Technology Looms Large in 7 Priorities of Multinational Tax Functions
Here are the seven top priorities of tax functions inside large, multinational companies, according to a survey of tax executives conducted by Deloitte:
- Ensuring quality delivery (highest priority)
- Improving control
- Driving value and insight
- Improving process efficiency
- Getting the right talent and resources in place
- Getting the right technology in place
- Reducing the cost of delivery
Since the execution of most of these objectives hinges on having the right tax technology in place, Deloitte also asked more than 270 global tax leaders about the tax technologies they currently use and about their future tax-tech investment plans.
More than 40 percent of respondents have already invested in enterprise resource planning (ERP) upgrades (though these upgrades are focused on non-cloud-based systems) and document management systems/portals. More than one-third of responding tax functions have already built tax data repositories and implemented data analysis applications (or “data wrangling tools” in Deloitte’s phrasing).
When it comes to future investments, more than 30 percent expect to invest in non-cloud ERP upgrades, document management systems, data-wrangling tools and moves to cloud-based ERP systems. Data repositories and “other steps to improve data quality” also rate as likely upcoming investments. More notably, 60 percent of tax leaders indicated that they are likely to invest in big data during the next three to five years.
New technologies that include blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), robotic process automation (RPA), cloud computing, as well as the Internet of Things (IoT) are all things tax departments should be considering as they reevaluate processes and consider potential efficiency gains going forward. “There is clearly a growing interest in new technology,” Deloitte’s survey report concludes.
The report is worth a look -- as is this Tax Matters post that highlights the report’s take on how tax leaders are meeting the expectations of their CFOs.
Disclaimer
Please remember that the Vertex blog provides information for educational purposes, not specific tax or legal advice. Always consult a qualified tax or legal advisor before taking any action based on this information. The views and opinions expressed in the Vertex blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, position, or opinion of Vertex Inc.
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