AAT(SA) creates a new and exciting benchmark
15-JUN-09
Despite the global financial crisis and high levels of unemployment and retrenchments, finance and accounting professionals remain among the most sought after staff in South Africa.
This is according to recent statistics from the fourth Annual Talent Shortage Survey released by Manpower South Africa, which listed the accounting and finance sector fifth on a list of sectors struggling to fill existing vacancies.
In addition, research by the South African Institute of Chartered Accounts (SAICA) estimates that SA’s financial management and auditing sector needs over 22 000 qualified accountants at various levels in order to bridge the existing skills shortage in the profession.
The research revealed that 16 642 vacancies exist for NQF level 3 to NQF level 6 accountants in business and government specifically, in both the financial and non-financial services sectors.
The levels denote accounting professionals from entry level to just below the Chartered level, spanning a number of critical financial roles such as:
• Purchase accounting
• Inventory control
• Payroll accounting
• Costing and budgeting
• Sales and accounting and credit control
• Cash and banking
• Ledger accounts and their preparation
“Financial management is crucial to economic growth and cannot be achieved with unskilled staff,” says Natalie Zimmelman, business development manager for the Association of Accounting Technicians South Africa AAT(SA).
To address the skills shortage SAICA recently entered into a partnership with the UK-based international professional body AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians) to form AAT(SA).
AAT(SA) aims to create a new and exciting benchmark for the accountancy and finance profession, and to provide trained and accredited accounting and finance staff to address the dire accounting and finance skills shortage at the entry levels.
Zimmelman says accounting technicians are the backbone of business infrastructure and their resources are needed now more than ever.“The AAT(SA) qualification provides students with the practical skills they need to work in finance and accountancy. Accounting technicians work in all sectors of the economy, including public service, private enterprise, charities and NGOs.”
A unique feature of the qualification is that it is competency based and recognises prior learning and work experience, so existing finance and accounting staff may gain professional status.
"AAT(SA) is the premier professional body in South Africa that is dedicated to learning, development, regulation and support for accounting technicians. We offer professional recognition and membership to appropriately qualified accounting and finance staff," adds Zimmelman.
AAT(SA) qualifications target both the public and private sectors. Over the years, organisations in the private sector such as South African Breweries (SAB) and Mondi have made use of AAT qualification to train their financial and accounting staff.
Zimmelman, says AAT(SA) presents a unique opportunity for accounting technicians because:
• It will offer students competence-based learning tailored to develop skills which will help fill the skills gap,
• Provide on-going development for its members aimed at further developing their skills and competencies, and
• Regulate and support students and members through membership of a leading professional body.
The new government, as well as respective local government municipalities, have emphasised the need to improve service delivery in the next five years.
Impressively, local government municipalities have already taken the lead in spearheading a move towards empowering staff members through skills development training, in order to improve service delivery.
Zimmelman explains that the successful partnership between AAT(SA), the provincial and national departments of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (previously local government), the Local Government Seta and many municipalities has made it possible for civil servants to be exposed to competency-based training programmes.
“The specially customised Local Government Accounting Certificate qualification has been designed to enhance internal controls through multi-skilled staff who are able to effectively manage cash, credit and debtors, and improve service delivery and data capture,” explains Zimmelman.
Civil servants who complete the AAT(SA) Local Government Accounting Certificate are eligible to enroll for membership of the professional body and to advance their studies to the Local Government Advanced Accounting Certificate.
“What makes AAT(SA) unique is that staff are immediately able to apply what they learn in class, on the job. In other words we create employees who are fit for purpose. There is no additional training necessary after you’ve gone through the AAT(SA) programme.
"So an employer reaps the benefits of dealing with confident and competent staff members who are in turn gaining qualification recognition for the work that they do," says Zimmelman.
