By Karina Imran
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's accountancy profession must evolve into a future-ready, value-driven and trust-centred profession to strengthen the country's economic competitiveness amid rapid technological transformation and growing sustainability demands.
Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) president Datuk Saniza Said highlighted that accountancy professionals today play a far broader role in business advisory, strategic decision-making and safeguarding stakeholder confidence while exercising professional scepticism and professional judgement.
Saniza, who is also MIA’s first woman president elected on Dec 8, 2025, said the accountants need to build stakeholders’ trust as a profession that upholds trust and integrity
“We need to promote ethical principles, transparency, accountability and integrity. We must build stakeholders’ trust in the accountancy profession as part of the commitment to public interest," she told Bernama.
Embrace AI, Digital Transformation
While trust, integrity and ethics are the foundation of the profession, accountancy professionals must upskill and transform to be relevant in the evolving business landscape.
Saniza said technological transformation is inescapable and professionals who fail to adapt will be left behind.
However, she emphasised that technology should not be regarded as a threat to the profession, as human professional judgement, responsibility and accountability remain crucial.
“I believe that artificial intelligence (AI) won’t take away the accountants. You can use AI to transform bookkeeping, but when it comes to professional judgement, you need humans,” she said.
Saniza said MIA’s aspiration is for Malaysia’s accountancy profession to be trusted, future-ready and globally respected, while continuing to embrace innovation without compromising its core values.
She pointed out that investors and markets rely on accountancy professionals to provide independent assurance over financial disclosure, reinforcing Malaysia's reputation as a trusted financial destination even as financial misconduct and scams become increasingly sophisticated.
Accountancy Profession Approaching Tipping Point
Meanwhile, MIA chief executive officer G. Shanmugam said the accountancy profession is undergoing significant transformation and is approaching a tipping point, driven largely by AI, data analytics, automation and other emerging technologies.
He emphasised that technology would increasingly automate repetitive and common accounting tasks, allowing professionals to concentrate on higher-value functions such as data analysis, business strategy, risk management and advisory services.
He concurred with Saniza that the role of accountancy professionals is expanding tremendously.
“Accountants today are trusted business advisers because they understand business, strategy and performance management,” he said.
Shanmugam emphasised the importance of accountants developing foresight capabilities to help businesses anticipate challenges and opportunities.
“Management and stakeholders now expect accountants to guide them by saying, ‘Tell me what I don’t know. What do I need to do tomorrow and in the future?’ This is where the foresight strategy becomes crucial,” he said.
Shanmugam said accountants would increasingly need skills such as data analytics and predictive analytics to identify trends and patterns, anticipate future opportunities and risks, and advise businesses on future strategies and sustainability.
He said that the recent launch of MIA Sustainability Blueprint for the Accountancy Profession and MIA Sustainability Roadmap can help members develop the necessary competencies.
Shanmugam said these capabilities would enable accountants to support organisations in sustainability reporting and potentially provide assurance on sustainability information as demand develops.
Upskilling Key to Building Future-Ready Accountants
Currently, MIA has about 42,000 members, with membership growing between 1.5 and 2.0 per cent annually.
To support the profession, Shanmugam said MIA conducts about 1,000 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programmes annually, alongside conferences, online learning and networking initiatives.
"Our focus is on upskilling them so that they remain future-ready, especially in this technological and AI era," he said.
Shanmugam noted that automation should ultimately make accountancy more attractive to younger talent by reducing repetitive work and enabling fresh graduates to move more quickly into analytical, managerial and advisory responsibilities.
"Although many people claim that technology and AI are eliminating accounting jobs, it is important to note that they are primarily taking over mundane and repetitive tasks. As a result, the nature of accounting work is becoming more engaging and dynamic.
“AI is transforming how accountants operate and creating numerous new opportunities for talent in the field," he said.
-- BERNAMA