In a recent UnlikelyAI webinar, Mark Babington (FRC), James Berridge (Saffery), Henry Galbraith (UnlikelyAI) joined host Dr. Ailish McLaughlin to explore how the accounting landscape is shifting with demand for new roles, skills and space to think strategically with AI automation.

Across the conversation, they unpacked how the profession is evolving and what it means for:

• Firms aiming to stay competitive

• Leaders designing teams and workflows

• Regulators navigating innovation and trust

• Accountants building future-proof skills

Below is a recap of the top four takeaways, followed by a curated list of the best quotes and learnings from the session.

Top 4 takeaways

Your core professional skills matter more than ever.

• AI elevates judgment, it doesn’t automate or replace it.

• These skills remain the center of accounting: professional judgment; ethics; communication, client challenge.

Secondary skills must evolve.

• AI literacy is becoming as fundamental as Excel literacy once was.

• Secondary skills such as AI fluency, must evolve to understand how AI-powered tools work, what their outputs mean, where the limits and risks are.

• Talent is moving because people want variety modern tools are changing workflows, new roles are emerging.

AI handles routine tasks; accountants move to higher-value work.

• AI handles routine tasks; accountants move to higher-value work.

• Accounting jobs become more interesting, less ticking, more thinking.

• Automation unlocks time but only strategy turns it into value

• That frees accountants to focus on: risk assessment, client conversations, interpreting anomalies, and strategic decision support.

Trustworthy, explainable AI is the only kind suitable for regulated accounting work.

• Explainability, not speed, is what makes AI usable in audit and accounting.

• You must understand the tools you use, and you must be able to explain the reasoning. as black-box AI is unacceptable.

Best quotes & key stats

Shift 1: The skills revolution

• 79% agree that role of accountants as ‘Data Guardians’ (i.e ensuring data governance) will become increasingly important to organisations (ICAEW, 2025)

““The fundamental reason to engage an accountant is professional judgment.” — Mark Babington (Executive Director of Regulatory Standards at FRC)”

““Anyone can now produce a predictive model but not everyone understands it. That’s a new problem to have.” — James Berridge (Director, Saffery)”

““AI made me rethink my career. I wanted to help free up accountants’ time to focus on higher-value work.” — Henry Galbraith (Head of Professional Services at UnlikelyAI)”

Shift 2: The talent migration

Stats mentioned (ACCA):

• 62% expect to move roles within 2 years

• 58% expect their next move to be outside their current organisation

• 52% see accountancy as a springboard, not a destination

““Younger professionals are attracted by variety — technology and sustainability are big draws.” — Mark Babington (Executive Director of Regulatory Standards at FRC)”

““We’re enabling a single person to do a lot more, but they’re still the orchestrator.” — James Berridge (Director, Saffery)”

““A shift from doing to reviewing changes what early-career learning looks like, firms need to adapt training accordingly.” — Henry Galbraith (Head of Professional Services at UnlikelyAI)”

Shift 3: AI handles the routine, humans handle the judgement

• >75% of UK firms are investing in cloud accounting, automation and big-data analytics.

• 40h of additional capacity per employee per year from investment in AI training which is 22% more than firms that don’t.

• 71% of CEOs prioritise investing in AI and retaining and retraining high-potential talent. (KPMG, 2025).

““You can’t treat AI as a black box, you’re still accountable for it.” — Mark Babington (Executive Director of Regulatory Standards at FRC)”

““Automation frees accountants to focus on client relationships, problem solving, and skepticism.” — Henry Galbraith (Head of Professional Services at UnlikelyAI)”

Looking forward to having you in the next session,

— The UnlikelyAI Team