The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants highlighted in a recent study the importance of digital literacy among finance professionals amid the buzz of artificial intelligence implementation in organisations.
According to the ACCA, it is important for accountants to understand a wider range of technical tools, including programming languages, in the course of AI implementation. This includes training, refining, using of different models/algorithms in-house – and potentially leverage open-source capabilities.
At the same time, the focus on programming skills can risk becoming reductive, especially where collaboration across technical teams or with vendors is possible.
ACCA says the true value that accountants provide is in their ability to understand their organisation and navigate the complex landscape in which it operates – acting as a source of trusted advice and information to internal and external stakeholders.
In the context of AI implementation, accountancy and finance professionals have a unique role to play in bridging the gap between technical teams, the business, and even regulators.
The core tenets of AI literacy for accounting professionals address specific capabilities
To play this critical role, technical skills are important – but domain expertise remains essential. The challenge is to develop accounting professionals who can bridge the gap between technical AI knowledge and accounting expertise.
