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PrintAnnual Report & Accounts 2007
President's Message
It is a great pleasure for me to introduce this Annual Report which outlines some of the highlights of a year of real progress and significant success for the CIPFA Group.
I can most easily summarise the year under three headings. First, it has been a year of Renewal. In particular we made significant changes to the Institute’s Management Team, appointing four new Directors: Drew Cullen (Marketing and Communications), Chris Harris (Resources), Caroline Rickatson (International) and John Saunders (Commercial Services). They have all engaged very quickly with the challenge of implementing the CIPFA Development Strategy 2006-10 which is now powering forward with even greater energy and momentum.
In passing I should not forget to express our sincere thanks to Julie Coates and Phillip Ramsdale who left the Institute after long and distinguished careers. We wish them every success in the future.
My second theme is Opportunity. CIPFA operates in a tough, competitive marketplace. In many ways 2007 has seen the return of very tight funding settlements for the UK public services. However, far from limiting the opportunities available this climate opens new doors for CIPFA. The Institute and its members can play critically important roles in improving efficiency and value for money and in promoting the good financial management and governance agendas which are so important to high performing public service organisations.
And demand for these services is not restricted to the UK. On the contrary there is latent demand in both developed and developing countries across the world for the special knowledge and expertise which CIPFA brings to the table.
In order to realise the Institute’s full potential in responding to these opportunities we need many skills. In particular it is increasingly clear to me that forging the right partnerships is a key ingredient and that is why during the year I have been so pleased to see the deepening of our relationships with other bodies like the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and CMA (Canada). Here lies the future.
My final theme is Confidence. The Development Strategy is full of bold ambition to establish CIPFA in a pre-eminent position on the world stage as the leading institute on public finance and accountancy. But can we really pull this off? Having travelled extensively this year I can tell you that in my view this aim is well within our capabilities. We have a fantastic product which really does address the priorities of more and more decision makers across the world. Providing we continue to manage our interests carefully I am very confident that CIPFA’s reputation and influence will grow very significantly over the coming years.
Finally, I do want to thank the people who make all of this possible. CIPFA has a great team of staff, hosts of extremely generous and talented volunteers, and a range of friends and supporters who share the Institute’s core belief that high quality public services really matter. Over the past twelve months I have been able to see at first hand just how formidable this combination is. Thank you all for your support. Long may it continue..
John Butler, President
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