Current developments in the business environment and society produced by digitalization, the need for adaptability, the change of paradigm on financial and non-financial reporting or the perception of accounting require observing how organisations respond to all these challenges by adjusting the means of action and the results achieved. From 24 to 26 May 2023, the 45th annual congress of the European Accounting Association (EAA) was held in Finland, hosted by Aalto University School of Business in the Otaniemi, Espoo campus. EAA is one of the best-known academic associations in Europe promoting diverse and high-quality research in the accounting field, best teaching and interaction practices with accounting practitioners and regulators. The CECCAR representative, Mrs Adriana Florina Popa, PhD Associate Professor, member of IFAC’s International Panel of Accounting Education, took part in the works and debates organized on current and relevant themes for the accounting profession in this year’s edition of the EAA Congress.
The topics addressed at the event included sustainability reporting, which is known to be invoked by decision-makers, market participants and stakeholders to enable and facilitate a transition to a more sustainable economy and society. Discussions were carried out in directions like the sustainability reporting regulation in the EU – state of play and research opportunities; measuring the impact and information as regards sustainability provided in the corporate reports; providing the accuracy and credibility of climate change reporting – current developments in insurance standards; as well as the connectivity between the two types of reporting, financial and non-financial.
Compared to the 2014 EC Directive, the new Directive as regards corporate sustainability reporting in 2022 extended the obligations with regard to the affected entities and the content of the information and specified that the so-called “double materiality” must be complied with. In other words, the entities must inform with regard to the way in which they are affected by the sustainability issues (the “outside-in” perspective), also referred to as financial materiality, and how the entity has an impact on society and the planet (the “inside-out” perspective), known as impact materiality.
At the same time, a presentation of EFRAG` activities of elaborating European standards for reporting on sustainability (ESRS) and the influence of IFRS took place.
Another topic discussed priority for the accounting profession was that of education, approached from multiple perspectives, such as modern teaching techniques or the balance between technical and critical content in training and professional development programmes. Following the discussions, it was found that the challenge stems from the fact that there is often pressure that the accounting programmes should include more and more advanced technical accounting content. At the same time, there are often requests to minimize the “monotonous” parts of accounting, mainly those that are the most susceptible to be automated, such as double entry accounting.
In contrast, many of the main employers of accounting graduates continue to emphasize that they want them to possess the soft skills that universities traditionally provide to all graduates, regardless of the field of study, like efficient communication, critical thinking and intellectual curiosity to continue learning throughout their career. Continuing professional development programmes must follow the same direction in order to ensure the training of the new generations of professionals and supporting the existing ones in order to remain relevant and to deal with future challenges.
The 45th edition of the EAA Congress gathered experts in the academic area and in the industry in order to discuss about the current trends and challenges, as well as about the courses of action and objectives that should be fulfilled for a sustainable future in accounting and the accounting profession.
(Copyright foto: Jan-Hendrik Meier)
