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Accountancy firms are people-based businesses. So why are so many struggling to hire and retain staff – and how can technology help reverse this trend?
How technology puts your and your people first
11 February 2022
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4 minute read
Accountancy and bookkeeping firms are, first and foremost, people-based businesses. The most important relationship, naturally, is the one with your clients – fostering a sense of trust as you handle a business’ most important financial documentation.
But what about the people working in your practice? To maintain these important relationships, staff have to be motivated, as well as the capacity to provide the advice clients need as and when they need it.
So how do you help your people stay one step ahead of stress – and continue to deliver above and beyond for your clients at the same time?
THE BIG PICTURE
- 30%. The number of accountants that have felt isolated in the last year (ICAEW)
- 14%. The percentage of accountants that feel constantly under pressure (ICAEW)
BUILDING PRESSURES
In the wake of COVID-19, ‘business as usual’ continues to put immense strain on accountants and bookkeepers. Combined with further pressure points around typically busy times of year, such as tax season, and wider legislative changes impacting the global economy, there is a growing sense of overwhelm within the industry at large.
All these issues have a major impact on a firm’s ability to both attract and retain staff. We hear much about ‘the great resignation’, with millions of people quitting their jobs in favour of new pursuits.
More accurately, however, is ‘the great realignment’: people pushing to ensure this new working normal is something that works for them – and that is why technology needs to play a pivotal role in your practice and its internal process.
WHERE TECHNOLOGY FITS IN
It’s easy to take an off-the-shelf app stack, introduce it to your team and expect it to work. Really, though, the challenge is far more nuanced than that.
First, you need to define the problem you are trying to solve. You can do this by identifying three key elements:
- Accountability: who’s responsible for what?
- Measurability: how are you going to report success?
- Visibility: who needs what, and when?
From there, you can start to identify the tools, features or processes that could help you achieve your goal.
OVERCOMING HURDLES
As we’ve mentioned, technology in and of itself is not the solution – and to implement it in the right way, you need to be aware of the potential challenges you may face along the way.
Remember that each firm is different – yours included. What is the culture like at your office? Are you remote-first, or have you adopted a hybrid model? Does your team suffer from any fatigue related to online communications, or struggle from a lack of in-person interaction? And in any case, do you have a way of measuring all of this?
An open dialogue with employees is key. Understanding how they may respond to change and the introduction of new software is crucial before jumping into the deep end; if you go too much, too soon, then you risk causing further strain to your staff – exactly the opposite of what tech is helping you try to achieve.
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
Join us on the 17th or 28th of February as our in-house product expert Paul Lodder and Dext's very own Chief People Officer Naomi Trickey take a deep dive into the increasing pressure placed on accountants and bookkeepers and how cloud technology can help combat the impact of the challenges both your firm and your people may be facing.
To book your place, please click below.
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