Automation and the Accounting profession

• Main Authors: GOH, Clarence, SEOW, Poh Sun, PAN, Gary
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2017
• Subjects: Accountants; future prospects; technology; Accounting; Management Information Systems
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soa_research/1640; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/soa_research/article/2667/viewcontent/AUTOMATION_ACCOUNTING_PROFESSION_2017_IS.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Automation poses a threat to many of the tasks that are performed by accountants today. Certainly, many emerging technologies have already begun to perform tasks that have traditionally been performed by accountants. For example, advancements in cloud-based accounting software now make it much easier for small businesses to easily and accurately enter and edit financial information on their own without the input of accountants. Looking further into the horizon, newer technologies can now turn hard-copy receipts into a machine-readable format, encrypt them,and allocate them to an account without any input from a human. Such developments will continue to reduce the reliance of businesses on accountants.