Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming decision-making across business, government, and society. Yet beneath the promise of objectivity lies a difficult question: whose ethics are embedded in the algorithms that increasingly influence our lives? AI IS OFTEN PORTRAYED as impartial and objective. In reality, it has no moral compass of its own. It learns from data…
Accounting remains a profession built on trust. Yet the environment in which accountants operate is changing quickly. The question is: are we preparing graduates who can think, adapt, communicate and make responsible decisions in a rapidly changing world? ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, automation, data analytics and digital platforms are transforming how information is generated, processed and interpreted.…
October marks Ethics Month. For chartered accountants, however, ethics has no calendar. WE WORK IN A PROFESSION that places enormous confidence in technical precision. Figures must reconcile. Evidence must withstand scrutiny. Judgements must be defensible. Yet some of the most consequential decisions made by finance professionals will never be settled by arithmetic alone. They require…
Having transitioned from a chartered accountant who experienced burnout to mentoring and coaching finance professionals – from university students to executive leaders – I have come to a powerful realisation: investing in your wellbeing and personal growth is one of the highest-return investments you will ever make. THE ASPIRE METHOD — focusing on abundance, spiritual,…
Professional education has taught us to study hard, pass exams, master standards, and prove ourselves through competence. While that investment must continue, the world has moved on. To stay relevant and effective, the profession now needs to invest equally in the human capabilities that technical training alone cannot build. LEADING IN A FIRM TODAY is…
Investment trends continue to highlight the growing influence of technology, artificial intelligence (AI), human capital, training, and changing monetary conditions. While these trends shape where capital is invested, they also provide an important signal to universities about the capabilities employers expect from future graduates. AI IS TRANSFORMING INVESTMENT ANALYSIS. Investment professionals increasingly rely on AI…
He was the kind of man who genuinely and visibly champions women in leadership. So when he said it, nobody in the room flinched, including me. The alarm only finds you later, when the quiet of the early morning finally gives the thought enough space to breathe. This man was celebrating women, and he meant…
The other day I was having a conversation with an acquaintance from a technology company. They noted that it is so frustrating dealing with their auditors, testing items on a sample basis when they have the technology and the means to test the entire population. Moreover, it can probably be performed in real time, to…
Internal audit often assumes a position of relative safety. After all, who audits the machines if not the auditors? Yet this confidence may be misplaced. If internal audit continues to define itself by control testing, sampling, and retrospective assurance, it may discover that AI is not merely assisting the profession − it is replacing large…
The Value-Added Tax Act 89 of 1991 (VAT Act) is legally complex due to its readability, which makes it challenging to teach, apply in practice, and administer. My PhD empirical investigation establishes that the lengthiest section in the VAT Act is section 17(2) (denied input, entertainment). The study further cites several sections in the VAT…