The Buzz

CEO Update - October 2023 - Associations Gather at CPB Canada IGNITE

Last month, CPB Canada hosted its most successful IGNITE Annual Conference in Toronto, Ontario. At this marquee event, CPB Canada invited delegates from peer associations to attend the IGNITE Conference this year. 

In doing so, we desired to establish an association roundtable meeting on Wednesday, September 20, to create a dialogue on how we might collectively work together or collaborate to service our broader industry better. The following organizations were invited and attended:

• Registered Professional Accountant (RPA Canada) – President & CEO Zubair Choudhry and Board Secretary Jim Green.
• The Association of Tax and Accounting Professionals (ATAP) – Board Chair Corey DeJean and Board Member Deb Hickey.
• Professional/Public Business Accountant (PBA Society of Canada) – President, Mark Reid.

The Canadian Bookkeepers Association (CBA) was invited but did not respond to the invitation.

Board Chair Lynne Moore, Vice-Chair Melissa Lenos, Board Member Karolina Francis, CEO Rick Johal, and Manager of Finance and Administration Jeff Caverly represented CPB Canada.

At this meeting, each organization provided further insight into our respective organizations and their strategic outlook. There was a degree of mutual respect throughout the session, with the desire to further discuss areas of potential collaboration. Several topics emerged:

• Improving awareness/education on the value of bookkeeping and accounting to the broader public.
• Interest and support for ongoing advocacy issues.
• Discussing our Ethics regimes to increase greater accountability within the industry.
• Broached the topic of potential reciprocal arrangements.

While this was a preliminary meeting, much was achieved in mutual interest. However, the most significant takeaway is the desire from each organization to continue the dialogue in some form on a go-forward basis.

From a CPB Canada perspective, we recognize that much work remains within our industry. Building it together can produce more significant outcomes for our members and the broader industry. 

Photo: From left to Right are Melissa Lenos, Jim Green, Zubair Choudhry, Deb Hickey, Lynne Moore, Mark Reid, Rick Johal, and Karolina Francis. Corey DeJean attended via Zoom.