Well, I kind of feel like I am seeing a kid off to college. I have come to the end of the three-part series on “What Accounting Automation is Good For”. I very much appreciate the side conversation, the re-tweets and re-blogs, as well as all of the messages. My hope in creating this conversation is there will be a continual dialogue about how and where automation fits.
What I have written about
I hope that I have opened your eyes and mind to the fact that there are certain companies that accounting automation can help. I used the example of a bank where the more spread out the operations are the more expensive it is to process invoices and payments. I also hope that I have introduced you to the idea that the CFO, Controllers, operations and IT have different goals and aspirations when looking at accounting automation. Lastly I hope that looking at different situations in business, like growth and hiring are great reason to automate. Those are all of my hopes with this series.
Final Words
Besides hope, I want to leave you with one last thought. That is, companies, especially in the small to middle market, hear the buzz about automation, but don’t quite know what to make of it. As a matter of fact, before I got on my flight where I am writing this post I was on a call with a restaurant owner that kept say, “I don’t see the savings… I can’t see where the saving is coming from”. That’s the difficult thing about accounting automation is it is not like buying a new piece of machinery that improves productivity. Accounting Automation is a positive change management tool that will help improve your business over time… it’s almost like it is a new perspective on an old process. It is not as black and white as people want it to be… there are a lot of shades of gray (not like the book – if it was it would probably get more attention).
Really, now it’s time for my final thoughts
Fortunately I have gotten initial feedback that I have given people a different way to look at accounting automation and therefore a different way of evaluating automation. I wanted to be clear that the ideas that I have shared through this series is not intended to be a cause and effect relationship. Meaning if you have one of the company types, or situations then you are perfect for automation. These ideas are intended to tally up. That means if you are a Controller in a bank with multiple branches spread out over the southeast and you are currently in a growth mode with several AP positions open, as an example, you have multiple factors where automation can help… that’s the point.
Thanks for reading. Next week I am going to start a new series that goes through different accounting systems and strategies with accounts payable (invoice) automation.
To buy the book – The Argument to Automate – How Innovation Can INSPIRE Not Fire – click here to buy
(Also) To get your copy of The 8 Pitfalls of Accounts Payable Automation – click here to buy
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