Thoughts of busy season might be pushed firmly to the back of accountants' minds, but it'll be back before we know it. It's time to start looking forward to what firms can do today to reduce busy season stress. While there's an acceptance that year over year some aspects of the job will remain the same: client expectations will continue to increase, tax codes will change, and firms will never have "enough" staff. Although firms may have an easier tax season in comparison to the two prior pandemic tax seasons, it does not mean now is the time to try and skate by.
By focusing on areas where they can drive efficiency, firms can reduce stress in the years ahead. Through creating the right foundations and reducing friction with technology, firms can experience a smoother busy season. With the right technology, firms can maintain work-life balance, and ensure that when hiccups or bumps in the road occur they have the agility and resilience to respond quickly and continue business as usual.
Practice management
The ongoing staffing shortage across accounting firms can be felt particularly hard during the busy season — especially with so many accountants leaving the profession in recent years. Staff need to put in more hours to accomplish the same result, and inefficient practice management worsens the issue. Task tracking, client billing and admin are all processes integral to the firm's operations, but poor execution can result in wasted time and ultimately harm staff happiness, retention and the firm's overall bottom line. As firms grow and scale, practice management becomes more complex, leading to significant challenges that can cause firms to degrade client service.
Practice management processes are the backbone of a firm, so ensuring resilience is key. Strengthened practice management can help eliminate human errors and significantly streamline tasks across the firm to boost efficiency and productivity and reduce overall staff stress. Investing in a solution that can scale and grow with the firm ensures you will not need to constantly seek out new providers and implement new solutions. The right practice management software will also help a firm pivot when things go awry during busy season — such as a key staff member resigning — ensuring the firm can still meet deadlines and complete tasks to a standard that meets and exceeds client expectations even when external factors do not go as planned.
Document management
As a firm grows, so does the number of documents it must file and track. Inefficient document management can lead to hours a week wasted simply finding and filing documents that are required for action.
Efficient document management, enhanced by automation, can streamline operations throughout busy season and ensure no valuable staff hours are wasted. By partnering with a document management provider specializing in servicing accounting firms, firms can benefit from a secure client portal, automated workflows and streamlined communications with clients, all facilitated by a central filing system.
This is critical during the busy season when staff must handle hundreds of documents daily, and automation can assist in accurate processing and driving efficiency. Systems that prioritize cybersecurity alongside automation can further strengthen resilience and decrease the potential for cyberattacks that could disrupt operations or lead to financial losses. With the right document management and automation solutions, firms can ultimately fortify their bottom line, reduce staff work hours, and maintain the utmost quality of work.
Why now?
Today's firms need to focus on resilience and their ability to deliver client services despite disruptions. The past several years have been marked with many disruptions from the pandemic to ongoing staff shortages, but at the end of the day, firms still need to meet client expectations or risk losing clients and revenue. The right technology partner can be an enabler that allows firms to foster growth.
Now that we are in the off-season, it's time for accounting firms to look to ensure they are ready for the future and the uncertainty that lies ahead. They need to evaluate what is working well and what is not in their practice management and document management processes. Then look for a solution provider that can meet their needs, seamlessly implement the system, and train staff before the next busy season rolls around. Taking action today can ensure resilience that fosters continued growth.
