Accountancy was well on its way to digital transformation long before COVID-19, but it can’t be denied that post-pandemic, the digitalisation of the profession has come a long way. Five members discuss their firm’s digital transformation and their role within it.
David O’Connor
Director
Sheil Kinnear
Our organisation operated, as many practices, did with an on-premises server and that worked well to a point but as demand for more flexibility grew as a response to the pandemic, it became an obvious option for us to take.
In partnership with Datapac, moving to the cloud has futureproofed the business. We have learned to be more flexible and conscious of the risks around us. It has become more and more apparent that cyber security is a concern as we move toward a more paperless, digital environment. As a firm that does statutory audits, the ability to securely access our various software tools from anywhere was a huge incentive for us.
I think there is an improvement in terms of what can get done no matter where you are. We are also benefitting from superior processing speeds both in the office and remotely. A challenge in our sector now is the transfer of knowledge. It’s huge in our business and people who work remotely still have to pass on that knowledge to trainees and other team members. This takes a lot more structure and scheduling.
I think there is a change towards more flexible working, but we do like to get together as a team and share knowledge and, because of that, it’s going to be hybrid going forward.
Emer McCarthy
Group Strategy and Ecommerce Director
Kilkenny Group
We set up a “Go Digital” initiative a few years ago to transform as a company and become a true omnichannel retailer.
We defined a range of important steps and investments around channels, technology, and organisational restructuring to realise the omnichannel strategy.
We are one of the first to market with our VR store experience, giving potential shoppers worldwide an immersive, in-store experience from the comfort of their own homes. It allows our customers to engage with the Kilkenny Design brand in a completely new and unique way when the way we shop has undergone such a dramatic shift.
COVID-19 has driven dramatic change in the digital space, and consumers have adapted accordingly. We have seen a decade of change over the last two years, and businesses need to continuously invest in experiences or processes via digital to meet and exceed the needs of the evolving omnichannel consumer.
Thankfully, we had commenced this journey before the pandemic, which allowed us to navigate an otherwise tricky trading period for bricks and mortar during the pandemic.
Our culture is very open to technology and the benefits that it brings. Embedding technology and new processes bring a level of change management but collectively, our culture has embraced the same by bringing our teams on the journey with us.
Our environment has changed the need to adapt quickly to trends. COVID-19 has driven dramatic change in customers’ digital knowledge and use, which expedites the need to roll out pipeline projects sooner and plan to meet consumer needs three years in advance, at least.
Louise Heffernan
Audit and Practice Manager
Hugh McCarthy & Associates
The pandemic exposed a weakness many firms weren’t prepared for and are now forced to adapt to, highlighting how behind some of us were in the digital age, primarily facilitating working remotely and having a strong online and digital presence.
We took this opportunity to begin a rebrand of the firm, working towards moving all systems online and providing additional training where needed.
We understand Rome wasn’t built in a day, but we are in the final stage of an online rebrand, transitioning to a paperless office and entirely cloud-based within four years.
My role in this has been writing and redesigning the website, developing a strategy with the marketing team, working with the IT team to develop a future cloud-based infrastructure, securing software that is online while ensuring GDPR compliance and setting out a four-year plan to go paperless while upskilling the team to ease with the gradual transition.
The company has changed in so many ways. While our team chose to come back into the office, there is an option to work from home, providing a higher level of trust amongst the team and strengthening team communication. Giving the option to work from home also shows we value our employees and understand and appreciate the importance of life outside the office.
Because of our digital focus, I have changed how I train the team, making sure all resources are available online while developing the team’s IT literacy. And my role has evolved – I now work with marketing and focus on long-term strategic planning while heavily analysing future costs.
Bill O’Leary
Director
Goldbay Consulting
Four years ago, I introduced accounting software to offshore wind energy consultants, delivering user-friendly automated features. Its reporting capability significantly enhanced the quality, relevance, and timeliness of our management information, which supported profitable business growth.
In March 2020, the pandemic forced us to change how we worked and the so-called “paperless office” had finally arrived.
My organisation implemented video conferencing software. Weekly and operational review meetings, and bi-monthly revenue assurance meetings with directors and senior fee earners were critical in managing revenue and cash flow during the pandemic.
More recently, our focus is on improving operating margin by using data management tools to extract, process and present project margin information in a graphical format to the leadership team. Collaboratively, we review project information, seek to understand the past better and work to agree on actions to modify future behaviour and increase performance.
Leveraging modern software and related digital processes have enabled me to provide the tools, coupled with knowledge, to empower our project leaders to make better informed financial decisions.
The benefits of digitisation and automation of processes are not always linear. As more simple and repetitive tasks are automated, the remaining work becomes more complex – which creates several challenges, such as increasing demands being placed on senior fee earners and the training and development staff becoming more complex.
The answer, which is nothing new, lies in how we use the wealth of digital information available today. How we extract, analyse, synthesise, present, communicate, discuss, understand, and act on the fruits of digital transformation is critical to unlocking the benefits of the digital revolution.
David Heath
CEO
Circit
At Circit, we have tried to create a culture of digital transformation from the company’s very beginning. With the assumption that technology will continue to evolve at pace, our team is encouraged to be tuned in to what is available in the market and trial services that they believe our organisation and people can benefit from.
This does not mean we implement every new tool we are aware of, but we do become better at monitoring the market, assessing the potential positive benefits of a new cloud service, and getting the timing right for making a change. By having a mentality of being adaptive, we can more easily advise and be an example for our customers who are also on their own digital transformation journey.
Lockdowns and viruses have accelerated business trends already underway for companies, like moving to the cloud and modernising their IT departments, but it has also made them think about how their employees can work more efficiently. We’re moving from it being about ‘work from home’ to it being about entirely new ways of doing work.
For example, in the past few weeks, I’ve held investor meetings over video conference instead of in person, with the same – if not better – results.
Instead of thinking about who’s in an office, I’ve also been broadening the scope of who I chat with and when. On an average day, I’m probably talking to five times the number of people from different time zones than when I worked at the office. After all, anyone I want to communicate with is only a chat bubble and video call away.
I think we will be forever changed, but now the challenge is to get the balance and team culture correct – one that is digital-first, security risk averse, being personable and willing to travel to in-person meetings to maintain a deeper connection with customers.
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