“When opportunity knocks, it is often dressed as an ugly problem,” says Sydney-based Meghal Shah CA.

His ugly problem presented itself just before Christmas 2017, when he had to step in to become the interim CEO of a charity in crisis.

“The personal risk of failure was extremely high. Yes, I was scared. But in that moment, I became a leader,” Shah writes in “Nine lessons from a crisis” in the latest issue of Acuity.

It was no picnic, but Shah says he learned skills that will be useful for the rest of his career.

A broad sweep of CAs have been tackling their own ‘ugly problems’ in the past 12 months – COVID-19 lockdowns, border closures, the ins and outs of government support. But do these trying times also present an opportunity to grow your talents?

In this issue of Acuity, we look at some of the opportunities that can come from the pain.

The talent show

Our Apr-May edition tackles the question of talent. We explore how organisations can attract, and keep, the right people in these uncertain times. It’s a growing concern as closed borders shrink the pool of available candidates.

But the employers’ pain is an opportunity for local accountants seeking work and wanting to stretch and build their skill set.

So we also survey CAs’ must-have skills for the coming decade and introduce CA ANZ’s new Capability+ model for professional development.

Should you invest in an ERP?

When should your organisation step up to an enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform? It’s a vexing decision for growing small to medium businesses. Not all big fish in a pond use an ERP, but it can be an essential tool for businesses wanting to scale.

Acuity’s tech guide delves into what can signal that it’s time for a move, but also looks at what’s good with existing SME accounting software, and why you may not need to leap into ERP just yet.

How do we measure goodwill?

Our cover story focuses on the long-running debate over how to measure goodwill on corporate balance sheets. In the broadest terms, it’s an argument between applying amortisation or undertaking an annual impairment test.

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has a project to reduce the cost and complexity associated with accounting for the impairment of goodwill. It’s currently considering feedback, so we’ll keep you posted on the outcomes.

Also in the Apr-May issue

And there is even more great reading, with articles on:

• How to make networking work for women
• What it takes to stay on the right side of financial advice rules
• When young CAs should ask for help
• How to build a high-performance team.

Click through to read the PDF version of Acuity here.