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Sage Research Reveals that 90% of Accountants Worldwide Believe There Has Been a Cultural Shift in the Accountancy ProfessionATLANTA, May 14, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sage (FTSE: SGE), the market leader in cloud business management solutions, today released its annual Practice of Now report at Sage Summit Atlanta. The findings highlight a shift in the cultural landscape of the accounting profession driven by evolving client demands and the increasing need to adopt emerging technologies to remain competitive in the marketplace. Of the 3,000 accountants surveyed, 90 percent believe there has been a cultural shift in accountancy as it enters the third decade of the 21st century. This shift is driving significant changes in hiring practices, business services and attitudes toward emerging technologies across the globe. In fact, 49 percent of respondents have formally examined their business practices in the last year, with an additional 26 percent in over the last five years. “As evidenced in the Practice of Now report, many U.S. accountants would like to offer more advisory and consulting services, but feel they lack the necessary time or skills to do so,” said Jennifer Warawa, EVP of Partners, Accountants and Alliances, at Sage. “To bring the accounting profession to the future, accountants need to embrace the technology and training that will ultimately allow them to expand into a more consultative role. U.S. accounting firms no longer have the luxury of time. They need to adopt new technology and business models today, or risk being left behind.” U.S. Findings from the Practice of Now Include: U.S. Accountants Still Identify as Number Crunchers As with all of the countries in our survey this year, accounting firms in the US are starting to diversify their offerings. They’re already bringing a wider range of additional client advisory services to the table than was historically the case. Perhaps surprisingly, though, US accounting firms are a little behind the global average when it comes to such wider advisory services. Only in offering payroll services do they meet the average for the six countries surveyed Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, France and Spain). Specialization Is the Future for U.S. Firms “Not only does industry specialization allow the accountant to become a master in a specific industry, but being an industry expert allows the accountant to become more efficient in their own processes, and creates a better revenue stream,” said Shayna Chapman, CPA and owner of Shaynaco, LLC and Sage customer. “Firms need to thoughtfully pick an industry they can excel in and then choose their technology, education, and marketing accordingly to propel them as the expert in that niche.” Soft Skills Twice as Important as Hard Skills Global Findings from the Practice of Now Include: An Industry Ready for Change As skill sets such as technological literacy, relationship building and business advisory become increasingly important, 62 percent of respondents agree that today’s accounting training programs will not be enough to run a successful practice by 2030. Training programs will need to be updated in order for firms to keep pace with innovation and evolving client demands. A Diverse Workforce for Today—and Tomorrow Diversity in the workforce should be a top priority in order to better understand customer needs and fill the skills gap. An Eye Towards Technology Adoption Methodology The Practice of Now 2019 includes the findings of independent research commissioned by Sage and conducted by Viga, surveying 3,000 accountants from across the globe (U.S., UK, Canada, Spain, France and Australia) in January 2019. The Practice of Now 2019 is available for download here. Sage Summit Atlanta combines inspiration, insights, technology, and networking for a fantastic experience that powers future business growth. To learn more, visit here. About Sage Media Contact |