CMA (Certified Management Accountant) professionals in the Americas earn 31% more in median salary and 32% more in median total compensation than non-CMAs, according to the IMA (Institute of Management Accountants) 2020 Global Salary Survey released today. The results of the survey were featured in a cover story of the March issue of IMA’s Strategic Finance magazine.
Respondents from the US reported the highest median salary and total compensation figures, earning $100,000 and $107,817, respectively. Accounting for all respondents across the globe, CMAs earn 60% more in median base salary and 63% more in median total compensation than non-CMAs.
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“We have always known that the CMA provides versatility, security and career advancement in the management accounting profession and the results of this year’s survey are very encouraging,” said Kip Krumwiede, Ph.D., CMA, CPA, director of research at IMA. “To know that CMAs are experiencing the benefits of the certification is especially significant as the role of a management accountant has shifted considerably over the past few years.”
The survey includes responses from 4,253 IMA members across 80 different countries, with an equal amount of female and male respondents. The survey shows widespread agreement regarding the benefits of having a CMA certification, as more than 80% of respondents from the U.S. concur that the CMA creates additional career opportunities and gives them more confidence to perform their jobs at a high level. Further, more than 70% of respondents agree that the CMA strengthens their job security in the digital age and strengthens their ability to move across all areas of the business.
Certified Professionals in the US Earn More
U.S. respondents that hold the CMA, CPA or both certifications earn a higher median total compensation compared to those holding neither the CMA nor the CPA. Those holding strictly the CMA earn 36% higher median total compensation, while those holding only the CPA earn 29% higher median total compensation. For those who hold both certifications, median total compensation is 55% higher, an increase that is consistent across all age groups.
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Better career opportunities
The survey results show that more than 60% of CMAs feel the certification prepares them for a management-level position. Further, the majority of those respondents in top management and senior management are CMAs (62% and 61%, respectively). More specifically, the following job titles were more likely to be filled by CMAs than non-CMAs: CFO (67%), controller (59%), director of financial planning and analysis (63%) and senior financial analyst (66%). It is therefore not surprising that more than 90% of all CMAs said they would recommend the CMA to a friend.
“We are happy to see that with the shifting landscape of the management accountant profession, there are still high levels of satisfaction among accounting and finance professionals,” Krumwiede said. “Given that the CMA is correlated with certain qualities such as higher total compensation and greater advancement within a company, it’s understandable that CMAs would recommend the certification to their colleagues.”
IMA’s Global Salary Survey was authored by Shannon Charles, CPA, and includes only respondents who indicated that they were either full-time employees or self-employed. The global and U.S. data is available on IMA’s survey website where additional regional reports are forthcoming.
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