Cybernet has been certified by Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) as an approved Training Organization Outside Practice (TOOP). The accreditation ceremony was attended by M. Sajid Kapadia, Chairman of the Marketing and Communications Committee and Council Member at ICAP, and Omair Jamal, Secretary and Chief Operating Officer of ICAP, along with senior members of the ICAP management. They presented the accreditation certificate to Ghulam Mohiuddin, Chief Financial Officer of Cybernet, who received it together with Kashif Hafeez, Chief People Officer, Sajid Habib, General Manager for Supply Chain Management, and Muhammad Muzammil, Deputy General Manager for Finance and Legal Affairs. The presence of senior figures from both organisations at the ceremony reflected the importance given to the arrangement, which formally places Cybernet among the companies that ICAP recognises as suitable training environments for future chartered accountants.
The TOOP framework of ICAP allows accredited organisations to provide practical training to Chartered Accountancy (CA) students outside the traditional setting of audit firms. Students who wish to qualify as chartered accountants must complete a period of practical training, and this has long been done mainly in audit and accounting practices. By approving organisations outside practice, ICAP gives students the option to gain their required experience inside companies, where they can see how finance teams work as part of a larger business. Cybernet has now become one of the organisations able to offer this route, and it can enroll students who are seeking such placements under the supervision of qualified professionals within its finance department.
With the accreditation, Cybernet will be able to mentor emerging finance professionals while giving aspiring chartered accountants exposure to corporate finance, governance and business operations within the technology and connectivity sector. This is a different experience from audit work, since trainees will see how budgeting, reporting, compliance and decision making function inside an operating company that serves customers across the country. The mix of finance, legal affairs, supply chain and people management among the executives who received the certificate also suggests that students may learn how these areas connect with one another in a company of this size. For young professionals, exposure of this kind can help them understand the commercial side of accounting before they move into full time careers in industry, consulting or practice.
Cybernet has thanked ICAP for its trust and said it looks forward to contributing to the development of the next generation of finance professionals in Pakistan. The company, which operates as an internet service provider, described the accreditation as part of its commitment to talent development, and it is expected to begin taking trainees as it completes its internal arrangements with the institute. For students preparing for the CA qualification, the approval adds another option to the list of places where they can complete their training, and for the wider business community it shows that companies from the technology and telecommunications industry are taking an active part in building the country’s pool of accountants and financial managers.
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