The
Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) is a
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-based professional body offering training and qualification in management accountancy and related subjects, focused on accounting for business; together with ongoing support for members.
CIMA is one of a number of
professional associations for accountantsBritish qualified accountants are full voting members of United Kingdom professional bodies that evaluate individual experience and test competencies for accountants....
in the UK and
Republic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. Its particular emphasis is on developing the
management accountingManagement accounting or managerial accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of accounting information to managers within organizations, to provide them with the basis to make informed business decisions that will allow them to be better equipped in their management and control...
profession within the UK and worldwide. CIMA is the largest management accounting body in the world, with more than 172,000 members and students in over 165 countries.
CIMA is a member of the
Consultative Committee of Accountancy BodiesThe Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies is an umbrella group for the chartered professional bodies of British qualified accountants.The CCAB was formed in 1974 and has six members:* Association of Chartered Certified Accountants...
and CIMA is withdrawing its membership from the CCAB (Consultative Committee of Accounting Bodies) on 2 March 2011.CIMA also is a member of the
International Federation of AccountantsInternational Federation of Accountants is the global organization for the accountancy profession. IFAC has 164 member and associates in 124 countries and jurisdictions, representing more than 2.5 million accountants employed in public practice, industry and commerce, government, and academe...
.
History
CIMA was founded in 1919 as "The Institute of Cost and Works Accountants" (ICWA). It specialised in the development of accounting techniques for use in the internal control of manufacturing, service and public sector operations. It developed a position as the leading professional body in the areas of product costing, budgeting, management accounting, investment appraisal and business decision making.
In October 1944 the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants organisation in
IrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
was formed.
The institute changed its name from ICWA to the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants (ICMA) in 1972 and subsequently to the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) in 1986, after the granting of a Royal Charter. A global Accounting qualification based in the UK, which is particularly active in Commonwealth countries. Its membership has grown from 15,000 in 1970 to 79,757 members and 92,909 students in 2009. It has played a role in founding fraternal professional bodies such as the
Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of PakistanThe Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan was established in 1951 and was granted statutory status under the Cost and Management Accountants Act, 1966 for the regulation of the profession of Cost and Management Accounting. The institute was established with the name Pakistan...
,
The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of BangladeshInstitute of Cost and Works Accountants of IndiaThe Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India is a premier professional accountancy body established on May 28, 1959 under the Cost and Works Accountants Act, 1959 enacted by the Parliament of India to regulate the profession of Cost Accountants in India.The ICWAI is a Founder Member of...
and the
Institute of Management AccountantsInstitute of Management Accountants is a professional organization headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey more than 60,000 professionals worldwide...
(USA).
Activities
CIMA operates a
Masters degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
standard scheme of fifteen qualifying examinations for prospective members. It is active in promoting local education, training and management development operations, the promotion of new techniques through its research foundation and the dissemination of management accounting practices through publications and other media related activities. CIMA has been active in recent educational and vocational initiatives in former
Eastern blocThe term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
countries. It publishes a monthly journal, supplied free to members and registered students, called '
Financial ManagementCorporate finance is the area of finance dealing with monetary decisions that business enterprises make and the tools and analysis used to make these decisions. The primary goal of corporate finance is to maximize shareholder value while managing the firm's financial risks...
' ('
Management AccountingManagement accounting or managerial accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of accounting information to managers within organizations, to provide them with the basis to make informed business decisions that will allow them to be better equipped in their management and control...
' prior to 1998). CIMA also publishes a quarterly journal called 'Management Accounting Research', mainly for an academic readership.
CIMA is recognised as a professional accounting body for various statutory purposes by UK and various overseas governments. The institute regulates the activities of its members by a code of practice, a discipline committee and (a recent innovation) a continuing education scheme.
CIMA's governing body is its council, comprising members elected from regional branches. Each of the branches has a committee and is responsible for much of the '
grass rootsGrass Roots is an Australian television series produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation between 2000 and 2003.The series is set around the fictional Arcadia Waters Council near Sydney, and was primarily a satirical look at the machinations of local government...
' activity. Activity such as qualification development is undertaken from the London head office. The London office is also the location for the annual UK Final of the
Global Management ChallengeGlobal Management Challenge is a strategic management competition for managers and university students. Participants form teams of 3-5 members, and each team is placed in a group of 5-8 teams, depending on the round of the competition. The teams are then given a virtual company, initially...
