ICAS ICAS logo

Quicklinks

  1. About Us

    Find out about who we are and what we do here at ICAS.

  2. Find a CA

    Search our directory of individual CAs and Member organisations by name, location and professional criteria.

  3. Careers

    Access current vacancies and understand what it’s like to work here at ICAS.

  4. Contact Us

    Get in touch with ICAS by phone, email or post, with dedicated contacts for Members, Students and firms.

Login
  • Annual renewal
  • About us
  • Find a CA
  • Careers
  • Contact us
  • Become a CA
  • CA jobs
  • SCABA
  • ICAS Foundation
  1. Members
    1. Become a member
    2. Manage my membership
    3. Benefits of membership
    4. Professional development
    5. Mentoring
    6. Member rewards
    7. CA jobs
    8. Area networks
    9. International communities
    10. Get involved
    11. CA Connect
    12. CA magazine
    13. Top Young CAs
    14. Career breaks
    15. The ICAS member app
    16. Newly admitted members 2021
    17. CA Wellbeing
  2. Become a CA
    1. How to become a CA
    2. Routes to becoming a CA
    3. CA Stories
    4. Find a training agreement
    5. Why become a CA
    6. Qualification information
  3. CA Students
    1. Studying with ICAS
    2. Timetables and exams
    3. Learning requirements
    4. Learning updates
    5. Learning blog
    6. Totum Pro | Student discount card
  4. Employers
    1. Become an Authorised Training Office (ATO)
    2. Resources for Authorised Training Offices (ATO)
    3. Professional entry
    4. Apprenticeships
  5. Thought leadership
    1. Technology
    2. Trust
    3. Talent
    4. Research
    5. CA Agenda podcast
    6. CA Agenda videos
    7. ICAS webinars
    8. CA Summit
  6. Professional resources
    1. Anti-money laundering
    2. Audit and assurance
    3. Brexit
    4. Charities
    5. Coronavirus
    6. Corporate and financial reporting
    7. Business and governance
    8. Ethics
    9. Insolvency
    10. Pensions
    11. Practice
    12. Public sector
    13. Sustainability
    14. Tax
  7. Regulation
    1. Complaints and sanctions
    2. Regulatory authorisations
    3. Guidance and help sheets
    4. Regulatory monitoring
  8. Governance
    1. At a glance
    2. Charter, rules and regulations
    3. Council
    4. Boards and key committees
    5. Public reporting
    6. Executive team
    7. Diversity
    8. Member research
  9. Contact us
    1. ICAS technical helpdesk
    2. ICAS logo request
  10. Careers
    1. Business centres
    2. Meet our team
    3. Benefits
    4. Vacancies
    5. Imagine your career at ICAS

Five top qualities of an Executive Director

CEO issues
  • LinkedIn (opens new window)
  • Twitter (opens new window)
By Eleanor O'Neill, Professional Development

14 June 2018

An Executive Director acts as the advocate and voice of authority for their specialism to the rest of the organisation, forging a link between management and the board. What attributes are the most essential?

The Executive Director is often responsible for driving the vision, strategy and innovative thinking of their division, as well as overseeing daily operations.

1. Strategic thinking

Executive Directors should have an organisation-wide perspective of the work they are responsible for and how that contributes to long-term business goals. You can learn how to use your CA skills and adapt your thinking with our 'Adding strategic value as an accountant' course.

Being able to take a step back from divisional targets and put the needs of the company first is a key aspect of executive leadership.

2. Influence

An ability to inspire trust and communicate sound reasoning in an authentic and persuasive manner gives an edge to any management style.

Convincing key decision-makers and stakeholders of your expertise and the validity of your input is essential to influencing the direction of an organisation, as is encouraging commitment to common goals from colleagues.

3. Self-presentation

Cultivating a professional image is particularly important at high levels of business. Confidence in your abilities, a positive attitude towards work and acting as an ambassador of company values will all help build an Executive Director's credibility, both internally and beyond.

As well as being convincingly capable in the role, factors like professional appearance, communication skills and a strong network play a part in self-presentation.

4. Experience

Having a career that includes at least several years as a senior manager, demonstrable experience handling the needs of multiple stakeholders, and a depth of knowledge about the business and industry are general requirements for an Executive Director position.

That history provides a strong foundation for operating with best practice and establishing respect.

5. Effective management

Executive Directors must be able to delegate responsibilities with insight and fair execution. Part of being a leader within an organisation is demanding mutual respect, something CAs can develop with the 'Motivating and managing people' workshop from BPP.

You may also consider mentoring as a way to instil those values in the people you work with.


Leading Figures, experts in coaching and consulting for finance and business professionals, have produced the ICAS Executive Coaching Programme to promote innovative thinking and accelerate the career growth of CAs. The next cohorts of the programme take place from Spring 2021.

Black and white photo of an office

Five top qualities of a CEO

By Eleanor O'Neill, Professional Development

15 May 2018

Project leader

Five skills to develop as a Non-Executive Director

By Eleanor O'Neill, Professional Development

29 March 2019

2021-04-alterledger 2021-04-alterledger
ICAS logo

Footer links

  • Contact us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Privacy notice

Connect with ICAS

  • Facebook (opens new window) Facebook Icon
  • Twitter (opens new window) Twitter Icon
  • LinkedIn (opens new window) LinkedIn Icon
  • Instagram (opens new window) Instagram Icon

ICAS is a member of the following bodies

  • Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (opens new window) Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies logo
  • Chartered Accountants Worldwide (opens new window) Chartered Accountants Worldwide logo
  • Global Accounting Alliance (opens new window) Global Accounting Alliance
  • International Federation of Accountants (opens new window) IFAC
  • Access Accountancy (opens new window) Access Acountancy

Charities

  • ICAS Foundation (opens new window) ICAS Foundation
  • SCABA (opens new window) scaba
ICAS logo

Our cookie policy

ICAS.com uses cookies which are essential for our website to work. We would also like to use analytical cookies to help us improve our website and your user experience. Any data collected is anonymised. Please have a look at the further information in our cookie policy and confirm if you are happy for us to use analytical cookies: