Embracing the AI frontier: Rethinking auditor skills and education

This was the resounding message from a landmark roundtable co-hosted by the International Association for Accounting Education and Research (IAAER), the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), the South African Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors, and IFAC in June 2025, bringing together audit professionals, educators, and regulators to examine how accountancy education must evolve in the face of accelerating technological change.

This article summarized key insights from the roundtable on AI implications for auditor skills and competencies and initial professional education and development. A previously published article, Embracing the AI Frontier: The Transformative Impact of AI on Audit Firms & Methodologies, shares insights and tips for audit firms as they consider evolving their methodologies.

Leveraging AI for efficiencies & insights

The use of disruptive technologies, such as AI, presents clear opportunities for the auditing and assurance profession. New accounting and finance systems allow companies to capture more data than ever before—and new technologies allow for enhanced data analysis abilities. For auditing firms, this opens new potential to understand audit risks and plan more tailored audits. There is also the potential for audit to become both more efficient and more insightful as a result.

These benefits will extend across finance and accounting teams within organizations as well. With these new tools, chief financial officers and their teams are increasingly seen as business partners, providing meaningful data and information, which informs business strategies and operational decision making. Auditors will be able to harness these technologies to focus less on mundane tasks, and more on the technical and critical thinking skills that attracted them to the profession.

Digital fluency: New skills needed

Audit professionals of the future will require more than traditional accounting knowledge. As automation and AI become deeply embedded in assurance engagements, digital literacy, data analytics, and professional skepticism are becoming essential core competencies.

To leverage these new tools effectively, auditors will need enhanced skills and competencies beyond those currently expected when entering the workforce. Indeed, one participant noted, “the second year of today, needs to be the first year of the future”. Firms stressed, in addition to technical auditing and accounting knowledge, the new auditors of the future will need the following skills and capabilities:

• Technology-focused: Auditors should be eager to adopt and adapt to new technologies for their work. They should not be resistant to changes but prepared to be constantly learning as new technology emerges.
• Analytical: The growth in data and information means that auditors should have the ability to gather, manipulate and interpret large data sets. Part of this will be understanding how to use AI effectively to augment their own abilities, as necessary.
• Critical thinkers: In a future world where AI increasingly gathers and documents audit evidence, auditors need advanced critical thinking and review skills. Professional judgment and skepticism will be even more important when standing back and reviewing work. Auditors will need to ask: Does this make sense? How do I know this is the right answer?
• Ethics: As auditors use AI, they will need to be aware of ethical considerations of its use. For example, considering sources of bias in AI-generated outputs, and risks such as overreliance.
• Creativity: In the face of disruptive technology and times of change, creative and out-of-the-box thinking can bring valuable innovation as auditors rethink their methodologies and audit software solutions.
• Communication: In an AI world, this human skill is even more important in auditors, as it is a key part to getting a rich understanding of the audited organization and how it operates.
• Collaboration: The growing focus on non-financial information, such as sustainability-related data, likewise highlights how important collaboration skills will be.
• Coaching: AI is likely to remove many of the typical “first year” learning tasks for new auditors. Current auditors will need to ensure they are able to help with the development of new auditors joining the firm despite the removal of these tasks. An ability to coach others will be key to building out the necessary team skills for the future.
• Delegation: The audit team of the future will include AI agents as part of it. Auditors will need to be able to understand which tasks, and to what degree, can be effectively delegated to their AI teammates as required.

The continuing importance of human judgment

Despite AI’s analytical power, it cannot replace professional skepticism and ethical judgment—traits developed through experience, mentorship, and exposure to real-world complexity.

“AI should never replace judgment,” asserted one participant. “The danger is that junior staff might accept AI outputs without question unless we train them to challenge what they see.”

This sentiment was echoed by other participants who emphasized the importance of educating future auditors not only on using AI, but also on understanding the ownership and ethical implications of the data AI processes.

Tips for PAOs and accounting educators to prepare for the AI frontier

Significant investment in time and training will be needed to prepare auditors for this future. Participants in the roundtable identified several practical suggestions on how to improve accountancy education content and delivery, as well as how to think about potential areas of challenge.

Accountancy education content

• Public interest and capital markets should be central. What are the skills and competencies needed by the next generation of CFOs and finance leaders? Keep in mind the risks of cognitive offloading—could we be losing competence necessary for the future of capital markets?
• Work closely/collaboratively with employers to understand needs. Students are often attracted to the accounting profession due to its strong employment prospects. To ensure qualifications or degree programs remain relevant, work with employers to understand what they’re looking for in future hires.
• Scan for future technology developments – but with caution. New technologies are converging, for example, overlaying of AI with data analytical tools. It is important to be aware of the direction of travel. However, be aware of technology fatigue and hype cycles. Focusing on maximizing transferable skills and knowledge, as well as promoting adaptability will be key, as often technologies students train on may be out-of-date before they enter the workforce.
• Ask whether all current content is still relevant. Review content for what can potentially be removed, for example, obsolete skills that no longer need to be taught considering new technologies. Consider also whether the depth of teaching may be reduced in any area.

Accountancy education delivery

• Embed technology, Review courses for how technology can be embedded throughout. This will set an expectation that the auditing profession is technology focused.
• Encourage students to use new technologies, including AI. Auditors will need to adapt to new technologies throughout their careers. Encourage students to do this throughout learning. It will provide them with practical experience and learning how to use AI ethically before they enter the profession.
• Update course formats. Critical thinking will be central to the future of audit. Ensure learning puts critical thinking at the heart. Consider how learning formats can be updated to promote and facilitate this, for example, incorporating authentic simulations or using flipped classroom models.

Potential challenges

• Engage on local regulatory restrictions. In some jurisdictions, making changes to auditing qualifications may be challenging. Engage proactively with regulators and other stakeholders to understand how to work together to ensure that qualifications and degrees remain relevant and fit-for-purpose for the future.
• Identify local education gaps. Gaps in early and secondary education may mean some aspiring auditors lack foundational skills and knowledge to successfully complete an accountancy education program. It may be necessary to develop supplemental programs to support these. The local professional may also find it helpful to engage with key stakeholders to encourage and support further improvement in early and secondary education programs.
• Bolster skills and knowledge of accounting educators. Accounting educators themselves need to ensure they are continually developing and ensuring they have the skills, knowledge and competencies to train the next generation. Staying connected with auditing firms on the latest practice will be an important part of this.
• Be aware of potential loss of entry-level roles due to AI. These roles typically provide early career accountants with their first professional job, allowing them to develop necessary skills for the rest of their career. With these potentially reductions in roles, accounting educators and firms will need to consider how the next generation of accountants develops their skills.

As AI accelerates change, so too must the structures that develop future professionals. The working world will be vastly different by the time current aspiring auditors complete their accountancy education programs. It is crucial we all work together to prepare for this, as the work, no matter how it is delivered, will remain crucial to protecting the public interest. As one participant eloquently put it, “We must train our future auditors not just to use AI, but to think alongside it.”

This article originally appeared on the IFAC Knowledge Gateway. Copyright © 2025 by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). All rights reserved. Used with permission of IFAC. Contact [email protected] for permission to reproduce, store, or transmit this document.