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Technology and data

Webinars and publications on technology and data

Browse our extensive catalogue of webinars, magazines and reports on technology and data. The collection forms a comprehensive and accessible package of guidance and technical advice for those working in accountancy and allied financial industries.
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Based on the materials created by ICAEW’s Tech Faculty, these resources became available to the wider ICAEW membership in January 2022.

Find out more about how ICAEW's provision of information on technology is changing.

Chartech magazine

Chartech was the bi-monthly news magazine from the Tech Faculty. Its articles and news summaries aimed to keep members up to date with changes in technology. The last edition was published in December 2021.
November/December 2021
  • Listing
  • 03 Dec 2021
In this final edition of Chartech: tech news round-up; how will the profession look in 2051; highlights from the former Tech Faculty; practice tips; accounting for the environment; Digitalisation of tax; Cybercrime week; cloud apps; smartphones; and Excel tips reflections.
September/October 2021
  • Listing
  • 30 Sep 2021
In this issue: Tech Faculty is changing; topical tech news; public trust in data; cryptoassets; benefits of RPA; cyber crime insurance; hybrid working; Power Query; spyware; and data strategy
July/August 2021
  • Listing
  • 30 Jul 2021
In this issue: Change management; topical tech news from around the world; how and why deepfakes work; project failures; artificial intelligence; formatted accounts; cyber attack on the US's Colonial Pipeline; and technology and the BEIS White Paper on audit reform.
May/June 2021
  • Listing
  • 24 May 2021
In this issue: climate change and technology; successful accounting systems; keeping ahead of HMRC deadlines; fourth industrial revolution; protection from cyber attacks, the dark web; COVId-19 passports; and Excel Tips.
March/April 2021
  • Listing
  • 30 Mar 2021
In this issue: Operational efficiency; topical tech news from around the world; agility is gaining popularity; surveillance of employees; big tech regulation; lessons from the FRC's consultation; pursuit of ethical AI; app stacks; and flaws in tech.
January/February 2021
  • Listing
  • 25 Feb 2021
In this issue: Tech implications in the wake of the pandemic, holistic approach to tech, digital currency, future of remote auditing, forecasting, Python, and spreadsheet automation.

Excel news

News from our Excel community.
Headshot of Bani Lamba
Exclusive Excel Tips and Tricks #480 – Refreshing securing workbooks
  • Article
  • 11 Oct 2023
Hello and welcome back to Excel Tips and Tricks! This week we have a Creator level post where we revisit various ways of securing Excel workbooks containing sensitive and confidential data.
Simon Hurst
Exclusive Power Query – matching lists part 1
  • Article
  • 17 Aug 2023
In the first part of a two-part article, we start looking at how to use lists in Power Query to add a new filter to our archive portal to support a new Excel Community project.
Liam Bastick
Exclusive LOOKUP
  • Article
  • 04 May 2023
Regular readers will recall I took VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP to task recently, before moving on to the INDEX MATCH combination and then XLOOKUP. You don’t always need the latest and greatest though: LOOKUP may seem a less versatile function upon first glance, but it is quite useful for modelling. It’s an “oldie but goodie”.
Simon Hurst
Exclusive Excel fundamentals training – what should be included?
  • Article
  • 04 May 2023
Should basic Excel training stick to simple formulas and functions or should it extend the horizons of learners to consider the likes of Dynamic Arrays, PivotTables and Power Query?

