{"id":96,"date":"2017-06-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sageamptesting.wpengine.com\/en-au\/blog\/?p=96"},"modified":"2026-02-05T20:16:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T09:16:18","slug":"robots-and-ai-how-will-they-affect-accounting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-au\/blog\/robots-and-ai-how-will-they-affect-accounting\/","title":{"rendered":"Robots and AI: How will they affect accounting?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTechnology & Innovation<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tRobots and AI: How will they affect accounting?\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tKeir Thomas-Bryant<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The rise of robots and AI will see 40 percent of Australian jobs disappear by 2025,<\/a> according to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.<\/mark><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many companies, particularly large businesses, are already using robots to perform repetitive tasks, such as collecting groceries in warehouses or on assembly lines building equipment and other machines, while industries such as marketing have seen automation revolutionise the status quo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As more industries look over their shoulder to find robots and automation looming, should traditional pillars of the economy like finance and accounting be worried about severe job losses?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will robots take over accountancy?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Carl Reader, director of d&t Chartered Accountants and author of The Startup Coach, believes that private sector workers, including accountants, have only \u2018scratched the surface\u2019 of what they can achieve using technology, and predicts more jobs will be disrupted by AI in the near future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMany jobs that accountants will be doing in the next 20 years or so won\u2019t have even been invented yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you look at accountancy 20 years ago, the vast amount of work involved paper records. With automated bank feeds and many processes going online, that\u2019s pretty much become a thing of the past,\u201d says Reader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul Donno, managing director of 1 Accounts Online, agrees with Reader\u2019s analysis of the industry and is already aware of the difference technology has made to accountancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you look at where our profession is now, it\u2019s miles away from where it was two or three years ago. I think that the bookkeeping industry has already been hit very hard by things like the automation of account transactions \u2013 so already technology is making a big impact,\u201d explained Donno.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite robots and computers already disrupting some accounting professionals, Donno believes they will have a positive effect on the industry in the long-term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve trained to be advisers and our real work is helping a business grow. I\u2019ve certainly seen first-hand that automation is already allowing us to spend more time with clients.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Free research report: The Practice of Now 2020<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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We surveyed 3,000 accountants from Australia and worldwide to reveal how the accounting landscape is changing. Discover how your fellow accountants are preparing for the next decade and learn what you can do now to keep your practice successful.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Report<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The time for robots has arrived<\/span>
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One person who knows more than most about the impact automation is having on the professional world is Kriti Sharma, VP of Bots and AI at Sage.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharma has dedicated her working life to innovating in the AI sector and has recently created Pegg, an accounting chatbot that businesses can use to manage their money more efficiently. Sharma believes that the time for robots to make a real impact on the professional world is now.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor sure with bots, robots and AI \u2013 the time for them has arrived, it is no longer just a hype cycle that we\u2019ve been discussing for years,\u201d Sharma explained.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAI is nothing new, the technology has been around for decades, but now what\u2019s changing is the consumer adoption in our daily lives \u2013 we\u2019re not apprehensive about having our days scheduled by something which isn\u2019t human, we\u2019re not scared of having robots complete tasks for our business, such as managing expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharma also believes the fear around robots taking jobs will not persist, arguing that the history books show we\u2019ve already had to deal with similar types of adversity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis fear is nothing different to when personal computers first came about and we were worried about losing our jobs to them \u2013 there was a lot of scaremongering at the time about that happening. But what happened was that it made our lives easier \u2013 we can\u2019t imagine our lives now without personal computing, so this fear is always the case when new technology appears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith every new wave of technology disruption, comes new opportunities. There will be a re-jig, we will have to upskill ourselves to live, and work with AI. Who knows, maybe the next hire I make may not be an actual person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why accountants should upskill<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For accountants, the need to upskill is inevitable, says Sharma, who believes they can play a future role in providing data security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think that the repurposing will happen. If you look at other professions, such as marketing, journalism etc., they\u2019ve had to redefine how they work because of technology, so this was always going to eventually affect the accountancy profession, it\u2019s a fact of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnline security is already so important and moving forward, we have to make sure our data is locked in and secure, so accountants and finance professionals could play a big role in that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s widely accepted that robots and AI are already disrupting the way we work. The question now is how long will it take before it redefines how accountants go about their daily business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Free research report: The Practice of Now 2020<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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We surveyed 3,000 accountants from Australia and worldwide to reveal how the accounting landscape is changing. Discover how your fellow accountants are preparing for the next decade and learn what you can do now to keep your practice successful.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Report<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Subscribe to the Sage Advice Newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Get a roundup of our best business advice in your inbox every month<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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