Of all the perilous straits that accounting firms find themselves in these days, few are as confusing to navigate as the waters of accounting technology, largely because it involves steering a course between two broad dangers — the profession's Scylla and Charybdis, if you will.
On the one side is the six-headed monster of not engaging with technology enough — treating it like overhead, and doing the bare minimum to make sure you can complete the work you need to get done today. It's tempting, of course, to just do "enough." Technology changes so frequently, and takes up so much time and energy, while at the same time rarely living up to the hype — and with ROI that is almost never what the enthusiasts predict — that firms try to just get by, updating software only when necessary, seeking out straightforward automations that let them digitize their current workflows without much change, and dumping new tools on overburdened staff with minimal training and hoping they'll figure it out. But when it comes to technology, even "enough" isn't enough — it's nowhere near enough.
"Enough" is regularly reassessing your tech stack, constantly sifting the flow of new solutions for the ones that apply to you and your clients, giving your staff the time and training they need to get the most out of those new solutions, and reimagining your workflows to make the most of digital environments. It also means measuring your ROI with a range of key performance indicators — and making changes when those KPIs fall below acceptable ranges.
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Steering too close to the wrong shore here can be offputting to younger employees, who expect a certain level of technological savvy in their workplace, and to both clients and potential acquirers, who similarly expect some level of sophistication. It will also mean you get left behind by more competitive firms.
But if you steer too far to the other side, you risk getting caught in the whirlpool of engaging with technology too much. This often takes the form of "shiny object syndrome," where you pursue the latest solution just because everyone is talking about it. By far the most common characteristic of our Best Firms for Technology is that they refuse to fall into this trap, ruthlessly vetting solutions to make sure they're appropriate, implementing them carefully and methodically, and making sure staff are using them correctly.
Its more insidious form, however, is putting too much faith in technology — assuming that simply buying new technology will solve all your problems. It might — but only if it fits into your broader tech strategy, integrates with other tools, gets used to its full potential by your staff, and delivers measurable value over time.
All of this requires some fancy sailing, but the alternative — running aground while other firms sail smoothly past — is far worse.
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