• ACCA signs contract with Summit Consulting Group for provision of on demand examinations
• Technology will be used to enhance assessment of work-ready accountants
• Innovation central to ACCA’s vision for the future

ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), the global body for professional accountants, announces today (16 June) that it has signed a contract with Summit Consulting Group to deliver all ACCA examinations online through an innovative eAssessment programme.

The contract with Summit means that ACCA’s move to online delivery will bring greater choice and access for employers and students around the world who choose ACCA qualifications for their professional training.

Helen Brand, ACCA’s chief executive, says: “ACCA was founded on distinct core values – one of which is innovation. As a global professional accountancy body, we have a proud tradition of leading the way in new developments, particularly those that create greater opportunity to access a highly-regarded international professional accountancy qualification.”

Helen Brand adds: “This new development with Summit is the next step in our journey. As we develop our new eAssessment model, ACCA will be able to test students’ knowledge and skills in a way which more accurately reflects real-life workplace scenarios and activities. Employers have told us that this is what they want for the future. Also, feedback has shown that employers and students want greater flexibility and options of when our globally-recognised qualifications can be taken – and not just twice a year as is the current model with ACCA.”

John Sotiros, President of Summit Consulting Group, said: “Summit has long been a leader in providing innovative solutions to the testing marketplace. We are very excited to be partnering with ACCA, the leading global body for professional accountants. The coupling of our innovative technology with ACCA's global presence will redefine the way computer based testing is done. Our industry will be a tremendous beneficiary of these efforts now and well into the future.”

Helen Brand concludes: “The world of work is changing, becoming increasingly online. We are therefore now working towards new ways of developing professional skills which will meet the needs of employers in the online world. ACCA is innovating to develop and support the eProfessional and Summit’s technology and expertise will enable ACCA to assess work-ready professional accountants with the skills needed in this increasingly on-line world.”

Summit Consulting Group will work with ACCA to introduce eAssessment on a phased basis, working with ACCA to ensure its existing Computer Based Exams (CBE) - such as Managing Costs and Finance and Accountant in Business - will still be available.  The first papers will transition to the new system in 2012 with all papers being phased over the next few years.

ACCA already offers Computer Based Exams (CBE), first introducing them in 1998, and has since implemented e-paper production and e-marking of its scripts.

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For further information:
Nick Cosgrove, ACCA Newsroom
+44 (0)20 7059 5989
+44 (0)7963 496144
nick.cosgrove@accaglobal.com

Notes to Editors

About ACCA

1. ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) is the global body for professional accountants. We aim to offer business-relevant, first-choice qualifications to people of application, ability and ambition around the world who seek a rewarding career in accountancy, finance and management.
2. We support our 147,000 members and 424,000 students in 170 countries, helping them to develop successful careers in accounting and business, with the skills required by employers. We work through a network of over 80 offices and centres and more than 8,500 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide high standards of employee learning and development. Through our public interest remit, we promote appropriate regulation of accounting and conduct relevant research to ensure accountancy continues to grow in reputation and influence.
3. Founded in 1904, ACCA has consistently held unique core values: opportunity, diversity, innovation, integrity and accountability. We believe that accountants bring value to economies in all stages of development and seek to develop capacity in the profession and encourage the adoption of global standards. Our values are aligned to the needs of employers in all sectors and we ensure that through our qualifications, we prepare accountants for business. We seek to open up the profession to people of all backgrounds and remove artificial barriers, innovating our qualifications and delivery to meet the diverse needs of trainee professionals and their employers.

About Summit Consulting Group
4.      Summit Consulting Group, Inc. is a leader in the computer-based testing industry with a core focus on innovative technology solutions. Summit Consulting Group is a team of well-seasoned professional technology consultants that has provided invaluable software design, development, and implementation services. We have resolved needs for companies in the health care, education, Information Technology, and professional licensure industries. Over the past few years Summit has concentrated its efforts on developing our own set of licensable software products. These products allow us to focus our energy on the things we do best including technology and acting as a bridge across multiple test center providers. These innovative products include: a comprehensive web-based authoring system, a light weight item writing tool, a secure test driver, an integrated online item writer management system with built in training modules, and a web-based test delivery platform. Summit Consulting Group has actively participated in industry groups like The Association of Test Publishers and The Performance Testing Council.  Our nine year history of providing innovative solutions will continue well into the future. Summit Consulting Group is based in Annapolis, Maryland, USA.

Cecile Bonino
Public Affairs and Media Relations Officer-EU ACCA
CBI business house
14 rue de la Science
BE-1040 Brussels
tel:+32 (0) 2 286 11 37
mob: +44 (0) 7809595008
http://www.accaglobal.com