Laurier instructor named to prestigious professional accounting fellowship

Dec. 3, 2020

Long time Wilfrid Laurier University instructor Allan Foerster (BBA ’76) has been recognized by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario (CPA Ontario) as a Fellow (FCPA) at a gala virtual ceremony held Dec. 3, 2020. Foerster is the second instructor at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics to receive this honour in as many years, with Professor Robert Mathieu earning his FCPA in 2019.

Selected by their peers in the accounting profession, FCPA members earn the highest distinction possible by reflecting the values of the CPA Ontario, including integrity, high ethical standards, leadership, and community engagement.

Noted as being “distinguished leaders, visionary innovators and dedicated mentors” by President and CEO of CPA Ontario, Carol Wilding, FCPA, FCA, who describes their contributions as being, “the very best of our profession.”

Foerster joins the exclusive company of fewer than 1,500 FCPA members who represent just over one per cent of Ontario’s 94,000 chartered professional accountants.

A lecturer as the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics since 1997, Foerster has held several key roles at the university, including chair of the Board of Advisors for Prism, and his most recent position as associate director of the Toronto MBA program. Leading one of the Lazaridis School’s highest profile programs in the heart of the nation’s business capital was a natural progression for Foerster who has enjoyed becoming a passionate supporter and critical resource for his students over the years.

Foerster is especially well-suited to wear the title of ‘mentor’ to the hundreds of MBA candidates who have passed through his Intermediate Financial Accounting I and II classes. Designed to prepare aspiring professional accountants to write the Common Final Exam (CFE), the CFE requires candidates to demonstrate the depth and breadth of competency needed to excel as a Chartered Professional Accountant.

The three-day exam is notoriously difficult to pass, but Foerster can point to his student’s strong performance in the CFE evaluations as evidence that they have benefitted from his guidance. Students from across Foerster’s 23 years of teaching will likely remember his willingness to share the benefits of his professional and academic experience, and the occasional encouraging ‘boo-yah’ from an instructor who prepared them well and helped many launch their own outstanding careers in accountancy.

“The Lazaridis School has benefitted tremendously from having Allan coach and equip our students for successful careers,” says Micheál J. Kelly, dean of the Laurier’s Lazaridis School of Business and Economics. “This recognition reinforces what we already know about Allan, that the care and enthusiasm he brings to the classroom has done a great service in establishing the Lazaridis School as a premier destination for aspiring professional accountants in Ontario.”

Foerster’s own professional history spans four decades and signifies a remarkable career spent in key roles at sector-leading organizations, including: auditor at Thorne Riddell (now KPMG), director of finance at Pfizer Hospital Products Ltd., controller at R.D. Nickel and Associates, president and chief executive officer of CFO 2 Go Inc., and lecturer at the University of Waterloo, University of Guelph, and Wilfrid Laurier University.

Foerster says the recognition he has earned from his professional peers is something he cherishes deeply.

“I have the privilege of being a faculty member of the Lazaridis School – an honour I treasure every day. Working daily with the outstanding members of the Accounting faculty for whom excellence in the classroom and in the journals of research, drive me to be a better educator.”

“To all the students I have taught past and present, I take great pride in watching your professional careers grow. Hawks are golden forever. It is because I can stand on the shoulders of the faculty and staff at Wilfrid Laurier University that I am able to enjoy the pinnacle of success reflected in the FCPA designation.”