3. The ability to be a C-suite influencer
Tax directors are increasingly becoming key players at the front-end of business strategy. With the international tax structure undergoing a fundamental overhaul in response to BEPS and other global tax initiatives, the tax department is being further drawn into a broader strategic business role.
Successful tax executives are developing closer relationships beyond finance, partnering more closely with operating business units while broadening their engagement across the C-suite. Increasingly, tax professionals must therefore collaborate with CEOs and CFOs in working through complex business decisions and risk management matrices. As disruptive trends continue to thrust tax professionals into key decision-making positions, they need to be strategic communicators and leaders who are capable of motivating a diverse team in order to meet their organization’s wider business goals.
4. Adaptability as part of a more purposeful, contingent workforce
Companies are increasingly being challenged to leverage a more mobile, “on-demand” global workforce to deal with labor shifts and shortages. Sophisticated recruitment platforms now make it possible for organizations to employ “gig” workers on a temporary basis, so they are agile enough to scale resources to demand, and to cater to a new generation of workers looking for greater flexibility. At the same time, these workers are seeking a higher sense of meaning and purpose in the work they do, and are willing to move to different companies more rapidly to broaden their experiences.
Tax functions will need not only to adapt to emerging gig workforce trends, but also to optimize recruitment processes to train, manage and nurture a workforce with a new set of employee expectations. Companies will also need to make provision for the new set of motivators required for, and the new risks and challenges presented by, short-term employees in an increasingly contingent talent pool.
Business-shapers of the future
With so many forces at play — from globalization to the arrival of BEPS — the tax function will continue to evolve toward a more automated business function led by a new generation of tech-savvy professionals. Many of the talent strategies that worked yesterday will no longer work tomorrow, and the demand for a more flexible approach to talent management is far greater than before.
As a new breed of tax professional emerges in this digital world, the tax function will continue to evolve, while its strategic decision-making position will remain as important as ever to an organization’s success.
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Summary
Tax leaders must make sure their function is prepared to recruit, manage and nurture the very different tax professionals of tomorrow.
