Five minutes with Mark Ariemuduigho

Tell us about yourself

I’m a Partner in Baker Tilly in Nigeria. I’m married to Mrs. Omowumi O. Ariemuduigho and the marriage is blessed with children. I was employed by Z. O. Ososanya & Co, a firm of Chartered Accountants and was admitted into Partnership in 1993. The firm was dissolved in 1998 and we formed Oyelami Soetan Adeleke & CO (OSA) in the same year. OSA was affiliated to Summit International which later changed its name to Baker Tilly. OSA merged with Aneni Dairo & Co in 2008 and formally became Baker Tilly Nigeria in the same year.

Outside of work, what keeps you busy?

Outside of work, I concentrate my efforts in singing and teaching music to the choristers of my local church. When I’m not doing this, I read management books and partake in sports as a way of recreation. I also like to walk.

What is the best advice anyone has given you?

I grew up in the village and never actually knew much about accountancy until after my graduation. However, my late uncle who worked with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) advised that accountancy was a good profession and that I work in a firm of chartered accountants and take up accountancy as a profession, especially as the course I had studied (Business Administration) was somewhat related to accountancy. That advice shaped my life.

What has been the biggest challenge for you from the COVID-19 pandemic?

The biggest challenge facing our firm has been the audit of companies remotely.The biggest challenge facing our firm has been the audit of companies remotely. Issues of going concern, impairment of assets, provisions and estimation uncertainties, the valuation of stocks, risk of theft, financial fraud, and internal controls generally are central to the audit of the financial statements and need to be properly verified. To design procedures to properly verify these at a time of remote auditing is surely a big challenge in addition to keeping our staff safe from the ravaging coronavirus.

What does ‘now, for tomorrow’ mean to you?

Baker Tilly’s mission statement “now, for tomorrow” signifies to me the need for commitment to great relationships, great conversations and taking advantage of current opportunities whilst preparing for the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow. We start to build a greater future today. We do this by updating ourselves and being responsive and relevant to our clients’ needs now.

What opportunities are there for your firm in the next few years?

In the Nigerian Economy, opportunities abound for Baker Tilly in Nigeria in the area of consultancies in Agriculture, Oil & Gas, Mergers and acquisitions as well as taxation especially with the newly promulgated Finance Act, 2019. In the post-COVID era, there will surely be opportunities for advisory services for the turnaround of companies and taking advantage of government tax and other incentives to companies. Baker Tilly in Nigeria is already involved in the audit and rendition of other services for NGO’s and multi-lateral agencies such as UNICEF, DFID, AFDB, etc. Vast opportunities still exist in this area which we hope to harness.

 

Get to know us in five minutes

 

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