- What accountants like most about their jobs: solving problems. Working with numbers, making recommendations, learning new technologies, and working with people are other top pleasures of the job.
- You can work for virtually any employer when you have an accounting degree. Prime example: more than 2,000 accounting special agents work for the FBI.
- 55% of C-level executives and professionals in finance and accountancy expect the development of intelligent automated accounting systems to have the greatest impact over the next 3 to 10 years, according to a report by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
- The State of Accounts report shows that 37 percentof small and medium-sized business owners think accountancy is becoming more automated and that they can complete a range of tasks themselves. The same report found that 59% of small businesses don’t think they will need an accountant in 10 years’ time.
- Rob Nixon, CEO and founder of PANALITIX, predicts that by the end of 2017, more than 90% of small and medium-sized businesses will be using cloud accounting software.
- The 2016 National Management of an Accounting Practice surveyfound that 56% of CPA firms surveyed are using cloud-base software, up from 48% in 2014.
- Research by Xero found that accounting and bookkeeping firms that are “all in” with the cloud (i.e., with the highest concentration of clients using cloud accounting software) see higher growth rates than firms that are not “all in.”
- The Sleeter Group (now Accountex) found that 72% of small business owners have changed their CPA or accounting firms because the firm “did not give proactive advice, only reactive service.”
- The vast majority of the 1,400 CFOs surveyed by Robert Half across a range of companies by size and industry expect senior accountants to devote increasing amounts of their time to non-traditional functions, such as strategic planning and information technology.
- In a study by the American Institute of CPAs found that 92% of CPAs said they are not future ready.
- Nearly three-quarters of AICPA members will reach retirement age by 2023.
- According to Statista, in just eight years (between spring 2008 and 2016), the number of people using an accountancy service dropped by about 20% (from 35.48 million to 28.67 million).
- The global accounting software market size was valued at $57 million in 2017.By 2026, it is expected to reach $ 117 million. (Transparency Market Research, 2019).
- 90% of accountants feel that there is a cultural shift in accountancy that leans toward technological adoption. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- Also, 21% of accountants believe that market demands are driving the cultural shift in accountancy. Other drivers include regulations (16%), ongoing digitization (15%), generational changes (13%), Client demands (13%), and investments to keep pace (12%). (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- The majority of accountants today feel that traditional accounting is no longer enough to remain competitive. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- 83% of accountants say companies are more demanding today than they were five years ago. (Sage Practice of Now 2018 report).
- One of the biggest contributors to the evolution of accountancy is the ongoing digitization of processes. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- 56% of accountants say that accounting technology has increased their productivity. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- 58% of accounting firms invest in accounting solutions to satisfy client expectations. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- Interestingly, only 38% of accountants believe that today’s accountancy training programs will be relevant enough to sustain a successful practice by 2030. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- The global cloud accounting market share is projected to increase by up to $4.25 billion by 2023. (AB Newswire, 2018).
- Companies that rely solely on cloud accounting has five times the number of customers than businesses that do not. (Xero, 2017).
- Businesses that utilize cloud-based accounting have a 15% year-over-year growth in revenue. (Xero, 2017).
- 90% of accountants say that cloud accounting and digital business processes can be the key differentiator among companies in the near future. (Journal of Accountancy, 2015).
- 67% of accounting professionals prefer cloud accounting. (Sage Practice of Now 2018 report).
- 58% of large companies utilize cloud accounting in their operations. (Accounting Today, 2018).
- 78% of SMBs will rely exclusively on cloud accounting software by 2020. (Accountancy Age).
- In 2016, 41% of C-level accounting executives said the adoption of cloud computing would have the biggest impact in the next three to ten years. (ACCA, 2016).
- 82% of accountants are considering hiring from a nontraditional background. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- In order of importance, the following are the additional skills needed by accountants joining the industry today. Technology literacy (57%), relationship building (46%), business advisory (44%), industry experience outside accountancy (43%), and project management (36%). (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- More than 50% of C-level accounting executives expect that the development of more sophisticated automated accounting systems will have a big impact on the industry in the next three years. (ACCA study).
- 50% of accounting tasks can be automated through currently available technologies. (McKinsey Global Institute, 2017).
