Chartered management accountant
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
A chartered management accountant prepares, develops and analyses key financial information to ensure that an organisation's management make well-informed decisions to ensure future stability, growth and profitability.
They establish and maintain financial policies and management information systems, as well as provide a high quality support service by liaising with management colleagues on all aspects of finance. The role combines accounting skills with business management skills.
A chartered management accountant’s role is to look to the future. They analyse the performance of a business and advise on how to pre-empt problems, adapt to changing circumstances and improve value. This is done by managing and reducing operational and production costs and implementing newer more effective strategies. They can work in a specific division or across the whole organisation.
Typical work activities include:
The role will vary depending on the management structure, for example there may be some openings in large firms with a focus on a business advisory role.
There may also be some variation to the function depending on the nature of the organisation (commercial, public sector or not-for-profit) and, with larger organisations, the department or departments that the individual is based in or supports.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
To become a chartered management accountant you must study with a professional accountancy body, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA).
Although chartered management accountancy is open to graduates of all disciplines, those new to business or accounting studies must first work towards the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting, which consists of five subjects, with a computer-based assessment.
If you have a relevant degree, postgraduate or professional qualification you may be considered for exemptions from some or all of the certificate level subjects. This includes:
See the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) for further details.
Once you have the certificate, or if you possess a qualification that makes you eligible for direct entry, you can start studying for the CIMA Professional Qualification.
Some management accountants choose instead to train with theAssociation of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) , taking the business management modules instead of audit and taxation options in the final part of their training.
Requirements made by employers may vary. Larger employers may ask for a minimum of a 2:1 from your degree, as well as high UCAS points and good levels of English and mathematics.
Firms of all sizes offer graduate schemes, which can be highly competitive as they offer learning while earning opportunities.
Although CIMA accept HND business and finance qualifications and may give some exemptions for this, many employers will not accept them. Small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) may be more flexible.
A pre-entry postgraduate qualification is not necessary, but professional qualifications undertaken in-service are usually necessary for progression. For example, many CIMA members go on to study an MBA.
Pre-entry experience is not essential but can be highly beneficial. Experience can include vacation placements, sandwich courses or part-time employment that offers business experience. Relevant work experience may also count towards the three years necessary for CIMA's practical experience requirements.
Candidates will need to show evidence of the following:
Language skills can also be useful.
Entry to training schemes with large companies can be more competitive than with smaller firms. Large employers tend to recruit in the autumn, whereas smaller firms may recruit at any time and advertise locally. Job titles vary so keep an open mind when looking for vacancies.
When choosing a firm, look at the support given for study and the work experience offered - if you are offered a position you may need to negotiate a training and study package. Before accepting an offer, find out if anyone else within the organisation is currently studying for the CIMA qualification or has recently qualified - this will give you some idea of how committed your potential employer is to training.
For more information, see work experience and internships and search courses and research.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
Training is a combination of examinations and practical experience.
To qualify as a chartered management accountant, you must successfully complete:
To achieve the 2010 CIMA Professional Qualification you will need to complete:
There are stopping-off points and interim awards if required by an individual and/or an organisation. For example if you complete the operational level you are eligible for the CIMA Diploma in Management Accounting, and if you complete the management level you will be eligible for the CIMA Advanced Diploma in Management Accounting.
The syllabus for the CIMA Professional Qualification is built upon the following three core pillars of learning:
Each of these pillars is split into three levels of examinations - operational, managerial and strategic. There are three examinations in each pillar.
Many employers offering CIMA training to graduates will have a structured programme that combines the practical experience required with opportunities to study for the examinations. Although many employers will give employees time off for study leave, there is a substantial amount of private study required. To be successful in gaining this qualification, the amount of study required while working demands significant amounts of personal time, dedication and determination.
Study methods vary and can include full-time, part-time or evening classes, or a combination of these. There are also opportunities to self-study, through colleges which provide distance learning packages and online with CIMAstudy.com , the only CIMA-endorsed online study system.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
Career progression is dependent on successful completion of each level of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) qualifications. Post-qualification promotion depends on experience gained and skills developed, such as project management and transferable skills, e.g. communication and teamwork.
Continuing professional development (CPD) is also very important and CIMA-qualified accountants are invited to attend training workshops and industry networking events on a regular basis.
Experience of working on specific projects may lead to becoming a specialist in a certain field. It may also enable a move to a more strategic role in general management.
Mobility will aid advancement and it may be necessary to look outside a company to gain promotion. Companies may also expect employees to move to different locations while training, in order to gain maximum exposure to the business.
Progression can be to senior positions such as finance director and possibly chief executive - roughly 20% of chief executives in the FTSE 100 are qualified accountants. After three years' strategic experience in a senior role, it is possible to apply for Fellowship of CIMA (FCMA), offering increased recognition and career potential.
The skills acquired from studying the CIMA examinations, combined with related experience, can open up other career options. Many CIMA members work in diverse areas such as management consulting, business analysis, operations management, risk assessment and project management. Many will also use their financial management skills to become successful entrepreneurs.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) qualification is respected by many employers throughout the world, including all types and sizes of industrial, commercial and public sector organisations. These range from voluntary organisations to international companies. Not only this, many members run their own businesses.
CIMA members are well represented in many sectors, not just financial services, including manufacturing (covering automotive, aerospace, electronics and pharmaceuticals), health, retail, travel and tourism, transport and consultancy.
Some organisations employ their own management accountants; however, there are also private accountancy firms which offer accountancy services to fee paying clients.
Other typical employers also work in the following areas:
The CIMA qualification is a globally recognised and there are 183,000 members in 168 countries. There are a large number of companies worldwide employing CIMA students.
Vacancies are often handled by recruitment agencies. Agencies with a financial bias may also handle training vacancies and can be a good source for positions with smaller companies, as well as large multinationals. If you pursue this route it is advisable to register with several agencies in order to maximise your chance of finding suitable vacancies. See the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) website for details of member agencies.
Get tips on job hunting, CVs and covering letters and interviews.
CIMA is the world's largest professional body of management accountants with 195,000 members and students in 176 countries. Management accountancy isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets. On movie sets, at fashion labels, inside football clubs, that’s where you’ll find the CIMA Chartered Management Accountant. Find out more about CIMA qualifications.
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