INTHEBLACK April 2026 - Magazine - Page 16
“Today, accountants are not just record-keepers;
their role has expanded and continues to evolve.
They are risk advisers, data interpreters and
governance leaders working within different
teams and making significant contributions.”
DR JASVINDER SIDHU, ACCOUNTING ACADEMIC AND HISTORIAN
WELCOMING WOMEN
1995
The Australian
Society of
Certified Practising
Accountants has
F E AT U R E
75,000
members
One of the most compelling subplots in the history
of accounting has been the rise of women in the
profession. Today, women make up about 50 per cent
of CPA Australia’s membership. This is a far cry from
the days of Mary Addison Hamilton, who in 1915
became the first Australian woman to be admitted
to a professional accounting body when she joined
the Institute of Accountants and Auditors of
Western Australia (a precursor to CPA Australia).
Likewise, the 1977 appointment of Price
Waterhouse’s Elizabeth Alexander as the first female
partner of any of the nation’s largest accounting firms
stands as a pivotal moment. Alexander remarked
at the time that “once [male partners] realised
I was serious about having a career and was prepared
to put my shoulder to the wheel to achieve it, my sex
became irrelevant”. In 1988, she went on to become
the first female national president of CPA Australia
(then known as the Australian Society of Accountants).
1990
1992
1995
2000
2002–08
The Australian Society
of Accountants
changes its name to
the Australian Society
of Certified Practising
Accountants (ASCPA).
QuickBooks is
developed, providing
accessible accounting
tools to small-tomedium businesses.
As Australian Society
of Certified Practising
Accountants passes
the 75,000-member
mark, it launches
a website.
The Australian Society
of Certified Practising
Accountants becomes
CPA Australia.
CPA Australia opens
offices in China,
New Zealand
and Vietnam.
16 INTHEBLACK APRIL 2026 SPECIAL EDITION