Technology news from Insights

The latest news and features on all things technological and data related from our Insights section.
Payment scams, data hacks and Cyber Security Awareness Month
  • Article
  • 31 Oct 2024
Cyber round-up: the continuing payment scams and personal data attacks on individuals, key takeaways from ICAEW’s Cyber Security Awareness Month campaign, and how to safeguard your data and business from harm.
Masterclass 6: Reviewing control processes
  • Article
  • 31 Oct 2024
Jenny Blewett FCA, Head of Finance at Costello Medical talks about how she used generative AI to help check her firm’s banking controls when she was new in post.
Technical round-up: October 2024
  • Article
  • 31 Oct 2024
This month’s top stories feature eight Budget updates covered by ICAEW’s Tax Faculty, a list of software products that are now ready for MTD ITSA, and new VAT guidance for private schools.
Budget 2024 verdict: big and bold, but borne by business
  • Article
  • 31 Oct 2024
Chancellor Rachel Reeves focused on delivering economic stability with her wide-ranging first Budget – but short-term tax raising measures worth £40bn fall primarily on the shoulders of business.
ICAEW welcomes increased funds for HMRC in Autumn Budget
  • Article
  • 30 Oct 2024
HMRC has received additional investment, with its budget for 2024/25 increasing from £4.7bn to £5.2bn, and its initial budget for 2025/26 set at £5.8bn. However, HMRC is expected to make savings of £107m in 2025/26 from continuous improvement.
Budget makes changes to how the tax system is administered
  • Article
  • 30 Oct 2024
The Budget included several announcements on how HMRC will tackle non-compliance in the tax system, as well as an important update on making tax digital for income tax self assessment (MTD ITSA).

Webinar archive

Stay up-to-date with the fast moving technology world by viewing the Tech Faculty's archive of events and webinars. You can also browse 2021's programme of events.
Lunch and Learn: getting to grips with AI jargon
  • Webinar
  • 22 Oct 2024
This webinar will provide accountants a foundation of understanding when being sold or described models, with some framing around the risks and opportunities presented by differing models, improving how they plan and mitigate the irresponsible use of the technology.
Blockchain webinar series 2024
  • Webinar
  • 13 Mar 2024
Accountants are increasingly coming across crypto assets and as they become more mainstream, it is important to be clear on the fundamentals of what they are and how they operate.
Introduction to AI Standards
  • Webinar
  • 14 Sep 2023
Understand how AI Standards, regulation and assurance combine to build and support industry and society.
Supply chain cyber security series
  • Webinar
  • 22 Sep 2022
Your business is only as secure as its weakest link. Watch this series to understand and manage supply chain cyber security risk.
Practical Excel tips 2021
  • Webinar
  • 07 Dec 2021
Learn fundamental skills to save you time dealing with the most common problems faced when using Excel.
Digitalisation: new service line opportunities
  • Webinar
  • 07 Oct 2021
Increased use of cloud-based digital solutions is proving hugely beneficial to firms in running their own businesses as well as their client’s.

The opinions expressed by external guest speakers in interviews or other publications included on this website are, by their nature, those of the speaker. They are not necessarily fully endorsed by the ICAEW or purport to reflect the official policies and views of the ICAEW or its members.

TECHtalk videos

Watch our series of brief videos that describe some of the core transformational technologies that will help shape the future of accountancy.
AI - what does it mean for the future of accountancy?
  • Webinar
  • 24 May 2017
Join Artificial Intelligence expert Professor Moshe Vardi on 30 June for this live-streamed event to discuss the growth of AI and its impact on the accounting profession.
Blockchain, bitcoin and the future of the accountancy profession
  • Webinar
  • 13 Mar 2019
Join Mark Taylor and David Lyford-Smith of ICAEW, and Aynsley Damery of the Clarity Project, for the second in our series of IT Faculty ‘Tech Talks’, this time on the subject of blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and how these will affect the future of the accountancy profession.
Cyber security: addressing a key business risk
  • Webinar
  • 31 May 2019
A short film about cyber threats and how to mitigate the risk
Data – a world of opportunities
  • Webinar
  • 18 Jun 2019
Join Mark Taylor and Kirstin Gillon of ICAEW, and Anthony Sayce FCA of EY, for the fourth in our series of Tech Faculty ‘Tech Talks’, this time on the subject of data and the opportunities it presents for practice and business.

Practice tips

Practical advice, guidance and case studies written for members working in practice.
Exclusive Time for a rest over Christmas... or does the “tax returns outstanding list” spoil it?
  • Article
  • 20 Dec 2021
Whilst offices tend to ostensibly close as far as the public are concerned, it does not mean that everyone is not actually working.
Exclusive Real world IT problems... wasted time when the IT doesn’t work
  • Article
  • 13 Dec 2021
When everything works as expected and anticipated, there are no grumbles or complaints (well may be a few!).
Exclusive Alternative methods can save you time
  • Article
  • 30 Nov 2021
I was on a product support call recently with a practitioner. We had tried talking through the issue he was having by telephone, but this was not getting very far.

