PwC to give junior accountants manager-level roles as AI handles routine work

PwC

Artificial intelligence is changing how accountants work and PwC is making big changes to keep up. The Big Four accounting giant says junior hires will be taking on responsibilities once reserved for managers within just three years, thanks to AI taking over routine audit tasks, according to report by Business Insider.

Instead of spending their early careers crunching numbers or checking documents, newcomers will now start by supervising AI systems that do that work for them. “Three years from now, we will feel like the first years are functioning more like fourth years,” PwC’s AI assurance leader Jenn Kosar told Business Insider.

With machines handling repetitive jobs, PwC is reshaping its training to focus on the skills only people can bring — like critical thinking, professional skepticism, and advanced problem-solving. New hires will now be taught negotiation tactics and core audit principles from day one, rather than years later.

The goal is to help employees step into more strategic, high-value work earlier in their careers. “We’re going back to basics,” Kosar said, explaining that future accountants need to understand the fundamentals to make informed decisions when AI can’t.

It’s not just junior jobs feeling the shift. Partners and managers are also facing new challenges as clients ask about fully automating certain business functions. Traditional consulting fees are under pressure too — after all, why pay premium rates for something an AI tool can do instantly?

Former PwC UK partner Alan Paton has noted that this kind of automation makes clients rethink how much advice is really worth when answers come “instantaneously from a tool.”

Despite fears that AI could replace jobs or reduce critical thinking, PwC sees it as a chance to produce better, faster-trained professionals. In June, the firm launched its “assurance for AI” service, aimed at helping clients use the technology responsibly.

PwC believes its revamped training and AI-focused approach will prepare the next generation of accountants for a future where humans and machines work side by side — and where careers can progress at lightning speed.