Robots may become new norm in accounting and finance

A NEW norm is emerging today as we march to the beat of 21st century technology trends in cloud, Big Data, mobile and social collaboration, adapting continually to embrace these technologies.

While many professionals today remain focused on the implications of the digital revolution and its impact on customer expectations and behaviour, new opportunities are also on the rise, and redefining the status quo in the accounting and financial services realm. The question really is: does finance delivery really need further transformation?

As Singapore moves towards becoming the world's first Smart Nation, robotics and innovation methods have been deemed as mission critical to help optimise Singapore's national resources and drive productivity as we build a globally competitive Singapore. Financial robotics in the form of robotic process automation (RPA) is slowly but surely changing the way that finance and accounting functions execute basic processes. According to Deloitte's 2015 report, The robots are coming, awareness of RPA is soaring and by 2017, over half of the surveyed leaders anticipate an increased use of it.