At its March 2022 virtual meeting, IFAC’s Professional Accountants in Business Advisory Group considered the key global trends impacting the accountancy profession. The report, Global Priorities for Professional Accountants in Business and the Public Sector, summarizes the key insights and learnings from the discussions amongst this global group of business and finance leaders, drawing from their diverse experiences and expertise. 

In the introduction to the report, Sanjay Rughani, IFAC PAIB Advisory Group Chair, says that “the chaotic world we currently live in continues to challenge businesses and governments globally. While the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic lingers on, political and business concern grows over geopolitical instability and its social and economic impacts. Organizations face mounting pressures arising from the war in Ukraine, including further pressure on already strained global supply chains, volatile, energy prices as well as rapidly increasing inflation across most major markets.

“These challenges are also occurring at the same time as the net-zero climate and

sustainability agendas gather momentum. Helping organizations respond to such significant challenges requires disruptive thinking from the accountancy profession. We must push the boundaries of what we as professionals can do to identify risks and turn them into new opportunities through business model transformations. This way of thinking was central to our discussions at the recent Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Advisory Group virtual meeting, where we explored how PAIBs can add value to their organizations and to society by playing a bigger role in driving sustainability and value creation at the same time as responding to uncertainty, and in the context of recent history, unprecedented trading and economic conditions.”

Crafted from highlights of the discussion, the report features sections on: 

• Accountants Enabling the Circular Economy 
• Championing an Integrated Mindset  
• Engaging with Audit Committees to Support Accountants Addressing New Responsibilities 
• Enabling an Effective Public Sector Finance Workforce 

“We need to think differently to drive sustainability and create value during this time of deep uncertainty and unprecedented trading and economic conditions,” Rughani says. “By sharing our learnings as a global profession, we can support professional accountants to engage in higher value actions and inform more strategic decisions.” 

Get the report at Global Priorities for Professional Accountants in Business and the Public Sector | IFAC.