February 2017 – Croixstone

Automation, Big Data and the Future for Accountants

So what does the rise of intelligent machines mean for the future of accountants?

Accounting Today recently endeavored to answer that question with help from two executives from Genpact, a global leader in digitally-powered business process management and services with experience in serving one-fifth of the Fortune Global 500.

Gianni Giacomelli (Chief Innovation Officer) and Prashant Shukla (Vice President, Marketing) of Genpact shared the following insights.

A large number of positions now handled by people, including accounting jobs, will be supplemented or replaced in some way by intelligent machines
The accounting industry is already seeing a displacement of jobs through outsourcing and robotic process automation
By diving into LinkedIn analytics, it is evident that numerous, expanded career paths may exist for accountants in roles traditionally unrelated to finance and accounting
One-third of 1,120 randomly selected people with “accountant” roles in their LinkedIn profile have held a role unrelated to finance and accounting
Customer service, operations, and sales and marketing were all well-represented in the LinkedIn research
Additionally, positions in research, program management, consulting and business analysis stood out

The bottom line?

The Genpact executives believe that accountants offer skill sets that can help address a wide array of business challenges and the future offers expanded opportunities for these professionals in non-traditional finance and accounting roles.

Read the full article here.

Is Flexible Work Driving the Future of the Workplace?

Will the day come when we all work as our own boss?

The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting earlier this month and the future of work was a key topic of discussion. The organization’s Global Future Council on Education, Gender and Work is presently crafting a document that addresses the question of how we facilitate the transition from the traditional form of work to the future state where work is more flexible.

Stephane Kasriel, CEO of Upwork and co-chair of the Global Future Council on Education, Gender and Work, recently shared the following perspectives on the future of work:

Entrepreneurs and freelancers represent the future of the workplace as traditional office jobs become less and less relevant
Lifelong learning is more important than ever before as skill requirements are constantly changing
There is a constant need to be reskilled and you need some kind of job renewal every five years or so
The workplace is moving towards more flexible arrangements where individuals are working with multiple companies at the same time
“Knowledge” work is especially aligned with more flexible work arrangements and can be done from anywhere, thereby creating more value than the traditional work model
The future of work is not going to be about full-time employment

Learn more about the future of work here.

Croixstone Celebrates the Latest Harvard Business School Club of Charlotte MDP Class

We’re planning to do some Ivy League-style celebrating tonight!

The Croixstone team is joining the Harvard Business School Club of Charlotte at Olde Providence Racquet Club this evening for an “end-of-year” celebration to honor Patti Weber (our Chief Experience Officer) and other Charlotte-area executives who participated in the latest Management Development Program (MDP) class. The MDP is a “mini MBA” style course and a favorite with Charlotte-based corporations. The program is taught entirely by Harvard Business School alumni to area executives. Learn more here. #lifelonglearning #harvardtraining