Artificial Intelligence (AI) levelles the arenas for accounting services, providing access to small and medium-sized business owners to robust tools once booked for large businesses.
Traditional client accounting services – including labor-intensive manual tasks such as bookkeeping, payroll, and financial reporting – are modernised through automation and data analysis. For example, on Tuesday (July 22nd) Intuit debuted AI agents in an enterprise suite that can handle daily accounting tasks, particularly those that have the potential to handle everyday accounting tasks.
“AI amplifies the value of SMBS's accounting services,” said Ariege Misherghi, senior vice president and general manager of Bill's Accounts Receivable, Accounts Receivable and Accountants Channel.
“When routine tasks like data extraction and invoice processing are automated, accountants are freed and focused on higher value advisory tasks that only humans can provide. They apply judgements, guide SMBs through complex financial decisions and provide strategic insights,” Michelgi told Pymnts.
In the case of SMB, AI levelles the arena, Michelgi said. In a survey of 1,000 SMB executives, 67% said AI would improve financial forecasts and plans, while 65% said it would help manage costs.
However, according to another small business survey from Verizon, only 21% use AI tools to manage their accounting and financial operations.
Lisa Huang, Senior Vice President of Product Management at Xero, said many accounting systems remain manual despite growing external pressure in the industry.
“The accounting and bookkeeping industry is at a turning point,” Huang told Pymnts. “Many experts are overworked and resource-lacked, facing increased demand for clients and increased pressure due to evolving regulatory and compliance requirements.”
“At the same time, the profession is undergoing generational change, creating an impending talent shortage, with more practitioners leaving the workforce rather than entering it,” Huang said. “Despite all this, the systems that many accountants rely on remain manuals, reducing our ability to provide high-value advisory services and strategic guidance to our clients.”
reference: Panel: SMEs want control, automation gives them it
It's not just automation
Ben Alarie, CEO of Blue J, a generator AI tax audit platform, said small businesses have long been at a disadvantage in accounting services.
“Historically, accounting practices and SMB have been well served by legacy tax research tools that are costly, complicated and ultimately misaligned as the reality of SMB workflows,” Arary told PYMNTS. “Generated AI, especially dedicated platforms, will overturn this dynamic.”
Generator AI allows practitioners to instantly access clear, quote-backed answers. “It dramatically reduces manual research time and levelles the arenas for companies that cannot afford large research teams,” Arary said. This resulted in “low-resourced, high-quality work.”
More specifically, “AI can convert SMBS accounting by automating ROTE manual tasks and “surface practical real-time financial insights such as 'you're spending twice as much on subscriptions' for pattern out and unout spending,” Jonathan Bailey, CTO of B2B Payments company, told Pymnts.
But it's not just automation. With the advent of agents, “AI continues to enable more personalized experiences, more automation of complex or boring workflows, more insight and intelligence, and, importantly, greater security and compliance,” Bailey said.
Kevin Akeroyd, CEO of tax compliance software provider Sovos, told Pymnts that AI is shifting accounting “from reactive processes to more aggressive processes for SMBS.” Instead of chasing discrepancies after deadlines or submitting reports, SMBs can use AI to detect problems earlier and make faster decisions.
Additionally, Akeroyd said, “We don't need a technical team to ask complicated questions or find problems.”
In order to properly utilize AI in accounting services, two things are essential: clean data and reliable software. Mindgard CMO and AI security advocate Fergal Glynn told Pymnts.
“Modern platforms provide transparency. They can show work and verify important details. By putting human eyes on the right setup and critical decisions, AI is not just a tool, but a trusted partner who runs a lean, smarter business,” says Glynn.
read more:
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Digits debuts AI accounting tools and welcomes Xero co-founders
