AI is probabilistic, but so are humans - and that’s a risk we’ve always been okay with

Our profession isn’t known for being comfortable with risk. The stereotypical accountant is even less likely to seek out risky work for themselves. 

But if you’re going to uncover new opportunities and value within your firm, a little risk is exactly what you need - or a curiosity and openness to doing things differently, at the very least. 

This came up during an ACCA Accountex panel I was on recently. As practitioners and advocates of AI in accounting, my fellow panel guest, Melanie Foster from BHP, and I encouraged the audience to push themselves (and the technology) to discover what can really be achieved. A lot of accountants might be dabbling in AI today, but how many are taking measured risk to reap the full advantages?

I’m not talking about carelessly putting client data into the wrong hands, over-investing in a new platform that you haven’t validated properly, or any behaviour where the probable risk outweighs the potential reward. But trying, building, and being okay with getting it wrong is necessary if we want to make progress - it’s an attitude that’s important in all areas of an organisation, not just around tech. This is the same attitude we should be employing across the organisation regardless of technology.