The whole idea of cloud accounting still delights me. We managed to organise a quick, unexpected getaway this week in Bargara, Central Queensland. Being the workaholic that I am, I have still been working, just a little less. “Have internet connection, will work” should be tattooed across my forehead, I think. The rest of the time we have been experiencing everything Bundaberg has to offer, including partaking in the rum.
This week has given me pause for thought. Back in the bad old days, the desktop behemoth computer sat on your desk in the work office. Working after hours meant leaving your family, driving to the office, and doing what needed to be done. This week, I did an unexpected pay run in Xero from my phone while my husband was driving to the beach. Talk about flexibility! I love that as bookkeeping professionals we have the opportunity to constantly find more flexible ways of working. That includes the location of the work but also by automating processes.
I have been reading everywhere how businesses are finding it difficult to find staff to fill positions. Any staff are hard to come by. Positions are being advertised for weeks with no applicants, despite the high rates and flexibility offered. The one advantage we have in the bookkeeping industry is automation. Yes, human intervention and experienced checking is still required. But software and AI advances in the finance industry have given us the opportunity to streamline our administration and data entry processes to reduce the amount of manual work that needs to be done. Having apps to do the heavy administration lifting that work for a small subscription, do not take time off and work 24/7 really has its advantages. If you are struggling to find staff, have you thought about what apps might help? Automation may be the answer. Give us a shout and we will work through it with you. I. Robot might just be the name of your next great employee.
Happy holidays.