Over the past five years we have seen the progression and growth of the technology sector stamp its claim on the world’s business landscape. These developments have revolutionised the way that businesses operate and streamlined many of their day to day processes.
Accountants may appear to be on the endangered species list in this era of rapidly-increasing automation, but we’re finding that as Business Advisers we are adapting to the changing landscape, working diligently to stay ahead of the curve and thinking differently to stay relevant in order to assure demand for our services in the future.
The business landscape has gone through such significant changes over the last decade, particularly regarding the utilisation of technology. All businesses, both large and small, would be surprised at the raft of tools now available to them. Within the next decade we are likely to see which businesses can thrive in this new landscape and which may fall by the wayside through their own inactivity or inability to embrace change.
The really exciting element from our perspective is how Hawke’s Bay has managed to position itself at the forefront of this change. The region is now seen as a booming business economy that has the required elements to expedite the achievement of business goals. This teamed with the Bay’s reputation for true work/life balance has ensured that the New Zealand business community stands up and takes notice of our little slice of paradise. This as well as our own local success stories such as the Napier Port, Ahuriri Tech Hub and the Airport expansion project has enticed a range of business investors and opportunities to our region.
Dynamism is a fundamental component of many successful businesses and the required strategy can dictate short timeframes for growth, sale & purchase and market penetration opportunities. This means compliance and reporting need to run like clockwork, with the data available at our fingertips through cloud accounting software. Neither can we, as BDO advisers, nor you, as business owners, afford to waste time on historical results.
Futurists talk of the threat that Artificial Intelligence poses to so many businesses by manipulating the way in which we conduct our business. We see this advancement and evolution signalling a somewhat inevitable move towards robotics and automation taking over the logical, predicable and monotonous tasks within society. While the further development and future influence of AI is uncertain, it is another element of the change cycle that businesses will need to take heed of and build into their strategic planning in order to stay relevant.
To address these changes Businesses must embrace cloud-based accounting software in all its glory. Harnessing the cloud for efficient accounting compliance is not enough. The real benefit is in utilising apps and add-ons to provide privately-owned businesses with a broader, more integrated solution that is the envy of larger corporates. It is likely that within the first half of the next decade we will see who can succeed in taking their Business to the next level and those that have been weighed, measured and found wanting.
At BDO Hawke’s Bay and BDO Manawatu we work to align the current business environment, technology and new generations entering the workforce together. Contact your local office today to discuss how cloud accounting could take your business to the next level.
About the author: Lisa Townshend is a Director with BDO Central (NI). She has extensive experience assisting both small and medium sized entities with a wide range of advisory services. BDO Central are Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors, with offices in Napier and Palmerston North. The firm is an independent member of BDO New Zealand and part of the global BDO network.