ITB DIGITAL Sep 2025 v3spreads - Flipbook - Page 4
CEO UPDATE
C PA AU S T R A L I A
FIVE QUESTIONS
After taking the reins as CEO
at CPA Australia in March 2024,
Chris Freeland AM has been on
a mission to open more career
opportunities for members while
attracting the next generation
to the profession.
PHOTOGRAPHY JESSE SPEZZA
1. Accounting is a global profession that can
be affected by broad macroeconomic and
technological changes. How valued is the
professional accountant role in today’s world?
There is a lot going on in the world and there is
a growing sense of uncertainty in the profession,
which is heightened by scepticism around data and
how it is being interpreted. Artificial intelligence (AI),
social media and geopolitics all contribute to
this uncertainty.
What is needed now is independent,
verifiable financial information, provided by
ethical professionals. There’s never been a more
important time for accountants, especially those
with our globally recognised CPA designation.
4 INTHEBLACK Sep/Oct 2025 SPECIAL EDITION
2. How is CPA Australia planning to engage and
attract more people into the global accounting
profession for the next generation?
Ask AI to give you a picture of an accountant and
it is likely to come back with an older man with
glasses, in a suit, sitting behind a desk. The reality
is more varied than this stereotype, which we are
doing a lot to counter. In Australia, for example,
an accountant is more typically a woman in
her 40s.
Our brand campaign launched in December 2024
with the tagline “three letters to limitless”. It utilises
members’ stories to showcase the diversity of
roles available to accountants and finance
professionals, including forensic accountancy,
entrepreneurship, digital transformation consultancy
and cybersecurity analytics. The campaign appears
on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok, and
it has been viewed by over 32 million unique users
worldwide. That more energetic — and indeed
happy — image of the profession is especially
important in helping us change perceptions
among younger generations.
We are also connecting with the next
generation through our schools outreach
program and high-school exhibitions.
3. You have been quoted as saying:
“For accountants, new technology has
been a friend much more than an enemy”.
How can accountants befriend AI?
There is no question that AI will be a game changer
for the profession. It allows accountants to focus on
adding value and doing less of the “grunt work”.
