Accountants: What's in store for 2026

As 2025 winds down, one thing is clear: the accounting profession is moving faster, thinking bigger and asking better questions than it has in years. AI has shifted from experiment to expectation, advisory has gone mainstream and firms are rethinking how work actually gets done. To help you make sense of what’s coming next, we asked a group of industry leaders to share what stood out in 2025, what will matter most in 2026 and how firms and professionals can prepare now. 

Their answers go beyond buzzwords and get into what these changes really mean for your workflows, your clients and your career in the year ahead. 

— Interviews by Janet Berry-Johnson, edited by Bianca Prieto

The Experts

What was your favorite trend in the profession in 2025?

Rowe: Is AI a valid answer? That is the obvious one. In all seriousness, my favorite trend has been the profession's renewed focus on innovation, which I have not seen since the early days of everyone receiving their first email accounts in the '90s. I have seen firms of all sizes embrace new ways of working and thinking to achieve their ultimate purpose: serving their clients as trusted advisors.

Castaneda: Hands down, my favorite trend in 2025 has been the rise of advisory services in the accounting field. It’s amazing to see our field transform from crunching numbers and filing reports to genuinely assisting clients in making better business decisions. Firms have evolved from being just compliance partners to becoming strategic allies. It’s exciting to see accountants stepping up as trusted advisors, guiding clients on everything from cash flow management to long-term growth plans. It’s amazing to see how many more people are disenfranchising from big-box stores and making the beneficial switch to small mom-and-pop businesses. It’s also better for the economy.

Kwaiser: Technology/AI and talent. We have only scratched the surface, but the use of AI has built significant momentum in 2025. AI will provide great opportunities for efficiency in completing routine compliance work and create the opportunity to spend more time with clients as advisors. Regarding talent, enrollment in accounting programs increased, and many states are passing legislation allowing for alternative licensing pathways.

Anders: My favorite trend in 2025 was the shift toward AI tools being built directly into core accounting systems rather than living off to the side as separate point solutions. It has never been easy to bolt on external tools. Between integrations, user access, security reviews and training, a lot of promising technology stalled out in implementation. This year, we started to see real progress with native AI inside ERPs, GLs, payroll and billing systems that accountants already use every day. Instead of adding yet another system to maintain, the tools are showing up in the normal workflow: suggesting account codes, flagging anomalies, helping with reconciliations and summarizing variances. That’s made it much easier to actually capture the benefit and free up capacity for higher-value work, rather than just admire the potential from afar.

What’s one trend you believe will greatly impact the accounting profession in 2026, and how should firms prepare for it now?

Rowe: AI and agentic workflows are going to continue to advance at an exponential rate, unlocking automated and data-driven workflows that will enable nearly touchless compliance and identify advisory opportunities. This will be possible by enabling Agents to interact with external software and data systems, make independent decisions and improve over time. They can handle complex, multi-step tasks without constant human oversight. Firms can prepare for this now by developing a plan that spans people, process and technology. From a people standpoint, it is critical to embrace AI and complete training to become comfortable with its various applications. From a process standpoint, change management will become critical; firms will need to understand new decision-making criteria related to security, privacy and KPIs, as well as new onboarding and training plans. For technology, it is important to embrace cloud platforms built on an API-first approach, as this will enable accelerated innovation and data interoperability.

Castaneda: The most significant trend that will influence in 2026 is the deeper integration of AI and automation into daily accounting tasks. AI isn’t going to take accounting jobs, but it will change the focus of our work. Firms that embrace this change early can transition their teams from routine data entry to more valuable projects such as analysis and forecasting. To be prepared, firms should begin training their employees now—not just on how to use automation tools, but also on how to analyze the data those tools produce.

Kwaiser: AI will continue to have a significant effect. Firms must provide training on “how” to use the powerful tool. It is designed to assist, not replace, the human element.

Hahn: 2026 is the year accounting pros will rediscover the joy of their craft. AI shouldn’t be scary; it should be your always-on super assistant. Tech should take the mind-numbing work, so you can remember why you got into this business in the first place. It’s doing the work in the background while accountants and advisors do what only people can: build trust, listen deeply and help clients move forward with confidence. The best firms will have an assistant who never sleeps and partners who finally can.

Anders: The big trend for 2026 will be AI moving from “nice-to-have helper” to the backbone of how workflows are designed and executed. We’re headed toward a world where tools don’t just give suggestions in isolation, but help connect the full chain of work. To get ready for that, firms should focus less on chasing every new tool and more on making their house “AI-ready.” That means standardizing and documenting processes instead of relying on tribal knowledge, cleaning up charts of accounts and master data so the tools aren’t learning from a mess and investing in training and change management so people understand how their roles will evolve. It also helps to identify a few internal “champions” who can pilot new capabilities, build real use cases and bring practical lessons back to the broader team.

Where do you see the biggest growth opportunities next year?

Rowe: The underlying mission of a CPA is to be the Trusted Advisor for clients, helping them with compliance and their everyday business decisions to grow their business and achieve their goals. As such, the biggest opportunity will be leveraging technology to enable professionals to harness data across platforms and their firm's ecosystem, not just to complete compliance work more rapidly and with deeper insights, but also to identify new advisory opportunities that help their clients achieve their goals. Imagine being able to identify your clients affected by legislative changes and find tax optimization strategies in a few clicks.

