The Perspective of Change- Transform-Adapt-Repeat

Moore Stephens

Moore Stephens participated at the 5th Edition of Business Challenge, an initiative by BusinessMark, an event organizing company.

At the 5th Edition of Business Challenge, leaders from various sectors came together to discuss the impact of fast-paced advancement of technology, society, and economy on businesses.

While speaking at the event, Mr. Mamas Koutsoyiannis, CEO of Moore Stephens highlighted the importance of having “Perspective of Change” in today’s world. He said that “Change is constant and it’s all around us from; evolving technologies, the way that we now interact with people, to the way that we do business. Change is inevitable and for the most part, a business requirement in order to stay current and competitive.”

Mr. Koutsoyiannis also explained, “Why change management should be a business discipline.” He said that “A number of major organizational change management efforts fail because organizations often do not take the holistic approach required to see the change through.”

While speaking about the future of accounting profession and the impact of new fast paced advancement of technology on audit and finance industry, Mr. Koutsoyiannis said “The accountancy profession is about to face the new challenges of the new era such as: block -chain, cryptocurrency, social media evolution, artificial Intelligence, GDPR, the new Financial Institutions regulations in the digital era, as well as the more and more demanding stakeholders of the financial statements, that require accurate, current and future disclosures with high quality. Changes are done in a more rapid pace which requires sharpness and flexibility in decision making! These can be achieved by embracing new technology in the profession, embracing innovation, embracing ethics, by ensuring this is shared to the professional accountants by collaboration and continues education.” 

Mr. Koutsoyiannis also said that “Technology is changing the way business is conducted and data is analyzed. There is an increasing focus on data management; ‘Know Your Data’ (KYD) is the new keyword replacing ‘Know Your Client’ (KYC). Artificial intelligence, blockchain and data analytics are game changers for both the finance and accounting sector and the audit profession, transforming the roles of both finance professionals and auditors.”

In his closing words, Mr. Koutsoyiannis said that “The rapid advance of technology isn’t going to slow any time soon. Businesses that will fail to adapt the technological advancements will be left behind while the one who can survive the rising tide of tech change will reap the rewards.”