Accounting is turning from an introvert to an extrovert. It’s no longer here are my numbers, give me a quarterly report and we’ll figure it out from there. It’s here’s my data, I want a report tomorrow. Companies are becoming more demanding because they want real-time results.
With the increase in technology, it is becoming more clear where accounting is heading. It’s a full-time service now, not just a necessary part of the business. Businesses especially small to medium-sized are now looking to accounting for growth strategies and opportunities.
These five accounting trends that will be discussed show the place the accounting world is in right now, and the opportunities it will yield for businesses in the future. Growth in the accounting world shows no signs of slowing down and companies should be taking advantage of it early.
Client Service in Accounting
Its no longer a tough decision for companies to make the switch from accountant to accountant, or firm to firm. It’s as easy as the click of a button, accounting isn’t done on paper, or offline anymore. All the information is readily available to be moved, looked at, and utilized.
This means it’s time for the accountant to become a friend. With client loyalty declining, creating relationships will be a major key to a firm’s client retention. This means being a proactive accountant. Not just getting the work done quickly and efficiently, but connecting with the client. That’s what will make them stay around.
Accounting in the Cloud
With the technology increase in the 21st century, it just makes sense for accounting to move to the cloud. The advantages to this? There are multiple. It is cheap, it’s easy to use, it gives real-time data, and can be accessed from anywhere. Although not all companies use the cloud for accounting, they soon will be.
Automated Accounting
Again, looking at the increase in technology in recent years there are many ways it can benefit accountants. One of these ways is automation. This is huge for accountants because it’s a time saver. For example, now all an accountant has to do to record a receipt is scan it, and automation technology will do the rest. Record it, enter it, and put it in the right account. With the innovation and upgrade of this technology, accountants will see the benefits for years to come.
Accountants Becoming Consultants
It’s no longer ok for accountants to just enter the data, and present the reports. It’s time for them to analyze, evaluate, and suggest. The accountant has to become the “Trusted Advisor,” which is the person that can propose growth strategies by analyzing the numbers. It is a necessity, not something to strive for, for accountants in today’s world. To prove this even further, recently there has been an increase in starting salaries for accountants because more is expected of them with this change in the accounting world.
DIY Accounting
With new software, and even something as simple as YouTube it is no longer out of the realm for a new business owner to do their own accounting and bookkeeping. There are unlimited resources that can be utilized to do this. The reason a new business owner or entrepreneur would do this is so they don’t have to pay all that money to a firm when their budget probably isn’t that high. Since it is getting easier this means accountants need to continue to be valuable to their clients and offer them something they cannot do on their own.
These trends should not be seen as a negative, but a positive, because change provides opportunity, and opportunity if taken advantage of correctly increases growth. Trends in the future of accounting will continue to be added and continue to disappear, but it will always be good for accountants and firms to act on them early, and while they still can to stay ahead of the game.
