The advancement of technology allows accounting firms to find new and better ways to run their business and serve their customers.
Gone are the days of heavy ledger books, cumbersome calculating machines and piles of documents to organise. Manual accounting processes have been replaced by highly efficient, fast and astonishingly capable specialised accounting technology. These systems can process information for a fraction of the time it takes a human and without errors.
Technology also helps ease accountants’ workload and create a healthier balance between their job and personal life.
How Has Technology Changed the Accounting Industry?
As the world becomes increasingly digitalised, more accounting firms abandon traditional processes and transition to digital procedures. Since traditional accountancy processes are usually slow, labour-intensive and error-prone, replacing them with digital solutions is crucial for your firm to stay competitive.
The COVID-19 pandemic also accelerated the adoption of technologies that support agile and flexible procedures from any location. Remote working has many benefits, including increased productivity, a better sense of wellbeing, and improved work-life balance, and technology makes it possible.
Technology also puts even the smallest business on equal footing with the big players. Accountants looking to set up their own practice can do so more efficiently for less money, and choose their definition of success.
Emerging Technologies in Accounting
Technology helps streamline accountancy operations in several ways. Here are the main emerging technologies that make accountants’ lives easier:
Automated Accounting Processes
More and more accounting firms will adopt technologically-driven solutions in the coming years to optimise processes and minimise manual tasks. Over 50% of C-level executives in the accounting industry expect the development of automated accounting systems.
Cloud-based Accounting
Accounting firms are increasingly choosing to migrate their activities into the cloud. With cloud-based accounting, you can access your firm’s system anytime. As such, about 67% of accountants think cloud technology can make their roles easier.
Big Data & Data Analytics
With advanced data collection and processing, accounting professionals can now access insights and predictive analysis about their firms. Big data analysis helps you understand your firm’s overall status with the click of a button. Data analytics present the firm’s financial performance in a new light to help business leaders make better decisions.
How Technology Creates a Better Work-Life Balance for Accountants
Technology certainly helps improve productivity and drive efficiency by replacing manual, error-prone processes with automated, digital ones. Embracing automation and innovation also helps accounting professionals achieve a much better work-life balance.
Remote and Flexible Working
The pandemic propelled us into a world of remote and hybrid working and technology turns it into a practical reality. By using cloud computing and accounting platforms like Modulr, accountants can work remotely and flexibly, with real-time payments 24/7. No longer constrained by office or banking hours, accountants can work more efficiently by tailoring their active hours to suit them and their clients.
Working Smarter, Not harder
One of the main ways technology makes life easier for accountants is by enhancing workflows to help them operate more efficiently. Automated accounting processes and payment dashboards make it easier to manage workloads by giving you full visibility of projects, client folders and other documents. With AI and Big Data handling mundane tasks like onboarding clients and crunching numbers, you’re free to focus on more high-value tasks like client support.
Creating More Efficient and Cost-effective Business Models
Virtual offices and flexible work hours not only fuel productivity, but help accountants create a healthier work-life balance. Working from home makes it easier to juggle professional duties with personal ones, such as caring for children.
Technology also makes it easier to scale your business and level the playing field in terms of business size and personal ambition. Digitalising your business procedures and storing data in the cloud means you’re not restricted by office space. Digital adoption will also give business owners greater bandwidth to focus on running the parts of their companies they can add the most value to and delegate other tasks efficiently.
Leverage the Benefits of Accounting Technology with Modulr
To maximise the productivity, efficiency and well-being gains that digital transformation brings, accounting firms must stay ahead of technological developments. As the industry continues to evolve, new innovations continuously come to market, and it can be challenging to decide which solution is best for your firm.
Become a Pathfinder today to stay ahead of the innovations transforming accounting and leverage the benefits of accounting technology.