During your busy season, it’s common to experience late-night concerns about pending tasks.
Did you complete the client’s payment processing? Was the deliverable sent before the deadline? Has the necessary approval been obtained for the BAS? Regardless of your specific role, there are numerous responsibilities that can cause stress and uncertainty.
As an accountant, you are accustomed to managing tight deadlines and multiple priorities. However, when these demands become overwhelming, it can impact your well-being.
Implementing accounting workflow automation and delegating routine tasks can help alleviate stress, reduce sleepless nights, and promote a more balanced workload.
Automation of Accounting Processes
Automation encompasses various processes within the accounting industry. It eliminates the need for manual data entry by enabling the direct or indirect import of bank feed data into most accounting systems. With just a few clicks, transactions such as purchases can be recorded efficiently, and matching transactions to bank feeds from multiple accounts can be completed quickly and accurately.
Automation offers the potential to reduce human error and improve efficiency. However, certain accounting tasks remain beyond the scope of current automation capabilities. These value-added activities continue to rely on the expertise and judgment of professional accountants. Therefore, it is important to allocate time effectively, focusing on tasks where human insight provides the greatest contribution.
Accounting workflow automation streamlines manual tasks such as scheduling, task assignment, and process monitoring. It can also encompass team management and client relations.
Implementing workflow automation enhances operational efficiency for finance professionals. By optimizing resource allocation and reducing cognitive load, team members can deliver higher-quality, more accurate work for clients. Additionally, automation ensures that, once a project is initiated, all necessary steps are clearly defined, minimizing the risk of oversight.
Automatable Components of the Accounting Workflow
Regularly Scheduled Meetings: In a straightforward example of workflow automation, you can establish recurring meetings. Whether for project updates or internal check-ins, any meeting scheduled on a regular basis can be automated. This eliminates the need to coordinate scheduling, as the meetings are already reflected on everyone’s calendars.
Payroll : Payroll is processed according to a consistent schedule. Ensuring timely payments is essential for maintaining staff satisfaction and trust. If all employees are salaried, the payroll process can be fully automated. For organizations with hourly employees, some involvement may be necessary. It is recommended to set up automatic payments for payroll taxes post-processing, allowing the payroll procedures to operate smoothly with minimal oversight.
Bookkeeping: As part of your responsibilities, you handle client accounting, which often involves reaching out to clients for questions and clarifications. Internal accounting processes can largely be streamlined through automation. For example, invoices for recurring services can be generated and sent automatically, and receipts can be collected without manual input. Bank transactions can be imported directly from your financial institution. Additionally, transactions from vendors you have previously paid are automatically categorized and recorded. By leveraging automation for these tasks, your involvement is greatly reduced, allowing you to maintain accurate and up-to-date financial records with minimal effort.
Client Onboarding Process: Several essential pieces of information must be obtained during the onboarding of a new client. This includes securing access to their relevant data, either directly or by establishing a process for the client to provide the necessary information. Initial steps involve assigning the account to an appropriate account manager, collecting all pertinent details, and integrating their work into your team’s schedule. Many of these manual procedures can be streamlined through automation.
Automation can be a valuable tool, but it is important to recognize that processes may not always unfold as expected. When initiating automation of accounting workflows, it is essential to anticipate potential challenges and understand that troubleshooting and adjustments may be necessary. Continuous refinement and testing are often required to ensure that workflows function effectively for your team. Implementing procedural changes within your organization is a process that benefits from patience and ongoing evaluation.
Credits
Naveen A, Services Management Team