POST-TRUTH ERASKILLS FORACCOUNTANTSAs the workplace and society are reshaped byboth technology and the notion of “post-truth”,accountants need the right skills to navigate thechanging landscape.WORDS MEGAN BREENIn the “post-truth” era, objective facts can beovershadowed by misinformation, manipulationand personal beliefs. More than ever, accountantsneed skills in three key areas – ethics, criticalthinking and trust.Developing skills in each of these areas has long beenfundamental to the accounting profession. However,new challenges are emerging alongside technologicaladvancement, which indicate that they should befront-of-mind when acting as trusted advisers.1. TRUST AND TRUSTWORTHINESSGlobally, public trust is on a downward trend. Eachyear, communications firm Edelman surveys 32,000people from 28 countries, to gauge their level oftrust in governments and institutions.The 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer report forAustralia shows that 45 per cent of respondents trustthe government to do the right thing – a 7 per centdrop since the previous year. In addition, only54 per cent trust businesses and 53 per cent trustnon-government organisations, with the figurestrending downwards in both categories. Australia’soverall trust score for 2023 is 48 per cent, down from53 per cent in 2022.The picture is similar in Malaysia, where overalltrust dropped from 66 per cent in 2022 to 62 per centin 2023. Likewise, in South Korea, overall trustdropped from 42 per cent in 2022 to 36 per centin 2023.Accountants rely on trust and credibility to performtheir roles effectively, says Dr Simon Longstaff AO FCPA,executive director at The Ethics Centre.To gain trust, it is important to publicly declare thestandard by which conduct is going to be judged,and act accordingly, he adds.STRATEGIC UPSKILLING intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 19
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