CEOs, CFOs, and chief tax officers agree: Changes coming to the federal and global tax systems might be a real bummer, but even more of them are worried about recruiting and retaining staff and keeping up with the latest tech, namely __________, which we left blank because you’ve probably already guessed what it is.
When parts of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire next year, 71% of C-suiters predicted it’ll have a large or moderate effect on their businesses, according to a report KPMG published last week. An even greater share (86%) said Pillar Two, a new global minimum tax for large multinational corporations, will be expensive and cause more tax disputes, while 57% said a 2021 global tax agreement “will be a significant compliance burden.” (Some countries, including some European Union member states, started requiring large companies to abide by the minimum tax this year,, but Congress hasn’t passed changes to align US tax law.)
But while the world of national and international tax is big and scary, the 500 C-suiters from companies with annual revenue of at least $1 billion who responded to the survey were more worried about talent and tech. Asked what they expected to become their “biggest disruptors,” 44% were anxious about retaining employees and 44% about using the latest tech, namely AI. Changes to tax laws and regulations followed, at 40%, while 38% and 33% expected trouble from global politics and corporate dealmaking, respectively.
…and the wisdom to know the difference. Like a therapist helping their client focus on what they can change, the report lays out how tax leaders can help their function run more smoothly and make a bigger impact on corporate strategy. The recommendation, in a word: data. In slightly more words: using the data better.
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Nearly all respondents (95%) said “that leveraging data more effectively will help anticipate future challenges.” So virtually all respondents agreed that they can do more on data analytics. But four in 10 of them admitted they could do a lot more, because their tax department only “sometimes or rarely” uses data to shape company-wide decisions.
One of the ways the tax function can better analyze data—and specifically, handle the perceived hassles of a global minimum tax—is generative AI, the report says.
Wait, didn’t we just tell you a few paragraphs ago that executives were worried about generative AI? What can we say—sometimes what scares us also excites us. Nearly nine in 10 respondents (88%) “believe generative AI is the key to helping their organizations navigate the challenges brought on by Pillar Two,” according to the report.
When asked where GenAI would help their tax and finance departments the most, 46% said automating workflows, followed by tax compliance (42%), optimizing costs (40%), tax planning (38%), and assessing and managing risk (38%).
But will those leaders actually put up the money? Signs point to yes: “Nearly all respondents (98%) said they plan to invest in AI or generative AI capabilities for their tax function in the next 12 months,” while 50% of the spenders said they’ll put in from $500,000 to $1 million.
A helping hand. KPMG’s report also had a third recommendation for handling tax challenges: “leaning into a third-party provider.” We wonder if they have someone in mind.