Most corporate tax activities are frequently unable to address operational incompetence. Increasing regulatory requirements and limited resources indicate that tax divisions are constantly under pressure.
Progressive tax departments conduct an in-depth current state evaluation that provides a roadmap of distinct actions, costs, and comparative significance of tax functions to reflect improved efficiency.
These assessments consider the current operational state, organizational culture, and adaptability.
The tax scenario is becoming more complex as companies expand their sales and operational reach into new markets and facilitate mergers and acquisitions.
Tax information is typically decentralized and stored in systems designed for financial and management reporting. This necessitates a significant effort to not only revamp the information for tax purposes, but also to comprehend the position of various tax instructions.
Globalization is forcing business/tax stakeholders to change their approach to tax operations by increasing the demand for efficient resource utilization and expanding the focus on business synergy.
The evolution of tax operations is a continuous process, resulting from strategic changes as new requirements emerge and circumstances change. The issues surrounding tax operations revolve around normal operations, global tax governance development, effective use of tax data analytics, and international risk management competencies.
In recent years, difficult economic conditions facilitated several business transformations that had an indirect impact on tax operations.
Risk and existing business preferences are currently important factors influencing tax operations. Tax stakeholders are concerned about tax risk, and it is one of their top priorities.
The following factors influence the regulatory and risk environment:
A special emphasis is placed on peer tax rates.
An increase in tax authority control.
International business models are changing.
An increase in the need for international capital organization.
Corporate governance and tax evasion are discussed.
Tax legislation is uncertain.
The regulatory environment is critical.
The emphasis of the leadership is on tax reduction.
The importance of reputational risk has increased.
Tax authorities also believed that quality had an impact on global tax compliance/reporting and was the most important concern. Other important considerations included tax costs and the ability to add value.
In other words, tax authorities would be unable to achieve the desired results if they continued to operate normally; instead, they must alter their operations. However, changing the tax structure while maintaining service quality is a difficult process.
Because they are skilled at change management, efficient tax firms can maintain performance in a volatile business environment. They have a strong leadership team, efficient resources/tools/technology, effective service delivery methods, business analytics, and performance standards.
To meet complex requirements, several tax activities are adopting a hybrid operating model, supplementing the efforts of internal corporate tax personnel with a top-tier internal/external interface.
Tax centers of excellence (COEs) and shared service centers are two critical components of tax operating models.
Centers of excellence are focused on providing a specific service. As an example, consider the preparation of indirect tax returns/statutory reporting. Shared service centers, on the other hand, are multifaceted and include numerous tax controls.
There are no tailored solutions. Specific tax department requirements necessitate distinct solutions. For example, if there is an adequate current scale via a delivery network, security threat, and data management, using internal human resources would be appropriate.
However, it will not be a legally binding solution - tax personnel from a specific sector could leverage current service centers to manage special tax segments, while a firm could use current finance and accounting methods to perform """"traditional tax assignments"""".
A solid internal tax system would allow an organization to effectively manage tax operations while displacing internal personnel for specific functions.
Co-sourcing allows a company to access tax expertise that would otherwise be unavailable in-house. It also provides the opportunity to redirect the organization's resources.
Offshoring tax functions/processes has the following benefits:
Lower costs.
Internal personnel can place a premium on high-value functions.
Possibility of establishing contact with global personnel.
The potential for utilizing time zones.
Many critical architectures are emphasized by organizations to aid in efficient implementation and viable performance. They provide a clear vision/mission/goals.
As a result, for transformation initiatives to be successful, a comprehensive approach to the entire tax process is recommended. This allows tax stakeholders to reach an agreement on hybridization and the methodology needed to improve scalability."""
