SHAUNA Greely has been elected as Chartered Accountants Ireland’s first female president in more than 30 years.
Her appointment comes at a time when female participation in the profession has strengthened significantly with the Institute’s most recent student intake showing a 50/50 split.
Addressing the accountancy body's annual meeting in Dublin, she drew attention to the advances made by the Institute since 1983, when a woman last held the office.
Ms Greely said: “Some 40 per cent of our members are women, and we have strong female representation on our Council, committees, and on our District Societies.
"I'm heartened that our student intake level is now approaching parity, but there is still much work to be done, and one of my objectives over the coming year will be to help strengthen the diversity of participation in Institute structures.”
She begins her term as president at an important juncture for the profession in Ireland. Chartered Accountants Ireland has been a principled voice on issues impacting its membership, including Brexit, taxation policies, and education. She also highlighted pensions and ethical standards in the not-for-profit sector as other areas of focus for the Institute during her term.
Shauna trained in KPMG Dublin and qualified as a chartered accountant in 1995. She spent a number of years with Merrill Lynch Capital Markets Bank before joining Ulster Bank Group in 1999 and is currently finance business partner with responsibility for projects and strategic cost management.
Elected as deputy president was Feargal McCormack, managing director of leading island based accountancy practice PKF-FPM, which won the overall practice of the year accolade at the prestigious Irish Accountancy Awards at the Ballsbridge Hotel in Dublin last week.
