Consulting Services, Technology Services • Published 7/15/2022 Maintaining Critical Accounting Function

Does your accounting function support or hinder your organization’s ability to respond quickly to disruption?

Whether it’s a natural disaster, a recession, or unprecedented disruption in your industry, every crisis highlights and accelerates the need for adaptability. The strain of outdated and inflexible technology, understaffed or unavailable accounting teams, and time-consuming manual processes can quickly compound any problem an organization faces. Daily financial functions such as accounts receivable and accounts payable are crucial to business continuity. Additionally, visibility into accurate, up-to-date data is critical to support decision-making—especially when disruption creates an environment of uncertainty. 

For example, many organizations continue to feel the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. It is important to identify problems that were amplified by the sudden and prolonged changes to business operations in preparation for the future. Did you have the accounting staff necessary to maintain critical functions through a crisis? Did your technology support accessibility and collaboration necessary for a remote team? Did your staff have the knowledge and skillsets to adapt to developing regulation and reporting? Now is the time to pinpoint those challenges and explore options that can improve the alignment of your people, processes, and technology to avoid recurring issues during the next disruption.

Leveraging technology

The accounting system that you first relied on to manage finances and operations may no longer meet the needs of an ever-changing business environment. One option to improve adaptability and enable anytime and anywhere access to financial functions and data is to implement cloud accounting software. By working in the cloud, businesses reduce the need for employees to connect remotely to a physical server, allowing for better performance and reducing reliance upon dedicated IT resources. Cloud software helps provide increased flexibility and scalability to better manage accounts payable, accounts receivable, and other critical functions that support your day-to-day operations such as purchasing, project management, and customer billing. With best-in-class cloud solutions, you can further accelerate processes surrounding the movement of cash and gain better visibility into cash position.

Sage Intacct, the only AICPA-preferred accounting solution, was born in the cloud and provides accessibility, multiple entity and multiple location support, and flexible dimensional data capture and reporting. True cloud solutions like Sage Intacct are designed to handle crisis situations by regularly testing all disaster recovery scenarios. This provides peace of mind that your financial application is consistently secure, reliable, and available.

Enhancing your team

Now may be the time to explore alternative staffing models, such as outsourcing your accounting function to a trusted partner. Collaborating with a team of outsourced accounting professionals provides you with a wide range of options to best meet your needs. Outsourcing can help you adapt to staffing challenges in a fluctuating job market by providing access to experienced staff—whether you need help with day-to-day tasks or even an outsourced CFO. Partners can develop cash flow projections, decipher and understand complicated regulations, and identify how they may impact your company’s finances. An outsourced accounting partner can support your accounting function using efficient processes and provide access to best-in-class technology, so your organization can reap the benefits of modern software.

Working with knowledgeable professionals to outsource some or all your team’s workload can smooth out the bumps in the road that your accounting department experiences even under normal circumstances, provide consistency and reliability, and scale up easily when disruption creates a need for more robust support.

Identifying the gaps

Whether your gap exists in technology or staffing, P&N can help assess your needs and find the right approach for your organization’s unique situation. Now is the time to identify opportunities to increase your adaptability, especially moving forward into a future that will no doubt involve additional disruption. With increased flexibility and fewer manual tasks, leadership can focus on critical operations, business continuity, and navigate many unexpected scenarios with greater confidence. Contact us to start a discussion about how your accounting function can be improved to weather the next crisis.