A PAS (Publicly Available Specification) is a document that standardizes elements of a product, guide or process. CIMA commissioned the world’s first specification for management accounting in 2016. Its production was facilitated by the British Standards Institution (BSI) with input from a panel of industry experts and it is registered as PAS 1919 – a tribute to the founding year of the Institute.

Frameworks that underpin the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and International Financial Reporting Standards provide clarity about how to report the organization’s financial position and past performance. Until now, there has been no equivalent framework to guide management accountants in supporting decision-making, contributing to improved performance and achieving sustainable success. The management accounting principles set out in PAS 1919 fill this void by providing a basis on which organisations can set their own benchmarks for the management accounting function.

PAS1919 gives guidance and provides a framework – the Global Management Accounting Principles – for organisations to assess the performance of their management accounting function. It is relevant for members of boards of directors, CEOs and their senior management teams, especially internal audit departments, as well as their CFOs and senior financial professionals who have strategic and financial oversight. External influencers such as investors would also benefit from PAS 1919.