Castaneda: The biggest growth opportunities next year are in client advisory and data-driven services. Clients are looking for more than just accurate financial records; they want insights that help them make better decisions and pursue additional approaches to expansion or investment. On the firm side, adopting technology and combining it with personalized advisory support will lead to faster growth and strengthen client relationships.

Kwaiser: The biggest opportunities for growth are industry specialization and expanding client relationships. The Rehmann team has grown with many subject matter experts who empower our teams to help clients understand and meet their goals.

Hahn: High-growth firms will use data to work smarter, not harder—identifying which clients and services truly drive profitability. Technology will guide decisions, but humans will set direction and ensure growth stays aligned with purpose.

Anders: The biggest growth opportunities, in my view, sit at the intersection of technology and technical accounting. On the technology side, firms that can bring a thoughtfully curated stack with AI-enabled workflows, collaboration tools and clear, visual reporting will differentiate themselves quickly. Clients don’t just want debits and credits done correctly; they want a finance function that feels modern and responsive. At the same time, the GAAP landscape continues to evolve, and many companies struggle to keep up with new and complex standards. Firms that lean into technical accounting expertise and pair it with practical implementation support can turn that complexity into a real competitive advantage. When you can both interpret the rules and operationalize them in systems and processes, you add real value.

How do you expect AI and automation to evolve in accounting workflows in 2026?

Rowe: Specifically for accounting, I envision agents identifying all month-end entries required, automatically connecting with third-party systems to capture the necessary data and automating the corresponding reconciliations. From there, monthly reports can be automatically created with various trends and KPIs to assist with decision-making. Towards the end of the year, agents will automatically connect to the relevant tax engines to automate the tax process and make adjustments along the way. I fully expect that there will be ‘humans in the loop’ to review and adjust as needed along the way.

Castaneda: AI isn’t on the horizon for the accounting field; it’s already taking charge. In 2026, we’ll see automation become a partner in the workflow instead of merely a helper. Instead of spending countless hours on manual tasks like data entry or reconciliations, accountants will leverage AI to identify issues and generate insights. AI allows professionals to dedicate more time to strategy, analysis and building client relationships. Remember: with business and processes, fast is good; with people and relationships, slow and genuine is good.

Kwaiser: We will continue to expand our use of automation and AI. This will be through a combination of newly developed vendor solutions and internally developed solutions.

Anders: I expect the large platform providers to make big strides in embedding AI deeper into their products in 2026, to the point where it feels less like “using AI” and more like “this is just how the system works.” At the same time, third-party tools will continue to specialize, focusing on things like close management, revenue recognition, reconciliations or anomaly detection, and will integrate more smoothly with the core systems. Practically, that should translate to more end-to-end automation, where routine workflows run with minimal human touch and people step in mainly for exceptions. Review work will shift as well: rather than staring at every line, accountants will rely more on systems to surface what looks unusual or inconsistent, and then use their judgment to decide what it means and what to do about it.

If you were mentoring a young accountant entering the profession in 2026, what advice would you give them to thrive in this new landscape?

Rowe: Stay curious and be a continuous learner. There are so many ways to learn and explore. There are the traditional ways with training, podcasts, etc, but stretch yourself by volunteering for bigger assignments or piloting new projects. You can learn an incredible amount from other people with different experiences, and it is much more impactful when you get ‘hands-on’ time.

Castaneda: Accounting has shifted so much in the last few years. Many accountants today, especially in public accounting, are part reconcilers, part therapists, part I.T. and part Legal. The truth is that there are very few careers as dynamic as this one. Every successful organization (for-profit or not) needs accounting records, and in many cases, more than one accountant will be required. Whether accounting is a passion or a stepping-stone until your rap career takes off or your TikTok page reaches umpteen million followers, getting an accounting background is a recipe for success. While many industries have unique standards and processes, most soft skills in accounting are transferable across organizations, decades and countries. Starting your career in accounting is like joining a CrossFit gym. Sure, it’s a bit of a cult, but a healthy one.

Kwaiser: Don’t let technology dehumanize the client and associate experience. Young professionals who can connect personally while leveraging technology will stand out.

Anders: For someone entering the profession in 2026, I’d tell them to think “technology first” from day one. Get comfortable experimenting with new tools, features and automations instead of waiting for formal training. Being the person who can figure out how to make the software do more will create a lot of early career momentum. At the same time, don’t neglect the fundamentals of technical accounting. As AI takes over more of the routine work, the real value shifts to understanding gray areas, applying standards thoughtfully and explaining the impact in plain language to non-accountants. If you can combine strong technical accounting skills with a good grasp of the tools and an ability to communicate clearly, you’ll not only make your own work more efficient but also deliver outsized value to your first employer and quickly stand out from teams that are still used to doing things the old way.

The Net Gains is your one-stop shop for fresh, FREE accounting insights. You can reach the newsletter team at thenetgains@mynewsletter.co. We enjoy hearing from you.

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The Net Gains is curated and written by Janet Berry-Johnson and edited by Bianca Prieto.