[Anonymous]

There are apps and software that completely do everything. All the small firms have been getting gobbled up by the large firms because they know their efforts are futile. And now the big firms are losing credibility so why would anyone want to hire or even become an accountant?

And regardless of what you’ve learned in school, it is not even a stable or high paying career so that is not a valid response.

[sweazy]

This is a classic troll post. Or just a sad person blaming their life's failures on others and “office politics” and then somehow trying to convince us that CPA's will be automated soon.

Really low-effort trolling if you ask me.

Troll on, Brick

BEC: 77
AUD: 67, 85, 87
FAR: 74, 74, 79
REG: ___

[Anonymous]

@sweazy everything about your post is false. Where does this post mention anything about life failures? Who ever said CPA's will be automated? How did this thread become a personal matter in the first place?

Looks like classic lack of reading comprehension and selective reading to me.

[HoldMyBeerCPA]

This was a nice and refreshing read before exam day.

Thanks guys!

And no matter what anyone says, don't let anyone discourage you from what you want to make a career out of!

[Anonymous]

I think Brickell is having problems with FAR and REG after passing AUD and BEC. Jk.

[Anonymous]

I'd agree that technology makes activities more efficient, which will decrease the number of people needed for any repetitive task. Turbo tax for a plain Jane tax return is a sort of okay example (but albeit a self service application).

Quickbooks is probably the best example of efficiency.

At its core, however, businesses also evolve. Machines excel at repetition, but cannot actually think or interact.

Audit inquiries, audit observations, IRS letters, tax R&D, valuation, all legal compliance assessments in assurance, etc. are immediate un-“app-able” tasks. Any analysis or review of an accounting policy is unautomatable. Everything a financial statement has on it encorporates these policies. Taxes are no different. A certain (and fairly low) level of complexity negates automatation.

Let's say we both just agreed that business don't stay the same. And it was possible that every inch of accounting could be automated. Then only have to wait for an activity to occur one time so we could map it to all accounting activities through an international business (where automation would most ideally find scalability).

Trumps tax plan effects (?) – 2017, revenue recognition changes (2017), Dodd frank implementation (08-present), healthcare – 2012 (2017?), technology application boom (2000), internet/computers at the client (1990).

Loosen the tin foil hat. You'll die before the profession does (even if it could be fully automated). And I provided examples of where it can't be.

Now if you don't pass REG and FAR – and you have to reconcile payroll for the rest of your life. You might (really) be f**ked lol.

[A]

It's tough to see someone with many good years ahead of them (I'm guessing the OP is a few years shy of 30) express so much discontent with their choice to pursue accounting. It's certainly not too late to change trajectory and find a field that is a better fit. Working without any real personal fulfillment is misery; this is one of the reasons I made a career change into accounting.

You are clearly smart enough to recognize your strengths, so maybe it is time to seriously evaluate your interests and aptitudes and find a better fit. It's never too late to make a change, but you have to be ready and willing to give up a few things to get where you want to go.

Threads like this one may be entertaining in a schadenfreude sort of way, but there is clearly some deep resentment and dissatisfaction bleeding through the words.

Good luck, I hope you find a way to be more fulfilled by your work.

B - 77 (2.27.16)
A - 81 (4.18.16)
R -
F -

Roger Review + Ninja MCQs

[Anonymous]

^my iPhone can't even automate grammar checks (without making sentences worse off than where they started)

Next step is replacing the entire profession?

Sigh. ok.

[Missy]

Automation makes it possible to do as much work or more with less people, it's true. I'm in industry and can give my boss more information by myself than my predecessor did with a part time assistant. So many things they did manually that were a total waste of time. That said, the smart accountants find ways to use that freed up time to add value in other ways to help with the issue of job security. Accounting has it's downside and drawbacks just like every single profession. Everything a grocery cashier can do has already been automated and yet I see half a dozen cashiers every time I go shopping.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[tg7174]

One thing people forget about in the automation discussion is machine learning. Once the data is in an analytical format, certain programs actually will “learn” and be able to make decisions just as good or better than we can. Certain medical and legal professions have already seen this at work to a certain extent.

Apps and software will not cause as much of a disturbance as machine learning will. But as others have said, this isn't anything that anybody on this forum really needs to worry about personally, but it certainly is something your kids and grand kids should think about.

[krstnam]

I was just reading the bls job growth projections last week. It had accountants/auditors with an 11% growth increase through 2024.

I don't specifically remeber the -8% for non-CPAs but if it's accurate, it shows how important it is to get your CPA designation.

[SaveBandit]

Those software packages you listed – Quickbooks, Xero, etc… Have you ever actually used any of them? Because they don't actually do the accounting for you. Those programs just put the data in the right place, make everything look nice, and help you create reports. The most advanced ERPs won't crunch numbers for you. Someone has to give the software the inputs.

4 for 4

FAR 85
AUD 94
BEC 86
REG 90

[Missy]

There are ways around the inputs even in QuickBooks but only in very specific instances. I download from the bank right into QuickBooks and about half the transactions memorize and prepopulate the general ledger accounts. Many large companies and the federal government have vendors enter their own invoices directly into their software online and once the requisitioner approves an ACH is initiated (which is a new way to perpetrate fraud with the defense department the topic of a paper I wrote for grad school). But even with all that automation there will be companies who either can't afford or dislike turning over control to technology. Hell I still have customers who insist they don't generate purchase orders LOL. But the jobs that will be lost to technology aren't the skilled jobs that actually require degrees, it's the very entry level workers who are paid hourly with basic clerical skills.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[Jdn9201]

I am a bit concerned with software and technology taking over our profession. What concerns me most are whether or not companies are investing in these tools so their staff can perform more higher-value activities OR so they can cut headcount? The sales pitch is always option #1, but some trends I see suggest option #2. Most of us really don't care about robots taking over eervice jobs until it starts to affect higher tech and skilled jobs, like accounting. I'm only 34 so hopefully I have many more years in my career. I try to look at it as a challenge to keep abreast of changing technologies and trends, and to make sure I'm doing highly complex work. I like to think that lower level number crunching is a lot easier to outsource to India and a software program than critical thinking skills required in tax. And, no matter how much we depend on technology to produce a tax return or financial statement, you still have to have live people to verify its completeness, accuracy, etc.

BEC - 88 8/29/15
REG - 82 11/14/15
AUD - 83 1/8/16
FAR - 80 2/29/16

[Grey Worm]

the PCAOB will never allow a computer to give audit opinions on an attestation engagement. It just wont happen. If youre worried about A/R Clerks being automated, well then aim higher.

✓ BEC: 77 (4/2015)
✓ AUD: 87 (4/2016), [85] [67]
✓ FAR: 79 (6/2016), [74] [74]
_ REG: __ (7/2016)

[Tncincy]

Well, this is a good topic for my Doctorate…I sure hope CPA's won't become automated. I figure as long as we have a currency (money) system, somebody will need to count it. On the quick-books note, I am looking for software to help a not-for-profit start a reliable bookkeeping system. Any suggestions?

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Author]

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