{"id":995,"date":"2026-11-02T05:06:49","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T05:06:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insight.thomsonreuters.co.nz\/business\/?post_type=insight_resource&#038;p=995"},"modified":"2026-11-02T05:06:50","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T05:06:50","slug":"the-future-of-tax-teams-is-being-decided-now-where-does-yours-stand","status":"publish","type":"insight_resource","link":"https:\/\/insight.thomsonreuters.co.nz\/business\/resources\/resource\/the-future-of-tax-teams-is-being-decided-now-where-does-yours-stand","title":{"rendered":"The future of tax teams is being decided now. Where does yours stand?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Almost every tax leader knows what they want their department to become: proactive, strategic, and visible to the C-suite. Very few have got there. Fewer than 2% say they have achieved their 2030 vision or are close to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2026 State of the Corporate Tax Department report looks at why. The answer is less about any single technology and more about how tax teams&#8217; operations are planned, resourced, measured and communicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1\" style=\"color:#d64000\">What the numbers say about corporate tax teams<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2\" style=\"color:#d64000\"><strong>73%<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">of tax leaders say their department is still seen primarily as a cost centre, or at best equal parts cost centre and value creator. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3\" style=\"color:#d64000\"><strong>8x<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">leaders who say their department is seen as a value creator are eight times more likely to rate it exceptionally successful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4\" style=\"color:#d64000\"><strong>53%<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">say their tax department is under-resourced, the third year running that more than half have said so. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5\" style=\"color:#d64000\"><strong>62%<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">report limited or no progress on automation and AI adoption in the past 12 months.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6\" style=\"color:#d64000\"><strong>84%<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">say AI use should be off-limits in some areas of tax, even with controls in place.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7\" style=\"color:#d64000\">What tax leaders can learn<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are four things that every tax leader should be asking right now. This report highlights the questions that separate successful tax departments from the rest:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Is our tax department viewed as a value creator? <\/strong>Why 83% of tax leaders feel confident articulating their value, yet CFOs say what lands on their desk is mostly audits, penalties and filing rates.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Is our tax department adequately resourced?<\/strong> The main reasons teams are under-resourced, what CFOs say they need to see before approving headcount, and the alternatives to hiring that teams are already using.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>How focused and effective is our technology strategy?<\/strong> Why process automation is the top priority (60% rank it first), where leaders see the biggest opportunity in the next two years, and where they draw the line on AI.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>What is our vision for 2030?<\/strong> How leaders expect their own roles to change, and how close departments really are to getting there.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8\" style=\"color:#d64000\">Inside you&#8217;ll find<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>How value-creator departments report differently to the CFO (not more metrics, but different ones).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What CFOs rank as essential when evaluating a request for more headcount.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Where tax leaders think automation and AI will make the biggest difference in the next two years.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Where AI should be off-limits, according to the people accountable for sign-off.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Practical guidance on how to steer your department in the right direction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>About the research: The Thomson Reuters Institute&#8217;s 2026 State of the Corporate Tax Department report is based on a 15-minute online survey completed by 244 decision-makers in corporate tax departments, conducted in July and August 2026. 92% were in leadership positions, and 34 CFOs were also surveyed. Produced in partnership with Tax Executives Institute.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Almost every tax leader knows what they want their department to become: proactive, strategic, and visible to the C-suite. Very few have got there. Fewer than 2% say they have&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":997,"template":"","categories":[659,658],"tags":[824],"resource_type":[624],"insight_job_role":[953,897],"insight_practice_area":[],"class_list":["entry","author-traus","post-995","insight_resource","type-insight_resource","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","category-global-tax-reporting","category-leadership-strategy","tag-tax-technology","resource_type-report","insight_job_role-tax-manager","insight_job_role-tax-manager-director","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The future of tax teams is being decided now. 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