Community Engagement and Value Addition for Accounting Professionals

This project examines how accounting professionals engage with the community to add value to stakeholders and themselves. It emphasizes the importance of aligning accounting practices with community needs and long-term sustainability, moving beyond short-term profit goals. The assignment highlights the role of accounting professionals in promoting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) through policy implementation, performance management system changes, and transparent financial reporting. It discusses how these actions build trust, enhance a company's public image, and ultimately add value to stakeholders. The project also stresses the importance of professional integrity and adherence to ethical guidelines in maintaining a successful career in accounting, referencing various academic sources and figures to illustrate key concepts like the relationship between CSR, management, and governance.

An accounting professional engage with the community to add value to stake holders and self in
the following ways;
As an accounting professional one engages in the society by ensuring that the policies set,
consider the community around you. Short-term profit-making goals are shelved for long term
goals that promotes long term sustainable goals that both adds value to the society and to the
shareholders wealth. Also, the shareholders are given a chance in making decision that can put a
check to some of management decision that may not be favorable to the stakeholders. Like in a
company during general meeting they can vote to have policies that promote CSR. (Jeffrey, C.
2011) and as a professional you see implementation of it by making allocation necessary to see
success of such policy. In figure 1 shown below it show how many companies have taken it as a
high priority when you compare CRS & governance regarding establishing policies that engage
stakeholders.
As an accounting professional you can propose for a change to performance management system
that do not promote the CRS (Idowu,2009). And when the stakeholders perceive a company is
committed to CSR they gain trust in company and its activities and this promotes the company in
the public eye therefore adding value to stakeholders. (Jeffrey, C. 2011) In the figure 1 below it
shows the relationship CRS and management where it is incorporated in the company vision and
mission, strategy and objectives.
As a professional you are required to maintain a due professional care as one is performing
duties. That means when preparing financial documents, they are done in a transparent way that
ensures that the stakeholders who will making investment decision based on the information you
provide they will not be misguided.( Ronald F, 2011) Also using industrial partner, the auditors
who put a check on the activities of management who are left by stake holders to invest their
resources and create wealth for them by auditing their annual financial statements. This relation
is seen below in the figure 1 below on relationship between CSR and communication Where at
various stage during the year financial reports have to be published for the sake of the
stakeholders
When one does what is required of them you are able to add value to the professional as a whole
and also as an individual because you work with integrity in your work. When you do what is

required of you are able to sustain your careers otherwise you maybe deregistered for going
against the professional guidelines. (Innes J. 2005)
Sample table on CRS in relation to communication, management and governance
Figure 1:CRS in relation to communication, management and governance
(Professionals' perspectives of corporate social responsibility, 2009 p. 205)
Jeffrey, C. (2011). Research on professional responsibility and ethics in accounting. Emerald
Group Publishing.
Joseph, M. (2014). Debt to society: Accounting for life under capitalism (pp. 29-31).
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Innes, J, & Norris, G. (2005). Corporate Social Responsibility: a case study guide for
Management Accountants. Elsevier.

Idowu, S. O., & Leal Filho, W. (2009). Professionals' perspectives of corporate social
responsibility. Berlin: Springer.
Ronald F. Duska, Brenda S. Julie A (2011) Accounting Ethics. (2nd ed.) John Wiley & Sons