With the May exams looming, are you clear on how to apply an ethical framework to the questions posed? Ethical issues are threaded throughout all stages of CIMA exams (below) and you will need to be able to show you would analyse the situation appropriately and respond.

Being guided through the CIMA code of ethics is key and there are a number of resources available to help you think through how to do the right thing.

I recently was at an United Nations Global Compact meeting
with a focus on supply chain issues.   Reflecting the growing importance of supply chain gobally the event was standing room only.  One of the participants, involved in procurement for a high value global brand, sought to ascertain the credentials of the factories they were using in China   Each of the 20 factories had been fully audited.  The system showed that. 

Will you be able to evidence integrity in your exams?   Fact or Fiction is a new report compiling discussions from four markets in Europe, Asia and Africa outlining the skills needed to be a successful business partner.   As finance partners more frequently with different functional units it is important to re-affirm independence and objectivity. 

In the week we launched the CGMA ethics theme I attended a lecture at St Paul’s Cathedral  given by the eminent professor of government at Harvard University, Michael Sandel on the moral limits of the market.  The “congregation” was at full capacity at nearly 1800.

When was the last time you faced an ethical dilemma at work? And what did you do about it? As a CIMA member or student you are obliged to take action. To do so you should ensure you are familiar with the Code of Ethics, which helps guides you to do the right thing.

In our upcoming CGMA report on ethics, our members  and students globally reported that human rights had risen in importance as an issue of priority for business.  Reflecting this, March saw the launch of the Children’s Rights and Business Principles. 

Is Tony Scales winning the war on fraud and corruption at Miralux? Is he deeply committed to a greener planet? Or is Tony, like many chief executives, caught in the trap of his own rhetoric? Find out in ‘Words in Action’, a new edrama series.

‘Words in Action’ – where rhetoric and reality collide! Learn about fighting fraud and corruption, and what real commitment to sustainability is.

Just a reminder that if you haven't had a look yet, check out the new CGMA site at www.cgma.org as there is lots to discover.  My colleagues and I have been spending the last few months, beavering away to bring CGMAs some exciting new thought leadership reports and tools.

The final UN Global Compact meeting of the year focused upon Rio +20 UN conference on sustainable development, scheduled for June 2012.  The day the UK UNGC participants gathered in London, the announcement of the outcome of the Durban climate change meetings was still fresh.  After protracted negotiation a level of agreement was reached.  

Sustainability is becoming as much of an important part of a large company’s annual reporting as their financials. But SMEs are catching up and recognising that acting sustainably brings business benefits.  

At the CIMA & Tomorrow’s company event last week the theme was Leading with Integrity: engaging hearts as well as minds.  As part of the Tomorrow’s Values series the session explored how employees align with a company’s values.   Values and trust are evidenced by people and their behaviours - not just by tickboxing around rules and policies – although such regulations are important in framing the environment and creating the push…..

The United National Global Compact (UNGC) meeting in London recently focused on anti-corruption initiatives globally.  In recognition of the overall cost to business, and wider economy and society of corrupt practices, principle ten of the UNGC is: "Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery."  

Companies that have an integrated approach to sustainability take a holistic approach to the strategy and management of the organisation; one that not only considers financial performance, but also the risks and opportunities inherent in the impacts of the organisation on the environment and society in which it operates, as well as the impacts of environmental and societal trends on the organisation.

In the past decade, there’s been a strategic shift in business management to embrace sustainability. The need for reporting and communicating the efforts being made has come alongside this trend.

Sustainability is no longer a voluntary part of business operations; a nice-to-have and “let’s do a bit of good on the side”. It’s become a business imperative with a focus on strategic implementation and sustainability becoming a way to create competitive advantage within the corporate workforce.

The 19th century philosopher Kierkergaard’s quote struck me as a challenge for finance  professionals -  linking existentialism and management accounting.   As our members and students are engaged in informing decision making based on the facts at hand, how best can they ensure that companies progress well, ensuring profitability and success whilst mitigating risk and damage in the longer term.  Not only in relation to the firm,  but to society at large, and to themselves personally.

Earlier this week  I corresponded with a veteran of the City (i.e. someone who has survived the downturn) who described himself and his colleagues as gladiators - entering battle every day, enduring existence in a high risk environment – and feeling more bloodied than pre-2008. 

When Nick Leeson, the Singapore based trader who brought down Barings Bank in 1995, realised the losses he was hiding were hours away from being discovered, he left a simple note on his desk.  And fled.  "I'm sorry" read the note and in a radio show last week, the Reunion, the BBC brought together Nick with his ex-boss for the first time when he apologised face to face.  In the show a former colleague, decribed Nick as "struck by a mixture of greed and fear for a number of yea

If a “wrong doing” in your organisation came to light, would it be a road-bump, in which management would quickly figure where things had gone wrong and put corrective action into place straight away, drawing lessons for the better running of the organisation in the future?