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Learn from accountancy mistakes of the past decade, UFS students hear at Business Acumen Day

01 August 2023 | Story Kekeletso Takang | Photo Supplied

Business Acumen 2023 — Students engaged experts on the accountancy profession at the recent Business Acumen Day hosted by the UFS School of Accountancy.

The University of the Free State (UFS) School of Accountancy held its second Business Acumen Day on Wednesday 19 July 2023 in the Callie Human Centre on its Bloemfontein Campus.

The morning saw approximately 650 students fill the centre, eager to listen to the accountancy experts who attended.

“Central to the success of an accountant are values that guide one’s professional behaviour. Values of patience, respect for oneself and others, ethical behaviour, and having the right mindset,” Conrad de Wee, Chairman of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) Central Region Council and Senior Manager at auditing firm Mazars, told the attendees. De Wee also shared the story of Dion Shango and his journey towards becoming the first black executive to be appointed CEO of PwC Southern Africa, at age 39.

Patricia Stock, audit partner and CEO of auditing firm MGI RAS and former SAICA board member, said she lives by the motto “Grow as I grow” and believes that, “The place you come from does not make you; it’s the choices you make that make you.” Stock described attending the event as a “privilege” and encouraged students by sharing her own journey. “You have given us an ear. You have given us the power to speak over your lives. We are here to plant a seed, sharing nuggets of wisdom… Do away with limiting beliefs and rather embrace diversity. The workplace needs diverse professionals who bring diverse ideas.”

Professor Bernard Agulhas, former CEO of the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors and currently Adjunct Professor of Auditing at the UFS, said that auditors are in the right place to shine a light on irregularities, and if they don’t, one questions if they are complicit. He also discussed the required behavioural competencies of accountancy professionals and auditors. “We should go back to the basics. I would like to tell you about those basics. Focus on the principles that guide auditors when you go into the profession… Accounting professionals should be professional, independent, accountable, courageous, serve the public, and maintain trust.”

Prof Agulhas urged students to uphold these principles at every step of their career journey.

Rob Rose, Financial Mail Editor and author of Steinheist, alluded to the financial scandals of the past decade. Rose, who has written about governance and the grey area that exists between what companies say and what they do, contributed to exposing, among others, the Steinhoff scandal. “With Steinhoff, the red flags were there. There were tons of red flags all along. Why did the board of directors, partners, and investors miss them?” When asked by a student if there was a link between the past decade and the former governance of South Africa, Rose responded, “Yes, there definitely is a link. During that governance, there was a culture of permissibility. Plenty of grey area. There was an ethical slippery slope that didn’t hold individuals accountable.”

Prof Frans Prinsloo, Director of the UFS School of Accountancy, noted that the Business Acumen Day had addressed important professional values, attitudes, and skills that aspiring accountancy professionals need to be effective in the workplace. He also encouraged students to learn from the mistakes of the past, not to repeat them once they enter the profession, and thanked sponsor Standard Bank for investing in future leaders and helping to ensure the event’s success.

Prof Frans Prinsloo, Director of the School of Accountancy, welcomed guests, partners, and students to the event.

Conrad de Wee, Chairman of the SAICA Central Region Council and Senior Manager at Mazars.

Rob Rose, ‘Financial Mail’ Editor and author of ‘Steinheist’.

Prof Bernard Agulhas, Adjunct Professor of Auditing at the UFS and former CEO of the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors.

Patricia Stock, audit partner and CEO of MGI RAS and former SAICA board member.

News Archive

New SRC constitution for UFS main campus agreed upon by all organisations

2005-07-20

University of the Free State Fact Sheet

1. The Council of the University of the Free State (UFS) unanimously approved an amendment to the SRC constitution for the main campus to allow for the introduction of proportional representation (PR) alongside a first-past-the-post electoral system.

2. This decision was taken by the UFS Council on 10 June 2005 at the same meeting where it also approved the establishment of a Central SRC for the three campuses of the UFS.

3. The new main campus SRC constitution is the result of consensus reached during a lengthy negotiation process involving diverse student formations such as Sasco, the ANC Youth League, the Young Communist League, the ACDP, HEREXVII, KovsieAlliance, as well as the democratically elected SRC members of the main campus. Independent persons such as Mr Jack Klaas and Mr Kobus van Loggerenberg facilitated the negotiation process.

4. The consensus reached during this process, and the subsequent decision by Council, represent a major breakthrough for student governance and transformation of the UFS main campus and constitutes a legitimate basis for the democratic participation of all students at the UFS main campus in the governance of the university.

5. The introduction of the proportional representation system follows earlier calls by some student formations, notably Sasco and the ANC Youth League, for such a system to be introduced at the UFS main campus in Bloemfontein.

6. In terms of the amendments to the main campus SRC constitution, nine of the 18 SRC members are to elected by means of proportional representation and nine on the basis of an direct, first-past-the-post election.

7. The following portfolios of the main campus SRC will be contested by individual candidates on the basis of “first past the post”:
• president
• secretary
• academic affairs
• legal and constitutional affairs
• student development
• arts and culture
• men’s internal liaison
• ladies internal liaison
• media, marketing and liaison

8. The following nine portfolios will be contested by affiliated organizations on a proportional representation basis.
• two vice-presidents
• treasurer
• dialogue and associations
• transformation
• campus affairs and recreation
• sport
• international affairs
• community service

9. These two decisions regarding student governance represent a breakthrough in that, for the first time in many years, all SRC constitutional changes were processed and approved by the June meeting of the Council, well in time for the scheduled August SRC election; in addition, all relevant student organizations have been part of the process and all have accepted the outcome of the process.

20 July 2005

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