As the global accountancy profession began adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences, IFAC (the International Federation of Accountants) convened a series of roundtable discussions to understand the implications of the pandemic for professional accountants and leaders, and how their experiences will affect the future of accountancy and accountancy skills.
Today, IFAC published a summary of these findings, Accountancy Skills Evolution: Impact of COVID-19 & the Path Forward. This whitepaper outlines the key themes our stakeholders shared, including accelerated ways of working, impact of technology, practices that align to new societal demands, and the right balance of skills, which collectively illustrate a roadmap for the professional accountant.
The roundtable discussions and emerging themes also influenced the structure and content of the upcoming virtual global summit, The Anticipatory Accountant: Global Trends Transforming Learning & Development. The summit, which features world-renowned futurist Daniel Burrus and special guest Tom Hood, continues these conversations and focuses on three broad themes: technology, the environment, and society.