Accountants must upgrade their skills in financial forecasting and accounting specific software if they are to be of value in the future, according to a new study.

A survey of 1,000 accounting and finance professionals in the UK by accounting automation software specialist Caseware, found that while the majority 56 per cent of accountants said they are currently carrying out tasks manually that could be automated, only 43 per cent believe this will continue beyond 2020.

Instead, they believe that the profession will take on a more consultative role for clients in the next few years, advising on issues like financial planning and strategy, with automation taking on the majority of analytical and data entry tasks.

When it comes to types of skill, 41 per cent of accountants said they viewed analytical skills as among the most important today, with that figure dropping to 37 per cent when asked what skills will be most important during the next five years.

The need to accurately record data, while viewed as the most important skill for an accountant today by 61 per cent of respondents, is set to become less important in the next half decade, with just 41 per cent believing it will continue to be a key skill in the future.

These downward trends are in contrast to the rise of 'soft skills' and specific software use.

While a quarter of accountants said financial reporting was a vital skill for today’s workplace, 30 per cent say it will become the most important by 2024. Similarly, while 24 per cent said being able to use specific software is important today, 33 per cent saw it as growing in importance in the near future.

Whether accountants have the necessary skills to add value in the future however remains in question among those in the industry, with 62 per cent of accountants agreeing that there is a growing skills gap in the sector - up from 51 per cent in a similar study conducted by Caseware in 2016.

Shez Hamill, a director at Caseware, said: “Whether 2020 marks the beginning of the age of accounting automation remains to be seen, but it is definitely where accountants expect the industry to go.

“The area of concern however is not about whether automation will take jobs, but rather if the industry as a whole has the skills it needs to take on this new, more strategic and planning focussed role - based on what our research has found, there is serious doubt about this, and it is something accountants and finance teams should be looking to address from 2020 and beyond.”

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