CDAF Annual Conference and AGM 2022

The Committee of Departments of Accounting and Finance (CDAF) would like to invite you to our Annual Conference and AGM which will be held online on Thursday 5th May (9.30 – 16.30).

The conference aims to provide a forum which brings together faculty from higher education to meet and exchange ideas and experiences of managing teaching & learning, research excellence and knowledge exchange within the Accounting and Finance discipline with a view to creating communities of best practice.

Our 2022 conference will be based around the theme of the Future of the Accounting Profession: Implications for Higher Education. It offers a unique opportunity to bring together an exciting mix of distinguished expert speakers to discuss the changing regulatory landscape and the impact of this upon both higher education and its curriculum and the accounting and finance profession that we are preparing our students to enter. Our speakers offer a range of perspectives, with views drawn from practitioners, regulators and academics. Throughout the day we will have a number of opportunities to network and discuss these issues with colleagues facing similar challenges from across the sector.

Please see the conference programme below and a short biography for each of our speakers.

We will be holding our AGM at the end of the conference, so please do stay and have your say in any events/activities you would like to see CDAF supporting. We also have a number of vacancies on our Committee, so if you are interested in joining us, then please email the Secretary, Sarah Jones (sarah.j.jones@swansea.ac.uk), for more information.

Venue: Online (Register here to receive the link to join)

Conference Programme

Four presentations will take place at this conference and each followed by Q+A session/Group discussion:

• 'Changing landscapes in corporate reporting and impact on accounting education' by Phil-Fitzgerald
• 'Practitioner’s perspectives on the Finance Function of the Future – implications for higher education' by Alan Nelson
• 'How do we make PG accounting and finance programmes relevant and attractive to UK students?' by Lara Gee
• 'Revolutionizing the Accounting Curriculum in Higher Education: A vision of the future' by Professor Alan Sangster

For full details of this event, please see the CDAF Annual Conference Programme 5th May 2022 

Guest Speakers

• Alan Nelson - Alan is the Managing Director of Nelson Croom, and Founder and Managing Director of accountingcpd.net. He started his career in publishing, where he published accountancy textbooks such as Colin Drury’s Management & Cost Accounting, before becoming CEO of Thomson Learning from 1995-1999. In 2000, he founded elearning company Nelson Croom Ltd, an early innovator in using social interaction to help professionals learn, and twice winner of the prestigious award for eLearning Development Company of the Year. Turning the company’s expertise to the world of accounting and finance, he launched accountingcpd.net, now a leading provider of online CPD for accountants, and partner to professional bodies around the world. His 9-year stint as Chair of ICAEW’s Practice Assurance Committee came to an end in 2020. He has been a member of ACCA’s SME Committee and currently sits on the Regulatory Committee of IFA. Alan’s work with professional and regulatory bodies means that he has a deep understanding of the changing nature of skills needed by students aspiring to work in accounting and finance. This perspective is important for universities, as we strive to develop relevant skills in our graduate students.
• Lara Gee - Lara is Associate Dean at Aston University, responsible for programme development and management across the College of Business and Social Sciences. In her teaching, Lara specialises in taxation, audit and financial accounting. Before moving into education Lara trained as a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) with PWC in Birmingham. Lara is engaged with research and has recently co-authored a paper on the relationship between Universities and the accountancy professional bodies. In the last few years, Lara has been a member of the Senior Management Team at Aston, focussing on developing programmes in accounting and finance. Lara will be presenting her views on programme development and in particular the difficulties in developing PG programmes which attract UK students.
• Phil Fitzgerald - Phil is the Director of the Financial Reporting Lab, a group operating within the Financial Rep which engages with a wide range of stakeholders including companies, investors and academia to research hot topics in corporate reporting. Recent publications cover topics including ‘Reporting on risks, uncertainties and opportunities’, ‘Virtual and Augmented Reality in corporate reporting’ and ‘Reporting on climate-related disclosures’. Current projects are focused on cyber, digital and data risk and sustainability reporting. Prior to joining the FRC, Phil worked in audit practice and is a member of ICAEW. Phil will provide a unique insight into current important themes in the accounting profession which can help universities to consider how new developments may shape their curriculum.
• Professor Alan Sangster - Alan is a Professor of Accounting History at the University of Aberdeen, UK and Editor-in-chief of Accounting Education since 2012. He is also a past chair of the BAA (BAFA) Accounting Education Special Interest Group and was regional chair for Scotland, Ireland, and Northern England during 10 years he spent on the UK Board of Accreditation of Accounting Education Courses. Over the past 38 years, he has taught in universities in Australia. Brazil, England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland; and published over 70 refereed articles, in journals including Accounting Education; Issues in Accounting Education; Journal of Accounting Education; The Accounting Review; Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal; Abacus; British Accounting Review; Journal of Business Finance and Accounting; Journal of International Accounting, Auditing & Taxation; Journal of Information Technology; Accounting History; Accounting Historians Journal; Accounting, Business & Financial History; and Business History.

Registration

Fee: Free

Register here

Closes: Midnight, 3 May 2022