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European Area Meeting

This year’s European Area Meeting (EAM) EAM was held in Dusseldorf and was the first such meeting to be hosted jointly by three firms, Greis & Brosent GMBH, RLT Ruhrmann Wuller & Partner, and Burbach Cramer Partners GMBH.

The EAM followed the usual format starting with a drinks party on the Wednesday evening, followed by the formal meeting on the Thursday and Friday.  The meeting was attended by 85 delegates and 21 accompanying persons. Of the delegates, 65 were from Europe, 14 from the UK and six from the rest of the world. Of the eight UK firms, seven were represented.

The EAM is different from the UK area meeting held in November, in that a lot of the time is devoted to European area and MGI business, whereas at the UK meeting, the emphasis is on commercial and technical presentations.  Paul Winder gave a presentation on his role as the co-ordinator of the UK and Ireland area, highlighting the benefits that members obtained.

Europe is an important area for MGI and Clive Mieville’s main focus while he was Executive Director of MGI was to concentrate on re-energising the European area.  Since 2004 there has been a great deal of progress within Europe and there is now a clearly-defined structure. Hans Haag stood down as chairman of the area at the meeting, and was replaced by Jan Nygaard. He is assisted by Clive Mieville who is now part time (one day a week) European Area Co-ordinator, Eric Emilsson is the area’s International Committee Representative, and Nico Hansen is the Treasurer.  There four people effectively make up the Executive Committee, which oversees the area, which has been divided into four circles – Eastern, Central European, Mediterranean and Nordic.

Europe has made progress in obtaining new members, particularly in Eastern Europe, and there were presentations from Laszlo Szalaly, the managing partner of Paragraf, the new firm in Slovakia, Svetlana Gavrilova from Devovoy Profil in Moscow, Tatiana Mikhaylovich, the managing partner from the new firm in St Petersberg, and from Cornelio Teofil Teaha from the new firm in Romania.

As with Europe, the structure of MGI International has also been streamlined, and the International Committee now consists of just one representative from each of the eight areas of Australia, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, North America, South America, Europe and the UK & Ireland.  From these eight people an Executive Committee of three people will be drawn who will be supported by MGI’s executive director Thierry Delvaux, Patricia Fullalove and Jonathon Farrow. MGI International now has an office in Brussels where Thierry is based.

I personally found the two audit presentations interesting and useful.  Clarified ISA 600 will affect our UK group audit clients who have subsidiaries overseas.  The new standard is effective for accounting periods ending on or after 15 December 2010, and will require much more involvement by us where the subsidiary is ‘significant’.  There was also a presentation on using data analysis in auditing.

As with all the MGI meetings, perhaps the biggest benefit is in meeting and networking with the other delegates, and in this regard the breakout sessions, coffee breaks, meals and social events in the evening are just as, if not more important, than the formal presentations.

Alan Worsdale
Partner
Rickard Keen