Paper-based and traditional methods of document management are outdated, insecure and inefficient.

Traditional methods mean that documents like customer orders, evaluation feedback, membership forms and satisfaction surveys get “lost in the post” – as a manager, it’s hard to keep track of information and where it’s gone.

They prevent your team from completing work on time and in good order.

The best talent in the accounting profession is also looking for firms that harness and use technology to their advantage, so relying on outdated methods seriously hampers your recruitment processes.

In fact, 60 per cent of large firms say technology enhances staff engagement and morale – highly important factors for your staff retention.

Your potential clients look at traditional forms of information-gathering and document handling as a sign of inefficiency, as well as an environmental impact that could be mitigated.

(The environment has become and increasing concern for clients in recent years, as you are no doubt already aware).

When 94 per cent of accountants have adopted cloud-based processes, those firms that aren’t up to date stick out like a sore thumb.

As a result, they take their business elsewhere – to firms that are bigger and more technologically advanced.

We’ve seen smaller accountancy firms closing as a result, up and down the country, at a startling rate.

In short, paper-based processes are simply a thing of the past in 2024 and it’s time to move away from them.

Digital forms and their benefits

Your firm’s senior management team could greatly benefit from digital workflows and forms in a way that would have a profound impact on the rest of your business.

It’s not just about timesaving, it’s also about accurate filings, understanding where work is and what’s completed or still in progress, and what the rest of your team is up to.

Using online forms allows you to generate a custom workflow, control how information is requested and received and removes the need for constant email chasers.

If you submit information to other internal departments, digital forms also streamline this process – which is particularly beneficial in the current “work from home” situations that many firms are struggling to implement.

(Imagine the morale boost to your team that you could provide through online form features).

Things like holiday requests to HR, expense claims to Finance or service desk requests to IT would no longer need to be done in person or over the phone.

Plus, online forms guarantee information is delivered immediately and always to right person or team, every time – it cannot get lost.

Automated online forms are the way forward.

For more information, please visit Glasscubes’ online form automation page.