Life of a professional

One can summarise the Balance Sheet of Life in the above
manner.

A professional commands respect in the society because his
motto is ‘Pride of service in preference to personal gain’. He is described as
one who places public good above his personal gain. This is the reason why
Government, financial institutions and members of the public rely on a CA for
his expert advice. This reliance imposes a public interest responsibility on our
members, when they render services in the field of accounting, taxation or other
fields.

For the success of any professional, it is essential that
there is a strong base provided by the regulating body to which he is
answerable. The system of education, training and examination should be such
that he is able to command the respect and confidence of the members of the
society. The users of professional services require an assurance that the member
of the profession whose services are retained is (i) a person of character and
integrity and (ii) competent and knowledgeable to render professional services.

The character and integrity of a professional will depend on
his personal qualities. This will also be guided by the environment in which he
has taken his education and training as well as the environment in which he is
working. His position can be maintained and strengthened only if the regulating
professional body is able to guide and encourage its members to live upto the
high ethical and professional standards. The prestige and confidence enjoyed by
a professional, to a great extent, depends on the strictness and scrupulous
manner in which the professional code is implemented.

Bhagavad Geeta classifies castes (not communal) on the basis of different qualities and actions of a person. According to this classification a ‘Brahmana’, in whatever community the person is born, is one whose wisdom and knowledge is in his nature. Self-restraint, purity, uprightness and wisdom are the qualities of a ‘Brahmana’, It is for this reason that in the Indian Society all professionals, such as a CAs, lawyers, doctors, etc. are considered as Brahmanas. A C.A. professional does not own a business or industry but he does act as advisor of a businessman because of his study and knowledge. For this purpose, he has to keep himself updated in his knowledge as he is in constant touch with his client during his audit, tax and other assignment year after year. In other words, he has to be a student throughout his life.

Fundamental principles:

Our Institute has identified the following fundamental principles by which any professional should be governed in the conduct of his professional relations with others.

i) Integrity:

A professional should be straightforward, honest and sincere in rendering professional services.

ii) Objectivity:

A professional should be fair and should not allow prejudice or bias, conflict of interest or influence of others to override objectivity.

iii) Independence:

When in public practice, a professional should both be and appear to be independent. Integrity and independence are the most essential characteristics of any professional. Independence implies that the judgement of a person is not subordinate to the wishes or directions of another person who might have engaged him or to his own self interest.

iv) Confidentiality:

Information acquired in the course of his professional work has to be treated as most confidential. This should not be disclosed to anyone without specific authority of the client or unless it is required to be disclosed for compliance with legal or professional requirements.

v) Technical standards:

He must discharge his duties in accordance with the technical and professional standards relevant to the work assigned to him.

    vi) Professional  competence:

He must maintain high level of competence throughout his professional career. He should un-dertake only such work which he or his firm is competent to handle and complete within the given time frame.

vii) Ethical behaviour:

A professional should conduct himself in a manner consistent with the good reputation of the profession and refrain from any conduct which might bring discredit to the profession.

A professional who keeps the above seven principles before him and adopts them in his day-to-day practice can achieve great success in his professional practice. One may say it is difficult to adopt all these principles in the present day environment. However, if a professional wants to have peace of mind and get inner satisfaction of having served the society and the profession, he will have no option but to follow the path identified by the above principles.

Conduct in other fields:

Our Institute strives to maintain discipline amongst our members not only on matters relating to their professional conduct but also in relation to their conduct in other fields. It is for this reason that the Institute is given power to take disciplinary action against a member if he is found guilty of ‘Other Misconduct’. This is a very wide term. The Institute has, however, taken the view that a member of the profession is expected to maintain the highest standards of integrity in his personal conduct and any deviation from this high standard, even in personal affairs, would expose him to a disciplinary action.

A professional may be holding an office in a social or service organisation in his personal capacity. He may be a member, treasurer, secretary or chainman of such organisation. He may be an arbitrator, executor, liquidator or trustee in any trust, etc. in his personal capacity. In all such situations, his actions and decisions relating to financial, legal and other matters should be above board and he should not take any personal benefit in such capacity. This is because the society expects that a professional person will render service even in his personal capacity in the same manner as he renders his professional service.

When CA. Act was amended in 2006, Part IV was added in the First Schedule to provide that a CA., whether in practice or not, will be guilty of ‘Other Misconduct’ if he is held guilty by any Civil or Criminal Court of an offence which is punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months. It also provides that, if in the opinion of the Council, an action of any CA brings disrepute to the profession or the Institute, whether or not such action is related to his professional work, he will be held to be guilty of ‘other misconduct’.

