One cold, sunny day in January, Jacqueline Fung, the new Director of Finance at FVREB, was making her way to the parking lot. As the sun set in Surrey, people were too busy to find wonder in the skies, but the optimistic and easygoing Jacqueline did. “I was getting off from work, and it was my first time to notice the view outside the Board’s building. It was a spectacular purple and pink sky!” she exclaimed. Weeks before this happened, she had weathered a severe snowstorm and braved rainy conditions.
Jacqueline joined the Board in November of last year. She found herself at the epicentre of year-end financial reporting during a housing market slowdown. She confessed that, while the real estate industry is new to her, she is eager to learn and soak it all in.
Her career path wasn’t linear. “My early work experience was in administration. Never did I imagine changing my career to the accounting field,” she said. She was born and raised in Hong Kong, where she spent the first few years of her professional life. Her family moved to Canada in 1999. Her first foray into the Canadian workforce was as an administrator for an international program at Certified General Accountants of Canada (CGA-Canada). In just a year, she was transferred to the Finance Department to assume an accountant role.
“I am blessed to have mentors in different stages of my life. They made my career shift from administration to finance possible,” she said. With support and encouragement, her confidence rose. She listened more, dreamed bigger, and worked harder. Now, she has a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, a Master’s degree in Accounting, a professional accounting designation, and over nine years of managerial accounting experience.
The pandemic period of high pressure has helped prepare her for the role of FVREB’s Director of Finance. She proved skillful at keeping Kyabia Japanese Restaurant, her family’s business based in Richmond, afloat during COVID-19. “When business got back to normal, I decided it was high time for me to return to the corporate world to practice my strength,” she said.
Her eyes lit up when asked about her plans for the Finance Department. Others might resist the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), but she and Elena Yang, FVREB’s Intermediate Accountant, look forward to the possibilities that AI-powered software will bring. She has plans to introduce a new accounting system called Oracle Netsuite to improve the automation of accounting processes and generate timely and reliable financial reports. “The Finance Department is not just about crunching the numbers. We also provide strategic advice and sound business planning practices,” Jacqueline said, adding, “The job gives me joy and satisfaction.”
When she’s not typing away at her desk making financial projections, she spends her free time shopping, trying different cuisines and high tea, or immersing herself in the world of music. She has been honing her piano skills and is working towards the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Level 2 piano exam. While she humbly says it is unlikely for her to pass higher level exams, we think otherwise. She might just need another mentor.
