Accounting Firms automation ? Can it be done or not ?
Thinking that new technologies and innovation are only the province of large companies is a mistake that often limits the growth of SMEs (as we have already described here) Continuing our work in pleading the cause of innovation for all.Today we want to focus on the benefits that automation can bring to accountants. Automation is often seen only as a solution for modern businesses, while traditional occupations, which have always existed, are often neglected. In fact, these professions could benefit greatly from automation and innovation, but they often do not see the value in changing the way they work.
To be competitive, accountants must be up-to-date and aware of the importance of automation. It is understandable to have some doubts and to wonder if it is worth investing in new technologies radically changing the way they work, but it is equally important to remember that adapting to change is essential to keep up with the times and remain competitive.
One of the issues raised by accountants is the changing nature of tax laws. Many people believe that an investment in automation platforms is not worthwhile because every time laws and fiscal processes change, the investment becomes worthless and you have to start over. However, BPA and RPA automation platforms are highly customizable and flexible, and can easily adapt to regulatory changes. This means that investment in these platforms can only be beneficial and profitable for accountants.
But let us see in detail what activities can be automated:
1- INVOICING PROCESS
Electronic invoicing is certainly an important milestone, but although it has greatly simplified the task of digitization, it often requires manual operator intervention for creation and sending. A few clicks that become a wasteful action when repeated dozens and hundreds of times. Accountants can automate creating and sending invoices, tracking payments and handling reminders, reducing manual workload and simplifying the management of client finances.
2- TAX MANAGEMENT
RPA can support accountants to manage clients’ compliance index, such as, tax returns, tax report generation, tax deadline management, saving time and money.
3- DOCUMENTATION
– Accountants can automatically manage the documentation of their customers, for example by managing personal data, archiving, recovery of customer accounting and tax documents. In this way, accountants will no longer have to read between the lines of Excel files and/or search for data in CRMs, thus eliminating human error, avoiding data loss and improving productivity.
4 – ACCOUNTING AUTOMATION
Thanks to RPA, accountants can automate accounting tasks such as invoice entry, bank account management, bank reconciliation, financial report generation, and more. In this way, accounting processes become faster, more accurate and scalable, reducing the risk of errors or omissions and allowing accountants to spend more time advising clients.
CONCLUSIONS
As described so far, it is clear that automation can be of great support to Accounting Firms, greatly improving their work processes and offering a better service to clients.
Sometimes you may find yourself in a situation where you are used to performing your tasks so mechanically and repetitively that you do not notice the problem and end up stuck in old habits. But it is necessary to face and overcome this step, in order to embrace change, adopt the right technologies and remain competitive.
Read also: Tax Drawer, our Automation proposal
