6 ways cloud Hosted solutions can deliver better results for accounting firms.

As the accounting profession looks toward the 20-teens, it's quickly becoming apparent that client demands are increasing and so is technology. We're witnessing a monumental moment in time where old beliefs currently guiding accountants should now be re-evaluated. Technology has left its mark on modern life and the functionality it brings can no longer be denied by anyone! Tax accountants won't be lagging behind technology for long. It's imperative that accountants decide how they're going to redefine their profession if they want to live up to the coming decade's technological innovations. Accountants face an evolutionary change within their lifetime and choosing today which path they'll take determines how their profession will evolve into tomorrow.

Today's rapidly evolving technology has only been around for about a decade, but the Internet is continually growing, and it doesn't look like that trend is slowing down. At the same time, it's becoming more and more difficult to operate independently within our society—from both a security standpoint and also as a means of marketing your business. Even with all this "connectedness," however, most businesses still find themselves closing their doors because they're unable to compete in today's marketplace. To face these challenges head on, we need experts who are familiar with today's technology—as well as able to help us overcome some of the inherent obstacles to operating in this new social networking climate.

Bookkeeping has been around for a long time, but in recent years it's proven to be a bit outdated. Today, accountants and auditors are realizing that they're going to have to start finding more creative ways of keeping abreast of this new digital climate if they want their services to be both valuable and desired. I think the answer lies with cloud technology because everything you need is accessible at your fingertips whenever, wherever you happen to be as long as you have an internet connection.

Let’s see what cloud has to offer for accounting & tax firms for conducting their business in 21st century:

More Collaboration:

More collaboration is required to produce higher outputs. The key point to this is that employees be able to trust one another and always have a leader they can rely on in order to do their best work. Cloud Computing offers better control and collaboration between a company, its partners, and other entities while also providing real-time solutions for creative work environments through greater visibility into your teams’ projects/data.

Maintained systems:

The cloud is a great convenience for small businesses because it simplifies setting up and maintaining IT services. Rather than setting up servers and going through complex hardware configurations, the cloud lets you access your cloud-based software through any internet-connected device. This system also allows companies to focus solely on strategic organizational processes instead of diverting much-needed resources toward getting their tech in order.

Automation:

Accountants are actively seeking some form of technology that will help them to automate tasks and improve the way they run their business. It is easier to manage accounting and tax processes on cloud; with faster tax filing and reducing manual data entry tasks saving time and preparing you for future accounting. Manual transactions will be a thing of the past with latest cloud capabilities, your firm needs to pick up the pace of technology adaptation to remain competitive internationally.

Data security with Backups:

The stability of cloud and backups give your business the confidence to use backup servers as well as future-proof your data. If a server becomes damaged or unresponsive for whatever reason, it's easily manageable through cloud and backups – which allows you to get back up and running quicker than if you relied on in-house hardware alone. With the security in place, you won’t feel the need to rush out and buy a new server - taking that money and spreading it across other areas such as marketing, hiring staff or attending events will surely pay off before long. And who knows? Maybe you'll consider going with a fully managed service for ease of maintenance.

Scalable solutions:

When a startup begins to achieve high levels of popularity and more business comes in every man, woman and child as new customers start to try the product/service you offer. To be able to scale up with your growing business in terms of resource needs, without having to make any additional hardware or software installs. One can expand storage capacity right on the fly by simply paying a small fee that is added onto their monthly costs.

Secure Architecture:

Before hosting your accounting and tax applications on cloud, the most important aspect that needs to be evaluated is the security prospects on the cloud. One cannot guarantee but with SSAE-18 certified datacenters, and enterprise-grade protections implemented along with encrypted data transfers in place, we can say it is quite safe to have your data hosted on a cloud server. One thing we know of for certain is protections offered on a cloud system are going to be monitored and proactive instead of relying so much on reactive local security setup.

Accountants are more positive than ever about the rapidly growing benefits of technology in their accounting and bookkeeping practices. Many accountants believe the evolution of artificial intelligence will help relieve them of some of the burdens to avoid missing deadlines or payments without risking legal penalties associated with being late. They’re reaping the benefits of automation as more and more business owners turn to cloud-hosting for their accounting applications such as QuickBooks.

The ongoing digital revolution is also contributing to this overall shift. With technologies like cloud computing and artificial intelligence, it's become easier for forward thinking practices to be more productive. At the same time, these innovative technologies are forcing companies to accept the challenge of becoming more productive with increased machines that require man-machine integration. This may change things within businesses but it has also brought about new changes in today's society on a whole - after all, regulations surrounding accounting practices have never been more important!