Crunching the numbers to add more value

Robotics in Accountancy

T-Impact work with ambitious accountancy firms seeking to drive change and achieve rapid ROI through digital transformation. Our robotics & AI subscription model enable firms to test the water with minimal cost and build a solid business case before seeking further investment. Speak with one of our experts to learn how accountancy firms throughout the UK are using robotics and AI to improve customer experience, reduce costs and increase profitability, and discuss specific ways that your firm can also benefit from this technology. 

 

What are the Disruptions to Accountancy?

Digital Change

Renowned for its resistance to change, accounting has undergone a dramatic shift in the last 5 years, and the speed of that transformation only seems to be growing. Big data and the integration of complex systems have led to huge amounts of unqualified, unstructured data that need to be processed and formulated accurately, and it simply isn’t viable for that to be driven by human labour alone. 

Mobile accounting

As more and more customers look to access their accounting and banking systems remotely, accountancy firms are having to adapt. Cloud-based accounting has become hugely popular among both limited companies and sole traders, as it enables complete control over one’s accounts at all times, across a range of devices. 

Customisation and Personalisation

As the modern market has different demands to past experiences, rather than being able to operate on their old ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, firms are now having to tailor their services to each individual, which demands access to substantial volumes of reliable data in order to develop relevant packages and offerings. 

The digitalisation of HMRC

The digitalisation and accessibility of HMRC through measures such as Making Tax Digital threatens to reduce the need for accountants to act as middlemen unless they are able to add significant extra value to transactions. 

The Big 4

For the last few years, the big 4 have invested heavily in developing service offerings for SME’s. This change demands that mid–market firms not only develop clearer messaging that resonates with small and medium sized businesses, but also embrace the opportunities presented by technology so that they are able to compete with the Big 4 at all levels. 

What can robotics do for accountancy?

In line with the digital shift, accounting firms have had to re-evaluate the value they can offer to their customers. Many of the more forward-thinking accountancy firms are turning towards robotic process automation to transform their working practises and maximise their business potential.

Robotics in accountancy can be used for:

Generating instant sales quotes and process account transactions on a twenty-four-hour basis

Communicating with their central services to validate data on specific orders and send confirmation emails once processed.

Monitoring customer credit levels, sending out automatic warnings or taking immediate responses.

Processing and organising invoice distribution.

Responding immediately to vendor payments, invoices or inquiries, or logging data to arrange a call-back with a member of the human workforce.

Detecting and analyzing anomalies within travel and expense reports using existing data, before correcting erroneous entries or escalating if necessary.

The Robotics involved in Accountancy Automation 

Mention AI robots and most people think of Sci-Fi Robots such as Terminator or one-arm manufacturing robots. The term AI Robotic Process Automation (RPA), refers to specific forms of software that can be ‘trained’ to perform a variety of manual functions, such as opening emails, saving attachments and entering and extracting data.

Robotic process automation (RPA) mimics human activity on your computer. By executing specific workflows and applying business rules, RPA can perform many of the same functions as a human. It accesses and creates data within your existing I.T. systems, spreadsheets, software, and documents. When it needs to make complex decisions, it reaches out to AI platforms, such as Watson, Microsoft AI, and Google Deepmind if they are available, passing the data needed for the decision and receiving guidance on what to do with the results.  

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Benefits of Robotics in Accountancy 

The most common benefit of RPA in accountancy is the fact it can free up high value and expensive staff members from administrative roles, allowing them to focus on adding value to your customers and building new revenue streams. Other benefits of RPA in accountancy include: 

Improved Efficiency

Robotics can work twenty-four-hours a day and at a faster pace than your human staff. With instant scalability and freedom to allocate virtual resources onto specific tasks using our Orchestrator robot, you can scale up and down to clear backlogs and eliminate potential bottlenecks.

Peace of mind

Rather than spending endless hours checking and double-checking data entry, robotic process automation is guaranteed to complete tasks with zero error and will update details across your entire system.

Assured compliance and improved performance

There is a full record of work and processes provided to help you establish exactly where and how your robotics is saving you money.

Reduced Costs

By using subscription model RPA, you are able to expand capacity without growing costs and ease the strain on your existing back-office resources, allowing your human staff to focus on empowering, value-adding tasks instead.

Peace of Mind

Thanks to automatic syncing with government portals and databases to update details in line with the most up-to-date legislation, you don’t need to worry about breaking laws accidentally through poor data management.

FAQs

In accounting, what processes should I automate?

In general terms, robotics is best utilised for tasks that are time-critical, data sensitive and require a number of repetitive actions. For accountancy, robotics can also be deployed to tackle large levels of big data.

Do I have to purchase an orchestrator robot to manage my virtual workforce?

No, your staff can manage the virtual workforce using their console, phone or laptop. However, a orchestrator robot means these processes can be controlled and managed twenty-four-seven, as opposed to just when staff re available.

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