Difference Makers Podcast

The Presidents’ Podcast is the latest in the Difference Makers series from Chartered Accountants Worldwide. 

In each episode Antje Derks talks to the President of one of Chartered Accountants Worldwide’s member institution and asks for their insight into the future of the profession and issues such as sustainable economies. 

In this episode Antje speaks with Indy Hothi, President of ICAS.

A Woman in Finance

Aisling McCaffrey - Throughout her childhood, Aisling was never sure what she wanted to be. She had many aspirations but nothing that stood out as a ‘calling’. As a result, she went on to study Actuarial and Financial Studies at University College Dublin. Aisling discusses the challenges she faced on the course, even questioning whether it was right for her – despite having completed 4 years of study. Travelling to Australia, Aisling worked with a charity and was advised by one of the founders to stick with accountancy. As a result, on her return to Ireland, she got a job working for Grant Thornton and has been there for 8 years. In this episode of Young Difference Makers Discuss, Aisling discusses why she is passionate about women in finance, sustainability, and the inclusion of women in sports.

Opening Doors

Patrick Doan – In this episode of Young Difference Makers Discuss, Patrick talks about growing up the child of a Vietnamese refugee in Australia, which taught him from an early age that you had to work hard to succeed. Patrick shares memories from his childhood; going to private school in Melbourne, learning about how his Vietnamese heritage differed from that of his friends as well as discussing his third level education doing a Bachelor of Business majoring in accounting, travelling around the world and starting to work as an accountant. On his journey as Chartered Accountant, he came to work in hedge funds, overseeing European private debt, which has opened many doors for him.

The Invigilator 

Nic Riemer - Co-Founder & CEO of The Invigilator - In this episode of Young Difference Makers Discuss, Nic talks about growing up in South Africa and how he has been able to combine his two passions in life: business and sport. Nic discusses working on academic articles while studying at the University of Johannesburg, even working there for a year during his apprenticeship. It was during this time that he discovered his love of lecturing, which he did regularly until 2020, when he decided to create and grow The Invigilator app. The app allows people to study with integrity, without the need to travel to a university, making education available to people across the world that would never have had the opportunity.

Plan A-C Striving to Make a Difference

Manuel Rodrigues - CEO Trans African Oil – Discusses growing up with dreams of becoming an actor, priest or lawyer, Manuel was surprised to find he was better suited to business after being given the recommendation to study for a BCom Law. In this episode of Young Difference Makers Discuss, Manuel explains how he finished his legal degree and moved into accountancy. Having always been fearful of setting up his own business, Manuel reveals how an opportunity to become a partner in a start-up business in Mozambique was offered to him and the personal growth that has come because of that. He also talks about where his business stands on fuel and the deforestation in the areas his company works in, his ideas for the future of fish farming and the difference he can make for local chicken farmers.

An Executive Serving her Community.

Mpho Mookapele - In this episode of Young Difference Makers, Mpho reveals her difficulties growing up in a town not speaking English and feeling she didn’t really belong alongside her fellow students, despite being a high achiever. Mpho had big dreams of becoming an engineer or an architect but needed funding from her father’s employer. After realising architecture wasn’t for her, Mpho deferred to accounting, working with Ernst & Young. As someone who wanted to serve, Mpho discusses her decision to work in the public sector, something Chartered Accountants rarely do in South Africa. She took the opportunity to educate her peers on what is happening in public sector legislation and currently works as a CEO of an energy and water training authority, fulfilling her desire to be an executive in the public sector.

Working to Drive Change.

Fiona Smiddy – Unsure of which path to take at school, Fiona explains what it was like growing up in Cork and how she came to choose commerce and French on her CAO form. During the ‘Milk Round’ at college, Fiona applied to work for KPMG and was successful in getting on to its graduate programme, specialising in Risk Consulting. In this episode of Young difference Makers Discuss, Fiona discusses what drove her to seek a move outside of the practice, which brought her experience with a renewable energy company and redundancy.  This step-change led her to travel the world which, in turn, brought her to working in sustainability. Fiona is currently the CEO of her own company, Green Outlook and is working towards making Ireland ‘greener’.

In this episode we hear from Ronan Dunne, chair of Six Nations Rugby.   Ronan was formerly the executive vice president and CEO of Verizon Consumer Group, where he helped define a new era of possibilities with the introduction of 5G. He was responsible for providing wireline voice, data and TV products and services and wireless connected experiences to more than 100 million consumers every day. 

Ronan is a fellow and former council member of the Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) and a fellow of the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT). Ronan is a Counsellor for the One Young World charity that brings together young leaders from around the world and empowers them to make lasting connections to create positive change. 

Ronan tells us about his  professional journey from sports-loving schoolboy to CEO of one of the largest telecommunication companies in the world. More importantly Ronan tells us how he believes that although talent might be evenly distributed throughout society, opportunity is not and in order to Make a Difference, we need to create the conditions for people to thrive.

Ronan was formerly the executive vice president and CEO of Verizon Consumer Group, where he helped define a new era of possibilities with the introduction of 5G. He was responsible for providing wireline voice, data and TV products and services and wireless connected experiences to more than 100 million consumers every day.
 
 Before his work at Verizon, Ronan was chief executive officer of Telefónica UK (O2). While leading O2 UK, the largest wireless operator in the United Kingdom, he significantly improved its growth trajectory through market leadership in brand, customer satisfaction and loyalty. Ronan was previously O2’s chief financial officer in the UK, and prior to that, served as head of finance and deputy to the group chief financial officer of O2.
 
 Prior to O2, he held senior positions in banking with Banque Nationale de Paris and in the corporate sector with Exel plc. and Waste Management International plc.

Ronan is a fellow and former council member of the Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) and a fellow of the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT). Ronan is a Counsellor for the One Young World charity that brings together young leaders from around the world and empowers them to make lasting connections to create positive change.

 Ronan talks about Mind Together, a new initiative from Verizon, in conjunction with Kellogg Company, Snap and Spotify, that aims to address and transform mental health in the workplace.

In this episode, our guests talk about Mental Health and its attendant issues, with particular attention to the world of Chartered Accountants.

Each of our guests has hands-on experience in improving our attitude to mental health.  They have all worked to battle both the stigma and the effects of mental health issues and each has a unique perspective on the issue. 
 
 

We want them to tell their story and discuss what Chartered Accountants and the business & finance sector need to do to stamp out discrimination and increase access for all.