It was my great pleasure last week to be in Copenhagen working with a group of senior tax & tax technology stakeholders from some of the largest companies in Denmark. They have been coming together informally for quite some time to share and discuss their challenges in a safe environment (Ed. Are there other groups like this elsewhere? It would be interesting to know).
Besides being a wonderful group of people, they were highly receptive to the idea of taxology – that is, a high-level examination of the information fabric that makes up our newly digital lives in taxbefore going into “solutions mode”, as one person put it.
We talked about people, process, technology & ‘data’, and how focusing on technology alone leaves 75% of that equation behind with results to match in terms of realizing value. This led to a conversation on the main purpose of automation – not to replace manual processes but to support “good” data in a well-understood tax data model, and that a transformed state only exists once that has occurred.
Contributing Xyto philosophy to this established group produced some great feedback. “Inspiring”, said one person, and “Absolutely did not disappoint”, said another.
Interestingly, they have yet to name their group. If they had, it would probably have been called “Tax Technology” club or similar. Now, hopefully it will contain “Tax Technology & Transformation”, thereby also giving a nod to the upcycled thinking and capabilities that matter in tax’s digital future.
Contact us to learn more about transformation, and why tax technology does not measure up in the modern age without it.
For the second year running, Geoff Peck, our founder & chief taxologist, contributed at the innovative LL.M. Digitalization & Tax Law program run by the Executive Academy at the University of Vienna (WU), now in its third year. This program addresses the critical need for digital acumen & skills in today’s tax profession.
Based on our own Smart Tax Technology certification program, itself now in its sixth year, plus the downstream experience of our many graduates, we were able to bring unique practical perspectives to proceedings, particularly around transforming the tax function.
Xyto will be participating again as the WU 2022/3 academic year draws to a close in June along with our partners.
From the Students:
“I really liked the presentation and that you have shared with us your experience … thank you very much for your time and I really appreciate.”
“Thank you very much for your interesting presentation today.”
“Thank you for the great lecture, it was very inspiring!”
“It was a pleasure attending your lectures.”
For more information on tax technology, digitalization & transformation training options with Xyto, WU, and our partners at TPA Global e-bright, please contact us for a short, insightful conversation. It’s a must for those in the 21st century tax industry
We’re delighted to announce the launch of our Exclusive Cyber Monday Offer giving you an unmissable 80% off the most accessible, flexible and sought-after training – Xyto’s Smart Tax Technology Certification Program.
This remains essential upskilling at a time when digitalization is changing the rules of the game. Through digital empowerment, tax professionals must become trusted business partners & tech project co-pilots in this new realm.
To maintain quality, we’ve tweaked our training delivery method, thereby creating this one-off, never-to-be-repeated opportunity to gain the complete, corporate-level training experience at a price to suit every pocket !
If you’ve been considering joining our program for a while, now’s the time to act!
Training Includes…
✔ Access To Members Area
All content fully available within 24 hours of registration
✔ Six Hours Minimum 1:1 Coaching
With principle author Geoff Peck
✔ Knowledge Assets & Materials
Downloadable & yours to keep. Session recordings on demand
✔ Best Practice Templates
Including Tax Flows & Solutions Factors
✔ Email Support
With leading taxologist for the duration of the program
✔ Lifetime Membership
Access to All Future Insights & Updates
✔ Taxologist Community
Become a Contributor as we Build this Powerful Network
Additional Benefits…
**NEW** UPDATED TO INCLUDE FULL CERTIFICATION
While our program is designed to be flexible & on-demand, to suit the ever-increasing demands of the tax professional, we’ve updated the material to enable full certification to all graduates.
With a graduation rate of over 95% we can as good as guarantee your success. In these times of tumultuous change, you can’t afford not to!
So, take “the course of action that costs less than doing nothing”, and start your journey to becoming the future-proofed, revalued tax professional the digital world needs you to be!
Got Any Questions?
We’re always here to help, if there’s anything you’d like to discuss or you’d simply like to have a quick call about your current tax tech challenges please feel free to get in touch.
