My time as AAT President: A year like no other

Communication and technology will be key skills for the accountant of the future, says Heather Hill, outgoing President of AAT.

After a successful year, outgoing AAT President Heather Hill believes communication, ethics, and sustainability will be at the heart of the accountancy profession going forward.

Heather was AAT’s first post-pandemic President, and she faced a number of challenges in order to help students and members reconnect after a period of lockdown and working from home.  One of her key successes – along with working on the new strategy for AAT and overseeing the creation of Qualifications 2022 (Q2022), was to get branch meetings up and running again – something that has been very popular with both students and members.

Having led AAT through the recovery from the pandemic and been instrumental in helping branches to resume face-to-face meetings and in-person continuing professional development (CPD), she will continue to promote AAT at every opportunity.  She says the profession is changing, and technology will feature evermore in the way accountants operate in the future.  With these changes comes the need to communicate effectively with clients and partners across all industries.

When Heather took over the role, the country was still in the grip of Covid-19 and AAT staff were adapting to hybrid working, as were many members and students across the country.  She oversaw the first year of returning to face-to-face meetings and supported branches to start up again.

During her Presidential year, Heather was pleased to welcome the new CEO of AAT, Sarah Beale.  Having been on the interview panel in the spring of 2021, Heather managed the gap between the AGM held on 17 September 2021 and 31 October 2021 while there was no CEO.  Since then, Heather has overseen the introduction of Sarah into AAT and supported and acted as a sounding board during Sarah’s settling-in period.

Heather has been working in Council on a new strategic plan for AAT’s future and has assisted in the preparations of the new AAT set of Q2022 qualifications.

The value of face-to-face meetings

Heather was confronted with an unprecedented set of challenges in her term as President, including addressing the issues surrounding the pandemic, hybrid working, a new CEO, the new strategy for AAT and the review and relaunch of AAT qualifications. 

The Covid restrictions meant that students and members had to adapt to working from home and developing the use of technology to maximise productivity and communication.  This changed the nature of work and study, and Heather was instrumental in supporting AAT members as the country moved from lockdown to hybrid working.

AAT Strategy

Heather has been working with Sarah Beale on preparing AAT for the challenges and opportunities that the next five years and beyond will present.  The new strategy is building a long-term plan to shape AAT to be ready for the future to maintain AAT’s brand leadership and maintain its relevance for businesses, employers and society in the digital age. 

“Workshops have taken place with the management board and shared with Council and staff.  The workshops included looking at what we have now, where we’re going and where we want to be so that we can plan for the future,” she says.  “There will be more information early in the New Year, but the strategy has been very much designed with our membership in mind.”

There is a clear drive to shape the future of AAT, which Heather has helped facilitate.  The new long-term strategy for AAT will be unveiled in February 2023. 

Branch meetings

“As President, I feel that I’ve achieved real progress in getting the branch networks restarted.  There is still ground to be covered in rebuilding confidence and attendance in events, but a solid start has been made.  I’ve been pleased to assist branches in their desire to restart their meetings and have attended as many events as I could,” she says.  “Meetings were previously being held remotely, but people really felt that they wanted to start networking in person again.  They have been keen to re-establish face-to-face contact and to enjoy the support that AAT branch meetings deliver so well.  One of my objectives was to attend as many branch events as I could – I really wanted to meet and talk to our members and was rewarded for noting that they were pleased to see the President attend their event.  The branch meetings are such an important part of the way AAT assists its members and students as apart from providing high-level CPD, they also encourage discussion, mentoring and networking.”

“I also took the initiative to connect with our Botswana AAT Community and joined one of their in-person branch meetings remotely from the UK.  It was such a delight for me to receive a warm welcome and feel that I was accepted openly into their meeting.  I wanted to convey to attendees that although they are overseas, they still form a part of our AAT family.”

Her emphasis on the importance of the support network of AAT members and the benefits of branch meetings comes from her own experience when she was running her own bookkeeping, accountancy and taxation business as a
self-employed accountant.

“I was so grateful for the fantastic CPD opportunities that AAT provided when running my own business, and the opportunities to meet other members at branch meetings and Mastercourses was incredibly valuable,” she says.  “By talking to and connecting with other AAT members, I was able to discuss current and problematical issues to ensure that I was able to provide a superlative service for my clients.

“Having the support, mentoring opportunities and back-up of others was so valuable to me when I first started working on my own.  I have since been pleased to provide similar support, mentoring and backup to others.  This is why I firmly believe that the branch network is so important for all our members and students, no matter where they are on their AAT journey.”

