Navigating Tax Transformation: Insights from Vicky Bradford
In an ever-changing world where technology is pivotal in shaping the future, the intersection of tax and transformation has become increasingly significant. In a recent interview, Vicky Bradford, a partner in PwC’s Tax Reporting and Strategy business, shares her journey into the world of tax transformation and technology. Her insights offer valuable perspectives for experienced professionals and aspiring graduates looking to dive into this evolving field.
Vicky is a Partner in PwC’s UK Tax Reporting and Strategy business, specialising in large-scale tax technology and transformation programmes with a focus on Tax in ERP. She has extensive experience advising large multinationals on evolving their tax process and technology to better meet their tax calculation, compliance and reporting obligations across all taxes.
Vicky advises large multinationals on all aspects of Tax in ERP, from blueprinting to deployment, training, testing, and post-go-live support.
Before joining PwC, Vicky was at an FTSE 50 Telco, responsible for corporate tax compliance and reporting across 100+ countries.
Vicky Bradford, Partner, PwC
Please introduce yourself and how you ended up in the world of tax transformation and technology.
I'm Vicky Bradford, I'm a partner in PwC’s Tax Reporting and Strategy business with a focus on technology and transformation. I typically lead the tax aspects of ERP implementations, working across a number of different ERP platforms like SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft D365. But this wasn't where I started out in tax.
I had a pretty traditional tax background. I started in mid-market corporate tax, compliance and advisory in the mid-1990s. After a few years, I moved into more of a tax technology role with a focus on global compliance technology and implementation. Then, I moved into global compliance, sourcing strategy, and outsourcing proper. I did that for about seven years and then I moved into industry.
I was at BT, where I used to look after their global corporate tax compliance and reporting across around 100 countries. That was working with two outsourcing providers. I returned to PWC about ten years ago now.
What was the cause of your shift from the global compliance space into tax transformation?
About five years ago now, I just returned to work from my second maternity leave. I worked on a number of our largest outsourcing engagements, advising clients on their sourcing strategy. I’d been doing that role for a bit of time, felt very comfortable in it and knew what I was doing or like to think. I knew what it was doing and then decided I needed a change.
I happened to be working on a project that kind of played into my experience. In terms of it being multi-tax and cross-border. Lots of complexity dealing with our overseas network of many of whom I worked for a number of years and knew well. I just took the plunge and went for it, really! So, that was an ERP implementation that covered 66 countries. It was a great experience. I worked on that for about 2/3 years.
One project went on for two to three years!
That's the typical length of these types of implementation programs. They can be anything from 12, 18, 24 months onwards, which is a huge investment of time. And the thing I like the most about it is it gives you a real insight into the business itself. So, rather than just necessarily doing with the tax outputs, as I was from a compliance and reporting perspective, you understand their supply chain. You understand more of their front office operations. It's really interesting.
How easy was it to make that transition from corporate tax compliance to tax transformation?
It was the steepest learning curve of my career; I went across as a Director. You don't really expect that you are going to have that kind of change in your career at that time. Especially going from being an SME, and that's what I was known for, to doing something different. But I was able to bring a lot of that compliance and reporting experience to my new role.
Understanding local compliance requirements was my bread and butter, and a lot of what I do now is helping organisations understand how they make that balance between a global system and localization, that 80/20 split. What was the 80% that needs to be standard across all markets, and then what's that 20% that absolutely needs to be localized in order for them to meet their tax and reporting requirements?
I was able to bring those skills and, like I said, working with our overseas network, understanding local nuances and complexity. Understanding how tax authorities operate in those markets because what the letter of the law says is different to actually how it's pragmatically applied and helping clients with that cost-benefit analysis.
It did feel like it was quite a natural sidestep. Although I did a lot of multi-tax projects, I've had to broaden my understanding of areas like indirect tax and operational transfer pricing, which I did not really focus as much on previously. From a learning experience, it has been brilliant.
What do you enjoy about your job in the tax transformation space?
There's a variety to my role now that is really interesting. It sounds really clichéd, but no two days are the same. I can come into the office with my to-do list of what I have to get done today and then by 10 am, that's completely blown out of the water because something else has come up. I get to work with lots of different organizations across different industries. Previously, when I had a compliance and reporting focus, I was more telecommunications, entertainment and media, but now, I work across industries. At the moment I do a lot with consumer market clients but we cover all markets. So, it's really, really varied.
What are your clients needing support with the most at the moment?
I think at the macro level, our clients are having to tackle all sorts of complexities, particularly coming out of the pandemic and climate change-related issues like ESG. It means that many are looking at more sustainable supply chains and how that impacts their operating model. There has been a massive uptake in terms of cloud technology and the ERP-led transformation.
From a micro-level, from a tax perspective, you've got the introduction of many digital reporting requirements, things like tax authority e-invoicing and real-time reporting. And most recently, Pillar 2. That means there's a focus on data quality right the first time, data governance, data ownership, and, for Pillar 2 alone, an organisation is going to have to monitor and maintain over 200 data points. This puts an awful lot of pressure on an already overburdened tax team, particularly from a data perspective, where there are lots of data points that they do not own. They do not necessarily have control over them or visibility over them. So clients are looking to maximise that investment and technology. Many are looking for global platforms that they can deal with things like e-invoicing rather than going for country point solutions. They have one solution that will need to be adapted to local requirements and have greater visibility and control.
That way, they have one license, one piece of kit, and can continue innovating and small automation. I think that will continue to be a trend, and we are seeing a lot of clients who are upskilling their teams in sort of ETL-type technology. Alongside this, I think we will continue to see the use of Power Apps, Power BI and Alteryx. I would also think that the influence of ChatGPT will become more and more present as time goes on.
The tax transformation world requires a huge variety of skill sets. How does that affect how you go about finding the right people to bring into the team?
For me, two of the most important skills are intellectual agility and being curious because, ultimately, we have got to solve a lot of big problems for clients. You need to enjoy what you are doing and be curious about it. I think traditionally, tax people have been very solution-focused. So there's a problem. This is the solution. Done.
I find I spend a lot of time listening, and I will not necessarily go into a client conversation with a clear view of how that is going to go or what it is that they are going to need. It is more about listening, answering, and asking those open questions and then exploring what it is potentially we can do to help. I think gone are the days of people that are just going to be very focused on outputs. It is more about understanding how the business works and being curious, I think.
I think about our own team here. We have a really broad mix of people who have come through more traditional routes like I have. There are people who have spent all of their careers in industry and then made the move back into practice. We've got people that have come from more of a technology background. Each of those individuals has different skill sets, which are needed for different parts of a big transformation program.
Ultimately, it's about bringing the right mix together. It's very rare that you are going to find one person who has deep technical expertise in all of those areas. It's about how you can make sure that people have the right opportunity to shine and bring what they do best to the table.
What advice would you give to graduates who are considering their options or people who have come from a more traditional tax background and may want to make the move into tax transformation?
The way I always think about it is having horizontal and vertical, and my team will laugh if they hear me say that because I am always going on about it. But understanding broadly across tax and finance about the types of issues that clients have and where the integration points are, is important. Being broad is important because you can spot opportunities and you can spot risks. But you need something at your core that is your pillar. That is your or what you bring to the table. Those two abilities are really important to be successful in the transformation space.
If I think about my own experience, that is compliance. It is the understanding of local law and local requirements. That is what I am known for, and I use that as my pillar, my base to let them be able to spot those sorts of broader opportunities. I do think it is important to think about the experience and what your USP is going to be in that sense.