The biggest challenge is to encourage our auditors to step out of their comfort zones and embrace technologies that have been rolled out. Auditors need to constantly keep up to date with the latest market offerings and be equipped with the right technologies to stay ahead of the curve and meet the rising demands of regulators and relevant stakeholders. The increasing evolvement of technologies would also create expectation gaps among various stakeholders, as auditors are expected to have higher coverage on audit samples with the use of automation tools and advanced analytics.

Mazars prioritizes innovations and we are continuously at the forefront of digital evolutions. With the deployment of technologies, gone are the days when auditors spend countless nights performing arithmetic checks on finances and flipping through voluminous documents for tests of details. 

For the last few years, we have modernized our processes by introducing a number of tools which include electronic signatories, the use of advanced data analytics, automation of financial statements casting, a collaboration tool to better facilitate documents exchanges with clients, using RPA for routine work, as well as DataSnipper to automate the repetitive and menial tasks. This translated into a great reduction in administrative overhead and enable the auditor to better focus on risk areas as well as other value-added activities.