The world of accountancy is changing, and not just in a series of minor, incremental ways. Anyone who has any kind of interface with accountants (and let’s face it: that includes pretty much every major business across the globe) is feeling the impact of some major changes to the way the profession operates.

Like most of the changes to the way we lead our lives today, the accelerated evolution of accountancy is being driven by the dramatic developments in the world of communications technology. Computerised spreadsheets, introduced around 35 years ago, were the catalyst of the last fundamental shift in the accountancy. Today, equally significant technological developments are helping to usher in the next phase.

The word that is used the most in this context is automation, and the potentially scary side of this is the sense that the machines are taking over. As technology helps us to carry out tasks in a quicker, cheaper and more efficient way than ever before, the requirement for human involvement is heavily diluted. The biggest impacts of this tend to be felt at the more junior end of the profession, where repetitive and menial tasks which can in fact provide a fairly useful learning curve for trainee accountants, are increasingly being computerised. The fear is that traditional skills and a significant chunk of the jobs market could be lost as a result.

A more positive way of looking at this is that every profession needs to evolve, and this is the opportunity for the world of accountancy to do just that. In the simplest terms, while there may no longer be a requirement for a human being to press a particular button and make something happen, there are instead opportunities for people who understand why that button does what it does, and how that particular process can be improved. What this means in reality is that the most successful individuals in this brave new world will be the ones who evolve with the times, such as accountants who understand coding and can design and manage software.

The approach overall is inevitably going to become more strategic, long-term and innovative, and for someone with the right mindset, that is hugely exciting.

The future is coming fast. Some say it is already here. So ask yourself, are you ready?