A revolution has happened in the boring world of accountancy. Actually, it happened some time ago. It’s just that those relentless adverts we have all seen and heard for Making Tax Digital (MTD) have brought it more to common attention. Accounting has gone online, Digital Accounting is here.
Whoopee! No really. Because what does online do – it makes things faster, more efficient and accessible. It democratises things for the many that were previously the preserve of the few.
How things were
Think about your business. There used to be paper everywhere. The finance team would slog to get it all processed. Management accounts would come out 30 days after a month end, or maybe not at all – for many businesses the first reliable profits figures would come out several months after their accountant was given a backup file from their accounting software to work their magic on.
It’s different now
Nowadays you send documents digitally to your customers. Your suppliers send invoices digitally to you. The new breed of software extracts and codes those invoices straight into your system, without anyone having to re-key them. Expense invoices can be snapped on your mobile phone and submitted in the same way. Bank feeds inject daily data directly into your accounting software. Monthly accounts are now accessible even for small businesses and from anywhere on any device at any time convenient to you.
What is happening today and tomorrow?
But wait! Think about your business again. Knowing what happened last month is important and great. But so is what is happening today and tomorrow.
Want a daily dashboard showing your bank balances, how much you owe and are owed as well as other financial and operational metrics set up specific to your business? Like an alert if your bank balances drop below a specified amount or your billing has not reached a specified target by the 20th of the month? Want to know how your actual results are affecting your plans and forecast for the next year? This can all be unlocked by the power of real-time digital accounting.
Want some help with getting your systems and processes up to real-time and making the most of digital accounting? Helping you to run your business better as a result? We at Avant Advisory would love to hear from you.