Do You Want AI and Automation for Your Practice? Here’s What You Need to Know:

Would you like to use artificial intelligence (AI) and automation for your practice?

When Sage commissioned research for the Power of Now report in 2018, 66% of accountants would invest in AI if it automated time-consuming and repetitive tasks.

Today, the capabilities of AI and automation have expanded exponentially.

So where do you start with AI in your accounting practice?

This article will explain some of the options available for you.

Here’s what we cover:

Automation for your practice

At a certain point, the automation could only carry out its programmed functions.

Thanks to AI integration, it can now learn, analyze and adapt to your unique business needs.

From time savings to useful process suggestions, adding AI to automation has shown its benefits.

Stay informed – and understand the benefits of automation and AI

It can be difficult to keep up with technological changes, but the fact that you are reading this article is a step in the right direction. You might also consider monitoring information coming from trade organizations at home and abroad.

For example, ICEAW published a major report on AI in accounting in 2023.

In this recent example, ACCA has also published a report looking at AI in accounting.

However, it’s not just you personally who should make sure to stay up to date.

You should encourage your colleagues to stay ahead of the changes, because AI is likely to bring cultural and institutional change to your practice if it hasn’t already begun.

The benefits of using AI-powered automation are becoming increasingly clear.

Using AI tools can save you time, unburden your previously manual processes, and give you deeper and more comprehensive insights for reporting.

To give just one example, basic accounting tasks are often assigned to trainees or trainees.

But as AI begins to take care of them, it’s likely that newcomers to the industry will start at a fundamentally higher level.

That’s not a bad thing.

Research has shown that young people entering the industry today have little tolerance for basic tasks, which can lead to high staff turnover.

Using AI to eliminate manual administrative tasks improves your practice’s reputation and positively impacts company culture.

This means you’ll also retain employees and attract new talent because they know they’re spending their time on what matters most: building customer base through interpersonal relationships and focusing on strategic decision-making.

Once you understand the benefits of using AI in your accounting practice, you can better explain them to your clients.

This is especially important if they are still using isolated technology.

This is where you can help by understanding the technology and advising them on the transition.

Helping them figure out how cloud-based, AI-powered solutions can advance their business will only create more value for your practice.

Experience new efficiencies with AI and automation

From calculators to cloud computing, the industry has been locked in a three-legged race with technology since the 1960s, each providing groundbreaking, important features.

Your existing accounting and customer management software will be updated to reflect current technological advances.

AI will be an extension of existing features you already use, and you may not even notice its presence.

However, you will notice an increase in efficiency, both in the processes you have previously used and in your own workload management.

For example, reconciling and coding bank accounts requires significantly less intervention on your part.

Your practice management software will be more proactive in allocating resources because it understands the seasonality and flow of your client data.

Give AI and automation time

Of course, new technologies require us to invest time in making everything work and get the most out of it.

But sometimes it takes more than that. It requires us to give Him the benefit of the doubt.

AI is gaining momentum in the industry and as with any technology, you need to find the best way to use it for your practice.

As with any new technology, there will be a learning curve.

AI must first be trained through repeated use so that it can understand your usual processes.

In the machine learning examples below, patience is again required to complete basic tasks – just as patience would be required to train a human.

Final thoughts

The benefits of using AI and automation for your practice are clear.

The right tools act like an assistant to help you complete tasks with ease and continue to automate the processes that are most useful for your business.

And AI adapts and learns, changing with your business and supporting it every step of the way.

In other words, the investment in AI will be more than just technological or financial.

Sage CEO Steve Hare says: “This new wave of AI has the potential to run your business in entirely new ways.”

Editor’s Note: This article was first published in May 2018 and has been updated for relevance.