This report examines the impact of COVID-19 in areas that relate to the digitisation agenda of organisations.
This is an evolving picture and the perspectives draw upon first-hand accounts from professionals around the world, using ACCA’s framework for recovery. ACCA’s report, COVID-19 Global Survey: The Road to Recovery? sets out a three stage framework for charting the path to recovery after the pandemic: Act, Analyse and Anticipate. This report explores the parts of this framework pertaining to the digital environment.
It is based on qualitative interviews that capture individual experiences of how elements of the framework have worked in practice. In some instances, these have been supplemented with a desk-based literature review, but the emphasis is on reflecting anecdotal examples gathered to present a range of perspectives on the ACCA framework. COVID-19 is a still unfolding event, and the future direction remains uncertain. But as the examples across ACCA’s stakeholder base demonstrate, the profession is mounting a robust response: one that is informed by pragmatic risk management as well as an opportunistic embrace of change to make things better.
The role of the profession is critical when looking at the road to recovery; and digital technology is a very important component of the path ahead. This has the potential to be a win-win situation, where an increased embrace of digital creates meaningful work for accountancy and finance professionals, while driving a sustainable recovery for organisations and economies.