Congratulations to SMU School of Accountancy Alumni Annie Seah Yi' En (above left, Graduating Class of 2007) and Lim Kexin (above right, Graduating Class of 2005) who won both Young Accountants of the Year Awards in the inaugural Singapore Accountancy Awards organised by the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants. Annie Seah Yi' En – Operations Finance Manager at Resorts World at Sentosa Pte Ltd – won in the Professional Accountants in Business segment.  Lim Kexin – Senior Manager, Indonesia and International Tax at PwC – won in the Accountants in Public Practice segment. 

Professor Pang Yang Hoong, Dean of the School of Accountancy said, “We are very proud of Kexin and Annie in winning these prestigious awards. It attests to the rigour of our BAcc programme and is an affirmation that we are on the right track!”

Here is the report printed in the Singapore Business Times on 1^st August 2014.

Deloitte, DBS top guns bag accountant awards

By Michelle Quah

Deloitte Singapore chairman and CEO of Deloitte Asia-Pacific, Chaly Mah, and DBS Group chief financial officer (CFO), Chng Sok Hui, have been named Accountants of the Year in the inaugural Singapore Accountancy Awards organised by the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA).

The awards, which recognise outstanding practices and individuals in the accounting profession, are also supported by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority and the Singapore Accountancy Commission. The winners were honoured at an awards dinner last night held in conjunction with the Singapore Accountancy Convention 2014.

Mr Mah won in the category of Accountants in Public Practice, while Mrs Chng won for the Professional Accountants in Business segment.

The Young Accountants of the Year were: Lim Kexin, senior manager, Indonesia and International Tax at PwC, for the Accountants in Public Practice segment; and Annie Seah Yi' En, Operations finance manager at Resorts World at Sentosa Pte Ltd, for the Professional Accountants in Business segment.

"The winners of the Individual Excellence Awards have exhibited outstanding professionalism, depth of technical expertise and made significant contributions to the industry and wider community," said ISCA president Gerard Ee. "I hope more members of the profession will be encouraged by these winners to contribute in their own ways, both big and small, to charting the future of the accountancy sector and also give back to the community."

The awards also honoured business excellence.

The Practice of the Year award for the large practice segment went to PwC. Ardent won for the small and medium practice segment.

This award is presented to well-rounded firms that provide high quality service standards, exhibited healthy growth and also engaged in meaningful corporate social responsibility. They have to excel in these areas, in addition to the areas of productivity and innovation, people development and technical excellence, ISCA said.

PwC also won the Technical Excellence award for the large practice segment. The award recognises practices for their commitment to advancing the technical expertise of their firms and the industry, while adhering to a robust quality assurance and control programme in providing quality client service.

The Excellence in People Development award was jointly awarded to Deloitte Singapore and PwC for the large practice segment, and jointly to Ardent and CA Practice PAC for the small and medium practice segment. This award honours practices that have championed human capital development and have created the infrastructure that supports the professional development of their staff.

Ernst & Young LLP (large practice) and KG Tan & Co PAC (small and medium practice) took the Excellence in Productivity & Innovation award, which recognises firms that have made significant efforts to boost their productivity, develop innovative and unique solutions that enhance client service and leverage new business areas to enhance growth.

Mazars LLP received a special commendation in recognition of its exemplary efforts in leveraging the mechanism of merger and consolidation to achieve growth.

"I hope other firms will be inspired by (the winners') spirit of enterprise and innovation to create their own unique success formula. A thriving accountancy profession will contribute towards Singapore's position and growth as a vibrant business and accountancy hub," Mr Ee said.

Accountants of the Year: Mr Mah won in the category of Accountants in Public Practice while Mrs Chng (above) won for the Professional Accountants in Business segment

First published in the Business Times, 1 August 2014 © Singapore Press Holdings Limited