When the NYSSCPA moved into its new headquarters on
Wall Street last summer, I said, among other things, that I was proud to be the Society’s president during such a marvelous time of change. I wasn’t just referring to our physical relocation, but to the systemic shift that has taken place at the State Society over the past several years. We have made a concerted effort not just to be leaders within the profession, but innovators, and to tailor our efforts as an organization with the future in mind. The move to Wall Street was one visible sign of this, but we also have several other exciting new initiatives that embody those ideals. One of them may have landed in your mailbox this month:
NextGen magazine.
As our newest publication,
NextGen: The NYSSCPA’s Professional Development Guide does what no other magazine can: It speaks exclusively to future and young CPAs, and arms them with a broad range of tools to help them take charge of their careers. (The magazine, which will be produced quarterly as of 2014, is available online at www. nysscpa.org/nextgen, is mailed to members 35 and under, and will be also distributed at Society events.) In an upcoming issue, the magazine will unveil the NYSSCPA’s 30-under-30 recognition program—an opportunity to identify and encourage the best and brightest of the next generation in our profession.
NextGen is actually just one part of our Next Generation program, which we launched earlier this year to develop more of the support services and opportunities needed to build relationships that young CPAs want and need. One of the program’s central aims is to establish an all-inclusive community where young and aspiring professionals can get advice and shore up their professional networks.
Our Next Generation team is currently implementing the NYSSCPA Campus Connect initiative. Available on 43 campuses throughout the state, the program offers college students an instant connection to the profession by way of faculty liaisons, who provide news about NYSSCPA student membership initiatives and information about scholarship opportunities from the Foundation for Accounting Education. And in coming months, the team will launch the Society’s Classroom Connect program to promote financial literacy in area high schools.
In keeping with the theme of recognizing young professionals, the NYSSCPA recently inducted the first members of its newly formed Young Leadership Circle, a program that identifies rising stars within the profession and gives them opportunities to learn from and interact with Society officers. This year’s class includes the following members, chosen for their active participation at the chapter level: Emily L. Gardner, of the Southern Tier Chapter; Jaime L. Scott, from the Nassau Chapter; Amanda L. Sexton, of the Suffolk Chapter; and Matthew J. Taylor, of the Rochester Chapter. Next year, more promising young professionals will be selected to join. All of these efforts dovetail with our annual YCPA Conference, which features panels and presentations geared toward those at the start of their careers.
The issue of how to keep and grow young talent is one that our profession has grappled with for years. I have always maintained that our approach as a community needed to change—that the most important question isn’t how many people we can bring to the table, but whom can we entice to stay there. In other words, what good is it if we hire thousands of talented professionals, only to see many of them leave for what they perceive to be better opportunities elsewhere, or because they feel burnt out, unfulfilled or confused about how to move forward in their careers? NextGen magazine and Next Generation programming offer young CPAs help in finding—and keeping—their footing in a very competitive and global workplace. This is an opportunity for the Society to encourage and support future CPA candidates and young CPAs, and to demonstrate our commitment to their success.
The future looks bright, both for YCPAs and for the Society as a whole. I hope you’re as excited as I am about what lies ahead.