5 steps for transforming your accounts production process

• What are the key features of cloud accounting for accounts production?
• Five steps for revolutionising your accounts production process.
• 1. Evaluate your current process.
• 2. Select your software and automation tools for accounts production.
• 3. Migrate your practice to cloud accounting.
• 4. Implement and monitor your new accounts production process.
• 5. Understand the features and functionalities of your new software.

Fulfilling accounts production commitments is one of the central pillars of compliance, but with ever-changing guidelines and legislation, in-keeping with FRS, the task is often inefficient. With many manual processes and data transfers, mistakes can be made, even when it’s crucial that you get it right.  

The stakes are high, and the time you have to get it right is low. So what can we do to change the accounts production process?

Picture this: instead of manually rekeying data for your accounts, your entire company can access the most up-to-date versions of your clients’ data.  

This is what cloud accounting solutions offer: it'll change your accounts production workflow forever.

What are the key features of cloud accounting for accounts production?

Before we get into the five steps you need to transform your accounts production process, what is cloud accounting?

Cloud based accounting unites your accounts software online. The cloud makes your data more accessible as employees can access their accounts from anywhere with an internet connection, instead of specific devices.  

When compared to traditional accounting, where data is localised to each employee’s system, cloud accounting allows everyone to work with the same, up-to-date data, making your processes more efficient.  

Cloud accounting software can also offer many benefits such as automation, lower costs, and AI capabilities.

The bottom line? Cloud accounting makes your accounts production process more harmonious and efficient. This means happy accountants and happy clients. 

We’ll look at the features and functionalities that come with moving your accounts production process to the cloud later.

Five steps for revolutionising your accounts production process

 

1. Evaluate your current process
   
   Before you start looking at new ways to manage your accounts production workflow, you need to understand exactly what it is you’re looking for, and what you want to fix—preparation is just as key as the transformation process itself.
   
   Ask yourself these questions:
   
   - What isn’t working for me at the moment?
   - What’s eating the most of my time unnecessarily?
   - What would my ideal process look like?
   - And what would I ideally spend my time on instead?
   
   For example. Maybe you’re spending far too long rekeying data or moving it from one place to another, when you want to focus more on strategic advisory for your clients.  
   
   Map out each step of your process, identifying bottlenecks, repetitive tasks, and areas prone to error. This evaluation will help you pinpoint where cloud accounting software can have the most significant impact.
      
2. Select your software and automation tools for accounts production
   
   Once you know what it is you’re looking to change—whether it’s saving time or better collaboration—you can begin researching the correct solution for your practice.
   
   Things to look out for when choosing your accounting compliance software include:
   
   - Is this solution on the cloud? This is important because it allows you to access new features and functionalities through automatic updates, rather than installing your software on premise. It also allows your software to scale as your business grows.
   -Does the software enable you to remain compliant with ease?
   - Does the software allow for easy collaboration between both you and your employees, and you and your clients? Once again, cloud accounting software plays a large part in enabling you to work together.
   - Does the software help you do your job more accurately and faster? This may mean using automation and AI to highlight errors to you before filing the accounts to Companies House and HMRC, or custom styles and templates that mean you can quickly create accounts from underlying formats.
   
   When selecting a software vendor, choose a reputable one, and don’t be afraid to ask questions to the team, as you’ll likely be working closely with them in transforming your accounts production process.
    
3. Migrate your practice to cloud accounting
   
   Now you’ve identified bottlenecks and concerns in your current accounts production process, and chosen which software provides you the best functionality to fix these issues, it’s time to make the leap and move to one integrated cloud system.
   
   Here’s how to migrate to the cloud in eight simple steps:
   
   1. Begin by understanding your specific business requirements to help guide your choice of accounting software.
   2. Collaborate with your software vendor to create a detailed migration roadmap.
   3. Prepare your data by removing any redundancies and duplicates to ensure a smooth transition.
   4. Evaluate your existing systems to determine what is already in use and how best to migrate these to the cloud.
   5. Review your current security policies and ensure that your chosen cloud accounting software vendor can meet these standards.
   6. Anticipate potential disruptions and prepare strategies to maintain business operations during the transition.
   7. Provide comprehensive training for your employees to maximise the benefits of the new cloud platforms.
   8. Conduct thorough testing of the new systems, gathering feedback and making necessary adjustments to ensure success, as we elaborate on in the next section.
    
4. Implement and monitor your new accounts production process
   
   Continuous monitoring and feedback during this phase is essential. Establish a system for regularly collecting and analysing feedback from users to ensure the new tools function efficiently and meet your evolving needs. 
   
   You should consider comprehensive strategy training for your team, and develop a thorough training program that covers all aspects of the software—from basic functions to advanced features. Ensure that your employees feel confident and comfortable using their accounts production tools, as automation and AI is now at their fingertips. Providing ongoing support and resources will help them adapt quickly and efficiently, and get the most out of these new features. 
   
   To measure the success of the implementation, set up clear metrics to monitor performance and the impact of the new tools. These metrics should cover aspects such as efficiency improvements, cost savings, and user satisfaction. Regularly review these metrics to assess the effectiveness of the automation and make informed decisions for future enhancements.
    
5. Understand the features and functionalities of your new software
   
   Training your practice on the features of your new accounts production software not only maximises your return on investment in that software, but it also improves accuracy and compliance, and enhances productivity.  
   
   Make the most out of your software by understanding what it can do you for you.  
   
   For example, with CCH iFirm Accounts Production, our cloud solution as part of the CCH iFirm suite, you can:
   
   - Produce fully compliant accounts for sole-traders, partnerships, companies, charities, pension schemes, medical practices, farms, academies and groups. Including FRS101, FRS102 (incl. section 1A), FRS105, IFRS and IFRS 15.
   -  Review and amend accounts on screen as we understand that the final accounts review is an important but time-consuming process. We’ve made it as simple and straightforward as possible, while helping you make sure that your financial statements are accurate and compliant.
   - Access data held across the entire CCH iFirm suite from any device, as enabled by cloud accounting.
   - Validation alerts highlight potential issues before the accounts are finalised, helping you remain compliant and flagging errors before it’s too late.

Want to learn more about how you can revolutionise your accounts production process with CCH iFirm by Wolters Kluwer?