Similarly, Part III has been added to the Second Schedule to provide that if a CA., whether in practice or not, is held guilty by any civil or criminal court for an offence which is punishable with imprisonment for a term exceeding six months, he shall be considered  as guilty of ‘Other Misconduct’.

Ethics in profession:

The word ‘Ethics’ is defined to mean ‘moral principles, quality of practice, a system of moral principles, the morals of individual action or practice’. Accordingly, his behaviour towards his professional brothers and sisters, his employees, articled assistants, clients, users of his service and general public should be governed by the above ethical principles. His personal conduct in a capacity other than his professional work should also be governed by these ethical principles.

The C.A. Act and Regulations provide for the Code of Ethics. Our Institute also publishes literature on the subject from time to time. As stated earlier, certain fundamental principles have been identified. Some of the Do’s and Don’ts about ethical behaviour of a c.A. professional are listed as under:

    i) Cannot engage in any business or occupation without the permission of the Council.

    ii) Cannot enter into partnership or share fees with a non-professional. Recently some relaxations are made about sharing of fees/partnership with other designated professionals such as Company Secretaries, Cost Accountants, Advocates, etc.

    iii) Cannot solicit professional work or advertise professional attainments, subject to certain exceptions.

    iv) Cannot charge fees based on percentage/ contingency.

v) Cannot allow a member who is not in practice or not his partner to sign financial statements or audit opinion on his behalf or on behalf of his firm.

    vi) Cannot disclose information acquired during the course of his professional or other engage-ment without the client’s permission.

    vii) Cannot express opinion on financial statements of an enterprise in which he or his relatives have substantial interest. This restriction also applies if his firm or a partner of the firm has substantial interest in the enterprise.

    viii) Performs professional duties without due diligence or is grossly negligent while performing his duties.

    ix) Cannot keep client’s money without opening separate bank account.

    x) Contravences any of the provision of the CA Act, Regulations and directions of the Council of ICAI.

Some quotations:

It may be useful to refer to two quotations of eminent personalities about how one should conduct oneself in life.

i) Oscar Wilde has said about Meanings as under:

Standing for what you believe in,
Regardless of the odds against you,
and the pressure that tears at your resistance,

… means  courage

Keeping a smile on your face,
when inside you feel like dying,
For the sake of supporting others,

… means    strength

Stopping  at nothing,
And  doing what’s  in your heart
You know is right,

… means    determination

Doing more than is expected,
To make another’s life a little more bearable,
Without uttering a single complaint,

… means compassion
 
Helping  a friend  in need,
No  matter the time or effort,
To the best of your ability,

… means    loyalty

Giving  more than you have,
And  expecting  nothing
But nothing  in return,

… means    selflessness

Holding  your head high
And  being the best you know you can be
When life seems to fall apart at your feet,
Facing each difficulty with  the confidence
That time will bring you better tomorrows
And  never giving  up,

… means    confidence.

ii) Late  Shri 1.R.D.  Tata  on Guiding  Principles:

A true professional:

Late Shri Nani A. Palkhiwala has explained as to who can be called a True Professional, as under:

-Not only financial integrity

But

– Intellectual  integrity  also.

    The higher the man goes in life the humbler he should-be.
 

In this context a Bhajan by Narsingh Mehta is most appropriate.

Vaishnav    Jan :

– Who is vaishnav – A person who is nearer to Lord Vishnu.

– He who knows  difficulties of others.

– He who will help the needy person but will not boast about the same.

– He who is humble to all and will never speak ill of others.

– He who is upright in his   

– Speech

– Hearing others

– Mind

– He who will always speak truth.

– He who will never touch monies belonging to others.

– He who is never greedy.

– He who is detached  and never  angry.

If a person can imbibe these qualifies of a true vaishnav he can be a ‘true professional’.

In this article an attempt has been made to explain what qualities a professional has to have in his life.

When a person wants to choose his career and take a decision whether to join a business or profession, he should be ready to make a sacrifice if he selects to join a profession. He will have to keep in mind that motto of a profession is ‘Pride of Service in preference to personal gain’. He has to place public good above his personal gain. He cannot mix profession with business as there will be conflict of interest. As stated earlier, a professional has to keep the fundamental principles enunciated by professional bodies uppermost in his mind while performing his duties. He has to follow these principles even in his personal actions not connected with his professional duties. In short, he has to act as a ‘Vaishnav’ to be a true professional. He has to draw up Balance Sheet of his life at periodical intervals and determine whether it gives a ‘true and fair view’ of his behaviour and actions.