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We are officially in the era of digital transformation where technology has greatly impacted audit processes. This has ushered changes that were hard to imagine as possible about a decade back. While the accounting profession has by and large embraced technology in various processes, it was restricted to the documentation, calculation, stor age and retrieval process. However, this is all set to change as cutting-edge technology dons a greater role in auditing. The clamour for different reporting and financial statements has been growing, and technology has all the right answersv. Taking a leaf out of fintech companies for development of intelligent software Bookkeeping outsourcing company in uk. Processes that will be touched by technology will include those areas where it may be necessary for a machine to understand and use that knowledge to identify complex information. Fintech companies have been able to deploy automated solutions by leveraging the power of AI and machine learning. Auditing will similarly find a greater role for technology, beyond the present functions. For instance, technology has developed to a level where it is possible for AI powered systems to look at all the data of a company that is being audited and identify anything that is amiss. This will help auditors to turn their focus to flagged areas that need more of their attention. Evolving reporting requirements Bookkeeping outsourcing company Present audit reporting helps investors and shareholders understand the financial health of businesses. However, in the context of a data driven world with more and more information available, there is an increasing chorus for auditors to share additional information. Stakeholders are of the opinion that auditors possess more information, than what is actually reflected in the reports. And the demand is for more contextual information from auditors about how a specific conclusion was made or arrive at. Readers want to know how the auditors arrived at a conclusion. This open the floodgates of confusion. Auditors crunch numbers and make conclusions, expecting a reader to do the same is an invitation to chaos. However, technology has the ability to present relevant information in the right form for dissemination, that is in alignment with the overall findings/conclusion. Impact of revisions and penalties corporate secretarial services in ukThe Financial Reporting Council released revisions to International Standards on Auditing (UK)[1], which had more to do with the Code of Ethics. This has great significance for auditors and by extension the companies that are being audited. The changed standards, despite being limited in scope can have implications for stakeholders. This needs to be read in the context of the fines levied by the FRC, on some of the top global auditing firms for misconduct. Even as the dust began to settle over the fines and the circumstances surrounding it, most of the iconic and respected auditing firms commenced an overhaul of their systems and processes, bringing in more technology driven processes to strengthen existing processes. This will be the order of the future, as auditors look towards technology for greater compliance. Moving from sample testing to testing of all transactions In the future, auditors will harness technology to carry out checks of all transactions, and not just rely on a sampling or random check of transactions. While the certainly humungous volumes of transactions may have come in the way of checking out all the transactions in the past or the present, this is all set to change. With the use of the right technology, not only will all transactions be checked, they will be completed at high speed, which means that the process of checking will not add to the time element. And this aspect of checking all the transactions will help auditors to gain more insights about the financial health and other inputs about the organization and the domain it operates. This will be invaluable to investors and shareholders who will now be able to understand reports on the basis of checking all transactions and not just a sample. Sampling has a probability of error, which will be corrected in the future. The need for speed The new techno-social order has turned time on its head. Processes that once took a specific period of time has now been shortened drastically. As a consequence, all other allied processes and procedures are also expected to commence/conclude at proportionate speed. Effectively, this has led to a cascading effect. Audit, resultantly, requires to be concluded faster than ever before. Manual processes do not stand a chance of delivering results at speed or with the accuracy and precision required. While it is impossible for technology, as it stands now, to replace the power of human intuition in tasks as complicated as auditing, many of the tasks that are repetitive or rote in nature need to be entrusted to technology and automated processes to be able to meet the deadlines. Leveraging the power of blockchain for cost effective audit processes Blockchain is the buzzword that will continue to hold sway over businesses well into the near future. And by virtue of being a distributed ledger, blockchain is the natural bedfellow for auditing processes. Auditors need not seek information or wait for clients or third parties to furnish statements, or any documents for verification and cross-verification. Auditors can simply carry out the verifications from blockchain ledgers. With the power of offering verifiable and immutable transactional information, these ledgers will save a lot of time and money, in addition to the assurance of offering information that is accurate and free from errors. This is basically, because the transactions themselves would have been carried out only after fulfilling the criteria or conditions of all –parties involved in the transaction. Analytics only as good as the data that is fed Analytics can be only as good as the data that is fed, which means that standards also need to improve so as to offer data that is of the right standard. While systems will be powered to detect anomalies over entire transaction history, the advantage of perception that is available to the human mind and the logic of perspective will be unavailable to technology driven systems. This will make it mandatory for records to conform to certain standards. The quality of the data and the processes or technology that is available to bring in the data from many sources needs to be advanced so as to prevent gaps in data capture and its use. The need for more regulations and standards Past processes had stakeholders trying to catch up with the regulations and standards. For instance, auditors and organisations had to fulfill or meet the standards and regulations as laid down and the need of the hour used to be a scramble to meet the standards. However, with changes in the way business is conducted, there are multiple issues which cannot be met or fulfilled by existing standards. This turns the whole equation of regulations and standards on its head. Regulations and standards are now expected to keep pace with the developments and evolving changes in the world of business. Till the regulations and changes are in place, auditors and businesses will have to work within the contours of existing regulations which may not be very easy considering the inherent differences among domains. Conclusion: Auditing is a proven facilitator for growth, in addition to meeting the requirements of accounting and financial reporting. While nations have their own set of policies about the size of businesses that need to be audited or not audited, it is a proven fact that auditing is one of the pillars of growth of a business. Technological innovations will assist the acumen of humans to bring about greater accuracy, improved reporting and faster conclusion. Auditing will not be limited to random checks but will encompass the whole history of transactions for specific periods. Contrary to popular belief, technology will not take the place of humans, but will help humans in their deliverables.

