Finance executive Norman Lyle finds plenty of time to enjoy the Hong Kong lifestyle - including pursuing his love of show jumping

Originally hailing from Northern Ireland, Norman Lyle is finance director of Jardine Matheson and chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce. He believes that Hong Kong as an international financial centre is an ideal base for setting up a business. Now fully immersed in the Hong Kong lifestyle, Mr Lyle a keen equestrian, competes in  showjumping competitions and two-day events held at the Beas River Country Club in the New Territories.

"I moved to Hong Kong the month before the handover in June '97 - and everyone asked me why I was coming at a time when many people were leaving. But I was used to moving around. For almost 30 years I lived all over the world, from Kenya to London to Malaysia - and then Hong Kong.

I decided to move to Hong Kong as finance director of Jardine Matheson because Hong Kong seemed to be entering a new and very demanding phase. Now, of course, we can see that the handover has gone extremely well.

Looking at Hong Kong and its fundamental strengths, I would have to say that I made the right decision. It is an exciting place to live and to work, with tremendous opportunities, and has always been an international financial centre. Hong Kong is the base for many companies operating in China who are using the talent and expertise of the Hong Kong workforce.

At the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, we are encouraging businesses - particularly small medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) - wanting to get into the mainland, to do it out of Hong Kong using the expertise and the skill base here. Jardines employs around 12,000 people in the mainland, but finding people who are qualified financial managers can be difficult.

Talent gives competitive edge

The world is much more competitive these days and Hong Kong too needs to be more competitive. To achieve this, we must attract the best talent, and education is critically important for Hong Kong and China.

It seemed to me that we needed a low-level business/accountancy qualification with the basic fundamentals of management accounting and business law. The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), a UK accountancy institute which I have been involved with for many years, has been operating in China but their qualifications are quite difficult for people especially in the English language.

With this in mind, it has been decided to set up the Association of Financial Management (AFM), which would repackage CIMA's qualifications into an entry-level business qualification, focusing on the mainland, and based on a UK syllabus and examination.

The intention is to take the first six CIMA papers out of 17, with support learning material in both hard and soft copy. Once students qualify, they can go on and take a full accountancy qualifications or a business degree. Business managers who want basic financial qualifications would also benefit from this qualification.

CIMA wanted to base AFM in Hong Kong because of its close links and experience of doing business with the mainland. Also, this kind of qualification is appropriate for moving Hong Kong towards a knowledge-based economy, especially for graduates wanting a financial skill. The aim is to launch in Hong Kong in the fourth quarter, and eventually grow into the mainland and other parts of Asia. Jardines have been running a very successful CIMA training scheme for the last five years.

Family-friendly lifestyle

Hong Kong is a wonderful base for young people because it's very safe. It is small enough to allow people to network but big enough not to have the "village community" status. People tend to think it is all office buildings here, but actually 40 per cent of the land is country parks. It is quite like Scotland but with better weather.

There are marvellous walks, the sailing is exceptionally good, there are lots of golf courses including two world-class public courses, soccer, rugby, hockey - any sporting requirement is available. For equestrian fans like myself there are top-class facilities run by the Hong Kong Jockey Club at Beas River in the New Territories.

Also, expatriates tend to have a lot more free time because there is no commuting time to the office as everywhere is close. Domestic help is widely available. There is much more time to be with your family and participate in sporting activities. It is a magnificent place to live."

Related link:
Association of Financial Management www.afmglobal.com