'Sustainability is not just a 'green' issue'.

AuthorBaird, Harold
PositionA word from the president

The recent CIMA World Conference in Cape Town, South Africa provided so much food for thought that it could have been described as a financial feast. The conference presented an ideal opportunity to showcase the institute's cutting-edge research and share experiences with some of the most progressive organisations in the world. It was inspiring to hear so many sharp minds debating some of the key issues of our times.

One of CIMA's key objectives is to ensure that management accountants have the right tools to help companies move towards long-term business sustainability. Although many organisations are starting to develop sustainability strategies, many are failing to uncover the latent value such strategies can offer or to link it explicitly to business performance.

Without clear signposts it is difficult for companies to picture what a sustainable organisation will look like. Our members are in an ideal position to use their unique tool box to flag up how sustainable strategies not only help to combat climate change, but add value at every level. The theme of this year's conference was, "Business in tomorrow's world - a sustainable future" and keynote speaker Jan Bebbington provided a fascinating insight into what the companies of the future might look like.

Jan is professor of accounting and sustainability at the University of St Andrews in the UK and her report, "Strategic responses to global climate change", provides a well-structured road map for businesses to consider when planning ahead. The ten-step guide includes more than a dozen case studies of public and private sector organisations that are rising to the challenge. I'm confident that Jan's report will help make the path to businesses' sustainability a lot less bumpy.

The conference also saw the publication of the results of CIMA research looking at sustainability and the CFO. Introduced by CIMA chief executive Charles Tilley, the report, "Sustainability performance management: how CFOs can unlock value", was compiled by global management consultants Accenture in conjunction with CIMA, and shows how senior finance professionals can be the leading agents for change. Clearly, CFOs can...

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