Finance and accounting teams are often the first in an organization to implement new technology, from the early days of Excel to cloud-based enterprise resource planning systems. Today, accountants are often at the forefront of modern technology, whether they’re applying generative AI and advanced data analytics or learning about blockchain and cryptocurrency to better serve their clients.
Tech skills are only growing more critical to the career success of today’s accountants. Let’s look at the importance of developing your tech skills as well as the most valuable ones you should learn to support and strengthen your career.
Table of contents
- Why tech skills matter for accountants
- Top tech skills for accountants
- Developing tech skills throughout your career
Why Tech Skills Matter for Accountants
No matter where you on your accounting career path, staying up to date with modern methodologies and the latest tools can help you elevate your career.
Stay relevant at work — and stand out in the job market
Traditional accounting knowledge is still important, but as organizations increasingly rely on AI and machine learning to automate routine finance and accounting tasks, having only these skills isn’t enough to succeed. Accountants need to understand how to leverage this technology to enhance their overall productivity and also provide value-added services like leveraging data for improved forecasting or making better financial recommendations.
It also helps to understand the risks technology can create for an organization. An organization with poor IT security is at risk for losing confidential financial data, and IT audits often fall under the accountant’s purview. To align with these changes, the AICPA updated the CPA Exam to include a specific section on IT elements.
The introduction of the Information Systems and Controls (ISC) Discipline is a testament to how important tech skills have become in the accounting profession. The ISC CPA Exam tests a candidate’s knowledge and ability to apply skills in IT audit and advisory, security operations center engagements, security and privacy, and data management and information systems.
Pursue tech-related career opportunities
When you develop your technology skills, it can broaden your accounting career prospects. You may even find that you can take your career path in directions you may not have considered or known about when you first entered the profession.
For example, the need for skilled professionals to perform IT audits has surged as organizations across industries must ensure the integrity and security of the data held within their information systems. Accountants with advanced of cybersecurity and information systems auditing can also transition into roles that focus on evaluating and improving IT controls and processes.
Depending on where you are in your accounting career, developing your technology skills and knowledge might even lead you to launch a career in consulting, where technical proficiency is often expected.
Improve how you complete your work
Accounting can be monotonous, but it doesn’t have to be. With advances in automation, you can reduce your task load to focus on other projects that add value to your organization. Again, having relevant tech skills can give you an advantage.
Whether it’s using business intelligence (BI) software to dig deeper into financial data or using generative AI to create predictive analytics models, technology can add new dimension and a sense of purpose to your work. Embracing continuous learning and applying new tools will help you stay engaged by helping you become more effective at developing innovative solutions to complex challenges.
Top tech skills for accountants
Now that we’ve established why you should prioritize growing your technical abilities, let’s examine a few specific areas where you may want to invest in skill-building.
Cybersecurity
Finance and accounting departments handle a huge volume of sensitive financial information, including customer details, financial statements, and transactional records. Accountants with cybersecurity expertise can play a crucial role in helping the business to safeguard this information. For example, they can assist in implementing comprehensive security measures to protect high-value data from unauthorized access, breaches, and fraud.
Once you are proficient in cybersecurity skills, you can also play a key role in ensuring compliance with stringent data protection laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). You may also be asked to assist in identifying potential vulnerabilities, conducting risk assessments, and implementing policies and procedures that align with these and other regulatory standards.
BI software
BI software, such as Tableau, Power BI and Qlik, unlocks vast, complex datasets, and using this information, you can:
- Perform complex data analyses to uncover trends, patterns and anomalies that might be missed with traditional methods. This can improve forecasting, budgeting and financial planning, which help to support informed business decision making.
- Deliver real-time reporting, which is critical in today’s fast-paced business environment where stakeholders need to make timely decisions based on the latest data.
BI software also automates many data management processes, reducing the time and effort required for to compile and analyze data manually.
Data and analytics
Accountants with data and analytics skills can extract meaningful insights from large data sets, enhancing their ability to make informed decisions and provide strategic advice. You can analyze financial trends, identify patterns, and predict future outcomes.
Data and analytics skills can also help you improve the accuracy of your work by improving how you identify anomalies and errors in financial data faster and more effectively. Additionally, learning tools like SQL, Python and R, you can easily automate data processing tasks, reducing the time and effort required for manual data entry and analysis.
Generative AI
Generative AI is a relatively new and rapidly evolving area of technology. But accountants and finance professionals are already using it widely to transform how finance and accounting functions operate. By learning to work with generative AI effectively, you will have more time to focus on the strategic and analytical work that adds value to the business — and helps you stand out.
Generative AI can be used to automate the drafting of financial reports and to analyze vast amounts of financial data quickly. AI-driven tools are particularly useful for predictive analytics, helping accountants to forecast the company’s future financial performance with greater accuracy.
AI in Excel
Excel remains a necessity for accountants — and Excel skills are in high demand, according to the most recent Salary Guide from Robert Half, a partner of Becker’s. The integration of AI capabilities within Excel has revolutionized the spreadsheet software’s functionality. Features like data cleaning, pattern recognition and automated forecasting can streamline repetitive tasks such as data entry and reconciliation.
With AI tools embedded in Excel like machine learning models and predictive analytics, you can analyze complex financial data more comprehensively and identify trends, anomalies, and correlations and also create interactive dashboards, dynamic reports, and visualizations that can effectively communicate financial insights to stakeholders.
Developing accounting tech skills at any point in your career
If you want to grow your tech skills, there are several ways to jump-start the process. That’s true even if you’re a mid-career accountant who may be worried that your opportunities to gain new skills and progress professionally are starting to wane. Consider these three tips.
Discuss career development skills with your employer
Employers often recognize the importance of investing in a tech-savvy workforce and may offer training programs or reimbursements for courses that align with organizational goals. Proactively expressing an interest in acquiring tech skills and seeking support for relevant training opportunities can open the door to accessing valuable resources and sponsorship.
Enroll in online certification courses
There are numerous certification courses available online that cater to accounting professionals seeking to enhance their tech skills. Earning IT certifications such as the Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) or the Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) can also bolster an accountant’s credentials and demonstrate a strong commitment to continuous learning.
Pursue continuing professional education (CPE)
CPE offers an often-overlooked opportunity to develop relevant tech skills and increase your professional versatility. Not only is it often required to maintain your credential, such as your CPA license, there are a wide variety of courses for every skill level that focus on technology and specifically how to apply it as an accountant.
Build your tech skills in accounting with Becker CPE
Becker provides CPE courses that are designed to help finance and accounting professionals improve their skills and knowledge and meet professional challenges. If you’re looking to grow tech skills in accounting, these educational courses and resources from Becker can help.
- Cybersecurity Preparedness for CPAs
- Performing and Interpreting Data Analytics
- Artificial Intelligence for Accountants
Unlock unlimited CPE with a Prime Subscription
Becker makes it easy to meet your CPE requirements, gain new skills, and stay aware of critical updates and changes in the industry!
With Prime, you can access over 1,700 courses for a full year and earn unlimited CPE credits.
Consider tech roles in accounting with Robert Half
No matter where you are in your accounting career, Robert Half’s specialized recruiters can help you with your job search. Learn how we bring technology and people together to help you find new career opportunities faster.
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