Page 6 - PA Apr-June 2016 (22-6-2016)

Signature Qualification CA that Empowers to Lead PAKISTAN Editor’s Letter eadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality,” states Warren Bennis, an American scholar. If your sights are set on climbing to the top of your field, you will already be L doing what you can to grow and hone the skills you’ll need to become a business leader of tomorrow. We are living in an increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world – one which makes it difficult to predict the future with any precision. Leadership – an issue that is absolutely central to our ability to thrive in a world of increasing complexity and accelerating change. Leaders with a perspective far beyond their personal knowledge and experience will be of key importance to any future business. As such, becoming a leader capable of working with, and harnessing the talent of a diverse group of people with their own skills and thoughts, is to become the most valuable leader of all. For some, the three key shifts – diversity of markets, knowledge and talent – present a myriad of problems, but for the leaders of tomorrow who are willing and able to adapt quickly, these shifts present enormous opportunity. Leaders think and behave differently. The core elements of their leadership are timeless, such as the ability to set direction and create followership, but for future leaders, organisational success will lie in understanding what it truly means to be an inclusive leader. Our expertise as accountants will help us navigate the rough terrain of global shifts, as it has in the past. Our profession is facing winds of challenge as we design global strategies for business and for the accounting profession. I am certain we will come through together stronger than ever. Being a member of the accounting profession is more than a job – it is a commitment and a calling to public service. Peter Bakker, president of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), recently argued at a United Nations Conference that it is “the accountants who are going to save the world. To get all businesses involved in solving the world’s toughest problems, we must change the accounting rules.” This is not a matter of incremental change, but a radical transformation. And it’s the accountants who will lead the way. Our roar should be listened across the border of times, beyond the borders of our own experience and judgments. Yacoob Suttar 4 The Pakistan Accountant April - June 2016