As professional bodies go, the ACT might be comparatively small in size, but boy does it know how to hold an Annual Conference. As everyone who attended this year’s event will attest, the standards of the content, organisation and catering were all as high as ever. And to top it all, the only thing that can’t be planned for – the weather – even put on a show for the occasion. The sun shone down brightly on Liverpool’s docks and, on the night of the spectacular waterfront gala evening, the sky was a clear, cloudless blue.
For me, the highlight of the conference was a thought-provoking presentation on the final
day from Swedish futurologist Magnus Lindkvist. He challenged our preconceptions about planning for the future, saying that there was no such thing as ‘the future’, only different ‘futures’.
Technology has revolutionised the world over the past couple of decades, but we don’t know which major transformational change will reshape it again because it hasn’t happened yet.
For treasurers, who are charged with anticipating the business horrors that lurk over the horizon, this may not come as much of a comfort. On the other hand, it does take some of the pressure off. The message that I took from Lindkvist’s presentation is that planning for the unthinkable is impossible, so don’t blame yourself if you fail to predict the next black swan event.
To find out more about the conference, read the reflections of ACT CEO Colin Tyler, on page 13, and our in-depth coverage starting on page 18. Katherine Horrell, group treasurer of energy company Centrica, was one of the speakers at the conference and she shares her thoughts on relationships with rating agencies and raising funds, on page 24. Another speaker was Roger Burge, director of treasury and corporate finance at communications infrastructure provider Arqiva.
He talked conference delegates through Arqiva’s whole business securitisation, which completed earlier this year – a topic that he also writes about in this issue of The Treasurer (see page 48).
Elsewhere in this issue, we take a look at the exciting emerging market of Myanmar, which spent years in isolation due to sanctions imposed over human rights concerns (see page 22).
We find out how to bounce back after failing an ACT exam from someone who did just that, on page 60. We are also delighted to bring you our regular cash and liquidity management supplement, starting on page 29.
I hope you enjoy the issue.
