The finance and accounting world is experiencing a groundbreaking transformation, with traditional credentials like CPAs and technical expertise taking a backseat to a surprising new skill: AI proficiency.
Sundeep Reddy, Executive Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer at Salesforce, spotlighted this seismic shift during a recent industry panel, urging professionals to rethink their resumes to emphasize AI prompting abilities.
“It’s no longer just about analytics—it’s how you’ve used AI, your prompting skills, and whether you’ve crafted scripts for agentic AI,” Reddy declared, addressing a room of finance leaders.
With a background as a former auditor, he emphasized the practical evolution at Salesforce, where employees are being trained to adopt AI agents and master writing precise prompts in plain English. “You’re not coding—you’re giving instructions, and it takes trial and error to nail the right level of detail,” he explained, advocating for rigorous controls and a “gut check” to ensure AI outputs remain auditable and refined through iteration.
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Reddy’s insights align with emerging research. A recent study, “As Generative Models Improve, People Adapt Their Prompts,” involving 1,893 participants, revealed that only half of the performance gains from advanced AI models come from the technology itself—the other half depends on users’ ability to adapt their prompts. This finding underscores the critical role of prompt engineering, a skill Salesforce is embedding into its workforce strategy.
For Reddy, this shift is about more than efficiency—it’s about preparing finance professionals for a future where AI is a collaborative partner. “We’re building a culture where precision in prompting translates to better decision-making and compliance,” he said.
