As auditing and other aspects of accountancy become ever more digitised, more artificial intelligence (AI) tools are being introduced into processes and systems. Accountants, at a minimum, need to understand how AI bots work, otherwise they won’t know what the AI has overlooked or misunderstood. AI tools, after all, are only as good as those who have trained them and use them.

Likewise, any IT specialist in accountancy also needs to understand accountancy and business to create AI tools and understand how they are used. We’re already seeing this evolution in the make-up of different accountancy teams.

Dominic Buttery is Finance Manager at Ramp Global, a startup HR technology company focusing on the recruitment industry that works with household names such as Canon and Siemens. He says his company uses AI in both the client-facing front end of its online platform, but also for specific tasks within the business. To hone the right tools for the business, Buttery works with developers to design and implement AI tools that suit not only the team’s needs, but also those of its clients.

For example, Ramp Global’s finance team uses a bespoke plug-in for its paid-for version of ChatGPT to digest the thousands of invoices it receives from its many contractors. 

“What we do is then is teach that bot to be a finance accountant in this business. ‘Your job is to prepare these sorts of reports and then I’ll check them’. It’s almost like having another employee, but this employee is incredibly quick and incredibly smart, and has access to everything all the time. They’re very clever,” says Buttery.

Clever but not that clever

Buttery says it’s vital to instruct the AI at every stage while it’s being trained so there’s still human intervention.

“While AI is incredibly useful, it hasn’t reached the level of intelligence that humans possess through understanding context and the emotional intelligence that drives personal skills. While it excels at data processing and pattern recognition, AI lacks the level of intuition and professional scepticism that is essential for accountants to succeed,” he says.

As accountants increasingly work with AI bots, they will need to recognise the risks and limitations of the technology. To do so, they will need to understand the basics of AI technology.

“A knowledge of the fundamentals of AI and the different types of AI is crucial for understanding how AI accesses, uses and even creates data,” Buttery says.

For example, when creating an AI chat bot from scratch, it’s essential to instruct the bot not to do certain things, such as share personal data with other people, Buttery explains. The AI doesn’t have that natural human sense of scepticism or judgement.

He says that there are accountants in his peer group who are very good at coding and accounting, but people with these combined skills still aren’t that commonplace, so accountants need to upskill.

“Externally, audit firms seek specialised competencies such as advanced data analytics talent to leverage technology. Industry-specific knowledge and cyber-security expertise are in demand to tailor audits and strengthen security. Interpersonal skills help build client relationships,” says Anna Petosa, People Operations Executive and HR expert at branded merchandise company Swag Drop, where she’s in charge of relationship building. 

Indeed, one of the areas Big Four firms are currently investigating is how AI and blockchain can interact, as the next step of AI may involve blockchain in some way. Equally it may not, but firms are taking no chances and looking at the potential for this now.

“With a lot more clients moving to more heavily integrated systems, firms will need to be able to advise and consult on AI, but also at the other end be able to audit clients who are using AI in their critical infrastructure,” Buttery says.

What is likely to emerge in the future skill set of accountants working with AI is the knowledge of the fundamentals of AI technology, including risks and limitations.

“What I see in the future is a merger of the two broad skill sets of technology and finance. The use of AI consultants alongside traditional accountants and auditors to deliver the most values of clients is already becoming more common, and we will soon see chartered accountants leading the way as joint technology and financial experts,” Buttery says.

Petosa agrees. “Audit firms are focused on enhancing technical expertise such as analytics. But soft skills such as critical thinking, communication, adaptability and ethics are also priorities. Project management and cyber-security knowledge help manage diverse assignments and protect sensitive data, too.”

Gaining AI skills

ICAEW has a broad library of AI tools and offers a variety of courses on AI and other technologies. There is also a wealth of how-to tutorials online offering basic coding and the like, but ultimately experts suggest accountants learn to use these technologies by ‘playing around’ with them. That must, of course, be done within a secure environment that doesn’t use anyone’s personal data.

For the past year or so, most of the large accountancy firms have been carrying out firm-wide training on tools such as ChatGPT and encouraging staff to use AI to create reports and the like for non-client work.

Firms and their staff are moving cautiously before launching client-facing tools. In the meantime, it’s vital to begin to understand how AI works and what it can and can’t do to develop your new skill set for the modern AI-driven workforce.