Enterprise level technologies are advancing rapidly. They’re drastically outperforming legacy systems and processes, resulting in valuable time and cost savings. Historically, the adoption of new technologies within the professional services industry has been slow at best, and accounting firms are no different. However, for any CPA firm that hopes to remain competitive, leadership needs to become familiar with the top three technology trends impacting accounting firms today — and take action now.
1. Cloud Migration
Whether this is the first or hundredth time you’ve heard of cloud migration, your CPA firm can no longer hide from it. Leadership needs to plan for and embrace the cloud, or profitability will most definitely suffer at the hands of early-adopting competitors. By engaging with an experienced partner to develop a technology roadmap, you can ensure your cloud migration is aligned with overall strategic goals. Working with a partner not only helps your organization more easily utilize the clouds internal and external collaborative tools, but provides your firm an outlet for any type of support before, during, and after the migration process.
2. Cloud Security & Privacy
Once your organization has begun its inevitable move to the cloud, security and privacy concerns should become the top priority. There are many nuances to the policies surrounding cloud and cybersecurity, especially those concerning the protection of proprietary and client Personally Identifiable Information (PII) data. As your CPA firm expands into the cloud, consult with a CPA advisory professional who can help your internal teams develop and test any and all security and compliance protocols required by law.
3. Technology Driven Service Expansion
The advancement of enterprise technology has brought with it the unique capability for CPA firms to expand their scope of services to include other advisory offerings. For example, with cloud-enabled technology, the traditional Audit, Tax, and Advisory firm is given the ability to expand into new verticals, like CFO advisory, with minimal friction. Since cloud collaboration technology exists, firms can now easily collaborate with clients, unlike in years past where the accountants needed to be on-site to perform services.
Are you a part of a CPA firm looking to explore your cloud migration options? Speak with one of the advisory experts at Withum to start preparing for the future today.
Fill out our form online, or give us a call at 240.406.9916.
Moving Your CPA Firm to the Cloud
As mentioned above, developing a roadmap for your firm’s cloud migration is a crucial part of keeping your implementation on track, on budget, and aligned with strategic goals. You’ll want to prioritize your cloud migration by focusing on upgrading the following technologies first:
1. Tax Prep Technologies
2. Engagement Management Tools
3. Practice Management Systems
4. Document & Content Management Tools
These four types of technologies pretty much cover the majority of tools that employees in your CPA firm use on a day-to-day basis. Discovering exactly which types of tools are right for your organization will require a thorough internal analysis of what’s currently in place. You’ll want to delve deep into different departments to get the answers to questions like:
Need help prioritizing and executing on your cloud migration? Get help from Withum today. Fill out our form online, or give us a call at 240.406.9916.
