Automation is changing the business world in so many ways. Many of the tasks that would have been time-consuming and inefficient in the past can now be managed automatically. This means that employees are more productive and businesses can cut their staff costs in a significant way.
Accounting is one of the areas that a lot of people say you should automate. But when it comes to managing your money, do you really want to put your trust in computer software instead of an accountant?
Even though automated bookkeeping is a useful tool, it cannot always be relied upon. These are some of the reasons why automated bookkeeping cannot replace an accountant.
Creative Problem Solving
Many people misunderstand exactly why an accountant is valuable to your business. Although they are good at crunching numbers, you have a calculator to do that yourself. It’s the other skills, like creative problem solving, that make accountants so valuable to your business. When your business is in a tough financial position, an accountant can use their knowledge and expertise to assess the situation and come up with creative ways to get out of it. Automated accounting software doesn’t have those creative thinking skills and, although it can handle the admin side of things, you need a human being to deliver the creative solutions that will save your business.
Managing Tax Affairs
Dealing with tax returns is one of the worst things about running a business, especially if you get a big tax bill at the end of it all. Automated bookkeeping software can make life easier for you because it helps you to collect all of your receipts and gather all of your financial records in one place. However, automation software is not as effective if you want to find ways to reduce your tax bill. But if you check out the Foley & Giolitto Site, you can learn more about how an accountant can help you manage your taxes more effectively. An experienced accountant with an in-depth knowledge of tax regulations will be able to make adjustments to your return and suggest ways to significantly reduce your tax bill. If you rely solely on automated bookkeeping software, it’s likely that you will pay more tax than you need to.
Planning For Business Growth
Good planning is so important if you want to successfully grow your business. Automated bookkeeping software can be helpful here because it allows you to look at your previous sales figures, assess your current finances, and create forecasts. However, there are some serious limitations to what bookkeeping software can do for you when planning business growth. It’s not always about the numbers and sometimes, businesses have to think outside the box and take risks in order to expand and break into new markets. But automated software is not capable of that creative thinking. So, although an accountant can use that software to help them plan for business growth, it is not effective enough on its own.
Even though automation software can be a useful tool, you still need an experienced accountant to manage your finances properly.