Change management: how your accounting firm can adapt to new processes and systems

Moving to the latest software systems comes with a raft of benefits for your workflow and productivity as an accounting practice – but managing that change still has its issues.

In an environment where accounting apps and cloud solutions are appearing at a dizzying rate, it can be hard to keep up with the flow of digital tools. And being on top of the change management process, when moving from legacy software to a new app, has the potential to throw up unforeseen challenges – depending on how you manage this shift from old to new. 

In this article, we’ll look at some of the key challenges of updating a key process – your workpapers – and how a mix of both old and new can be the best way to move forward. 

What are the key change management challenges?

Upgrading your current workpapers systems has the potential to be a game-changer. But, as with any software upgrade, it’s not just a case of subscribing to the vendor, pressing ‘start’ and everything magically working like clockwork.

There are a number of change management challenges to consider before switching from your old workpapers process to your new software:

• Resistance to change – your team may be reluctant to adopt your new software, even though it’s an improvement. This can be due to their current familiarity with the old workpapers system, fear of learning a new software system, or concerns about their own workload increasing during the transition from one system to the other.

• Data migration and integrity – to get your upgraded workpapers system up and running, you’ll need to transfer the existing data from the old system to the new one. This can be a complex and error-prone process, potentially leading to data loss or inconsistencies in the uploaded information.

• Learning curve and loss of productivity – however straightforward your new solution may be, it’s inevitable that there will be a learning curve while your team adapts to the new software and gets acquainted with the new standard processes. This can slow down the firm’s overall productivity and put pressure on existing engagement deadlines.

• System integration and compatibility – integrating the new software with other systems used by the firm (e.g. your accounting software, or your current spreadsheets) can be challenging. Finding the sticking points and ironing them out can take time, and you’ll need to work closely with the vendor to ensure it all runs smoothly.

• Security and compliance – any new system that holds sensitive financial and client information must be totally secure. This means having the very best data security measures in place and complying with the relevant compliance and data regulations (for example, GDPR, ISO etc).

How does Active ease the change management process?

At Active, we understand that your firm is fully aware of the key change management challenges. You’ve been updating and managing your systems for decades and know the time it takes to get a new practice software tool up and functional.

But we also know that some hurdles are impossible to ignore, and that finding an upgrade path that offers the smallest chance of any pitfalls is a major goal when moving to a new solution. 

With this in mind, our workpapers solution is designed to slot into your firm’s processes and systems with minimal fuss and disruption.

Why should you choose Active as your next workpapers solution?

• The familiarity of Excel and Microsoft – we use Excel as an integral part of our system, delivering a familiar spreadsheet format that’s compatible with your other Microsoft systems. There’s no enormous technological leap for staff to take and teams can be up and running with Active workpapers in no time at all. 

• Full training and implementation – we run a 30-day training and implementation program to guide and support the whole process of upgrading to Active. We’ll find the snags, train your team and will ensure that Active is operating perfectly from day one. 

• Time-saving of data automation – the time-saving benefits of switching to Active are immediate. We simplify the number of steps and show off the wow factor as the data automatically pours into your workpapers – a process that used to take a couple of hours is now done in a few minutes! Forget about data transfer and all the potential errors and inconsistencies that could occur. It’s all taken care of automatically. 

• Standardised workpapers across the firm – you now have a standard set of workpapers, completed in a uniform way across the firm. This promotes efficiency and a robust way of working, with supporting documents stored centrally and complete checklists to make the review part of the process quicker and clearer. 

• Improves the change equation – Beckhard and Harris (1987) developed the change equation to assess the likelihood of change being successful. Moving your firm over to Active helps you set a more positive vision of the future, reduce staff dissatisfaction and quickly shows the positive steps that this upgrade will bring about. 

Are you ready to go digital with your workpapers?

Cloud accounting and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are the norm in accounting in 2024. So, why should workpapers be any different? 

Upgrading to cloud-based workpapers software adds a whole host of benefits:

1. Centralised workpapers that are available to all the relevant authorised team members around the clock. No local copies, no paper files and no waiting around for access.

2. Standardised processes where every team member works to the same procedures, following the same rules. Workpapers are uniform and consistent as a result.

3. Automation of key data inputs, with data automation as standard and higher accuracy in your inputs. Reduced human error, higher data quality and fewer workpapers issues.

4. Integration with your wider systems, allowing you to easily incorporate data, documents and schedules into your wider accounting work, quickly and simply.

Active: workpapers with the best of both worlds

The change management challenges of switching to a new firm-wide software solution can rarely be reduced to zero. But by upgrading your workpapers process with Active you set the best possible foundations for a smooth and issue-free transition to a new system.

With Excel working in the background, your team always has a familiar and effective way of working. And with Active being a cloud-based SaaS solution, you have all the convenience of centralised storage and immediate access, alongside the benefits of automated data input.

If what you’re looking for is flexibility, Active is the workpapers platform to choose. Active integrates with the main cloud accounting platforms, is designed to flex around specific client needs and allows users to add ad-hoc sheets and calculations as they go. 

If you want a 21st-century workpapers process, without all the change management headaches, Active is the solution to choose – we’re rebooting compliance workflows for the modern age.

Sign up for an Active demo today