Reflections
CGA Executive Program
| FROM: NOV-DEC 2007 ISSUE | |
BY ANTHONY ARIGANELLO, CPA (DELAWARE), FCGA, PRESIDENT AND CEO, CGA-CANADA |
When leaders stop learning, they stop leading. Fortunately for all of us, the importance of lifelong learning in professional and personal endeavours is well recognized today. And there are more choices than ever for continuing development.
One of the characteristics distinguishing the professions is a firm commitment to continuing professional development (CPD). Imagine if your family doctor or medical specialist just decided to stop learning and continued to treat you the same way he or she might have 25 or even 50 years ago. Not a chance! Physicians and surgeons never stop learning. For that, we can all give thanks.
Accounting professionals make a solid commitment to continuing professional development. We simply have to; there is no choice. Our membership standards require CPD, as our profession is continually changing and evolving. Each week, there are new standards, new challenges, new ideas, and new issues.
All top business leaders today continually strive to stretch themselves. Perhaps an MBA is the goal. Perhaps another professional designation will be the option. In this vein, I’m particularly proud to report that CGA has recently launched a new CGA Executive Program.
The first intake for this program began in September and it is being run as a pilot in Ontario. Those in the program have 10 years or more of business experience, with five at the senior management level, and an undergraduate degree. They want to add a professional accounting designation to their personal roster and they’ve chosen CGA.
This accelerated 18-month program will give seasoned business leaders (typically in the finance sector) a chance to grow, learn, and add a coveted professional accounting designation to their resumes. More and more financial professionals like these individuals know the value a CGA designation can bring to their skill set, their employers, and their own businesses.
As the trend to lifelong learning continues and smart professionals focus on gaining new skills and enhancing their professional growth, there will be a growing need for programs like the CGA Executive Program. We hope you are as excited about the launch of this innovative pilot program as we are. There’s absolutely no doubt that it will meet the new and emerging needs of a growing segment of ambitious financial professionals in Canada.
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