The South-East Asian ICAEW Economic Insight Forum for Q2 2022 addressed a mismatch between training and job market demand across the region. It was discovered that although there is significant demand for skilled, professional talent in Malaysia, it is also getting increasingly difficult for potential employers to gain access to this talent. Often, talent may not be aware of the opportunities open to them and on the flipside, employers may not have knowledge of or access to these potential hires.
This is not the case among Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) students because the strategic importance of strengthening the profession by attracting talent and building diversity is a cornerstone of ICAEW’s current 10-year strategy.
One of ICAEWs ongoing missions is to match these talents with potential placements. In order to provide Authorised Training Employers (ATE) with the skilled manpower now so much in-demand, ICAEW constantly refines and improves their training programmes while allowing students to concurrently complete on-the-job training with ATEs in addition to completing the study elements of the ACA qualification in order to become ICAEW chartered accountants.
At ICAEW Malaysia’s inaugural Student Placement and Symposium, more than 200 hopefuls from various universities across the nation including UM, USM, MMU, HELP, University of Reading Malaysia and Sunway TES made their way to Sofitel Kuala Lumpur in bids to secure employment in person with 16 prestigious ICAEW ATEs. These included ICAEW partners PwC Malaysia, BDO Malaysia, EY Malaysia, KPMG Malaysia, PKF Malaysia, Deloitte Malaysia, Grant Thornton Malaysia, Mazars in Malaysia, MustaphaRaj Chartered Accountants, Jovani & Co, Averis, Agos Asia, Genting Malaysia Berhad, Intel, DELL and the Securities Commission.
ICAEW Malaysia’s ATEs took this opportunity to recruit some of the best and brightest prospective chartered accountants on the spot, allowing ICAEW students to be immediately interviewed in-person, offered invitations to start their practical work experience, with job offers made and accepted during the student placement portion of the symposium. Leveraging on career booths to drive interest, ATEs also provided expert opinion on the latest trends in the accounting and finance field during the symposium. These discussions covered, among other current topics, finance automation, personal branding, future skills as well as the role of and the journey towards becoming chartered accountants.
According to Head of ICAEW Malaysia, Loh Wei Yuen, “The feedback we received during our first Student Placement and Symposium was very encouraging. Our ATEs are trusted partners who only seek the best talent for their teams and we take the responsibility of providing that very seriously. ICAEW’s training programme produces talented, ethical and committed individuals who have never been more highly valued in a complex global economy. Combining unrivalled knowledge, skill and commitment, they will enable their businesses, organisations and communities to achieve financial and strategic goals with rigour, integrity and vision. They stand to hold influential positions around the world as business leaders, decision-makers and trusted advisers. From the largest listed companies to the most interesting and influential organisations, you’ll find a chartered accountant shaping their success.”
Interested parties may contact ICAEW Malaysia at +603-2171 6022 or malaysia@icaew.com for more information.
