How will Bots & AI Impact the Accountancy Sector Outlook?

How will Bots & AI Impact the Accountancy Sector Outlook?
Can Bots & AI Help Revolutionise the UK Accounting Sector?

The Beanieverse

As the UK Accountancy Sector Outlook Report 2024-2025 highlights, the industry is at a transformative crossroads. Trends like technology adoption, ESG priorities, and evolving workforce strategies are creating new challenges – and opportunities. And Bots and AI are powerful tools to help firms of all sizes thrive, so here’s a few thoughts on how firms can use them effectively.

Technology Investment: Start Small, Think Big

If over 75% of firms are upping their tech budgets, then Bots and AI could be an effective and economic way to lead the charge. Here’s just a few ideas on how firms can strategically invest:

Small Firms: Begin by automating everyday tasks like bank reconciliations, invoice generation, and payroll. Bots, like the ones we offer at Bots For That, provide low-cost solutions with high returns that can provide quick wins.
Mid-Sized Firms: Also automate everyday tasks but at a greater scale, then complement this with some simple conversational AI tools to optimise common or high-frequency interactions to lighten the load during seasonal peaks or growth spurts. For instance, conversational AI can help manage client requests and enquiries, while Bots create real-time connectivity across the entire tech stack.
Large Firms: Invest in enterprise-grade Bots and building your own AI data models for a blend of standardised and customised automations that can ensure real-time accounting and address areas like fraud detection, audit work, new ESG initiatives and others. This can reduce or eliminate manual effort across thousands of client engagements.

Real-World Example: Using Bank Reconciliation Bots, a small South West firm saves over 20 hours bookkeeping a week, and a mid-sized midlands firm saves over 200 hours per week, leaving them free to reallocate time to client advisory services.

Talent Retention: Create a Future-Ready Workforce

Accounting is no longer just about balancing the books; it’s increasingly about adding value. Bots and AI can help firms attract and retain top talent by:

Automating Drudgery: Freeing accountants from data entry and report generation, allowing them to focus on strategy and client relationships.
Personalised Career Development: AI tools can identify growth opportunities tailored to individual employees, boosting engagement and development.
Enabling Flexibility: Bots are the ultimate remote working productivity resource, which more adequately support flexible work arrangements.

Actionable Tips: Audit your team’s workload. Identify the three most repetitive or time-consuming tasks and consider using Bots instead. Use a Generative AI tool to create your own knowledge management system – top tip, give it a personality and name it after someone in the firm who’s the ultimate answer-machine for almost everything!

M&A Opportunities: Scaling Smarter

Mergers and acquisitions are booming, but integrations can be tricky. Bots and AI makes the process seamless by:

Connecting disparate systems.
Standardising and Automating key daily tasks.
Reducing the learning curve and integration effort.
Consolidating key activities buys you time whilst you figure out the future tech stack.
Eliminating and simplifying workflows across merged entities to minimise disruption.

Real-World Example: A large-sized firm used Bots to integrate and standardise key operational work across dozens of acquired practices, eliminating system migration time.

ESG Prioritisation: Sustainability Through Innovation

With ESG taking centre stage, firms need to lead by example. Bots and AI can:

Automate carbon footprint tracking for both the firm and its clients.
Simplify ESG compliance reporting with Bot and AI-powered dashboards.
Provide sustainability analysis, ensuring better alignment with standards and goals.

Future Trend: Expect AI to add sustainability consulting to its repertoire, offering real-time insights on performance and ideas for reducing emissions and meeting targets.

Future-Proofing the Practice: Trends and Predictions

Looking ahead, Bots and AI are helping to redefine the accounting landscape:

Real-Time Accounts and Audits: Continuous, autonomous record-keeping and auditing powered by Bots and AI could reshape audit work, with ongoing compliance.
Predictive Client Support: AI will flag potential cash flow issues or compliance risks for clients before they become problems.
AI-Driven Services: From real-time digital but friendly assistant to new client sign-up, with key compliance tasks and instant management insights, operating costs should reduce and new revenue streams could emerge.

Actionable Strategy for Firms of All Sizes

1. Assess Your Needs: Identify pain and opportunity points across your practice. Start by automating the most time-consuming tasks.

2. Invest Wisely: Prioritise tools that deliver fast ROI while building a foundation for future growth and scale.

3. Upskill Your Team: Provide training on Bots and AI to ensure your workforce can work effectively alongside them, across all tiers of work, from lights-out to human-in-the-loop and human-at-the-helm.

4. Stay Flexible: Use Bots and AI to adapt quickly to market changes, whether in pricing, service offerings, or compliance.

Conclusion: Transformative Tools for a Transformative Time

Whether you’re a small practice streamlining operations or a large firm navigating complex goals, Bots and AI are no longer optional, they’re essential. By integrating them thoughtfully, accountants can boost their practice efficiency and profitability, enhance client value, motivate and retain staff and future-proof their practices for 2025 and beyond.

Ready to explore how Bots and AI can transform your accounting practice? Contact Bots For That for a consultation or a free demo today.