Tech Essentials

The tech essentials guides update members on the latest technology issues affecting the accountancy profession, mixing practical tips and expert insight.
Exclusive The essential guide to data protection when outsourcing
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 25 Nov 2019
  • PDF (318kb)
It is often said that data is the new oil – the raw material that drives industry in so many ways. Like all resources, data needs to be used wisely and protected. This guide looks at protecting data when using outsourced services.
Exclusive The essential guide to data analytics for smaller firms
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 29 Jul 2019
  • PDF (508kb)
Data – how you get it and what you do with it – has been an important part of the accountant’s role since the beginning; but it is only now, with data exploding in volume, variety and velocity, that accountants can start to add serious value to their business and that of their clients. As the guide says, ‘data analytics can broadly be defined as the use of data to support business decisions’.
Exclusive The essential guide to the virtual FD
  • Report
  • 23 May 2019
  • PDF (274kb)
The Essential Guide to the Virtual Financial Director provides examples of how practitioners are providing this valuable service to a range of clients today. By reading the guide you will become familiar with the key concepts and be able to start exploring new services to your clients.
Exclusive The essential guide to cryptocurrency
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 04 Apr 2019
  • PDF (277kb)
How do you account for cryptocurrencies? What tax is payable on crypto-transactions? What is the difference between a cryptoasset and a cryptocurrency? What is an ICO? This tech essentials publication provides guidance to help answer some of those questions.

Thought leadership

Read the latest thinking from ICAEW on how to ensure information services are working effectively and accountants are making the most of new technologies.
New technologies, ethics and accountability
  • Thought leadership report
  • 03 Jul 2019
This thought leadership report delves into the ethics of new technology and the seismic developments currently taking place in AI and algorithms, which are both exciting and morally concerning.
Improve your financial modelling practice
  • Thought leadership report
  • 12 Nov 2018
ICAEW’s Excel Community has worked with a broad swathe of modelling organisations and experts, taking a half dozen methodologies and paring down to the commonly held, widely accepted beliefs about what constitutes good modelling.
Hybrid working and the future of work
  • Hub page
  • 18 Aug 2021
What opportunities and challenges will come with moving to a more digital workplace?
Automation in finance functions: lessons from India and the UK
  • Thought leadership report
  • 15 Sep 2020
Drawing on real-life experiences, this collaborative thought leadership report by ICAEW and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) considers how finance functions can harness automation to deliver greater value to business and the skills needed by accountants in the future.

Other tech publications and webinars

AI - what does it mean for the future of accountancy?
  • Webinar
  • 24 May 2017
Join Artificial Intelligence expert Professor Moshe Vardi on 30 June for this live-streamed event to discuss the growth of AI and its impact on the accounting profession.
Exclusive Accelerate your evolution
  • Article
  • 12 Jul 2019
Decisions on investment in technology today will shape how well you can exploit it tomorrow – inside and outside your practice.
Coronavirus (COVID-19): tech considerations around home working
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 26 Mar 2020
26 March 2020: coronavirus is forcing many people to work from home to reduce social contact and minimise the associated risk of transmitting the disease. Technology is key to helping people work at home, so what are some of the things to consider when setting up and managing home working for your staff over the coming weeks and months? 

Join the Excel community

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More resources

Explore some of the other resources ICAEW produces on technology and data analytics.

Data Analytics Community
Data visualisation on a smartphone
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Elearning
Finance in a Digital World - support for ICAEW members and students on digital transformation and technology
Finance in a Digital World

ICAEW has worked with Deloitte to develop Finance in a Digital World, a suite of online learning modules to support ICAEW members and students, develop awareness and build understanding of digital technologies and their impact on finance.

Resources
Keep up-to-date with tech issues and developments, including artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, big data, and cyber security.
Technology

Keep up-to-date with tech issues and developments, including artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, big data, and cyber security.

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