ICAS takes pride in its history and status as the world’s oldest professional accounting body. We are also proud of being a forward-thinking body that is always looking to break new ground.

In this issue, Executive Director of Learning, Gail Boag, writes about the final stage of the roll-out of the new syllabus and delivery model which, as she explains, has already led to fantastic exam results. She also outlines the thinking behind our inaugural induction day – the first of its kind among UK chartered accountancy bodies – to be held at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on 9 September. You can read a full breakdown of the event here.

Our commitment to innovation has also been recognised in the shortlist for the 2024 Memcom Excellence Awards, which highlights the best projects, programmes, strategies, individuals and teams working in membership bodies across the UK.

We’ve been nominated in the following categories:

• Best Learning or Education Initiative, for ICAS Advantage, our new student-centred learning experience

• Best Integrated Marketing or Membership Campaign, for our candidate acquisition campaign “Opportunity kicks”

• The EDI Award, for our strategy and initiatives in the field of equality, diversity and inclusion

A key part of member engagement is our annual survey. In previous years we’ve split the membership in two, canvassing feedback from half the membership in the first half of the year, then the remainder in the second. This year, however, we will survey all our members in September. We believe this new approach will benefit our decision-making going forward as we continually strive to serve the best interests of our CAs.

Our members work across many different countries thanks to the global recognition of the CA qualification. In this issue, we chart the unique career journey of Jennifer Perdoch CA, who became one of the first US-qualified accountants to become a CA after ICAS struck a deal – the first agreement of its kind – with the American CPA accountancy body back in 2018. Jennifer’s story, which you can read here, is another product of our commitment to finding new ways to serve the interests of our members and our profession.

Enjoy the issue.

Sarah Speirs, ICAS Executive Director of Member Engagement and Communications
sspeirs@icas.com 

Read more about our proud history of innovation in the ICAS timeline