Implementing New Tax Software

Implementing new tax software for your accounting practice or firm

Accounting businesses always look for ways to improve workflow and make services more efficient for their clients. This is where switching tax software can make a huge difference.

Out-of-date tax software negatively impacts both efficiency and accuracy, and with new tax laws and regulations being introduced every year, it’s important to have research solutions that can handle the changing demands of the industry. Smart and scalable tax software for accountants will be able to improve the tax return process, track work status and manage workflow – all to keep your practice streamlined and efficient.

Once you've gone through the process of buying the best tax preparation software, it's time to think about the best way to go about the transition and kick off the tax software implementation process. It's time to consider what you must do to prepare and ensure a smooth transition!

Read on to understand the ins and outs of successfully implementing new tax software for accounting businesses.

How do you implement new tax software?

Rolling out new tax accounting software can be scary for accounting businesses.

It’s a big job, and there is much to consider at every step of the process – building the business case, creating your project team, assessing vendors and planning the eventual rollout.

A clear plan is the best way to ensure a smooth transition that will deliver value for many years. The most important considerations for accounting businesses are documenting everything, monitoring your task list daily, and communicating progress with key stakeholders.

Here, we've documented some top tips to support you along the way.

The 6 steps to successful tax software implementation

When rolling out new tax software, you must take the following steps to ensure you are fully prepared for the move.

If you’re in a large accounting firm you’ll need to have complete buy-in from the decision-makers in your practice, but regardless of your practice size, you’ll need all the right tools and expertise at hand to support the change.

Step 1. Building a plan or business case

Before you even start with your project you will have to make a plan for spending time and money implementing new tax software. This will be in the form of making a business case for larger accounting firms.

Here are some tips to execute this:

Do more with less - more efficient software means that you can either reduce your headcount or won't need to recruit as quickly when the practice grows.

Give your customers (internal and external) better service - better software means better information and better data analysis capabilities.

Provide better insight into the business - insight rather than numbers will ensure you’re a true partner to the business, instead of a number cruncher.

Step 2. Communicate updates to key stakeholders

The key to a successful project and to positively adopting new software is to have great communication with the key stakeholders in your practice.

The aim is to ensure your stakeholders fully understand what is going on and how it will impact their role.

People tend to shy away from change and fear what they do not understand. So, make it your mission to communicate key updates as you go and to reassure people about the benefits of the change.

Good communication, including two-way dialogue to capture feedback from the practice, will serve you well at every transition step.

Step 3. Take software implementation one step at a time

Don't be tempted to try and do everything at once. Instead, break your project into manageable tasks and deal with each in turn.

Lean on your subject matter experts and use the strengths of the people around you to divide and conquer where possible.

Consider the wider picture. What are some ‘quick wins and what things can be done later? Using a spreadsheet to manage your project can be useful, or using sophisticated planning tools can also help you.

Step 4. Implement what you need, not what you already have

This might sound obvious, but don’t be tempted to try and simply replicate how your current systems and processes work.

Instead, take the opportunity to do a full review and ask yourself why you are doing things in a particular way. It is time to change if it doesn't make sense.

It’s also wise to discuss your challenges with potential tax software suppliers to see how their solutions can help empower your accounting practice.

Step 5. Train up your practice staff

Your staff will need to be trained to use the new tax software comfortably, so planning for this in advance is essential.

Schedule training sessions, and make sure all your staff members attend. Setting up a post-implementation training session is also a good idea to ensure everything runs smoothly.

It’s also a good idea to designate a lead person within your practice who will be a subject matter expert or software champion. They'll be responsible for any questions or issues that arise during the transition period, as well as driving usage of the new tax software to ensure it is embedded within the practice.

Step 6. Don’t set and forget

Once your tax return software is in place, and you are happy with it, it can be tempting to leave it alone and get on with the job.

But there is so much more that tax software can do that you need to push it to add maximum value to your practice.

When the project implementation is complete, our customer success team will monitor your tax software to ensure that it remains at peak efficiency and supports your practice now and in the future.

In conclusion

Implementing professional tax preparation software for your accounting firm can be a big undertaking, but there is no doubt it will be a valuable investment in the long run!

By following these six steps, you can ensure a successful implementation that will help you streamline your tax preparation, lodgement and management processes and better serve your clients.

No matter the size of your accounting practice or firm, we have tax and accounting software for you.

Our fast and powerful tax practice management software solutions provide accountants and tax agents with peace of mind, through effortless compliance so they can focus on what matters most.