Transformation Key for Tax Function of the Future

Charting a course for continuous transformation will be crucial for the tax function of the future. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has been doing some interesting research on this topic.

The premise of PwC’s report is valid given where they say the tax industry is headed: “To remain relevant to the business, tax functions must chart a course for continuous transformation that is immediate, holistic and practical. Successful change will require re- engineering end-to-end processes, not just the final outputs.” This change requires numerous steps “using the central building blocks of governance, data, technology, process and people within the context of the global regulatory and legislative landscape.”

PwC asked our Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, John Viglione, to share some of his insights on tax technology for this report on tax transformation, a process that typically requires an investment in new solutions. John's high-level guidance on that front is to start by taking a step back, "Building a business case will require the tax department to define how it will adapt to the regulatory environments of the world, especially if an organization conducts business on a global scale. Look at how you want to transform the tax function and decide what architecture is needed to achieve this before considering any technology investment. Technology will change, but a well-thought out architecture will transcend the technology."

We agree with PwC — transformation can only occur with the right tax automation in place, as well as the support and collaboration of other departments and executives throughout the organization.