Anybody a CMA?
 

Thinking about getting my CMA designation maybe...

you're what?

Something to do with M$?

The Cock in My Ass designation?

one of my friends was working towards it, think all he needs now is work experience or something.

uhh, what the fuck is it?

Certified Management Accountants (CMAs) are strategic and financial management professionals who combine accounting expertise and business acumen with professional management skills to provide leadership, innovation and an integrating perspective to organizational decision-making. They apply contemporary and emerging best management practices in a wide array of business functions, including strategic planning, sales and marketing, information technology, human resources, finance, and operations. CMAs bring a strong market focus to strategic management and resource deployment, synthesizing and analyzing financial and non-financial information to develop total business solutions, identify new market opportunities, and maximize shareholder value.

What do you want to do with it?

Get your CPA license. I got mine and it made me a wonderful living for a lot of years. I hear the CMA is almost as hard.

The usual...get a job etc...

Start my own business later on in life..

What's CPA? Is the CPA the US equivalent to a CA?

Yup, the CPA is the US equivalent of the CA.

If you want to lean more towards cost accounting, then CMA is the way to go. But, in my opinion, if you want a broader knowledge base about business and taxes, the CA might be the way to go.

CA seems too boring and repetitive to me.

Management accounting is more challenging, you have to think more etc.

I'm leaning towards a career as a CMA, in operations, or as an entrepreneur..

If a CA seems boring and repetitive to you, then you don't know what a CA does.

I was a CA for 11 years and had close friends who were CA's and CMA's. From my conversations with these guys, the CMA's had much more boring jobs.

Maybe you are getting CA's mixed up with our poorer cousins, the CGA's..... hahaha

Anyway, CMA designation is a great thing to have.

It's not just the boring part, but I don't want to be working in the corporate world my whole life...I want to be my own boss etc..

Also it's a bit late for me to be a CA - well not late, but the people I know who are going the CA route already have co-op positions with CA firms and getting their experience..

you can always start the exams and then try to get a job somewhere. once you start passing, they'll hire you. thats what i'm doing with the cfa program. working on the 2nd exam and i have zip for work experience.

True, is the CA really that exciting though?

I only see myself working max 10-15 years while starting my own business.

The CA route just seems like a lot of investment (time/effort) for 10-15 years of work. And I probably won't be able to utilize any of it if I did start my own business.

Okay... I am a guy who was working towards his CGA (didn't even start really - but planned for it from highschool thru university), changed his mind, decided to get into hosting and forgot all about it.

Personally, I don't think CMA's get any respect in the job market. Most employers aren't educated about the designations and thinks that CMA's are accountants who couldnt hack their way thru the "tougher" CA and CGA designations and dropped into the CMA program.

To be fair, most employers also think CA is one step up from CGA as well.

I think CGA and CA and fairly even in terms of workload and whatnot, with CMA following close behind.

However, I have worked with all three. I have met MANY people with ALL three designations who have their head in their ass. The initials behind thename mean nothing when the name represents a fool to begin with :)

Point is, if you are doing it strictly for yourself then do the CMA. If you are planning to make a career out of being a "CMA" I think you may have a rough time. A CA can make a career off the CA name. A CGA can, but not quite as easily... But CMA is new and no one gives them any respect.

Personally, unless you are very sure you want to go into that field.. I wouldnt touch any of them. Who wants to go thru all that work experience at lower wages for two years or so?

Although the CA program has just come out with an online version of their course, but trust me, it is NOT easier. Just a little more flexible as you dont have to rush from work to night classes and shit :)

Last thought - one hting I never figured out: why did they make the CMA designation anyways? It's not like someone with a CGA or CA can't do the same shit as a CMA. There is nothing to really differentiate them...

Just my opinion...

I spent most of my career advising people on how to run their businesses, minimize taxes, create financial and internal controls in their companies, analyzing their financial data, etc.

I don't think there is any better training for starting your own business.


Whether its exciting or not is another question..... all depends on the individual. Near the end of my time with a public firm, I spent 75% of my time meeting and dealing with clients. If you think it is all pencil pushing, you have a misconception about it. Although it is moreso in the initial 3-4 grunt work years when you start.

<B>
Personally, I don't think CMA's get any respect in the job market. Most employers aren't educated about the designations and thinks that CMA's are accountants who couldnt hack their way thru the "tougher" CA and CGA designations and dropped into the CMA program.

To be fair, most employers also think CA is one step up from CGA as well. </B>

That's true, although the truth is CMA's and CA's are very different and I don't know how hard each one is, but I'm sure they're all challenging.


<B>Point is, if you are doing it strictly for yourself then do the CMA. If you are planning to make a career out of being a "CMA" I think you may have a rough time. A CA can make a career off the CA name. A CGA can, but not quite as easily... But CMA is new and no one gives them any respect.</B>

The job market's tough, thinking of going into operations, and the CMA will just add value to my resume..

<B>Last thought - one hting I never figured out: why did they make the CMA designation anyways? It's not like someone with a CGA or CA can't do the same shit as a CMA. There is nothing to really differentiate them...</B>

Not too sure about that, but CA's are the only ones that can audit so it might have something to do with that maybe?

Also the functions of a CA and CMA are very different. CMA's work within a company looking at costs etc., whereas CA's primarily focus on auditing.

I could probably do the same thing with a CMA or even with just a BBA...

I don't know why, but being a CA just seems so...office space like..

Can you guys hit me up on ICQ? Monk, Lostmind, 34763846

In the US the CPA designation carries much more prestige than a CMA. Most people dont know what the CMA is about.

Same with in Canada...I'm not doing it for the prestige