Careers

Value of the Brand

PQ magazine recently dropped in on the ACCA's new CEO, Helen Brand, to find out how she was getting on.

So is Helen Brand enjoying it? That's the question she is asked most at the moment. After all, running one of the world's biggest accountancy bodies, with a £100m turnover and 350,000 plus members and students scattered around the world, is some responsibility. "Who wouldn't be enjoying it," is her honest reply. Yes, of course it is challenging, but it is also a positive experience she seems to be thriving on. "Nobody can moan about being a CEO!" she exclaimed.
PQ talked to Brand in the chief executive's office on the top floor of the ACCA's Lincoln's Inn HQ (now her office). The walls were still bare; she hadn't put her stamp on the room yet.
This is in stark contrast to what has been happening in the organisation over the past three months. The 2015 strategy has been set and Brand's immediate plan is to concentrate on adding value to the ACCA brand. Customer services, something always close to ACCA PQs' hearts, is also top of her agenda. "We need to create a culture where customer service is our first consideration," she said. "If we do that well it will be a huge differentiator in the marketplace."
For Brand it is all about being 'fit for the future'. Then no matter what is thrown at you, you are ready. She said that the days when accountancy bodies were run like golf clubs had long gone. The ACCA isn't a cosy little society, it is a global business organisation with offices all around the world, she stressed.
The ACCA currently has 16 key global relationships. Brand has met key players from all 16. She is also committed to meeting every council member (there are 36) individually. This has not been done before, and the reason for the meetings is simple – to make the ACCA more effective.
Before taking up her new role Brand was the MD of strategy and development. She can now put her money where her mouth is!
The ACCA syllabus is something that has come into her radar. Her strategy, working with ACCA education chief Clare Minchington, is to take an evolutionary approach, rather than going for a 'Big Bang' seven-year cycle. Again, for Brand, that means having systems in place that can effect change.
She believes that the ACCA now has a global proposition because it has been effective 'locally'. The recent meeting of the International Assembly attracted members from over 60 countries.
Brand isn't worried about the competition. "We aren't a reactive organisation," she explained. She feels the ACCA has had to be ahead of the game to get where it is today and there is no resting on laurels now.
Innovative organisation
It appears that the ACCA is an organisation that breeds passion. She said: "Look at the words of our first president, Arthur Priddle [1904-1908], and they are relevant today. He set the challenge to embrace everyone, people who were not rich, women, geography, ethnicity, it really is a young go-getting, innovative organisation with solid historical foundations."
The last time we talked to Brand we threw in a question about the lack of woman in the top accountancy jobs. She is a rare breed we suggested. She explained that she has two daughters, so good female role models are vital. ACCA members and students can also see a woman achieving a top post on merit. Brand said you couldn't escape the fact that it will bring a different perspective to the organisation, although there are still meetings she attends where she is the only woman.
PQ always likes to put a human face on people who have so much influence on PQs' lives. In the autumn we discovered the last film she had watched was Scooby Doo – Where's My Mummy? Well, she has managed to get out again to the cinema! This time around she saw a film with a more adult theme – Sex in the City. We couldn't resist asking her which one of the girl's she was most like – "all of them" came her reply.
She is also a closet Prince fan and would be hard to keep away from the dance floor if Gett Off comes on!
There is little doubt that Brand is having the impact she wanted. It all bodes well for the future.

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