An ACA-CTA trainee with Thompson Jenner in Devon, Kim Kreutle began volunteering with ICAEW after attending the annual general meeting of the South West England Student Society in May 2023. “It was very close to my work and at that point I didn’t know what it was about or what sort of roles there might be to fill,” she says. “I spoke to some ICAEW members there and put myself forward for the treasurer role on the student committee.”
After enjoying her first few months of volunteering locally, Kim was keen to get involved with the ICAEW Student Council (ISC). The ISC brings together representatives from around the world, providing a voice for students and a feedback mechanism with ICAEW. Kim took up a role as representative for her local society, in addition to her treasurer position back home. “I got to the point where I was ready to put myself forward to be the next vice chair of the ISC,” she adds.
Kim was elected vice chair in March 2024, and will complete the year-long position alongside her existing work and study commitments. “I’ve just attended the AGM and annual dinner in London, which was a fantastic opportunity to meet the other presidents, chair and vice chairs from different regions,” she says.
Flexible opportunities
Kim’s volunteering roles involve several different responsibilities – attending meetings, organising events, as well as overseeing the financial side of her local society. ISC meetings are often online, with other representatives from student societies across the UK. “The meetings are spaced out, giving breathing room in between. It’s quite flexible with my other commitments,” Kim explains.
“As treasurer, we do monthly meetings online for an hour. I also help and support other team members in terms of organising events, for example. We’re all hands on because we are quite a small society, so we share the workload."
As vice-chair and representative on the ISC, Kim regularly meets other volunteers from different societies and groups within ICAEW. “At the most recent Student Council meeting, we had a presentation from a representative on the tech board, who was looking for another volunteer,” Kim says.
“It’s really useful to have these meetings where people speak about what they do with ICAEW. It’s great, not just for networking, but for promoting all the work ICAEW that does.”
Valuable networking
There are many benefits to volunteering as a student and young professional. “I came into the accountancy profession not really knowing anybody. I was trying to find like-minded people and to attend a lot of different events,” Kim says. “There are a lot of great communities and great people out there. It’s not just about meeting up outside of work, but also sharing ideas.”
Volunteering is definitely recognised by people I work with, especially senior people and partners in my firm, who will consider me for different events and charity work, for example.
Volunteering is also at the core of building communities in ICAEW and reflecting the full diversity of members and students. “There are a lot of different people studying for the ACA,” Kim says. “I find it interesting looking back to when I started volunteering and all the different people I’ve met since then.”
There are several ways students can find out more about volunteering opportunities with ICAEW. “Local student societies are a very good place to start, as you can start attending events in person without having to travel too far. You can find out about lots of different volunteering opportunities that way,” Kim says.
Supporting the next generation
As well as volunteering roles on student societies and committees, students and members can help the Early Careers team in visiting schools and universities to talk about ICAEW and the ACA qualification, inspiring the next generation of chartered accountants. Find out here on how you can get involved.
Ultimately, volunteering does not need to take up lots of time, but brings invaluable benefits. “There might be something coming up like an email that you need to think about, but it’s not actually that time-consuming, and is manageable with your day-to-day work and study,” Kim says.
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