Welcome to CIMA’s new online community - CIMAsphere. We’ve been busy behind the scenes these last few months building the community and thinking through ways to make it relevant and useful. But enough about us, because CIMAsphere is all about you.

If you look around CIMAsphere you’ll see there are a lot of areas for CIMA students and members to congregate in, explore and discuss the very specialised (and more general!) things that make up the management accountant’s world. If you feel there’s anything missing, let us know.

First off there’s our Blogs. We’ve started with a line-up of CIMA experts – Louise Ross, Victor Smart, Gillian Lees and Nick Topazio – and they’ll soon be joined by other interesting voices in the management accounting and business space. Then there’s the Discussion boards where you can talk about a range of topics with other community members. From financial reporting and strategic management / economics through to studying CIMA and career talk, they’re forums for anyone interested in the field, whether you’re a seasoned finance professional or a student just starting out.

Another way to tap into the knowledge of community members is to ask the community a question on Community Answers, and in the coming months we’ll also have our first Ask An Expert session.

We’ve got three Groups up and running – Managing In The Downturn, CIMA Professional Development and Members In Practice. Inside groups you can have discussions, while the group admins can add events, attach documents and post news stories. New groups can be suggested by you. Have a think about it, and also let us know if you’d be interested in taking the reigns of a group you're requesting, or in helping run one.

Finally you can search the Community Directory for fellow members and message people on the network. In terms of our culture, look at the Community Guidelines for advice on etiquette and best practice, and guidance on what isn’t encouraged or allowed.

Don’t forget to fill out your Profile! Tell us a little bit more about yourself and upload a photo (there’s more detail in our Help page). It gives real-life context to online conversations when you know something about the people you are talking to. Plus you’ll be easier to find in the Community Directory, should you make these details visible.

The Using CIMAsphere discussion board is geared for all your questions and ideas about the community – things you want, like, dislike, or are confused about. You can also check out the Help page for each section if you get stuck and need a little guidance. And of course, you can always share your thoughts in the comments here on my blog. So make the most of it...

This is just the start - we’ll be opening the community up to the public to read and join in the summer. But while you still have exclusive access, we’d love to get your feedback on what we’ve done – so make an entrance and share your views!