INTHEBLACK April 2025 - Magazine - Page 9
“If you’re some form of a knowledge worker, and you’re not augmenting your
work this year with this technology in some way, you’re going to absolutely
be left behind by 2026.”
DR EDWIN TREVOR-ROBERTS, CEO OF CAREER ADVICE FIRM TREVOR-ROBERTS, SPEAKING ABOUT AUGMENTING WORK
WITH GENERATIVE AI.
Source: The Australian Financial Review
CFO optimism
on the rise
The glass is looking much more than
half full for Australian CFOs, with the
December 2024 edition of Deloitte’s
CFO Sentiment report showing
71 per cent feel optimistic or highly
optimistic about their company’s
financial prospects, up from 66 per cent
in the first six months of 2024.
Despite the lift in optimism, CFOs
are continuing to prioritise cost control
as they manage a range of internal
and external risks, such as the inability
to execute strategies (56 per cent)
and securing and retaining key talent
(53 per cent). Meanwhile, 45 per cent
of CFOs identified an Australian
economic downturn as a significant risk
to their business, down from 70 per cent
in the first half of 2024.
Read the report
Singaporean employers
value storytelling skills
Demand for skilled professionals in Singapore’s accounting
and finance sector remains steady, with Randstad Singapore's
2025 Job Market Outlook and Salary Guide showing that companies
in the sector are focusing more on replacement hiring than team
expansion. The report also shows a growing emphasis on analytics
and decision-making roles that drive business growth and reduce
costs. The technical and soft skills that remain paramount in the
industry for communicating business outcomes and managing
key stakeholder relationships include:
• International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)
• control governance
• financial planning analysis
• business development
• storytelling.
Read the guide
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 9
