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On 24 September, we celebrate Auditor’s Pride Day – a celebration of people whose work often remains behind the scenes, yet is of fundamental importance to trust in business and the market as a whole. To mark the occasion, we asked female statutory auditors at BDO what they are most proud of, what an auditor’s responsibilities entail today, and whether there will still be a place for human intuition in the world of artificial intelligence. Their answers lead to a common conclusion: tools may change, but the foundations of the profession remain the same – independence, professional scepticism, knowledge, responsibility and sound judgement.
An auditor provides the market with more than just an opinion
Auditing is primarily associated with financial statements, figures, procedures and standards.
However, its significance is much broader. At the heart of an auditor’s work lies trust – the trust of investors, entrepreneurs and other market participants in the information on which they base their decisions.
As Dr Anna Bernaziuk, an auditor and senior partner at BDO, emphasises, auditing is one of the pillars of a stable and effective market.
By providing independent assurance as to the reliability of financial information, auditors enhance the credibility of companies, promote market transparency and protect the public interest - emphasises Dr Anna Bernaziuk.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak, an auditor and partner at BDO, shares this view of the role, highlighting a responsibility that extends beyond the auditor’s relationship with a specific client.
- Thanks to their objective view of business and their independent identification and assessment of risk, auditors form the foundation of the economy. The profession of an auditor is, above all, a responsibility towards all market participants - she points out.
Meanwhile, Edyta Kalińska, an auditor and CEO of BDO, goes even further, describing the profession of an auditor as a mission. It is precisely the auditor’s independence and their responsibility for the conclusions they draw that allow stakeholders to have greater confidence in the information presented by companies.
- Being an auditor is not just a profession, it is a mission - she states.
Technology provides opportunities. People give them meaning
Auditing is changing very rapidly. Data analytics, automation, robotisation and artificial intelligence enable us to work with ever-larger sets of data, identify anomalies more quickly and focus our attention on the areas of greatest risk.
This is a huge opportunity for the profession. At the same time, technology does not relieve the auditor of the responsibility for assessing what the data reveals.
– New technologies, including artificial intelligence, provide immediate access to information and speed up its analysis. But that is precisely why critical thinking and professional scepticism are becoming key competencies – notes Edyta Kalińska. – As auditors, we must assess this information and draw the right conclusions.
Dr Anna Bernaziuk echoes this view: „Data may indicate an unusual event, but it is the human being who assesses its significance, understands the motivations behind the management’s decisions and is able to interpret the information correctly in the light of their knowledge of the company and its environment.”
This is precisely where one of the most important boundaries lies between the capabilities of technology and the role of the human being. An algorithm can identify a correlation. An auditor must decide whether it is material. A tool can flag an anomaly. A human being must ask the question: why did it occur?
AI cannot replace relationships and experience
There is one further element of an audit that cannot be reduced to data. This is business acumen, experience and the ability to engage in conversation with another person.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak highlights this: „Technology is a tool. It is the experience, intuition and knowledge of our experts that enable us to transform data into valuable insights and tangible support for the client.”
Relationships, trust and the ability to engage in dialogue remain equally important. An auditor must not only analyse information, but also understand the specifics of the client’s business, identify risks, ask the right – sometimes difficult – questions, and make professional judgements.
That is why, paradoxically, technological development may mean that typically human skills become even more important in auditing than before.
Something to be proud of
When asked what they are most proud of, all three auditors point first and foremost to people.
Edyta Kalińska appreciates the fact that BDO’s auditors make use of new technologies and AI without losing their vigilance and professional scepticism.
Dr Anna Bernaziuk highlights quality, commitment and a willingness to learn continuously and take on new challenges.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak, meanwhile, emphasises the immense commitment, flexibility and responsibility of the audit teams, even when projects require working under the pressure of ambitious deadlines.
This is particularly important today. The auditor of the future will use different tools to those of just a few years ago. They will work with AI, advanced data analytics and ever-increasing automation. One thing, however, will not change.
