Tax Function of the Future: Digital upskilling in the tax function

There is no avoiding digital—its impact is everywhere and growing, affecting everything we do. And, many are growing concerned (and are ashamed to admit) that they do not have the knowledge or skills to keep up in this new world. So, what digital skills do tax employees need to move forward into the workforce of the future? How should they begin?

Your leadership has a role to play

Business and tax leadership have reasons to care about your digital capabilities. Your tax-technical skills are valuable and still needed, but digital skills will help you process data much faster and enhance analytics in all areas of tax, including planning, compliance, reporting and controversy. In addition, digital upskilling more broadly impacts the tax workforce experience, improving collaboration across functions, flexibility and engagement. Put simply, an upskilled tax workforce is more capable of solving current, complex tax problems.

How digital impacts the world of tax

• Culture and engagement: Improving employee engagement, reducing turnover and enhancing the tax culture
• Automation: Automating and streamlining manual, time consuming tasks to avoid errors, work overload and tax professional burn-out
• Analytics: Replacing routine, structured tasks with higher-valued analytics to drive decision making
• Upskilling: Enhancing capabilities, improving performance and increasing opportunities across the enterprise
• Access and flexibility: Accommodating flexibility and the ability for professionals to work together efficiently while located in different locations or geographies
• Collaboration: Building or enhancing a collaborative workplace that extends beyond tax