Over the past year, our internal focus on organisational structure has been aimed at ensuring that each of the firm’s structures fully supports our clients’ needs. As a result of this, we are proud to announce that we have introduced two new Department Manager positions in the Audit- and Business Solutions Divisions (consisting of the Accounting, Company Secretarial, and Salary Administration departments), who will take on responsibility for the operational management their respective divisions. Through this, Client Managers are empowered to play a more active and direct role in excellent customer service delivery and the delivery of high-quality work.
In our Quarter 2 newsletter e already announced that Ineke Siemens has been promoted to the role of Division Manager in the Audit Division and are proud to share that Bianca Veldsman has since also joined the ASL Group as Division Manager in the Business Solutions Division. Bianca, who originally comes from the Durbanville and then Helderberg area, obtained her BAcc degree from the University of Stellenbosch and subsequently completed her BAcc Honours degree through UNISA. After completing her SAICA clerkship and obtaining valuable management experience, she joined ASL as Manager in May 2021. Since then, Bianca has already established herself within the division and has already proven to be invaluable to her role.
Nadia Auret, CA(SA), who completed her SAICA clerkship at ASL during 2020 and was appointed Assistant Manager in the Audit Department, has been promoted to the position of Client Manager with effect from 1 July 2021. We know that Nadia is going to excel in this new capacity.
In June 2021, ASL also bid farewell to Debbie Cloete, one of the Client Managers in the Accounting Department of our Business Solutions Division, due to an opportunity she received out of practice. Willie Hanekom, who started his SAIPA clerkship at a similar accounting firm, has since joined ASL as a successor in this role. Willie, who is originally from the Southern Cape, completed his studies at the University of Stellenbosch and thereafter decided to remain in the Winelands. He is already taking on his new role in the fullest capacity and is making a valuable contribution to the ASL Group, as well as more specifically within the division in which his client portfolio exists.
We hereby congratulate Frances Burger, Associate at ASL Advisory, and her husband Hanno on the birth of their first child, Charlotte. Charlotte surprised her parents somewhat, arriving earlier than expected. We know that she is going to add so much love and joy to their lives.
After nearly 10 years at the ASL Group, the ASL Advisory team bids farewell to Cherilee Lötter in October 2021. Cherilee is embarking on an exciting opportunity in the private sector and aims to expand her skills further out of practice. Cherilee has added incredible value to the ASL Group over the past four years in her respective roles in the Audit Department as well as in her capacity as Consultant in Advisory. We wish her all the best with this new phase of her career.
We are furthermore excited to announce that Francois Botha and Danielle Cronje will be joining the ASL Advisory Team in January 2022. Francois, who comes from the Eastern Cape near Graaff-Reinet and completed his studies at the University of the Free State, and Danielle, who comes from Kimberley and studied at Northwest University, will be completing their SAICA training contracts in the ASL Audit Division by the end of this year. Danielle also completed her Honours Degree (Certificate in Theory of Accounting) through UNISA in 2020 and is registered to write the final board examination to register as a Chartered Accountant (SA) in December 2021. Francois has been advancing his technical knowledge through CIMA studies over the last three years in order to register as a Management Accountant in future. Their knowledge of our client groups, as well as their commitment and drive to further their respective skillsets, will be of great value to our ASL Advisory clients. We know that they will further advance our service offering by providing the required technical input and strategic direction to all clients.
Academic achievements:
We hereby congratulate the following staff on their excellent academic progress:
The following staff successfully completed their first SAICA board examination, currently known as the Initial Test of Competence (ITC):
Ryan Slabbert
Carita Moolman
Danielle Cronje
Niel du Bruin
Esrie Janse van Rensburg
Candice Behrens
Esna de Kock
Joné Visser
CIMA Strategic Level Case Study
Arline Luiters, who herewith completes her academic component of the CIMA course.
We also wish the second- and third-year CIMA students who are completing their final case studies at the strategic level during August all the best.
Good luck with the exams!
Several of our staff members are writing their final academic examinations during the coming months and we wish them all the best in their preparations. Your dedication and hard work do not go unnoticed.