Certainly, AI will have a huge impact on the industry. In fact, I’d say that AI is already shaking things up in a way that helps, not hinders, accountants (think of the transformation cloud accounting and firms like Xero enabled).
Here’s how AI is giving accountants a leg up and making the work they do for SMB businesses more efficient and valuable:
Handling the boring stuff
AI loves repetitive tasks – the kind that often makes humans zone out. Think data entry, invoice sorting and reconciliations. By letting AI tackle these, accountants free up time for more interesting work like analysis and client chats – normally with an improvement in accuracy and speed. This leaves your accountant with more time to spend diving into what the numbers mean and where to steer your business next.
Crunching numbers like a pro
AI’s great at processing heaps of data, doing it faster and with fewer mistakes than us humans. It spots patterns, quirks, and trends that might otherwise slip through the cracks. With AI tools, accountants can dive deeper into financial data, spotting insights that can steer clients in the right direction.
Spotting anomalies and opportunities
AI’s great at processing heaps of data and can spot patterns, quirks and trends that might otherwise slip through the cracks. With AI tools, accountants can also dive deeper into your financial data with helpful alerts to ensure nothing is missed and clients are steered in the right direction.
Seeing the future
With a better data foundation, AI can help accountants forecast outcomes with more confidence – and quicker. In fact, by digging into past data and market trends, AI can help accountants predict cashflow shifts, spot risks and suggest moves to avoid pitfalls. Imagine a crystal ball for financial planning, powered by AI, but with the expertise of an accountant behind it!
Keeping everything shipshape
In a world of ever-changing rules and regulations, compliance is a big deal. AI can help accountants stay on the ball, ensuring updates are accurately implemented everywhere they apply and compliance is assured. Plus, AI’s eagle eyes on risk mean accountants can build stronger safety nets for their clients and, whilst humans may have a bad day, AI will not.
Always Learning
AI isn’t a one-trick pony; it learns and evolves over time. By bringing AI smarts into their workflows, accountants can keep improving. From cloud software specialist Silverfin, Silverfin Assistant also uses AI to help onboard or up-skilling new or junior accountants – leaving Partners / senior specialists free to focus on their clients. It’s an ongoing journey of getting better and staying sharp in a world that never stands still, meaning more time, better services and a better experience for their SMB clients.
Creating capacity for customer excellence
Thanks to AI, innovative accountants will be working with live accurate data, flowing into best practice templates, which ensure compliance, and are easy to benchmark against similar businesses and analyse. Thanks to AI, it also arrives quicker and requires less of their time. So, customer service is the obvious place to transfer those time savings. Making business owners feel understood and looked after, building trust and loyalty.
Forget man versus machine – it’s all about teaming up for success. By embracing AI, accountants can level up their practice, offer a better and more valuable service and, most importantly, stay ahead of the curve. As Karim Lakhani said: “AI is not going to replace humans, but humans with AI are going to replace humans without AI.”
