(Feb News) - In the International Conference and Ph.D. COLLOQUIUM FOR ECONOMICS, AND BUSINESS (ICEB) Ninth held at Campus B Universitas Airlangga on Tuesday (3/6), Prof. Dr. Arnel Onesimo O. Uy from De La Salle University, the Philippines, invites academics and accounting practitioners to reflect on their roles in the midst of the challenges of the times. He stressed that research, practice, and teaching must be carried out with an understanding of what, how, and why in the accounting profession.
Prof. Arnel said that the accountant faced risk to become a "useless class" amidst the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technology. He highlighted a concrete example that ChatGPT version 4.0 successfully passed the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam in a short period of time. This indicates that technology has been able to imitate professional abilities in the field of accounting.
But he still refused the assumption that the accountant profession would lose relevance. According to him, the role of humans remains vital in guaranteeing truth, ethics, and moral values that cannot be fully replaced by machines. "Are we still relevant? Let's answer this question with two perspectives that I will give," he said.
In exposure to the material he offers two important perspectives. The first is accounting which he calls the business language. Terms such as ESG, SDG, to accounting for human rights and business activities must be understood and integrated into the practice and education curriculum.
The second perspective touches the essence of accounting as a form of service to the public. He quoted questions from accounting expert Garry Carnegie about whether accounting is still relevant to form a future society. The answer lies in social collaboration and the courage to compile comprehensive standards, both for large companies, MSMEs in the ASEAN region, as well as other interests.
Prof. Arnel also stressed the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in accounting research. He said that global challenges such as climate change, social inequality, and ethical pressure require a cross -science perspective. Therefore accounting must develop from mere reporting results to a means to realize collective aspirations such as net zero carbon (clean zero emissions) for example.
This guest lecture also highlighted the need for redefinition in the accounting research agenda. Prof. Arnel suggested to consider alternative theories from other disciplines so that accounting can be more effective in solving real problems, ranging from poverty to social exclusion. It is also important to attract the interest of the younger generation of the accounting profession which is increasingly fading at this time.
Closing his presentation, Prof. Arnel invites participants to see the relationship between three important elements in the profession, namely AI as technology, sustainability (sustainability), and ethics (ethics). He called the three of them as Nexus who must be integrated thoroughly in the practice, research, and accounting education for a better future.
"We must ensure that AI is only a tool in thinking, not a substitute for our accountability as a human being. Ethics must be the foundation, and sustainability must be our direction," he said.
Author: Dhamar Gandhang Panji N. (E-Radio Feb Unair)
