What is accounting software and why it's important for your business

In more depth, what is accounting software?

In the past, accounts teams used to be entirely paper dependent, then thankfully things improved with the advent of spreadsheets. Since then, we have seen a multitude of time-saving, accuracy-boosting advantages from the development of various different accounting software packages. The best options are usually all-round solutions which remove much of the laborious manual intervention and substantially reduce the risk of error. Accounting software significantly improves productivity too.

There are various different accounting package examples which are worth being aware of.

Initially, it’s important to decide whether your requirements are best met with on-premise accounting software or a cloud-accounting software solution. On-premise accounting software is installed on the hardware in your offices and managed on your own servers. For businesses with highly-resourced IT teams available to support and maintain the accounting software and ensure updates and fixes are completed, this can be an effective solution.

A second, more commonly adopted option is cloud-accounting software. In this instance, your Finance team access the tools and functionality they need by connecting from their PC or laptop to the cloud. This is a highly secure option that also means that any updates are completed quickly and easily by your accounting software provider, keeping your IT specialists free to focus on other tasks.

If you want to learn more about the differences in the two platforms read our cloud based vs on-premise accounting software breakdown.

Accounting software packages can include a variety of tools and functionality which can be matched to the needs of your Finance team. Consider, therefore, the importance of specific elements such as automated accounts payable, GST, and reporting when choosing what to include in your accounting software solution.

The question many ask is ‘How does accounting software work?’. If you’re interested in discovering more about how to use accounting software and gain insight into what some of the features might look like in our article how does accounting software work?.

Examples of accounting software

One example of accounting software is Access Financials. This is a modular solution which can be designed to suit your organisational set-up – so for example you may need group-level accounting, or perhaps a system that can easily support a growth strategy or where multiple projects need to be managed. Access Financials is a proven solution that already supports 1000s of organisations across a wide range of industries such as not for profit, health and social care and professional services. 

Other examples of accounting software are Xero and MYOB.

For even more complex needs, you may also need to consider accounting software within an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, or more feature rich Financial Management System. You will also need to decide whether you are looking for an ‘out of the box’ cloud solution that is ready to use and easy to manage, or a customised and tailored accounting software solution that is designed for your organisation.

Examples of accounting software packages

You’ll probably want to look at various accounting package examples before making a decision about what’s right for your organisation. Bear in mind the following key questions:

• How much flexibility and scalability do you need to match your business growth goals? For example is the accounting software going to be able to grow with your business if you expand overseas.
• How complex is your organisation – do you have multiple businesses within a group for example?
• Do you need to process transactions in multiple currencies?
• Do you want to include the ability to process purchase and sales orders?
• Is it important to incorporate project costing and billing?
• How much automation of finance processes would benefit your business?

With key questions like these (and more) in mind, it will be easier to focus in on the accounting package most likely to meet your current and future requirements.

Why is accounting software important?

The most important reason to switch to an up-to-date accounting software solution is the huge range of benefits it delivers. If you believe your business has outgrown its current accounting software package, or that the Finance function could operate more efficiently, then it’s probably time to change to a full-service, cloud based accounting software.

The list of benefits is long but they include:.

• Streamline your finance-oriented processes and improve the overall efficiency of your Finance team, and the interactions they have with the rest of the business.
• Improve accuracy by introducing more automation and reducing or eliminating the need for rekeying data.
• Save time by giving your Finance team the tools they need to get things done quickly and effectively.
• With a range of insightful and accurate reports on hand at the click of mouse, its much easier to see the bigger picture and make confident business decisions quickly.
• Setting up alerts for key elements such as late payments or discrepancies enables your team to identify issues and respond quickly before they become a problem.
• A joined-up approach to running your Finance function makes it much easier to deal with auditing or investigations if the need arises.
• If its cloud based it let's you access your data wherever you are as long as you have an internet connection unlocking you from having to be in a set location.

Get accounting software for your business

Now you know what accounting software is and the examples and benefits, you may be considering which package is right for your organisation. 

Our accounting software specialists are on hand to discuss your requirements and walk you through our software to see if it's the right fit for you. Book a demo today.

Alternatively, if you're not ready to book a demo. You can download our brochure to find out more about our accounting software.