The final conclusion will still rest with a human being – their knowledge, experience, independence, professional scepticism and responsibility.
And that is precisely what we should be proud of on 24 September, on Auditor’s Pride Day.
An auditor provides the market with more than just an opinion
Auditing is primarily associated with financial statements, figures, procedures and standards.
However, its significance is much broader. At the heart of an auditor’s work lies trust – the trust of investors, entrepreneurs and other market participants in the information on which they base their decisions.
As Dr Anna Bernaziuk, an auditor and senior partner at BDO, emphasises, auditing is one of the pillars of a stable and effective market.
By providing independent assurance as to the reliability of financial information, auditors enhance the credibility of companies, promote market transparency and protect the public interest - emphasises Dr Anna Bernaziuk.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak, an auditor and partner at BDO, shares this view of the role, highlighting a responsibility that extends beyond the auditor’s relationship with a specific client.
- Thanks to their objective view of business and their independent identification and assessment of risk, auditors form the foundation of the economy. The profession of an auditor is, above all, a responsibility towards all market participants - she points out.
Meanwhile, Edyta Kalińska, an auditor and CEO of BDO, goes even further, describing the profession of an auditor as a mission. It is precisely the auditor’s independence and their responsibility for the conclusions they draw that allow stakeholders to have greater confidence in the information presented by companies.
- Being an auditor is not just a profession, it is a mission - she states.
Technology provides opportunities. People give them meaning
Auditing is changing very rapidly. Data analytics, automation, robotisation and artificial intelligence enable us to work with ever-larger sets of data, identify anomalies more quickly and focus our attention on the areas of greatest risk.
This is a huge opportunity for the profession. At the same time, technology does not relieve the auditor of the responsibility for assessing what the data reveals.
– New technologies, including artificial intelligence, provide immediate access to information and speed up its analysis. But that is precisely why critical thinking and professional scepticism are becoming key competencies – notes Edyta Kalińska. – As auditors, we must assess this information and draw the right conclusions.
Dr Anna Bernaziuk echoes this view: „Data may indicate an unusual event, but it is the human being who assesses its significance, understands the motivations behind the management’s decisions and is able to interpret the information correctly in the light of their knowledge of the company and its environment.”
This is precisely where one of the most important boundaries lies between the capabilities of technology and the role of the human being. An algorithm can identify a correlation. An auditor must decide whether it is material. A tool can flag an anomaly. A human being must ask the question: why did it occur?
AI cannot replace relationships and experience
There is one further element of an audit that cannot be reduced to data. This is business acumen, experience and the ability to engage in conversation with another person.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak highlights this: „Technology is a tool. It is the experience, intuition and knowledge of our experts that enable us to transform data into valuable insights and tangible support for the client.”
Relationships, trust and the ability to engage in dialogue remain equally important. An auditor must not only analyse information, but also understand the specifics of the client’s business, identify risks, ask the right – sometimes difficult – questions, and make professional judgements.
That is why, paradoxically, technological development may mean that typically human skills become even more important in auditing than before.
Something to be proud of
When asked what they are most proud of, all three auditors point first and foremost to people.
Edyta Kalińska appreciates the fact that BDO’s auditors make use of new technologies and AI without losing their vigilance and professional scepticism.
Dr Anna Bernaziuk highlights quality, commitment and a willingness to learn continuously and take on new challenges.
Anna Pacanowska-Stasiak, meanwhile, emphasises the immense commitment, flexibility and responsibility of the audit teams, even when projects require working under the pressure of ambitious deadlines.
This is particularly important today. The auditor of the future will use different tools to those of just a few years ago. They will work with AI, advanced data analytics and ever-increasing automation. One thing, however, will not change.
The final conclusion will still rest with a human being – their knowledge, experience, independence, professional scepticism and responsibility.
And that is precisely what we should be proud of on 24 September, on Auditor’s Pride Day.