- Labor-intensive processes like tax preparation, payroll, management, and auditing will be fully automated by 2020. (Forbes, 2018).
- AP automation can help businesses save at least $16/invoice. (Vanguard Systems, 2017).
- Professionals who automate invoice capture and payments for their accounts payable processes can save an average of 1 hour/day (MineralTree).
- Most accounting professionals don’t have the necessary skills to operate accounting automation and AI tools. (McKinsey Global Institute).
- 37% of business owners think that they can complete more accounting tasks on their own as processes become automated. (Xero State of Accounts).
- 83% of accountants in the UK’s small businesses say that understanding technology is as vital to their roles as understanding accountancy. (Xero, 2016).
- 85% of accountants believe that to gain a competitive edge internationally, they need to keep up with the pace of technology adoption. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- As of 2016, 64.4% of small and midsized businesses in the United States used software to streamline their accounting. (Statista, 2016).
- A survey by Viewpost reveals that only 21% of small and midsized businesses in the US have integrated their accounting system with payments and invoicing products. (ViewPost, 2017).
- Of companies buying accounting software, 37% are first-time users. (Software Connect, 2018).
- Of companies upgrading their accounting software, 35% are coming from Intuit QuickBooks. However, only 11% of the upgraders are from Sage 50. Other upgraders come from QuickBooks Pro (9%), QuickBooks Online (5%), QuickBooks Enterprise (4%), and QuickBooks Premier (3%). (Software Connect, 2018).
- Furthermore, more than 20% of businesses require accounting software that can handle tasks beyond core accounting. Preferably, many want a solution that can handle additional tasks like inventory, payroll, and invoicing. (Software Connect, 2018).
- Key accounting software purchase motivations include to increase functionality (43%), replace a dated system (29%), improve usability (17%), consolidate multiple systems (10%), improve product support (10%), reduce cost (7%), and improve reporting (5%). (Software Connect, 2018).
- Also, 39% of accountants say they are early adopters of technology. (Sage Practice of Now, 2018).
- The top reasons why accountants adopt new technology include to increase efficiency (64%), improve the quality of service (44%), and attract new clients (42%). (Sage Practice of Now, 2018).
- 80% of executives believe that AI in accountancy gives them a competitive advantage. (Journal of Accountancy, 2017).
- 79% of business owners say that accounting AI is the key to increasing their company’s productivity. (Journal of Accountancy, 2017).
- 66% of accountants say they are more than willing to invest in artificial intelligence, while 55% are already planning on using it. (Sage Practice of Now 2018 report).
- Robotic process automation (RPA) can reduce the time spent on auditing and contractual from several months to only a few weeks (Forbes, 2018).
- 58% of accountants believe that AI is helpful in automating accounting tasks and improving overall operational efficiency. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- 58% of accountants ‘strongly agree’ or ‘agree’ that artificial intelligence (AI) will automate tasks and improve their firms. (Sage Practice of Now 2019).
- Moreover, 55% of accountants plan to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) in the next three years. (Sage Practice of Now, 2018).
- Also, 59% of finance and accounting professionals say that by 2020, data science and analytics skills will be required in the industry. (Business Higher Education Forum, 2017).
- An increasing number of firms are prioritizing accountants who have knowledge of data science and analytics rather than those who only know core accounting. (Journal of Accountancy, 2018).
- 75% of C-level accounting executives believe data mining and new analytical technologies will impact the accounting industry. (ACCA, 2016).
- A digital divide is any uneven distribution in the access to, use of, or impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) between any number of distinct groups. These groups may be defined based on social, geographical, or geopolitical criteria, or otherwise. Because of ICT high cost, its adoption and utilization are highly uneven across the globe.
- For most developing countries the following facts exist:
- There is a significant shortage of trained professionals with both accounting and IT interests and skills to make significant improvements in the countries accounting system;
- Accounting graduates are not adequately prepared with Information Technology knowledge and skills;
- New generation accountants need the knowledge and ability to analyze not only financial but also non-financial information, using the appropriate technology, and convert those results into predictive tools; however, most professionals in developing countries lack this knowledge.
