In the audience

Telefisco 2026, Ai, young people and customer relations: the challenges of the profession

Business crisis, scrapping and compliance the topics that accountants deal with the most

by Camilla Colombo and Camilla Curcio

6 February 2026

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

The Ai challenge
Generational turnover
Other themes

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

For accountants artificial intelligence is no longer a distant prospect, but a tool to be integrated gradually and prudently into daily activities. During the 35th edition of Telefisco, this was the theme on which the professionals in the audience were most aligned. They also supported the Revenue Agency's decision to use the Ai for controls. "They are ahead of us and we have to adapt: more than an issue for the client, it is a challenge for us professionals," commented Elena Roncalli, a chartered accountant registered with the Bergamo Chartered Accountants Association since 2007 and a veteran of the event. Of the same opinion is Margherita Molinari, a member of the Bergamo Order but active mainly in Milan. "I am activating it and I believe very much in this opportunity, which is already real and which we can no longer do without. Even hearing Deputy Minister Maurizio Leo today, I understand that the Inland Revenue is using it with the reassurance that it will not be used with respect to the compliance letters'.

The Ai Challenge

The increasingly widespread use of this technology is confirmed by both Francesco Geneletti, outgoing president of the Association of Accountants of Bergamo, and Giorgio Gavazzeni, newly elected president. "Two years ago Ai was still hearsay, but today it has entered into our Code of Ethics with an ad hoc article. For example, in our professional mandate we have to make explicit the clause on whether or not we use Ai in our consultancy,' Geneletti explains. He is echoed by Gavazzeni, who has announced that he wants to set up a Commission on the subject 'to help colleagues develop it at work'.

At the Frosio firm, run by brothers Giovanni and Mauro, artificial intelligence is used thanks to several tools, including Chat Gpt. Nicola Alessandro Coletto, who is registered in Milan but works in Bergamo, also makes use of it 'in order to always have up-to-date information given the rapid evolution of regulations. But it is necessary to ask the right questions'.

For all professionals, the real advantage of Ai is, without doubt, time savings.

Generational turnover

Looking to the future, another knot to be unravelled remains the attractiveness of the profession for the new generations. Marcello Mora, an accountant from Bergamo who, for 30 years, has been following Telefisco "as a moment of updating and meeting with colleagues", recalls how much the profession has changed over the years and how it is facing a moment of transition. "There is a netto calo of young professionals," the Frosio brothers recount. "When we started out, there were many resumes at the Bar, today there are few. It's difficult to find new recruits who want to enter this world, both because the idea of the profession itself is in crisis, and because the accountant today is seen a bit like a lawyer.

But there are also those who, among the burdens they have to manage, see in their work a social purpose. "In addition to being accountants, we are cultural mediators," Molinari emphasises, "because we have to bridge the gap between a public body and the taxpayer, who always feels a little harassed."

The other themes

The issue of tax pressure is central, even for those working with small businesses. "There is a real difficulty in opening a business because there is a fear of not being able to cope with the tax burden. There is something that is not working properly and should be fixed," Roncalli hopes. "In my opinion, combating tax evasion means arranging for fairer redistribution across the board and lower taxation for all. We often find ourselves, with the crisis code, in situations of over-indebtedness, which are also complicated to deal with on a human level'.

The attention to small firms, taxation and consulting is emphasised by the newly appointed president of the Bergamo Chamber of Commerce. Also because, given the entrepreneurial fabric of Italia, artisans and SMEs are among the most frequent clients of the accountants in the room. On the other hand, for those who deal more with large companies, the most popular topics (and on which it is important to keep up to date) remain reorganisations, generational transitions, capital gains and aggregations.