I’ve been thinking a lot about the conversations we need to be having around AI in accounting … apparently while walking through cornfields. The video above gets into why, but there’s one idea I want to push a little further.
We’ve spent the last few years teaching accountants how to use AI. That matters. People need to understand the technology, know how to use it responsibly and get comfortable incorporating it into their work. But that cannot be the end goal.
The real question is what accountants need to become because AI exists.
Where Does the Value Move?
As AI takes on more of the work accountants have historically performed, the value doesn’t disappear. It moves. If AI can:
Summarize the data, the accountant needs to explain what it means
Generate possible answers, the accountant needs the judgment to know which one makes sense
Automate more compliance work, the accountant needs to have better conversations about what the client should do next
That means skills we have sometimes treated as “soft” become incredibly important: curiosity, communication, empathy, critical thinking, professional judgment and the ability to challenge someone constructively. Those aren’t nice extras in the Firm of 2030. They’re core accounting skills.
We Have to Rethink How People Learn
Historically, accountants developed judgment by doing the work. They had thousands of repetitions, saw different situations and learned from more experienced people along the way. If AI removes some of those repetitions, we need to be intentional about replacing the learning that came with them.
We can’t automate the work and then wonder why younger professionals aren’t developing experience fast enough. That means rethinking training, giving people client exposure earlier and creating more opportunities to practice judgment, communication and problem solving. AI changes the work and our talent model has to change with it.
That’s the Conversation I Want to Have
That’s why I was excited to help ADP shape its AI Forum. I’ll start the afternoon with Heather Sperduto talking about what the Firm of 2030 needs to become, then join Laci Buzzelli and Tal Goldhamer for a conversation about how we prepare our people for an AI-powered future. Because figuring out which AI tool to buy next is probably the easy part.
Figuring out what kind of firm — and what kind of accountant — we’re building is much harder and much more important.
Register now for the ADP Accountant Connect AI Forum on September 29 from 1–3 p.m. ET, with up to two free CPE credits available.
Join us and be part of the conversation.
