The evolving business landscape has pushed traditional industries—such as accounting and banking—to innovate and digitize operations. Leveraging technology to offer more flexible work practices allows companies to stay competitive.
According to a 2019 report published by FlexJobs, accounting and finance were some of the most popular fields for remote work—yet another testament to the fact that accounting jobs are becoming increasingly flexible.
The COVID-19 outbreak has accelerated the shift toward remote working. Recent surveys show that 88 percent of organizations are encouraging or enforcing mandatory work-from-home. The ongoing situation has affected nearly every industry, including the finance sector.
In late March, the IRS announced that it would push forward Tax Day to July 15, 2020, giving businesses more time to file and pay the previous year’s taxes. As a result, many accounting firms are looking to make remote operations more efficient and at the same time, more accommodating for employees.
If your firm is also planning to implement remote operations as a result of recent events, it’s understandable if the process seems overwhelming. But the good news is that remote work has some great benefits to offer and can help your firm emerge stronger than ever.
Take a look at some here:
1. Enhanced Efficiency
While some people perform better in a traditional work environment, others find it to be distracting. A stress-free and comfortable atmosphere at home can help reduce stress and enhance productivity.
Working from home allows employees to save time, especially because they can avoid the hassle of commuting to work during peak hours. This time can instead be utilized more efficiently to get work done. It could even be used to get more sleep or to follow through with an exercise regimen, which can help your workforce achieve a healthier lifestyle.
The flexibility also allows accountants and tax professionals to make a schedule that suits their needs. For example, employees who prefer working at night might not be as efficient during the day. But with work-from-home policies, they can work whenever it suits them.
2. Better Work-Life Balance
During tax season, accounting professionals often have to work long hours with minimal downtime. Working remotely takes some of the pressure off, as they are able to operate from the comfort of their home.
Adaptable schedules can help employees take out time for family and manage their personal and professional lives better. In a Buffer survey, 40 percent of respondents felt that a flexible schedule was the best benefit of working remotely.
3. Reduced Overheads
Reduce overhead costs by saving on operational expenditures, such as maintenance costs, office supplies, transportation costs, and energy expenses, during this time.
With fewer employees working in the office, you’ll be able to improve your profit margins and cut down on unnecessary costs.
4. Eliminate Geographical Limitations
The tax filing process is often long and requires approval at various stages. Additionally, many stakeholders, including CPAs, tax professionals, and business stakeholders, need to work together for the best results. Remote working lets the team carry out tasks efficiently, even if employees are working from inaccessible locations.
Moreover, you can also expand your talent pool by removing geographic barriers. Reach out to professionals in the industry from all over the country and get them on board to provide superior services.
Remote operations also give you the flexibility to hire more part-timers or outsource work to manage work during peak months effectively. You can operate 24 hours a day without disruptions and assist clients better.
The flexibility can even improve your retention ratio, making you a preferred employer in the industry.
5. Freedom From Local Devices
Working in an office also limits users to one local device. With cloud-based options, such as QuickBooks hosting, users can access emails, files, and analytics anywhere and at any time.
So whether your employees are working from home, traveling on business, or there’s an event at the client’s office, they can render high-quality services without interruption.
Conclusion
Implementing work-from-home practices is a great way to lower the stress levels of your workforce and improve productivity this tax season. However, to ensure effective remote operations, you’ll need to execute the process correctly.
The good news is that there are some excellent tools that can help you do so.
We recommend QuickBooks because it’s the leading accounting software in the world and is designed to meet the needs of small and mid-sized firms. A reliable cloud-based QuickBooks hosting service can help you get QuickBooks’ complete functionality with secure remote access for employees and 24/7 IT and network support.
As a leading commercial QuickBooks hosting provider, gotomyerp has over 15 years of experience providing reliable hosting services at competitive rates. We offer secure QuickBooks hosting services to simplify accounting processes and help businesses grow.
Call (877) 888-5525 to get started or reach out online.
