The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) announced today that it has appointed finance transformation business leader, Simon Bittlestone, FCMA, CGMA, as 91st President of the Institute. He will also serve as ninth Chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, the world’s largest accounting membership body of public and management accountants.

“The world is ripe with opportunities for the accounting and finance profession to create sustainable value, innovate and be inclusive,” said Bittlestone. “Despite prevailing uncertainty in the world, these are exciting times for our profession and over the next year I intend to help accelerate and lead its continuous evolution to make the most of these possibilities.”

During his year in office, the focus of the profession will be on three critical areas:

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Innovation & Transformation. New technologies, including generative AI and robotic process automation, are quickly revolutionizing accounting and finance. CIMA and the Association will work on further empowering accounting and finance professionals to cultivate the mindset, skills, and knowledge they need to draw on the enormous possibilities they present.
Value & Sustainability. As businesses further integrate sustainability into their strategies and operations, CIMA and the Association will put great emphasis on promoting the role of accounting and finance professionals as trusted advisors, who are equipped to support organizations to drive meaningful, long-lasting change and sustainable value creation.
Inclusion & Opportunity. Workforce demographics are rapidly evolving, and the profession must adapt to attract top talent. CIMA and the Association’s work will focus on fostering an inclusive profession, where anyone with the right aptitude and dedication has the opportunity to join the profession, seize opportunities for growth, and build a fulfilling career.

In this pivotal role, Simon will work closely with Carla M. McCall, CPA, CGMA, who serves as Co-Chair of the Association and Chair of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). Together they will work to provide nearly 600,000 AICPA and CIMA members, candidates, and registrants with the tools and resources they need to succeed and catalyze the profession into the future in a world of constant change.

It is a great honor to serve the profession and I want to say a huge thank you to CIMA members for putting their trust in me to act as CIMA President and Chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants,” Bittlestone added.

Simon is a business leader with experience in both private and public companies and in the US, UK, and Asian markets, and currently holds a portfolio of advisory and non-executive roles for several technology businesses, investment funds, and charities. Simon’s business career includes working for 12 years in the financial analytics industry, a decade of which he spent as CEO of Metapraxis, a finance technology company based in London and New York with a global blue-chip customer base. In the early stages of his career, he worked for technology and services firm Xchanging PLC, now part of CSC, where he qualified as an Associate Chartered Management Accountant and worked on the company’s highly successful IPO on the London Stock Exchange in 2007.

Simon first became a CIMA member in 2009 and was admitted to fellowship in 2016, he has been an active ambassador and supporter of CIMA over the last decade. He was a member of CIMA’s Audit and Finance Committee in 2016-17 before being co-opted to CIMA Council in 2018. In 2021, he was appointed to the Association’s Board of Directors and Audit and Finance Committee and has previously served on CIMA’s Thought Leadership and Business Ethics Committee.