Thursday, April 29, 2010

Fit for the future: Challenges for the next generation of Australians

To date the Institute’s thought leadership papers have rightly focussed on forward looking, thought provoking topics that are traditional to the accounting profession (for example, audit, reporting and taxation).

In 2009, the Board of the Institute of Chartered Accountants identified the need to become a greater initiator and contributor into public policy debate on broad business and economic issues which have implications integral to the future success of Australia.

In this regard the Institute sought the expertise of Saul Eslake, one of Australia's leading economists. Saul facilitated a workshop involving the Institute's Leadership and Quality team who were asked to develop six issues believed to represent the key challenges and issues impacting the youth and future generation of leaders in Australia.

The topics were restricted to those collectively agreed to have the most amount of impact on the future financial and global success of Australia and especially relevant to young accountants.

The six issues identified at the workshop included:
  • The ongoing resources boom
  • An appropriate level of debt
  • Home ownership and affordability
  • Australia’s infrastructure requirements
  • Making the most of Australia’s human resources
  • Australia’s role in international governance structures.

These six issues have been presented in a thought leadership paper just released entitled, Fit for the future: Challenges for the next generation of Australians

The paper is designed to start a conversation with today’s and tomorrow’s leaders to work through these issues. I welcome debate on this forum on all or any of the issues presented in the paper.