We’re delighted to announce our Tax Transformations Essentials Masterclass – 3 Steps to Nirvana & Elevating Your Tax Career is back on and we know you’ll want to be the first to join us at our new time of 11:30 / 12:30 BST / CEST Tuesday, 13 Sept.
Let’s begin by refreshing your memory – read on and find out how you can unlock an exclusive offer to get on board and upgrade your knowledge for FREE (Usually $179).
But first…
More Automation Does NOT Lead to Transformation
That statement should reverberate strongly across the world’s corporate tax functions, but that’s rarely the case.
Instead, people tinker with technology, tackle pain points, and address symptoms, while missing altogether the root causes that lead to the issues in the first place, thereby inviting more of them in future.
For a while this was ok – the tax world got by like this – but that’s no longer true.
With tax authorities building up sophisticated digital profiles on their taxpayers, it’s now too costly, too piecemeal, too blunt, and frankly not good enough for a profession as proud as tax-facing technological onslaught from all sides …
… so, time for an upgrade!
Improvement, Not Wholesale Change
Just to be clear, automation plans need not be abandoned – this is not necessary and doesn’t make sense – even though most current strategies leave plenty of room for improvement.
But no matter how good the strategy, or how much you automate, it will never deliver the new digitalization normal that tax needs …
… because automating what you do today simply does not account for how things will work tomorrow. That requires a recalibrated approach to people, process & technology, and a rethink around ‘data’ that only transformed ideas can offer.
(Ed: Yet, every initiative we see has “transformation” in its title, though most have little or no transformation in them, at least by any definition a trained taxologist would know.)
What’s needed is true transformation, which brings the visibility, control & future-proofing required to get on the front foot with digitalized tax. Not choosing this path leaves you at the mercy of the next unpredictable event or issue and nowhere to go except more patchwork – there’s no career path in that!
The New & Powerful Way Forward
It has taken many years to develop & verify, but there is now a low cost, low risk, low impact route to achieving “outside of the box” outcomes that go beyond normal horizons. To paraphrase Prof. Fred Brooks:
“The answer is invisible and unvisualizable until you actually see it working.”
In May, I was delighted to introduce the principles behind the 3 Steps to Nirvana at the TLG 15th Indirect Tax Exchange and I’m extending a personal invitation for you to join me at a top-level masterclass to complete the compelling story and learn more!
You will see me – by popular demand – explain by example your critical pathway to The 3 Steps to Tax Transformation Nirvana.
This highly thought-provoking & time-efficient masterclass packed with ground-breaking material will run on Tuesday 13th September 2022 @ 11:30 BST/ 12.30 CEST for 1 hour, and because it builds on the highly acclaimed conference tutelage …
… You can book your place now with my offer FREE OF CHARGE FOR THE FIRST 50 REGISTRANTS (Normal Price $179).
If you’re ready to benefit or want to find out more about what the masterclass will cover, please view the registration page …
For those that asked, we were always happy to tell people our previous company name – PawPaw Taxology – was a derivation of “Peck and Wilson Protecting African Wildlife”, and that sentiment remains even as we rebranded to Xyto Taxology.
Time off at Xyto is a relative term…
We are indeed in Africa, both enjoying and catching up on the 20,500ha of pristine Botswana wilderness that we part own. In addition, we’re learning more about the challenges of preserving the beauty of the bush for generations to come.
However, the importance of that task pales in comparison to the immediate needs of the local communities. So, five members of the extended Xyto team visited a local school at Moletemane in eastern Botswana and invited several school children to join us on a game drive.
The reserve is already a major contributor to the school and an employer of many of the children’s parents, but most of the students had never before seen an elephant or a giraffe in the wild. The day was a huge success.
So, not only are we enjoying our summer (as we said at the end of our last article, Innovation in Tax Needs Leaders, Not Managers), but we’re also nurturing the ‘who we are’ of Xyto – of which our work in the bush is a contribution and passion which extends well beyond tax.
