The impact of technology in the accounting industry

 It doesn’t matter which industry you will look at or which type of business you will look at, the one common thing that you will notice in almost all the industries out there is the use of technology. Gone are those days when using technology for business was considered an alien concept and it was limited to only IT industries. In the modern era, every industry is harvesting the power of technology to improve its effectiveness, outcomes, efficiency, productivity, and time cycle. You can think of the oddest industry in terms of technology and you will realize that technology is being even in that industry. Well, the same can be said for the accounting industry as well.

You should know that there was a long period during which accounting has nothing to do with technology. In the early days, accounting was all about maintaining books on papers and if you would have talked about technology and accounting then someone would have considered you as a fool. But everything has changed in the modern era and now technology has become an integral part of the accounting department.

Now, if you will look at the skills of accountants then you will realize that they are not limited to bookkeeping only. In the modern era, firms are looking for much more than just bookkeeping while hiring accountants and this is why even accountants need to adapt themselves to these types of changes. Now, if you will go on finding a job as an accountant without having technological knowledge then there are maximum chances that you will not get a job. There are many ways in which the accounting industry has been transformed by technology and we are going to explore some of those ways in this blog post.

Automation through AI

One of the technological solutions that are going to have the biggest impact on the accounting sector or we can say already making an impact on the accounting industry is Artificial Intelligence or what is more popularly known as AI. You should know that AI is the system in which a huge amount of data is fed to make the machine replicate human intelligence and the same concept is being used in the accounting industry as well. Many operations in accounting are repeated tasks and in such operations, AI can be used to free up accountants from different types of dull and mundane operations.

You can even take the example of the new release of QuickBooks 2021 in which a lot of focus has been given to automation and this is why people are reluctant on using QuickBooks Enterprise hosting. But you should never think that concepts like AI will completely wipe out the need for humans from the accounting industry as there are many sectors of accounting or many operations of accounting that can’t be handled or managed without human intervention. The arrival of AI in the accounting sectors will only compliment the work done by the accountants and this is why now most of the powerful accounting software solutions are AI-based.

Cloud-based system

If you are using a software solution by installing it on your desktop and considering yourself as a technologically advanced human being then you are completely wrong. You should know that rather than installing the software on the desktop, people are using the cloud hosting option and the same trend is being followed in the accounting industry as well. You should know that in the accounting sector, there came a time when the whole accounting industry was changed due to the arrival of software solutions but it’s been a long since software made a change.

Now cloud hosting solutions like QuickBooks hosting has become a new normal for most of the accounting professionals out there and since it is an economical option, no one finds it difficult to use. You just have to choose a cloud hosting provider and the rest will be done by the cloud vendor itself. By using cloud hosting solutions, the accounting industry is now thriving anywhere, anytime access, enhanced security, high uptime, and much more.

Mobile accounting

If you are thinking accounting on the go is just an imagination then you are underestimating the potential of your mobile devices. You should know that the use of mobile phones has increased at a very fast pace in the last couple of years and it will keep on increasing in the future as well. Now, we are using mobile phones for videos, images, bank transactions, finding dates then why can’t we use them for accounting.

You should know that now the modern-day market is filled with applications that are used for accounting and you can use these apps for creating invoices, creating expense claims, gathering signatures, and for many other purposes as well. The best part about this is you can do all of this with just a swipe of the screen.

If you are using accounting software on the desktop and if that accounting software is highly popular then there are maximum chances that that software solution must be having a mobile app as well since no one out there wants to miss on the huge opportunity offered by mobile devices.

Diversified accounting roles

If you are planning to become an accountant and if you are considering focusing on bookkeeping only then you are going to land nowhere. Gone are those days when accountants used to climb on the top of the success ladder just by mastering the art of bookkeeping. Now, because of technological introductions, the role of accountants has diversified. Modern-day accountants are now not limited to accounting only as they have become tech-savvy as well. Now, the accountants don’t only need to deal with books but they also need to take part in major decision-making processes of the business as well.

Well, many things have diversified the role of an accountant but technological evolution has played a major role in it. There is no way modern-day accountants can survive in the accounting industry without learning the basics of some of the technologies used in the modern era like cloud computing, AI, advanced software solutions, and much more. You will be surprised to know that even those academies that train accountants are now including technology as an important subject and this might be enough to make you realize the power of technology.

Technology is already having a big impact on everybody around us and this is why it is affecting us in many different ways. Now, we are no more limited to brick and mortar shops when it comes to shopping and no more need to find vacancies in newspapers only. But this is just a small impact of technology on the modern-day world as if you will look at the bigger aspect of it then only you will realize how big technological evolution is, even for the accounting industry.

With time, we will see technology shaping the future of accounting and it will have a more heavy impact on the accounting sector in the future.

Author Bio

Emma, an editor at Elucentra, loves to write about different topics related to technology. Her writing is a clear representation of the challenges, opportunities, developments, and uses of QuickBooks hosting pricing, and other innovative technologies. She believes in making the internet more informative through his writing and knowledge.