YOUNG CPAs - Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants

Media portrayals
FOR
YOUNG CPAs
W
indmills, helmets and
flashes of business attire
against the Hong Kong
skyscrapers set the
scene for the fast-paced and spirited television series Young Charioteers(衝線), the latest modern romantic drama aired by Hong
Kong’s most popular broadcaster, TVB.
The show, which debuted last month, depicts young professionals crossing finishing
lines on the biking trail and chasing deadlines in an accounting firm, and stars actors
Him Law as Jedi Yau and Sammy Sum as
Fighting Yip, two accountants who are high
school friends as well as rivals in work, love
and bicycle racing.
This uncommon highlighting of accounting in an entertainment show sparked discussion among CPAs who are keen to see
their work lives represented on screen. The
1993 TVB sitcom Mind Our Own Business
(開心華之里) is one of the few predecessors
in the genre, with actors Danny Summer and
Waise Lee playing the role of partners of an
accounting firm.
Young Charioteers takes the audience
into the workings of a firm, exploring the
professional life of CPAs by following a cast
of young and ambitious employees as they
strive to make achievements in their careers
and maintain a work-life balance.
Although accounting has rarely been a
part of the major plot lines, CPAs have seen
their fair share of airtime in Hong Kong
films: From a supporting character aiding an
antagonist in money laundering before being written off (Divergence (三岔口), 2005)
to one in constant pursuit of tax evaders (The
Magic Touch (神算), 1992).
Webster Ng, Founder of CPA firm Webster Ng & Co. and a member of the Hong
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April 2015
Kong Institute of CPAs, is optimistic that
Young Charioteers can help change the community’s perception.
“Most of the general public don’t know
what a CPA does exactly, but I believe they
view us as a professional in our work ethic
and mannerisms,” he says. “But young CPAs
need to go through many challenges, such
as heavy workloads, achieving promotions,
integrating into a company’s culture, and
it’s good that this drama is bringing that to
the public’s attention, not just portraying
accountants who assist bad guys to launder
money all the time.”
A social conversation
Ng administers the Hong Kong Gossip Accountants Association Facebook group,
where Institute members gather to discuss
news that is relevant to firms and the profession overall. Some members use the
online platform to share their thoughts on
the show, comparing a Young Charioteers
episode to an indulgent snack to enjoy after
work. Some lament the differences between
the drama’s office scenes to their own working environments, while others are happy
to see the show reflecting the dynamic and
charming side of the profession.
“When we watch TVB, we’re always seeing themes that relate to lawyers, policemen,
teachers or even pilots,” says Ng. “The reason why Young Charioteers is creating such
a buzz is simply because we are in the same
field. I have personally been eager to see
more spotlight on accounting in the media
since I joined the profession back in 1994.”
Louis Chow, Managing Director of Legal
and Compliance at a Chinese investment
bank who also administers the Facebook
group, agrees that the series is interesting
A PLUS
The recent TVB drama Young Charioteers put
young accountants in the spotlight as a new
generation of energetic and goal-focused
professionals. Tigger Chaturabul talks to Institute
members about how they perceive the show and
finds out how the image of accountants in the
media has evolved
Young Charioteers takes the Hong Kong
audience into the lives of young CPAs
PHOTO: TVB
April 2015
39
Media portrayals
for anyone within the field. The Institute
member stresses the fact that TV programmes need dramatic elements and must
exaggerate certain situations to attract the
attention of the general audience.
“You can find office politics anywhere
honestly, and although I don’t agree with
the way TVB made certain tactics seem
typical within a CPA firm, such as women
using their bodies to get a promotion, I understand they do it for the theatrical value,”
says Chow.
As for Ng, the drama is quite energetic
because it shows CPAs biking and having
plenty of free time. “It’s definitely a positive
image from my perspective, although parts
of it are definitely an exaggeration.”
Real or not real?
Employees wearing loud shirts and short
skirts, managers with their own private offices and a WhatsApp-based internal messaging system used for gossip are among the
Young Charioteers plots that have spurred
online debate. In a poll on the popular forum
site Discuss.com.hk, contributors, including
Institute members, voted and commented
on how realistic these scenarios are according to their experience as CPAs.
While members agreed that WhatsApp
groups do exist (but are not checked during
work hours), they pointed out that managers rarely have their own rooms and most
employees follow an office dress code.
To be accurate, some members said
certain accounting terminology was misapplied – such as referring to a “reason40
April 2015
PHOTO: TVB
Swapping suits for Spandex,
accountants in Young
Charioteers cycle together
ableness test” of financial information as a
“re-work.” Working hard and playing hard
is the ethos of young CPAs but one dramatic
scene showing some of them having a party
at a client’s office, getting drunk and posting
about it on Facebook is definitely not a professional accountant will do. “If that were
to actually happen in real life, it would be
an absolute phenomenon,” says Philip Kan,
Audit Manager at Grant Thornton and an
Institute member.
