The Future of Accounting How Finance Professionals are Navigating New Tools and Ideas

By Jody Padar

How has the accounting profession changed since you entered it? You likely don’t have a calculator on your desk anymore. You haven’t seen a paper form in decades. You have more new software to help you than ever before. Technology has changed the way you’ve done things. It’s a trend that continues today.

The cloud has become a great enabler for accounting teams, providing access to new technologies that automate and speed up the accounting process. Today, the technologies radicalizing accounting are artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. If you’ve been busy doing things you’ve always done, now is the time to explore easier, more efficient ways to get work done. That starts with using technology better. Why should CPAs and CFOs be embracing new technology? Because it changes lives. It transforms organizations. It makes a difference in your hiring. Let’s explore how your organization can use technology to your advantage and what it means for your team and company.

Winning the War for Talent

AI and automation can actually make the work environment better. If you view technology as part of your team, that shift in mindset can help you attract and retain the next generation of accountants and financial experts. In a tight labor market, we need all the help we can get.

Using a new technology-based model, as much as 40% of the work a finance team does today should or could be done by AI, machine learning or automation in general. Another 40% should be done by the lowerlevel staff, and the remaining 15% or so by senior-level persons.

In the past, technology has been viewed as an extra, an add-on. Now is the time to shift your thinking – AI can be part of your labor force.

Can you imagine a world where you’re not working crazy hours to get period-end reports done? What about going home early – on a regular basis? It’s completely possible.

You need to think about technology as a part of your team.

Not technology to replace your team, but rather, to take away the grunt work and to elevate peoples’ jobs. That’s radical.

Bots can be trained to handle repetitive tasks, which reduces much of the manual calculations and review. That means you don’t need as much talent. And that’s a good thing, because talent is hard to come by.

There’s more to technology and automation than just being efficient.

It also has to be effective. Efficiency is no longer good enough – disruption is happening in real-time, and the real-time data is getting smarter, faster and more automated.

The Downside of Utilizing Technology

Technology is not all sunshine and roses. Anytime you introduce a new process or innovation, there will be growing pains, learning curves and change. You need to think through these challenges and acknowledge and work through them as they happen.

Technology will change team communications.

One of the important discussions you’ll need to have early on is how enabling technology will change your team’s communications. You don’t really log out of work at 5 p.m. You have your phone on. You check email at night. You respond to a text you didn’t get to earlier in the day. The questions are, is that good for the team? Is it good for leadership? Is it good for mental health?

CFOs, managing partners and executives need to be crystal clear about what’s important and what their expectations are in this new world.

Also, realize that technology can spur miscommunications. You’ve likely seen this play out a lot over the last two years. Most teams need to spend some time intentionally thinking about how to communicate as things become more automated.

Enhancing the Role of Technology on Finance Teams

In addition to using automated technology and AI in your fight to retain top talent, these tools can make the work environment better. Technology is part of your team, and that shift in mindset can help you get your hands around a sometimes-tricky topic. Afterall, there is another piece of the AI and automation puzzle: how technology will help us attract and retain the next generation of accountants and financial experts.

The expectation that AI is going to fix all your data challenges is probably not realistic. Data is only as good as the process and people behind it. Machine learning won’t uncover perfect insights. You’ll still need the human being to digest the data and respond to it.

Processes will need to standardize and scale. You don’t want to put an expensive technology on a bad process. You want to alter the way your department operates to use these technologies better, including training your employees. Shiny new technology isn’t worth much if your people don’t know how to use it. Processes can’t be changed if only a few people know how to adapt and integrate the technology.

Not all companies are actively engaging and spending the money to upskill their teams. If this is your company, then ask yourself: “What does it cost to train my employees versus hiring new ones?” It’s actually a big difference. People want to work on teams where they feel valued, supported and invested in. There’s this familiar saying you need to consider – what happens if you don’t train your employees, and they stay? That’s not exactly the makeup for great organizational DNA.

Steps to Digital Transformation

It’s not really all about the technology. It’s more about having the right people and the right processes. The technology paired with that allows you to win.

It might take a little time to see the change. In the end, you and your employees will be much happier with the results. Here’s where your organization can get started: • The Cloud: Your team must operate in the cloud for all this data to come together. • Automation: What tasks on your plate are repeated or structured?

Think about what you can automate and consider how you’ll share insights and offer advice.

• Pair Roles With the Right Technology: Different tools are best suited for different levels in an accounting department.

What’s needed to advise the next person up?

Technology can transform your organization, and your life as a result. You can spend more time on strategy, do your job better, increase the business’s revenue and profits, and you can go home earlier. l

Jody Padar, CPA (licensed in IL), is the “Radical CPA.” A former practice owner, Padar is now head of tax and evangelism for April, where she is working to help revolutionize fintech and tax spaces. She will present “Portrait of a Future CPA Firm – A Radical Approach” as a keynote speaker at Converge, the ASCPA’s annual conference, on November 8, 2022. Register for the conference at www.ascpa.com/converge.

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