.
Words of ICMAI president:
The president of ICMAI said that the service of cost accountants is compared parallel with the class one services of government authorities in IFS and IAS. In 1978, the jobs of cost accountants and central government employees were valued at the same grade.
Cost accountants are taking care of the functions in the factory and boardrooms. The traditional role of a cost accountant is to work with the operations of the factory. The modern role of a cost accountant is to work with the factory as a cost accountant and work with the management team as a strategic manager. CMA graduates help companies in understanding risk management, government processes, internal systems, technological analysis, and control systems. The skills of cost accountants improve performance, profitability, sustainability and productivity.
Cost accountants help the listed companies and government departments. The areas of focus of a cost accountant are price strategies, cost control, and tax policies.
The Companies Act made it mandatory to maintain the records necessary for cost audits in the service sector. So, there is demand for cost audits in manufacturing companies, boardrooms, the banking sector and the service sector.
ICMAI is the training institute formed by the parliament of India for producing cost accountants. The ICMAI provides service with a 1, 00,000 qualified and haf-a-million student population. Cost accountants help companies in achieving cost competitiveness, efficient productivity, improved performance, and profitability. Cost accountants contribute to the environmental, economic and social balance in the country. The decisions of the business are empowered by the professionals with a focus on the uncertainty, complexity, and volatile business environment.
Cost accountants are helping the government to be successful in the Atma Nirbhar Bharat initiative. The cost accountants make India as efficient in capturing export markets, cost competitive, improve GDP growth and increase employment opportunities. The government is focused on creating professionals to achieve the goal of reaching USD 5 trillion. CMA Ashwinkumar G. Dalwadi says that the profession of cost accountant has changed from the curriculum to the official responsibilities. Cost accountants are now in demand for working in the fields of corporate laws taxation, social auditing, insolvency, arbitration, independent directorship, insurance and banking. The industries growing in recent days are facing disruptions from VUCA. VUCA stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. Application of the learned concepts in management accounting helps the companies to overcome the challenges and increase productivity.
After completing education, CMAs hold the top positions in the companies like managing director, chairman, director of finance, chief executive officer, chief finance officer, and general and finance manager. Cost accountants have a large pool of opportunities in the MNC, public sector, and private companies, central and state governments.
Globalisation has an impact on the goal-setting of the organisations. Non-financial audits are increasing in India. Non-financial audits focus on health and safety standards, reputation, governance, and a healthy environment. Corporate social responsibility creates a demand for the social audit. Social audits create a connection between government plans, the demands of society, and business demands. A social audit improves the effectiveness and efficiency.
CMA graduates have the potential to add value to the process of social audits. The CMA course offers theoretical, practical and experience-based knowledge to the professionals to understand the concept of social audit. Cost accountants channel the resources in an organisation with physical, human and financial resources. Cost accountants also contribute to the government by monitoring the schemes of the government. The service of cost accountants makes the government plans as successful.
CMA Ashwinkumar G. Dalwadi says that the cost accountant helps India to achieve the VIKSIT BHARAT goals. Accurate cost information is necessary for allocating resources and making the work plan workable. The resource allocation increases productivity, reduces wastage and contributes to the growth of the economy. Cost accountants measure the performance of the products, projects, departments and organisations. The performance and cost-based analysis increase productivity.
Cost accountants analyse the credit-based, market-based and operational risk in a company. The work of cost accountants improves internal controls. Cost accountants analyse the long-term risk and return of investments. The risk management of cost accountants attracts domestic and global foreign investment. Foreign investment is crucial for the growth of the corporate world and infrastructure development. Cost accountants contribute to the strategic decision-making process, resource management, and financial stability. CMA Ashwinkumar G. Dalwadi said that the professional service of a cost accountant makes the profession attractive.
The business environment is changing due to the invention of new technologies. So, there is an evolving need to change the curriculum according to the new business environment. The online training of ICMAI includes Microsoft certification, SAP certification, Cambridge University certification and e-filling. ICMAI has introduced new subjects such as data analytics, business analytics, entrepreneurship and start-ups, business communication and risk management in banks and insurance benefit the different sectors.
The National Education Policy 2020 is part of the curriculum preparation for the CMA course. The National Education Policy 2020 made the CMA course suitable for students and investors. The next syllabus change happens in the year 2026. The CMA course is preparing the professionals to meet the future challenges. The president advised the students to choose the CMA course and complete the course with dedication. Professionals should continuously update their domain knowledge, and strive for success in their chosen field.
Final Words:
The words of the ICMAI president explain the change of traditional role, the demand for the cost accounting subject and the contribution of cost accountants. RR Academy takes responsibility for spreading the value of education. The value makes the students focused towards education.
