“Automation is coming for your job!”

Hold up—that’s not true. In fact, it’s so far from the truth that not even Google Maps can help find where it belongs.

Every industry experienced massive shifts in 2020, and accounting is no exception. Stemming from all we learned in the last year, the burning question for 2021 is simply, “What’s next?” 

Have you ever seen the movie How to Train Your Dragon? A young Viking boy, who has grown up fearing dragons, meets one in the wild. Over time, he develops an understanding of the creature and learns how to communicate with him, and eventually both overcome their fear of the other and work together to reset the course of their village’s future. Sounds a bit like scary technology reshaping our industry, doesn’t it?

Automation is reshaping the future of accounting.

There is no denying it. We know it. CPAs know it, even if they’re unsure about what it means or how to implement it. Technology is helping to spur innovation in an industry so often left behind. And while I get that this can be scary, we have no choice but to embrace the shift and find ways to make automation work for us.

On September 16, we finally got to tell the world about Botkeeper For Dummies. From the beginning of this process, we knew that Botkeeper For Dummies was more than just a book. It’s an introduction into how CPA firms can transform themselves into the firm of the future. Knowing how tough this is to wrap our heads around, Botkeeper For Dummies really helps CPAs and accountants understand and visualize unknown, maybe scary technology.

As more and more companies and accounting firms are looking for solutions to speed up various business processes, accounting automation through artificial intelligence (AI) is inevitable.