Thought leadership stories

First-year students in the Sustainability and Financial Management (SFM) program planted 100 native trees and shrubs on the University’s north campus as part of the annual micro-forest planting with Sustainable Waterloo Region.

The event connected students with sustainability in practice while highlighting the program’s unique blend of accounting, finance, and environmental responsibility. Faculty, staff, RBC leaders, and community partners joined to support the initiative, reinforcing the collective effort needed to advance a sustainable future.

Three faculty members from the School of Accounting and Finance — Lisa Pynenburg, Dr. Timothy Bauer and Dr. Krista Fiolleau — have been recognized with University of Waterloo Outstanding Performance Awards, celebrating their exceptional contributions to teaching and research. 

This week, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) is thrilled to celebrate the Class of 2025 at Spring Convocation! 

As we highlight this milestone, we’re honoured to recognize three individuals whose achievements and contributions exemplify the very best of our community.

The 2025 SAF Alumni Excellence Gala brought together over 130 alumni, donors, students, faculty, and university leaders to celebrate excellence, innovation and the vibrant future of our community.

The evening featured the presentation of the SAF Lifetime Achievement Award, the launch of a new doctoral scholarship, and a warm welcome to the new Chair of the SAF Advisory Council.

Krista Fiolleau and James Thompson, School of Accounting and Finance faculty members, have been recognized with 2025 Arts Awards for their exceptional contributions to research and service.

Patricia O’Brien, Distinguished Professor Emeritus from the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF), has been selected for induction into the Canadian Accounting Hall of Fame under the “Leaders of the Profession” category.

This prestigious honour recognizes her outstanding contributions to the accounting profession through decades of influential research, teaching, and mentorship that have shaped both Canadian and global accounting practices.

Tim Jackson (BA'92), a sessional lecturer at Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business, will be awarded an honorary doctorate at this year's convocation ceremony.

We congratulate Tim on this well-deserved recognition as he receives the University's highest honour for his exceptional contributions within the University, Waterloo Region and beyond.

Glenn Ives (BMath ’84) will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the School of Accounting and Finance.

This award recognizes an outstanding alumnus who has made a lasting impact through their career achievements, community involvement, and ongoing support of the School and the University of Waterloo.

Amar Mahmoud, a doctoral candidate at the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF), has been named the 2025 recipient of the Warren Ober Award for Outstanding Teaching by Graduate Students.

Celebrating the exceptional career of Dr. Efrim Boritz and the establishment of his new endowment fund. 

The University of Waterloo’s Dean of Arts, Alexie Tcheuyap, visited a Student Venture Fund (SVF) class to engage with students and faculty about the program’s impact.

New government funding focuses on developing impactful course materials that integrate climate change adaptation into professional programs, with the ultimate goal of embedding sustainability into all SAF programs.

Congratulations to the School of Accounting and Finance students for their outstanding success on the September 2024 CPA Common Final Exam (CFE)!

November marked a significant milestone in sustainability education as the University of Waterloo hosted the inaugural "Be the Future" conference for high school students, organized by the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF), the Faculty of Environment and Ontario DECA.

This unique event highlighted Waterloo's commitment to developing the next generation of leaders by inspiring students to explore the intersection of sustainability, social impact and economic growth.

Learn more about The School of Accounting and Finance's newest Advisory Council Chair, Lana Paton.

Celebrating the career of Dr. Ranjini Jha and her accomplishments at the School of Accounting and Finance.

David Ha from the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) has been selected as the winner of Waterloo's 2023 Online Teaching Award.

As Glenn Ives (BMath’84) steps down as Chair of the SAF Advisory Council after seven years of exemplary service, the entire SAF community expresses profound gratitude for his dedication, support and leadership.

Chen is the very deserving 2024 School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) valedictorian of 2024. She is completing her degree on the Dean’s Honours List and is graduating with a Bachelor of Accounting and Financial Management (AFM, with both a Professional Accountant Specialization and Financial Leadership Specialization. She is currently pursuing her Master of Accounting degree, with a convocation in 2025.

One of the top women in finance in Canada, Jeannine LiChong is a dedicated mentor and community builder.

From SAF to Dragon's Den and beyond, Ian Weng is revolutionizing the frozen food market in Canada.

The Inaugural Hub for Sustainability Integration Conference took place on March 21st at the Delta Hotel in Toronto. The day was filled with informative presentations and panel discussions from some of the country’s most knowledgeable sustainability integration and climate advocates. 

The Contemporary Issues in Sustainability Reporting Symposium, co-organized by Professors Liz Demers and Mingyue Zhang on behalf of the CPA Ontario Centre for Sustainability and Performance Management (CSPM), brought together thought leaders from academia and business to explore and discuss contemporary issues in sustainability reporting.

What is sustainability? Is it a trend, a buzz word or a real solution to many of the climate, economic and social issues we’re facing today? 

With our inaugural Hub for Sustainability Integration Conference coming up next month, we sat down with expert Jennifer Roedding to help paint a clearer picture of how leaders can integrate sustainability into their businesses and see larger profits in the long run.

Dr. Tisha King, professor at Waterloo’s School of Accounting and Finance, collaborated on a research project to find and pay homage to Canada’s first Black accounting professionals in honour of Black History Month.

The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) recently caught up with Grace Zhou (MAcc ‘18) to chat about her career post-graduation and to gain insight into the exciting opportunities that SAF co-op terms can provide to enrich students’ professional experiences. 

The School of Accounting and Finance's Student Venture Fund (SVF) had the honour of hosting University of Waterloo President Vivek Goel last week.

Professor Cody Buchenauer (CPA, CA, MAcc ’14) is a School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) alum with a remarkable career journey. From a student navigating through co-op terms to an industry professional holding a role as senior manager at EY, Buchenauer is now a full-time faculty member as well as a member of SAF’s co-op and experiential learning team. Bridging academia and industry to guide current students’ career paths as a passionate educator, his journey is a testament to the impact of the co-op experience offered at SAF.

New research shows that team-based recognition can be effective in settings where performance is highly interdependent, and teamwork is essential to the company’s success.

With the fall term fast approaching, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) is excited to welcome the incoming Class of 2028. There is a lot of preparation involved as students get ready for their first year of university. To help with this transition, a team of faculty members at SAF have created a series of modules to get students familiar with the technology requirements for SAF, as well as basic accounting and finance concepts.

Based on the emerging technology, this paper proposes a new method to measure the expected duration of competitive advantage for average adopters. This method is based on public data, such as google searches, press releases, book titles, and companies’ disclosures with respect to the technology. The method is very easy to implement.

The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) is pleased to share that Jillian Adams has been awarded the Warren Ober Award for Outstanding Teaching by a Graduate Student. This award is given to a University of Waterloo graduate student in the Faculty of Arts who has made significant contributions to teaching.

When Blake Phillips began his doctorate in finance in 2009, he was asked to declare a focus. With previous degrees in biology and forestry and an interest in conservation, he zeroed in on sustainable finance.   

The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) caught up with Andres Perez-Vilarino (MAcc ’19) to discuss his career post-graduation, and to learn how he has leveraged his education and passions to help inform his role.