A Career in Cost and Management Accountancy (CMA)

The Institute of Cost Accountants of India is a statutory body set up under an Act of Parliament in the year 1959.

The institute, as a part of its obligation, regulates the profession of Cost and Management Accountancy (CMA), and students for its courses.

What is CMA?
A CMA carries out costing or pricing of goods and services as well as the certification and auditing of cost accounting and related statements.

The role and importance of cost accountants has increased manifold on account of growing competition in the corporate sector.

Their job, broadly stated, essentially consists of closely analysing costs and devising ways to reduce it as far as possible.

A CMA assists in planning, monitoring and controlling the cost and price of product or a service.

Nowadays with multi-product ventures taking place, it has become important to know and understand the exact cost of production of every product and service at different stages, to minimise the expenditure incurred on them to ensure optimum utilisation of resources.

They are also expected to evaluate the operating efficiency and effectiveness of production and service management by collecting, compiling, organising, verifying, comparing and analysing information from different departments of the organisation.

Unlike pure accounting professionals a CMA is required across functions in all organisations.

Role of CMA's:

• Corporate Decision Making
• Resource Management
• Performance Management
• Financial Reporting & Strategy
• Optimization of Stakeholder's value
• Risk Management
• Enterprise Governance
• Audit Assurance and Taxation
• Sustainable Development
• Corporate Social Responsibility

Employment Avenues:
CMAs hold key positions as Chairman, Managing Director, Finance Director, Chief Finance Officer, Chief Executive Officer, Finance Manager, etc in MNCs, private and public sector, state and central government.

Many PSUs such as BEL, BHEL, BSNL, Coal India, HAL, HZL, HUDCO, ONGC, MMTC, NHPC, NMDC, NTPC, SAIL, SEBI, STC, TCS, TVS, Voltas, Wipro regularly visit the institute's campuses for recruitment of CMAs.

Cost Accountants in Govt Departments:
Realising the potential of the profession of the Cost and Management Accountancy in the economic development of the nation, the central government has constituted an all-India cadre known as Indian Cost Accounts Service (IcoAS) at par with other class -I services such as IAS, IFS to advise the government on cost pricing and in framing the appropriate fiscal and tax policies.

Cost Accountants in Education:
According to the UGC's regulations of 2010, the minimum qualification for appointment of Assistant Professor, Professor and Principal / Director in universities in the area of Management / Business Administration includes first class.

It also includes first class graduate and professionally qualified Cost Accountant among other qualifications subject to other requirements including qualifying NET / SLET / SET as minimum eligibility.