Despite working in a demanding profession, today’s young CPAs, a major force of
the profession (44 percent are under 40),
are always eager to find ways to strike a
work-life balance.
Cristine Pang, Audit and Assurance Manager at Mazars and Institute member cautions that it would be a challenge to master
the lifestyle depicted in the show, especially
during the peak season. She, however, still
enjoys the programme: “It’s interesting to
see your work life on TV and be able to share
it with my family.”
The work-life balance suggested by Young
Charioteers is a step towards reflecting the
trend of firms offering extracurricular activities for their employees. Characters in
the show swap their suits for tight Spandex
and get together in the evenings or on the
weekends, training to beat their personal
bests on the track. “They’re trying to portray
teamwork, which I really appreciate,” says
Kan. “We bond better when we play football
or basketball together, which is what they’re
showing when the characters take time to
cycle together.”
The hierarchy present within the CHUR
accounting firm in the show echoes with
Ng’s views. The first episode begins with
three young accountants envisioning to becoming a partner and seeing the many career rungs they need to climb. “The drama
also plays on the requirements that come
with each level, such as taking the responsibility for a subordinate who doesn’t perform
well,” he says. “These are very real situations
that TVB chose to include.” By doing so, the
general public is given a window into accountants’ daily working environment.
The weight of drama
When HK$3 million goes missing in a company account, the auditors in the TV show
take the matter into their hands by following
the company owner’s wife, only to catch her
having an affair with a sales manager. With
enough photographic evidence, they are
able to discreetly persuade her to return the
money.
“That’s basically a criminal offence,”
says Daniel Lin, Managing Partner at Grant
Thornton and an Institute member. “We
don’t blackmail or follow people around.”
Lin has high hopes for the media to deconstruct the traditional image of accountants as busy and boring people and instead
build upon their honesty, impartiality and
integrity. However, he says a TV show cannot compare with a real-world audit failure
when it comes to having a lasting effect on
the profession’s image.
Real-life financial scandals such as Enron
are what Pang at Mazars would like to see
dramatized in a TV series. “It would educate
the public about the challenges and legal liabilities accountants have to face, and help
them understand our roles better,” she says.
As for attracting potential new entrants to
the profession, it would be difficult for a TV series to truly change a candidate’s mind. “Most
applicants who are serious about accounting
have already done their research and have
prior work experience,” says Lin. “They already know what they’re getting into.”
TV tips
Lin adds that the show has alerted him to the
possibility that younger CPAs see their lives
quite differently from those of his generation.
A PLUS
The Shawshank Redemption
Schindler’s List
The Other Guys
“As I watched the drama, I thought to
myself that they behaved very differently
from the time I was a junior, which made
me realize I see things from another perspective now,” he says.
There are still lessons to be learned
from the different perspective TVB takes
on the profession. The accountants in the
show often travel to Taiwan for work,
enjoying local sights and food together
between meetings.
“Although it’s unrealistic for a CPA to
have so much free time on a work-related
trip, the way that the characters take the
opportunity to go sightseeing shows that
a work-life balance can be achieved if you
really want to do something,” says Lin.
Whether it’s two hours or 45 minutes, Lin believes in learning how to
spare time to enjoy yourself in order to
sustain a long career. “I’m not saying put
leisure before work, but we should communicate the importance of being interested in where you’re going,” he says.
“It’s good of them to feature that, even if
it was a bit exaggerated.”
Red carpet CPAs
Over the years, accountants play a variety
of roles on the big screen in Hollywood that
involve them in intricate plots on both ends of
the good versus evil spectrum:
• Schindler’s List (1993) – Oskar Schindler
(Liam Neeson) builds a munitions factory
during World War II in Nazi-ruled Germany.
With the aid of Itzhak Stern (Ben Kingsley),
the factory’s accountant, they manage
to secretly liberate more than 1,000 Polish-Jewish refugees by transferring them
to the factory instead of to the Auschwitz
death camp.
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994) –
Successful banker Andy Dufresne (Tim
Robbins) is sentenced to life in jail where
he meets a warden, Samuel Norton (Bob
Gunton), and assists him in exploiting
prison labour to launder money in order to
plan his prison escape.
• Hitch (2005) – The awkwardly bumbling
Albert Brennaman (Kevin James) is financial
adviser to Allegra Cole (Amber Valletta), the
woman of his dreams. He enlists the help
of Alex “Hitch” Hitchens (Will Smith), a successful “date doctor,” to help him woo her.
• Stranger than Fiction (2006) – Harold
Crick (Will Ferrell) is assigned to audit the
tax-delinquent baker Ana Pascal (Maggie
Gyllenhaal) before he starts to hear a voice
that narrates his life. The tale takes a turn
when Harold falls in love with Ana while
searching for the voice in his head.
• The Other Guys (2010) – Allen Gamble (Will
Ferrell) is a New York cop and forensic
accountant. He and his partner Terry Hoitz
(Mark Wahlberg) investigate a plot to cover
up losses by a billionaire (Steve Coogan)
who intends to transfer money from the
police pension fund to his investors.
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