Developing “foresight” is the future for management accountants

By Amber McAuliffe, CPA, accounting learning manager

Management Accounting Day was May 6, which is reason enough to talk about an important profession that isn’t discussed as often as it should be. This article from Accounting Today explains the exciting possibilities technology will bring to this career and the importance of embracing opportunity. (Coincidentally, this also happens to be the 2018 learning theme at our OSCPA conferences.)  

The author Raef Lawson, CPA, breaks down the ‘lines of sights’ that the finance teams of today need to bring to their organizations, with foresight being the newest and perhaps most important. Lawson describes foresight as “finance professionals playing a leading role in anticipating the future.”

No longer can management accountants rely on rudimentary skills to analyze data; they need to anticipate the future through predictive and prescriptive analytics.  

And with foresight comes the need to master new competencies, further pushing the boundaries of what professionals are capable of achieving. Instead of viewing foresight negatively, management accountants should see this as their obligation to their organizations and the industry. Being in a highly respected profession comes with expectations and responsibilities, and it’s crucial we continue to earn that respect by taking advantage of opportunities like these. 

How do you plan to start implementing foresight in your work? Let us know in the comments.