The accountancy profession will be impacted hugely by 10 technology trends, claims a report from ACCA?s Accountancy Futures Academy (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountant) and IMA (Institute of Management Accountants) called ?Digital Darwinism: Thriving in the Face of Technology Change?.
The top 10 technologies with the potential to reshape the accountancy profession and business landscape are mobile; big data; artificial intelligence and robotics; cyber security; educational; cloud; payment systems; virtual and augmented reality; digital service delivery and social.
Informed by interviews with global academics and experts in accountancy and technology, alongside a survey of over 2,100 ACCA and IMA members around the world, the report asked respondents to what extent they expect developments in technology to transform the way accountants and the finance function do business over the next decade. The report asserts that advances in technology will also demand new skills and competencies from accountants and finance professionals, from change management to knowledge of data extraction tools in the mining of business intelligence.
When asked about the impact of big data on business, 77% of South Asian respondents say this will be influential, compared with 91% of Australians and only 52% of those in the UK. South Asian respondents said that big data would demand new skills, with 79% saying that the profession will need to use tools to support data modelling and analysis.
Aziz Tayyebi, head of ACCA India, said: ?Accountants and finance professionals in India and the wider South Asian region are influential agents of change?they?re adept at using technology to advance their careers, their client?s prospects and those of their own organisation?s. This influence works both within and without organisations?75% said they influence the use of technologies externally with their clients, and 73% said this was the case internally.?
