Article

Corporate tax compliance and automation

Tax in a digital world

In an era where amazing technical advances emerge on a seemingly weekly, if not daily, basis, companies are reimagining the way they do business, and digital transformation is happening at many levels. In the midst of these transformative changes, some back-office functions—such as finance, accounting, and human resources—are playing catch-up. Yet perhaps nowhere is the need to change greater than in tax departments.

Adapting to the digital era

There are many factors at play when it comes to the need for change in tax departments. First, there are the dynamics of digital transformation: e.g., greater availability and affordability of technology, and the increasing interconnectedness/integration of tax into enterprise resource planning [ERP] solutions. There are also the converging forces of increasing globalization, an expanding regulatory scrutiny and enforcement, and the generational changes taking place in the workforce. No wonder many companies are considering ways to reconfigure their tax compliance delivery model.

In this article, Deloitte professionals examine how tax departments are moving ahead with digital transformation. They also discuss how tax departments can prepare for a more automated digital environment where costs and compliance turnaround time will be reduced by new sourcing models and advanced technologies.

Key transformation opportunities include:

  • Centralization: This enables the harmonization of tax compliance processes and protocols to potentially help address tax risks, increase quality, enhance value, and lower costs.
  • Data: High-quality data forms the foundation for analytics, automation, and cognitive technologies.
  • Automation and AI: Automation may reduce time and costs, while AI reveals insights that can lead to improvements in tax operations, planning, and reporting.
  • Job taskification and talent cloud: These allow access to specialized talent pools, sourced in a variety of ways—whether internally or externally—and at varying cost.
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