Monday Jul 27, 2026
Monday Jul 27, 2026
Monday, 27 July 2026 06:58 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
CPA Australia President Prof. Dale Pinto – Pic by Upul Abayasekara
Management accountants must evolve from financial reporters into strategic advisers capable of navigating geopolitical uncertainty, artificial intelligence (AI), and sustainability challenges, CPA Australia President and Board Chair Prof. Dale Pinto said, arguing that professionals who embrace technological change will outperform those who resist it.
Delivering an address at the CMA National Management Accounting Conference last week, Prof. Pinto said the accounting profession had entered one of the most significant periods of transformation in its history, requiring finance professionals to play a greater role in shaping corporate strategy and long-term value creation.
“Our role is to help organisations make better decisions, manage uncertainty, and create sustainable value,” he said. “And increasingly, we are expected to see around corners before anyone else even realises there is a corner.”
He said the conference theme, ‘Crisis, Stability and Growth,’ reflected the realities facing businesses today rather than simply providing a discussion framework.
Geopolitical uncertainty, sustainability, AI, and data and analytics were no longer emerging issues but factors already influencing boardroom decisions and corporate strategy, he said.
Prof. Pinto said management accountants could not predict every geopolitical disruption, but they were increasingly expected to help organisations prepare for uncertainty by strengthening planning, risk management, and decision-making.
He said sustainability reporting had also moved beyond regulatory compliance, with organisations now focusing on how sustainability information could improve strategic decision-making and strengthen long-term competitiveness.
“We’ve moved well beyond asking what do we need to disclose, and now the real question is how do we use sustainability to make better strategic decisions and build stronger organisations,” he said.
Turning to AI, Prof. Pinto said the profession should avoid both excessive optimism and unnecessary fear.
He described two opposing schools of thought—those who believe AI will replace professional jobs and those who expect it to solve every business problem, arguing that reality lies between those extremes.
“AI, in my view, will not replace trusted professionals like accountants,” he said. “But professionals who embrace AI will almost certainly outperform those who don’t.”
Rather than diminishing the profession, he said AI would increase the importance of ethics, professional judgement, and human insight, making those qualities key differentiators as automation becomes more widespread.
“The future belongs to accountants who combine technology with applying ethics, exercising professional judgement and providing human insights,” he said.
Prof. Pinto also highlighted the growing strategic importance of data analytics, arguing that finance professionals were increasingly responsible for converting growing volumes of information into business intelligence.
“If data is the new oil, then accountants are increasingly becoming the refinery,” he said. “We transform information into insights and insights into better decisions.”
He encouraged delegates to use the Conference not only to gain technical knowledge but also to challenge conventional thinking and exchange practical experience with peers. Some of the most valuable ideas, he said, would emerge through discussions between practitioners rather than formal presentations.
Reflecting on the pace of change across the profession, Prof. Pinto said accountants should view technological and regulatory disruption as an opportunity rather than a threat.
“We’re living through one of the most significant periods of change in our profession,” he said. “That should not make us fearful. It should energise us because accountants have never simply recorded history. We’ve helped shape it.”
