Creative Accountants (Work In Progress)

    VANCOUVER, May 28 /CNW/ - Certified Management Accountants of Canada (CMA
Canada) in partnership with TBWA & PHD Canada have launched the new brand
platform "Creative Accountants".
    In a category where "creativity" has traditionally been associated with
accounting practices that may or may not follow the letter of the rules, CMA
is demonstrating that this is a category convention worth disrupting.
    "Creativity is increasingly being identified as the single most important
ingredient of success in today's business landscape and the CMA discipline
integrates strategy, management and accounting to help produce terrific
creative problem solvers. This is about people, not a criminal practice. It's
about reclaiming the word 'creative' which is a core value of the CMA program
and casting it in a positive light where it belongs alongside 'accountants',"
says David Fletcher, Vice President, Public Affairs for CMA Canada. "It was
important at this juncture to clarify and enhance our core brand essence and
take our brand positioning to a new level. We feel we have communicated a core
truth of the CMA discipline and are uniquely positioned in the market place to
appeal to and shape today's leaders."
    The CMA brand campaign was first launched with a Public Notice in TV,
radio, print, online and ambient media that creates the impression of a very
significant event the public need to be aware of. "Our thinking was to link
the importance of this event in the accounting world to people's everyday
lives and tackle the stigma of the word "creativity" in conjunction with
"accountants" head on," says Colin Bennett, President & CEO of CMA British
Columbia. "A public notice is a great way of capturing attention and creating
the perception of significance which this event clearly is."
    The Public Notice was followed up with long copy print ads that playfully
discounted the old conventions and negative stereotypes of associating
"creativity" with "accountants". In a world where creativity and right brain
thinking are becoming imperative for success, CMA is positioning
communications in line with the core competency of the program."
    The launch extended beyond traditional media into a complete website
revamp, a storefront redesign and media arts roll out. Every aspect of the new
brand campaign reflects creativity and disruptive thinking. "Demonstrating
creativity was critical for brand acceptance. We knew in order to resonate
with our target we had to demonstrate creativity."

    To view the new campaign visit www.creativeaccountants.org.

    Certified Management Accountants Society of British Columbia awards the
Certified Management Accountant (CMA) designation to qualified candidates in
British Columbia. With more than 40,000 certified members around the world,
CMA is the only organization in North America that grants a strategic
management accounting(TM) professional designation. For more information visit
www.managementaccounting.ca or www.cmabc.com.

For further information: Colin Bennett, President & CEO, CMA British
Columbia, (604) 484-7002; David Fletcher, Vice President, Public Affairs, CMA
Canada, (905) 949-3106