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How Payroll Outsourcing Can Help Build a More Profitable Accountancy Practice

5:14 pm 8 September 2018

A common operational challenge with companies is to manage payroll. While this is for multiple reasons, the strongest is that they don’t see a need to create a specific skillset inhouse when it can be managed outside.  Be it for 5 employees or 100, organizations don’t see value in digressing their focus to something which isn’t the core area. 

When looking for an accounting firm to outsource payroll, payroll service providers in uk organizations usually seek an all-in-one accounting provider who could take care of all aspects related to payroll. However, taking care of additional services that are not core to accounting or need a lot of management without getting additional monetary benefits, becomes a challenge for the accounting firm. 

Payroll Administration – A burden for accounting firms with no profit 

accounting and bookkeeping services face several challenges while processing their clients’ payroll; as listed here: 

  • Time consuming tasks that do not add much value to the accounting practice. 
  • Essential for retaining clients, but clients are hesitant to pay extra for it. 
  • Information provided by clients isn’t always accurate, complete or timely hence involves a lot of back-n-forth. 

Clients hiring third-party accountants don’t simply demand the calculation and processing of employee payroll, they also expect the accounting firm to process and submit employee taxes; file government forms and reports; manage employees’ pension, insurance and health contributions; notify government officials when new employees join and existing employees exit the company and maintain compliance with all the relevant payroll mandates and regulations bookkeeping company in uk. 

For accounting firms, this is not only time-consuming but also requires considerable investment of manpower and capital. Offering payroll services can help accounting firms create a stronger revenue stream by effectively marketing their professional services, but currently, most providers are either not charging anything or are undercharging their clients for payroll services. 

Outsourcing the payroll services, in such circumstances, is the smart way out, as it helps accounting firms estimate the costs incurred and accordingly charge their clients, which, in turn, contributes towards a thriving accounting practice. 

  

Why Outsourcing Payroll as an Accounting Firm is a Smart Decision 

For accounting firms that process volumes of payroll data on a regular basis, the following challenges can be addressed with the help of payroll outsourcing. 

Preventing payroll errors 

Blunders while processing employee payroll can lead to unforeseen and unwanted costs, and there is always a possibility of errors with manual data entry. However, for clients, these errors are not simple mistakes, they cost money as well as business. Large or recurring errors can also lead to payroll audits. Moreover, if these errors directly impact the employees working at the clients’ organization, it can lead to upset employees and severe mistrust. This will certainly strain the relationship you’ve worked so hard to build with your client. Additionally, your client will have to face disgruntled employees and even have to pay penalties. 