Qualifications 2022

Heather has overseen the development of the new curriculum and qualifications being launched in September.  To develop Q2022, AAT has worked with over 500 businesses and employers globally to explore what is driving change in the profession to identify the skills required for future success. 

As a result of the research, three new skills were identified as being essential for accounting technicians of the future, these being analytical, advisory and the ability to use technology.  Four new key themes have been embedded throughout the qualification – technology, ethics, sustainability, and communication – from being referenced at Level 1 through to analysing and understanding the impact of the themes at Level 4.

Becoming an advocate for AAT

Heather began her accountancy career in the early 1980s whilst working for a local authority in the finance department, gaining experience in different areas, including IT and housing benefits.  During this time, she passed her AAT examinations and later went on to take her Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) membership examination.

Heather is a Fellow member of both AAT and ATT and has been a professional member of AAT for over 32 years.  Heather has also served as an AAT Council member since 2016, including as Chair of the Management Board.

After relocating to Wiltshire with her husband, Heather set up her own successful accountancy practice in 1993, with clients including unincorporated businesses, limited companies and charities, with a focus on financial and management accounting, tax compliance and independent examination of charity accounts.

She says that becoming Vice President of AAT in September 2020 was “a truly proud moment for me”.  This led to her automatic accession to President at the AGM in September 2021.  As well as chairing Council meetings, Heather has been a member of the Management Board, Remuneration board and Nominations and Governance board since September 2021.  “Being a member of Council has certainly developed me further as a person, and my membership of AAT has given me the confidence and opportunity to become a responsible Trustee.  I have taken every opportunity to encourage our members to put themselves forward for AAT Council, and I am delighted to report that we currently have 22 candidates seeking election to Council – a record for AAT!”

Heather stated that she had been liaising with the Presidents of chartered bodies over the past twelve months, building professional relationships and bonds to the benefit of each organisation. 

“I have also been working with past Presidents of AAT to establish regular meetings by way of the Past Presidents’ Forum, where discussions take place on how they can best advocate for AAT.  This widens the Past Presidents’ activities that were originally restricted to the discussion and setting of the theme for the annual Past Presidents’ Award. 

Ethics at the heart of accountancy

Heather says that one of the key tenets of AAT is the ethical standards and awareness that it instils in our members from student level onwards. 

“AAT has been looking very carefully at professional ethics and standards, which I am sure we all agree, are of vital importance,” she says.  “I always felt that as a member of AAT, I wanted to give my clients the highest quality of service possible.  This involved uncompromising compliance with accountancy, taxation and legal practices.  AAT greatly supported me in this by providing me with essential business guidance.

“AAT has also been looking at the new qualifications, Qualifications 2022, and how we prepare our current and future students for the new world of work.  I am delighted that this is now embedded across all areas of the curriculum rather than as a separate paper.  Ethics is about treating people fairly and honestly and trying to raise the standards of AAT professionals, at whatever level they are working.”

Technology and its challenges

Heather says that the pandemic has accelerated the use of technology, and the accountant of the future will be required even more to use technology to the maximum effect, with Artificial Intelligence and data analytics likely to become more and more prominent.  This will provide the opportunity to add greater value to our organisation and the service we provide to our clients.

“Our profession continues to evolve,” she says.  “People are making more use of technology as a consequence of lockdown.  VAT is now well established as part of Making Tax Digital (MTD), with MTD for income tax self-assessment being the next area to be introduced.  Change inevitably brings challenges but through them lie opportunities that are to be welcomed rather than feared.”

Promoting AAT to students

As part of her role as AAT President, Heather has been reaching out to students and colleges, explaining the benefits of AAT membership and continuing professional development.

“I have been engaging with them to explain the qualifications and talking to them about the benefits of membership, the resources available to them and how AAT qualifications can assist them in their careers.”

Another key interest Heather has is how to make the profession sustainable.

“I very much support the AAT strategy of sustainability.  I want our students and members to adopt these initiatives, take them forward and by doing so, will elevate accountancy standards,” she says.

A highly regarded organisation

She says that being AAT President has been incredibly enjoyable, and she has learnt so much more about the organisation that she has always held in the highest regard.

“AAT is a tremendous organisation that is recognised both nationally and internationally.  It looks after its members through local branch meetings and master courses, conferences, webinars and a raft of online resources that are available to members and students,” she says.  “AAT offers so many opportunities for members to expand their knowledge, and I am incredibly proud to be associated with this prestigious organisation.”

Marianne Curphey is an award-winning financial writer and columnist, and author of the book How Money Works. She worked as City Editor at The Guardian, deputy editor of Guardian online, and has worked for The Times, Telegraph and BBC.