Technology changes quickly. Other fields, such as legal and finance, are comparatively slow to evolve. (A friend’s daughter recently told me she chose the finance discipline for that reason: to avoid having to constantly learn new technologies.) Changes do come though, especially as organizations move to keep up with financial reporting requirements.
At the same time, technologist know that if you miss one technology way, it’s possible to catch the next one successfully. In 1999, I was convinced that I had missed the Internet revolution. I could see the potential of the Internet, but also the real possibility of a bumpy ride. I was also acutely aware of my lack of skills or industry knowledge to bring to the revolution. I went back to work, though, and continued learning—and when the next wave came (the mobile revolution) I was ready and started working toward mobile-enabling the supply chain. Now, we’re looking at the next wave, the Internet of Things (IoT) and we’re working toward mobile/IoT-enabled supply chains.
In the finance industry, meanwhile, Sarbanes Oxley (SOX) impacted the Enterprise, but also shifted the tax laws. Effective in 2006, SOX required all publicly-traded companies to implement and report internal accounting controls to the SEC for compliance. These shifts have also given rise to new business models. Let me offer one example. I was involved in a multi-year implementation project as part of a professional services firm. The revenue recognition was challenging, but there were a lot of gray areas and many examples of companies getting into trouble for not following the rules. At the same time, the core of finance remained the same: the balance sheets, the cash flow, and most other financial reports.
Legal is similar. There are changes to the law, but lawyers argue cases in much the same ways that they always have. At the same time, technological innovations change things in the world. Facebook, WhatsApp, and mobile tools impact our lives but doesn’t change the legal system itself. You still have to go to court—There’s no way to do it online.
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