Automation and intelligent tools are replacing the work of junior-audit staff, and this is going to have a direct effect on recruitment into the industry, according to Gareth Davies, Comptroller and Audit General of the National Audit Office (pictured).
He recently told the Public Accounts Committee there is going to be a reduction in the amount of junior-level work in a typical audit because the AI tools the NAO are starting to apply for the first-time this year take out some of those junior-level manual tasks – for instance, agreeing a figure from the accounts to a supporting document. That can all be automated now in a way that has not be possible before.
Davies said that one tool speeds up that part of the audit by three times, so it is starting to take out appreciable amounts of time at the junior end of the skill mix.
He said that there is general concern in the industry about the attractiveness of an audit career. Davies explained: “There used to be no shortage of graduates queuing up for jobs in the big firms, but those firms are now finding that more challenging.” However, the NAO’s unique status means they are ‘doing very well at the moment’.
A growth in the number of audits it has to undertake and a desire to end reliance on consultants actually meant the NAO had its largest ever intake last September – with just over 100 graduates and school leavers joining. Davies said the NAO is looking for a similar volumes in this intake.
But what is clear though is the skills mix is changing. The NAO wants less accountants and more data scientists alongside trainee auditors. Although, he stressed that accountants will still be the largest intake.
