A good workflow makes your practice efficient, productive and profitable. Compliance work still rules and there’s little emphasis on making working practices offer value for your clients. Technology is bringing the means to finally speed up the process in this area. However, the emergence of digital raises a number of challenges when it comes to workflow.
Although technology can help accelerate many processes there are four big challenges that you will have to overcome in order to have an efficient workflow:
1. Reconciling multiple data sources
Firms now have a number of different clients who use a number of different financial and business tools, with a huge number of different data sources that you will need to reconcile and convert to meaningful financial data and reporting.
2. Keeping transparency, accountability and the audit trail
You will need a transparent overview of workflow to manage so many disparate clients and their multiple accounting systems, data sources and own preferences. With a clear audit trail in place, managing success in a timely and profitable way becomes far simpler to achieve.
3. Moving away from the tick-list methodology
Instead of seeing workflow as a checklist, look for a tool that allows you not only to view what you need to do, but also to carry out all the tasks.
4. Drilling down into the data
To become a proactive business adviser, you need access to your clients’ updated financial data in one place. And you also need the tools, reporting and analysis that will help you spot issues for the client, and provide opportunities to add value through resolutions to those challenges and issues – whether that’s cash flow dips, looming compliance deadlines or sector-wide problems in their industry.
Read the nine steps that you can take towards a proactive workflow in our ebook to learn more about how to build a workflow and service delivery that meets client expectations.
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