Stephen Flatman, M.Ed., who is the Vice President of Education and Professional Qualifications, Management Accounting at The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), believes businesses are currently in a unique position to secure their futures with the expertise and guidance of Chartered Global Management Accountants
In the ever-evolving world of finance, it is vital that those who deal and assist with the complexities of running businesses are equipped to do so correctly.
That’s where The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) comes into play.
Originally founded in the United Kingdom, CIMA has had significant operations in South Africa for over seven decades. The Institute offers the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) Professional Qualification, which leads to gaining the internationally recognised CGMA designation.
The end goal for CIMA is to have professionals out in the workforce equipped with the finance skills to support strategic decision-making and performance management within organisations.
Stephen Flatman, M.Ed., Vice President of Education and Professional Qualifications, Management Accounting at CIMA, says: ”What we offer is not your traditional accounting, it’s very much future-focused, and focused on business optimisation.
“With all the changes in the world and the way finance is changing, we’re very confident when we say that the CGMA Professional Qualification is the future of finance.”
The CGMA Professional Qualification is seen as the equivalent of a taught Master’s Degree. It is open to anyone, but your starting point is dependent on what you currently hold in terms of qualifications.
Flatman believes this is a unique selling position.
“We’ve mapped the first level of the qualification against entry level jobs. Then you move up by developing the skills to be a finance business partner. In the final level, we’re effectively preparing you to advise senior executives within organisations. In that way, we’re always simulating and focusing on employability,” he explains.
“So, it’s not an academic qualification, it’s a serious business qualification.”
Keeping up with the times
To ensure what is taught and simulated through the CGMA Professional Qualification is relevant to the real world of work, the syllabus was recently updated.
This is a result of technology evolving and the introduction of elements such as Artificial Intelligence (AI).
An example of this is the far-reaching impact of AI on entry level jobs, with many organisations moving towards automation, which in turn renders some positions redundant.
“We have a long history of incorporating technology into the qualification, which I believe we’re leaders in. We’ve also been leaders in sustainability and ESG. So, this syllabus update is very much built on recent changes, with a real emphasis on AI in particular and the introduction of some of the key ESG concepts,” Flatman says.
“This has resulted in technical content being added to the qualification about how to use AI, when to use it, risks for the organisation, risks for the individual, and what your responsibilities as someone producing information are.”
As a result of AI’s influence on the world of finance, entry level jobs are now being pushed further up the value chain, with analytical, advisory, and finance business partner roles now seen as ‘entry level’ in many businesses.
This requires the upskilling of individuals to ensure sustainability within the workforce—something which Flatman does not believe to be achievable through traditional professional education.
“Professional education has always been structured around this idea that we spend a couple of years obtaining knowledge, then a year or so applying that knowledge, and the last year is spent on high value-add skills. That takes too long,” Flatman remarks.
“That’s why we have radically restructured the way we think about qualifications. How we work is that at the end of each of the levels, there is a business simulation exam. In that exam, we simulate real-world business problems. What we’re effectively saying is by solving business problems, you’re demonstrating and developing critical thinking skills.
“We don’t wait for year three or four. The complexity of those problems advances through the levels of the qualification, but the individual starts developing new critical thinking skills in year one. We see this educational change as being really important for the changing nature of the workplace and the demands on finance professionals.”
But what of those who have already completed the CGMA Professional Qualification?
After completing the CGMA Professional Qualification and the Practical Experience Requirements, professionals gain the CGMA designation and become members of CIMA. Through CIMA, they have access to a plethora of resources, which are constantly updated to adhere to the current state of the finance world. Through these resources, qualification holders are able to conduct research, upskill themselves, and apply the necessary to the positions they hold.
The benefits for all involved are plentiful
Flatman is of the belief that finance is now at the heart of decision making in all businesses.
Therefore, enabling your employees to complete and acquire the CGMA Professional Qualification not only creates more rounded individuals, but it is hugely beneficial to the future-proofing of your own company.
This is why he is calling on businesses to support their financial teams in upskilling themselves and creating an environment for both personal and business growth.
“Where finance is heading and where CFOs are expected to play now involves creating value. Effectively, management accounting is the tool for understanding how that value is created in an organisation,” he explains.
“So, by investing in where there is opportunity for growth in finance and where there’s increased demand of finance, that’s to be strategic, advisory, and analytical.
“To be able to use data to make predictions about where the organisation is going and how to optimise it is so important, and that’s what the CGMA Professional Qualification does. We focus on where the growth is and where the increased importance is. So, for organisations with ambition, having CGMA-qualified finance professionals allows them to fulfill that ambition.”
In terms of what’s to come from CIMA as we approach 2026, Flatman is eager to see a continuation of exactly what the CGMA Professional Qualification has been doing for years—“fulfilling a very real need in business”.
By doing just that, they’ve seen major growth in their South African operations, with it now being the biggest market in Africa, based on enrolment numbers and exam participation.
For those interested in taking on the challenge of upskilling themselves through the CGMA Professional Qualification, Flatman highlights that the opportunities that follow are career changing, with the scope for growth only limited by the individual and how far their ambition stretches.
“We take enormous pride in how many people complete the qualification. It opens doors for them—whether it is pay rises, promotions, or more meaningful and engaging work. By integrating sustainability and ESG in our syllabus, we are enabling people to align their careers with values that matter, ethical and sustainable business practices. That sense of purpose complements financial benefits that come with enabling your finance professionals complete our qualification,” Flatman concludes.
