automation and the future of accounting

how one firm uses bots to its advantage.

by jody grunden

there’s no doubt that advancements in technology are changing the world, and the accounting industry is no exception. technology is making us more productive, more efficient and more connected.

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on the flip side, it’s also taking over some of our jobs. this is a reality in the accounting industry that we cannot ignore. technology is driving major changes for the future of the accounting world. we need to be aware of what’s happening and take strategic steps to advance along with these changes. otherwise, we are going to be left in the dust.

in 2017, mckinsey global institute published a report about how automation will impact the workforce. this study predicts that robots could replace nearly a third of the u.s. workforce by 2030. here’s the part of their report i think we need to be the most aware of in the accounting industry:

“very few occupations – less than 5 percent – consist entirely of activities that can be fully automated. however, in about 60 percent of occupations, at least one-third of the constituent activities could be automated, implying substantial workplace transformations and changes for all workers.”

while robots (or “bots”) may be replacing parts of our jobs, they will never be able to replace people entirely. what is most at risk are the tasks that are repetitive. for accountants, this means that we may need to rethink what we’re doing and the value we’re offering clients. simply crunching some numbers and running a few reports isn’t going to cut it in the future.

we embrace robots and automation at summit cpa. we are constantly looking for ways to increase our efficiency through our processes and tools. if a tool can automate a process for us, great! automation often means time may be freed up for us to focus on the things that provide the most value for our clients, such as forecasting, analysis and strategy.

recently, we realized our financial statement process was taking way too long. we have over 100 clients that we’re preparing financial statements for each month. on average, it was taking our team four to six hours from start to finish to prepare each financial statement. when you multiply four to six hours per financial statement by 100 financial statements per month, that’s quite a bit of money and energy spent preparing financial statements.

as we looked for alternative solutions, we found a way that we could use bots to handle a lot of the repetitive process. once our it team implemented the bots into our process, the human part of the work was reduced down to about one to two hours per statement. again, when you multiply this by 100, the innovation made a significant difference in our time spent processing these financial statements. it resulted in a savings of about $200,000 per year, which then increases our capacity to bring on new clients with our existing team.

robots aren’t threatening our jobs. they’re forcing us to raise the bar, and that is a good thing! our jobs are secure because people will always be needed in the accounting industry. technology is turning accountants into reviewers rather than doers. while bots may be able to automate processes, people will always be needed to do the analytical, critical thinking and strategic functions that bots simply cannot do.

technology is the future, and it is advancing rapidly. if you are willing to embrace this fact and take the necessary steps to adapt, you and your firm will be positioned for success as the industry evolves. are you ready for the future?

posted on july 27, 2019