SAIPA 1 Accounting iNdaba Digimag - September 2021

Professional accountants to offer assurance on corporate data value A new publication, titled The Professional Accountant’s Role in Data, proposes that accountants will become major players in the quest to create strategic value from corporate data.

“Through their expertise and experience, accountants are well positioned to bring maximum order, certainty, compliance and utility to this process,” says Professor Rashied Small, Executive of the Centre of Future Excellence (CoFE) at the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA).

The paper was released by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), of which SAIPA is a voting member.

A data explosion The world is being flooded with data that organisations want to use to their advantage. At the same time, increasing global regulation, aimed at protecting the public, is redefining its legitimate use.

Moreover, the integrity, quality and reliability of data used in decision-making have been limited for too long, resulting in poor data and, as a result, ineffective decisions.

“Data used to be a simple collection of ones and zeros in the digital era, but today reflects both business and public concerns that accountants are qualified and well positioned to manage,” says Small.

TM