Saving precious time 

Payroll, as an accounting function, demands a lot of time along with careful attention to fine details. Even with assistance from automation, employee numbers and figures still have to be manually entered into the accounting system, which involves the consumption of countless man hours for entering large volumes of information and cross-checking the entered data for typos and errors. This takes away precious time that could have been spent on your core accounting services. Outsourcing payroll services will help you save time so that your accounting practice can focus more on what matters, build new revenue streams and serve more clients. 

Complying with statutory changes 

 The UK legislative structure is complex and mandates companies to ensure payroll compliance with several jurisdictions. Moreover, protocols and legislative regulations keep changing from time to time, and outsourcing payroll to specialist providers will help keep your clients’ business compliant, irrespective of the changing regulatory landscape. Tax changes, employee records, National Minimum Wage (NMW) compliance, employee contributions and more can be managed accurately and resourcefully by payroll experts, freeing you and your clients from the liability of non-compliance. 

Reducing operating costs 

Payroll is a completely separate and specialised HR function that requires time and trained experts, both of which are expensive. Outsourcing payroll to a proficient service provider will free your accounting practice from operating overheads, and the service provider’s trained staff will be liable to handle your clients’ payroll formalities and requirements on your behalf. 

Maintaining data safety and security 

Processing employee payroll is a complex task that involves a certain level of risk, and your clients’ data is at stake. Despite having trusted employees, risks such as identity thefts, records tampering and embezzlement make it extremely crucial to maintain the safety and security of clients’ sensitive payroll data. This challenge can be addressed by outsourcing the payroll services to a well-established, experienced provider who can ensure the safety of your clients’ payroll information. In the absence of outsourcing, you will have to maintain backup and multiple servers for securing your clients’ payroll data, but outsourcing will free you from this burden as well. 

Leveraging the latest up-to-date technologies 

 Technology is transforming all business functions, and accounting is not immune to the trend. Specialised payroll providers employ the latest software and invest in state-of-the-art accounting technologies to streamline and automate payroll services, which leads to more accurate payroll processing. You can offer the latest up-to-date technologies to your clients by hiring systematic outsourced payroll services from a trusted provider. Using outsourced services will also free you from the investment required for deploying the latest accounting software and technologies. 

Leveraging the expertise of qualified professionals 

Outsourcing payroll services to specialised providers offers the opportunity to leverage the expertise and knowledge of skilled and qualified professionals. These professionals are experts in their field and provide on-time quality services, which will help keep your clients happy. In the absence of outsourcing, you will have to spend money to hire these experts, which will increase your business overheads 

Avoiding reconciliation challenge 

 In the overall payroll process, bank reconciliations are considered the most tedious task, as they involve substantial efforts to keep track of every payment going through the bank while issuing pay cheques. You can easily avoid bank reconciliation-related challenges by delegating your clients’ payroll to specialised service providers who have ample expertise and proficiency in reconciling bank statements.               

Payroll outsourcing can be used as a potential opportunity to strengthen your relationship with clients. 

  

An efficient payroll provider will offer peace of mind to your clients and help you develop a thriving accounting practice with payroll as a vital service. However, do not simply introduce the payroll provider to your client and leave the picture; this will undermine the value you’ve offered to your client. Instead act as the mediator between your client and the third-party provider, so that you can provide quality services at a reasonable price while simultaneously maintaining profits. Integrating payroll services into your accounting practice will offer complete accounting solutions to your clients under the same roof, which will help attract more customers and increase the value of your accounting practice. 

BY: AMIT AGARWAL 

London 

Suite 7, First Floor, Amba House, 
15 College Road, Harrow 
Middlesex - HA1 1BA 
Registration No: 10746177 

India 

Gurugram 
Unit No.110-111, Spaze IT Park,  

Tower b4, Sohna Road 

Gurugram, Haryana - 122001 

 

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