Chartered Management Accountant (CIMA) or Chartered Accountant (CA)?

Jul 16, 2023 | Blog

Chartered Management Accountant (CIMA) or Chartered Accountant (CA)?

When considering a career as a finance and accounting professional, candidates can pursue a number of different professional qualifications including ACCA, SAIPA, ACMA, CGMA and CA(SA).  The reality is that the employment sector in South African currently favours two prominent certifications, namely ACMA, CGMA through the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and CA(SA) through the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. Today, let us discuss some of the similarities and differences when it comes to CIMA* and CA**.

Consider your academic strengths

If your strongest subjects include financial accounting, auditing, and maths and you enjoy subjects with clearly defined right and wrong answers, you may be naturally more inclined to go the CA(SA) route as these are key subjects of this academic path.  On the other hand, if you enjoy subjects including management accounting, costing, and financial analysis and you enjoy business related subjects and report writing, you are likely to enjoy the CIMA path.

What career opportunities are available?

Some of the career opportunities associated with both qualifications include positions such as a Head of Finance, CFO, Financial Director, Financial Manager, Financial Controller, Financial Accountant, Management Accountant, Financial Analyst, Business Analyst and many more.  Technical accounting roles and specialist roles in financial services, compliance and risk, and taxation are more inclined to seek the CA qualification. The kind of roles that tend to value CIMA highly are financial analyst roles that support the commercial and operational sides of the business, such as Sales / Marketing Finance Analyst, Commercial Finance Manager, Finance Business Partner, Pricing / Cost Analyst, Plant Controller, Production Analyst and many more.

What sector do you see yourself working in?

In the current South African employment market, the CA qualification still reigns supreme in terms of how widely it is recognised and valued by employers, but the CIMA qualification has come leaps and bounds in the last 10 years.  CIMA is now more widely recognised and is more sought after and valued for its global status and its suitability to businesses in the commercial sector, especially within manufacturing, production and consumer markets.

Why choose one, if you can do both?

For the last five years, SAICA and CIMA have had a reciprocity agreement in place that allows professionals with either designation to obtain the other designation through a shorted pathway, which was shortened even further in 2022.  This is an incredible opportunity for finance professionals in South Africa as it means that a person can first pursue the study path they are more technically inclined to do well in, and then go on to secure the second qualification in just a few steps.

As we have seen the CIMA qualification grow in value in SA, we hope to further see more recognition granted to the likes of ACCA and SAIPA in the coming years.  If you have any questions about becoming CA(SA) or ACMA, CGMA qualified, or have any other queries about the employment market for finance professionals, please feel free to reach out to one of our skilled consultants.

* CIMA meaning the ACMA, CGMA qualification through the institute, CIMA.

** CA meaning the CA(SA) qualification through the institute, SAICA.

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Chartered Management Accountant (CIMA) or Chartered Accountant (CA)?