Deane Morrice
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Deane Morrice |
Deane Morrice's first accountancy position was in a local authority. He could have studied for a public sector accountancy qualification but did not want to be restricted to a career in the public sector. "When I started studying, I only wanted to be able to move between the public and private sectors within the UK ," he explains, adding: "ACCA enabled me to do that. Today, not only can ACCA members move between all sectors, they are marketable all over the world."
Deane believes that this is because ACCA accountants are not narrow-minded. "The syllabus enables us to see the big picture so that we can take a holistic view of an organisation and concentrate on the important issues." He also asserts that adaptability is also an essential attribute. "No one could have predicted the changes we have seen in the last 100 years and I suspect the changes in the next 100 years will be even more remarkable."
Following his training, he held posts as Chief Internal Auditor and Chief Accountant at Falkirk District Council before moving into computer development and customer services as Development Manager at Scottish Gas.
Career highlights for Deane include achieving first place in Scotland in ACCA's final examinations and being appointed Fund Secretary (effectively the Chief Executive Officer) of the Northern Ireland Local Government Pension Scheme – one of the UK 's largest public sector funds.
Deane has helped the Northern Ireland Local Government Pension Scheme grow its funds from £150m to £2bn today and achieve prestigious awards, including the Best UK Public Sector Pension Scheme in 1996 and again in 2002 for Training and Development. Looking ahead, he says: "My goal is to accept the award for the Best UK Pension Scheme - hopefully in the not too distant future."