In the last two years, I have had the opportunity to discuss the future of accounting in the Baltics, India, and across the US. The message is the same everywhere, and the drive and belief in the message are being taken on by the youth of all these places.
I recently had the opportunity to speak at the ICAI Kolkata Conference. I also got to enjoy the presentations of Indian CA leaders. It was so interesting to hear them present the future of no data entry and the move to business services as a means of firm growth, also how technology was making the compliance work being done more and more automated and robotic with little value. It was also interesting to watch the reaction of the audience. Accountants are accountants no matter what country. And demographics are demographics. The young millennials reacted with great questions, open dialog, and excitement. Nothing in this industry moves swiftly, but it does move.
Along with being in Kolkata for the presentation, I also spent time in Chennai and Bangalore. In each city, I had several opportunities to speak with business owners and young millennials outside the accounting industry. Some of them are listed below. I also heard some great blues music on sitars in Kolkata. 🙂
- a waste management VP and a fashion designer in Kolkata,
- a restaurant owner and a marketing CEO in Chennai,
- a cricket team owner, a surgeon, and a spa owner in Bangalore.
These business people had the same belief in the future of business and how technology was changing not only how they worked, but how they lived on a day to day basis. They all agreed with the sentiment presented by the CA leaders on the future of accounting. As young Indian business owners and workers, they want and expect transparent financial support services from CAs. They live in the new world of the data cloud to run their businesses, and they do not see themselves going back.
