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Unsold goods

D. Murali

THERE is a change at the helm of the ICAI and I would be missing my friend's message in the CA journal. It is no gupt gyan that the new incumbent, Gupta, is not too well known to be communicative -- much less understood -- unless his speech-writers churn up some miraculous stuff now that he is in the hot-seat. At least, till then, here is some straight deal from the January issue.

On what is the success of a professional dependent? ``On several skills,'' opens GS. Such as? ``Character, judgment, communication, persuasion, ability to collaborate and to work as a team.'' Do we have these? ``We have several (different) attributes, su ch as motivation, self-discipline, respect for moral values, aspiration for excellence by sharpening our skills, updating knowledge and providing value added services...''

How will practice be in future? ``That of providing advice more on management matters than on compliance.'' Well said, who wants compliance. But here is the core of the strategy: ``The more we get involved in the management matters of our clients...the m ore we enjoy their confidence. They give great importance to our advice and also consult us beforehand.''

``The clients, quite rightly (or wrongly), feel that we are technically skilled and equipped to give the best advice'' -- on problems ranging from taxation to laxatives.

How to do all this, you may wonder. ``Thorough interaction with the clients and their staff will enable us to learn more about their business. It will also give stimulus for solving the problems in varied situations.''

Be warned. ``The members must work as the hub of a wheel. Otherwise, the profession can be marginalised.'' That would mean the tire, perhaps.

``The clients show keen interest in their balances (debit or credit) growing in size,'' the ex reminds us, suggesting that the auditors too show an equal keenness in growing their balances. ``We command respect from clients,'' he says puffing his chest. ``The trust we possess is a thing which cannot be bought anywhere.''

Nor can you sell it anywhere else.