, a strategic management competition for university students, which CIMA sponsors.
In July 2009 CIMA added an online community -
CIMAsphere - to its website. The community consists of a range of blogs, discussion boards, groups, community answers, expert Q&A sessions and some social networking features for members, students and also the general audience.
CIMA has also announced a strategic alliance with the
American Institute of Certified Public AccountantsFounded in 1887, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants is the national professional organization of Certified Public Accountants in the United States, with more than 370,000 CPA members in 128 countries in business and industry, public practice, government, education, student...
(AICPA) to launch a global management accounting designation called the
Chartered Global Management AccountantChartered Global Management Accountant is a professional management accounting credential to be issued beginning on January 31, 2012.CGMA is intended to be a worldwide standard designation for management accountants...
(CGMA). The new designation is to be operated under a joint venture with the AICPA. In the Americas outside the U.S., non-U.S. CPAs could obtain the new designation as an AICPA International Associate, after a rigorous assessment process. In the rest of the world, new designation holders are able to become members of CIMA after the same assessment process.
CIMA is proactive to tie up with American CPA because of the current convergence trend between US-GAAP and IFRS, reinforced following the merger of the iconic New York Stock Exchange with Germany’s Deutsche Boerse AG.
"It remains to be seen whether companies listed in a combined exchange would be required to report under IFRS, US GAAP or both, but as the US appears to be moving towards IFRS adoption it is more likely the international standards would be the accounting rules of choice"
Diploma
The CIMA certificate in Islamic finance (Cert IF) is the first qualification offered by a professional chartered accounting body to focus on the fast growing sector of Islamic finance.In 2011, CertIF was upgraded to a Diploma degree and renamed as CIMA Diploma in Islamic Finance and all those who would pass this diploma, or had passed CertIF, would be allowed to use the honorific letters CDIF after their name.
Membership
CIMA has two grades of full membership:
- Associate - designated by the letters ACMA
- Fellow - designated by the letters FCMA
To be admitted as an associate a candidate must have:
- completed a period of qualifying practice of at least three years, documented and signed by appropriate witnesses
- passed the institute's 15 qualifying examinations
- been proposed and seconded for membership by two individuals who have direct experience of the candidate's work experience but who do not need to be members of CIMA or even accountants.
To become a Fellow a candidate ACMA must, in addition, have appropriate experience at a senior level.
In the past, CIMA has offered forms of association which do not amount to full membership, for example an "Affiliate" membership class was promoted in the 1970s.
Strategic alliances
CIMA members have access to a number of strategic alliances, including:
- An accelerated route to Associateship of the Association of Corporate Treasurers
The Association of Corporate Treasurers is the only British professional body specialising in the profession of corporate treasury. Founded in 1979, it is both an examining body, providing a wide range of qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance, and a membership...
- A mutual recognition agreement with the Society of Management Accountants of Canada
The Society of Management Accountants of Canada, also known as Certified Management Accountants of Canada and CMA Canada, awards the Certified Management Accountant designation in Canada.-Activities:...
- A mutual recognition agreement with CPA Australia
CPA Australia is one of three professional accounting bodies in Australia, the others being the Institute of Public Accountants and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia....
- A strategic alliance with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia is the professional accounting body representing Chartered Accountants in Australia. It has over 50,000 members and has some 12,000 students. It is a founding member of the Global Accounting Alliance .-History:The Institute of Chartered...
- On 26 September 2006, CIMA announced a joint qualification program with the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants
The New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants is the operating name for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand. The Institute represents over 32,000 members in New Zealand and overseas...
- MOU with Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India
The Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India is a premier professional accountancy body established on May 28, 1959 under the Cost and Works Accountants Act, 1959 enacted by the Parliament of India to regulate the profession of Cost Accountants in India.The ICWAI is a Founder Member of...
- Strategic Alliance with the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan
The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan was established in 1951 and was granted statutory status under the Cost and Management Accountants Act, 1966 for the regulation of the profession of Cost and Management Accounting. The institute was established with the name Pakistan...
(ICMAP)
- A joint venture with the AICPA to establish and promote a new, internationally recognised designation for management accounting — the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA).
Development
In recent years, CIMA has been party to merger talks with other professional accounting bodies including the ICAEW in 1995 and again in 2005.
See also
External links