CPA Alberta sat down with Aaron Principe CPA, CGA to discuss Pembina Pipeline Corporation’s pre-approved program route (PPR). Aaron is the Manager, Legal Entity Reporting and the Program Manager of Pembina’s PPR.
Aaron Principe | Manager, Legal Entity Reporting and the Program Manager
1. Can you tell me about Pembina’s rotational program?
Pembina’s training program is structured as a 30-month work rotation in selected business or service units where the duration and responsibilities in each area are designed to meet the requirements of the CPA Alberta–approved technical competency map.
We have two rotation streams available to our candidates. The first rotation stream consists of 12 months each in Corporate Reporting and in a business unit, followed by six months in either Tax or Internal Audit. The second rotation stream consists of 12 months each in Internal Audit and in a business unit, followed by six months in Corporate Reporting.
2. How does Pembina’s program fit into long-term career development at the organization?
We want to ensure that our candidates are set up for success as future CPAs and Pembina leaders. Once they complete the program and earn their designation, candidates will have a solid foundation of how we do things at Pembina. We hope that they will continue to grow their career with us as we support them in securing a role that fits with their developmental goals and the company’s needs.
3. How do you admit candidates into your program?
We accept both internal and external applicants, with preference being given to recent university graduates who have prior work experience at Pembina. For example, experience from a co-op placement or internship at Pembina is considered an asset. Candidates are then selected following a holistic review and assessment process.
4. What kind of supports does Pembina provide to candidates?
We support our candidates by providing them with paid study days to prepare for their module exams and the Common Final Examination (CFE). These study days are in addition to their vacation days.
Pembina also covers all program fees from initial registration to writing the CFE.
5. Are there any challenges you’ve encountered in supporting your candidates?
Our rotation schedules are subject to Pembina’s business needs. This may pose a challenge with coordinating rotations between different groups. The program leaders and I work closely with our business and service unit leaders to plan recruitment and to follow the duration set out in our rotation streams. However, it may not entirely work out as planned due to operational constraints. I think this may be common among training programs in industry, but we, as program leaders, strive to make it work for everyone involved.
6. How do you manage and identify mentors for your candidates?
Our candidates are assigned mentors from our mentor pool, which consists of CPAs across Pembina’s business and service units. We invite professionals who have the skills, experience, and insight to successfully guide our candidates as they develop their competencies. As such, mentor selection is crucial as we, the program leaders, and supervisors work closely with the mentors to ensure that our candidates have the necessary support to be successful in the training program.
7. What are the benefits of having CPAs involved with candidates?
I think the key benefit of having CPAs involved with training our candidates is that CPAs have the expertise and experience to adequately supervise, mentor, and advise candidates as they develop their skills and competencies during and beyond the 30-month training program here at Pembina.
The views expressed in this post are those of Aaron Principe CPA, CGA. Please visit cpaalberta.ca for the latest guidelines regarding Practical Experience.
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