Future of Finance: Upskilling is crucial, but mindset is the crux

From the formation of the Future of Finance Leadership Advisory Group (FFLAG) two years ago all the way through Monday's session at AICPA & CIMA ENGAGE 2023, finance leaders have consistently "FFLAGed" the talent pipeline and digital transformation as the top issues on their to-do list.

The search for solutions requires an abundance of skill — quite literally.

"Finding and retaining diverse talent, accelerating business and digital transformation, redefining how we measure value — they're all driving the need for new and enhanced skills. The finance team can't do things the way they used to."

Those were the words of Tom Hood, CPA/CITP, CGMA, executive vice president–Business Engagement & Growth for AICPA & CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. Hood and Barry Payne, director–External Relations, Management Accounting for AICPA & CIMA, took it upon themselves during the heart of the pandemic to jump-start the Future of Finance project, an initiative headed by 30-plus leaders from well-known companies such as Coca-Cola, Nike, and BP.

Their mission statement? "To transform the profession in its broadest context and reimagine the finance and accounting function of the future to power trust, opportunity, and prosperity."

The esteemed group that gathered at the Aria in Las Vegas certainly doesn't lack for skill, but they recognize that the set of skills needed for their workforce to succeed in the future is lacking.

And, as they say, the future is now.

"The epicenter of our ENGAGE presentation is the need for new and enhanced skills," Payne said in a pre-conference interview, pointing out that the need is critial for companies large and small. "Ultimately, what I want to leave folks with is that you need to seriously reevaluate the skill sets that your teams need to further drive the value you are providing to your business."

Payne hears a lot of talk, and understandably so, about tools that are in theory designed to streamline digital transformation and address the talent gap with the wonder of automation. But while these tools undoubtedly will play a pivotal role in the future of finance, Payne said they should be the last piece of the transformation puzzle for finance leaders.

"At the end of the day, it is important that you understand digital tools, of course it is, but really what precedes that is your mindset and how you interface with the business," Payne said. "Mindset, skill set, and tool set — quite often people think of those in the reverse order, but that's doomed to failure."

Why exactly is mindset so important in a future workplace where some tasks previously performed by humans may be performed by artificial intelligence (AI)?

"Mindset is the biggest item that leads to success in a business and digital transformation," Hood said. "We've been brought in by members of the Future of Finance group to provide an outside-in perspective because most finance teams are in their own little bubble. When leaders start these big automation journeys, employees think that their jobs are going to all get eliminated. Leaders have to get their people in the right mindset, or else people will try to put the brakes on these projects.

"What we're trying to do is send a message of moving up into this new value-added role. There's plenty of work for future finance and accounting professionals to do. But it's about mindset, and it's about skill set."

What skills exactly are we talking about?

"Strategic thinking, storytelling, data analytics — those show up as the top three skills pretty much all the time," Hood said. "That means your people have to say, 'OK, I know how to make the data right. But now I've got to spend more time understanding how to tell the story about the business with the data.'"

That value-added approach (which a Future of Finance participant recently wrote about) was a key takeaway delivered to ENGAGE attendees and will continue to be an approach explored by FFLAG.

"That's why we have this community — to help leaders navigate all of these issues," Hood said. "If BP is in the middle of a digital transformation, they could talk to Yelp and say, 'Hey, what are you doing about this?'

"That's the kind of stuff we're doing. We bring a thought leader in to start the conversation, and then they start to talk and share. That's how they're getting their knowledge, so they're staying ahead of things by the wisdom of the crowd."

— To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Bryan Strickland at [email protected].

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