Accounting professionals must keep themselves informed on the latest technological innovations to keep up with the demands of a marketplace driven by technological change, according to recent findings in the CPA Horizons 2025 report.
The report indicates that accountants need technology skills to modernize their communication methods and to address data security concerns. CPA Horizons 2025, a project initiated by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), studied trends in the accounting profession by collecting the opinions of 5,600 accounting professionals.
Although many of the technological changes that will take place in the next decade are impossible to predict, CPA Horizons says that the modern world’s state of constant change will make it more important than ever for accountants to become lifelong learners and stay up-to-date on the latest innovations.
Education in accounting knowledge prepares accounting professionals to begin their careers, but they will need to develop technology skills continually to progress in the profession. CPA Horizons said that lifelong learning is easier than before because of the increased options in formal education as well as informal educational, such as webcasts, podcasts and webinars.
The digitization of financial records forces CPAs to work at a faster pace and exposes consumer information to potential security threats. Since fraud is much easier to commit in the digital world, accounting professionals have more responsibility to ensure that data is captured and managed in a secure fashion. In the report, CPA Horizons says that accountants must address the very real security and privacy concerns of consumers and that the profession is in a “unique position” to come up with better ways to protect sensitive financial information.
One of the biggest technological trends today is the increase in mobile technology that allows consumers to access financial information anywhere they want and in real time. Accounting professionals interviewed for the report talk about the need to enhance their use of mobile technologies and social media to improve their interactions with clients and colleagues. And these technologies might also prove to be the best avenue to getting new clients. According to the CPA Horizons report, social media has become as important a marketing tool today as a company website was just a few years ago.
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