Letters.
Financial Management, 63 Portland Place, London W1B 1AB; financialmanagement@cimaglobal.com
Member remember
I am a retired member and would like to commend you on the change of presentation in the magazine. I do, however, miss the lists of associates and fellows who have reached 50 years of membership, as well as the deceased members' list. As a former member of council for Scotland, and a past president of the Glasgow branch, the list was my only way of keeping in touch with old friends and recalling happy memories of the deceased.
Alex Wilson FCMA
Transit vanguard
As along-retired member who passed the first part of the ICWA exams in 1939, arguments concerning the name of the institute's magazine do not concern me. Nevertheless I have followed recent correspondence with real interest because at last I have found something that I can understand -- most offerings are far too erudite for a simple old cost accountant like me.
Several correspondents seem worried that changing the name of the magazine presages a change of membership title. No doubt these fears are groundless and the institute was only following the example of the ACCA, which made a similar change for purely commercial reasons, but would it really be so catastrophic if the label "management accountant" was to be dropped in favour of "financial manager"?
Once this was done, the institute could apply for affiliation with the Institute of Management -- it could make sense after the abortive efforts to join with the ICAEW, and Financial Management would fit comfortably on the news-stands with Professional Management and Management Today.
For the individual manager, this change would indicate a transition from a passive to an active role, from a provider of information to a user and activator. After all, one of the shortcomings of the Dome's managers is said to be a "lack of financial management". The question is whether management accountants are managers or accountants. How do they see themselves?
At the beginning, management was just a set of techniques and principles: the 1950 productivity report is quite clear that "service to management is (the) main objective (of the accountant)". (Management Accounting 1950). The real managing accountant is, of course, the financial director or controller. Perhaps someone could come up with a new title so that the institute could move on without taking on existing indicators of status.
Ken Kilvington DPhil, FCMA, FCCA, MI Mgt etc
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