{"id":3117,"date":"2017-11-14T09:44:22","date_gmt":"2017-11-14T09:44:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/?p=3117"},"modified":"2026-01-28T11:00:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T11:00:18","slug":"admin-sinkholes-clients-avoid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/admin-sinkholes-clients-avoid\/","title":{"rendered":"Admin sinkholes: How your clients can avoid them"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStrategy, Legal & Operations<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAdmin sinkholes: How your clients can avoid them\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tKeir Thomas-Bryant<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a story as old as the hills: admin overhead is throttling business and preventing growth. However, research commissioned by Sage shows it might be especially true in today\u2019s world \u2013 and potentially devastating to business growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sweating the Small Stuff report, created by Plum Consulting on behalf of Sage, analysed research carried out with 3,000 small and medium-sized companies across 11 countries. It found that, on average, small businesses currently spend 120 days a year on admin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The admin load varies by country and the report reveals that this can translate to the equivalent of a full-time member of staff within US businesses simply to deal with administration and regulatory requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even in Ireland and Australia, which the research indicates have the lowest admin burden, there\u2019s still a requirement for the equivalent of one-quarter of a member of staff simply to deal with admin rather than focusing on the core aspects of the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Productivity costs unveiled by the research are also incredible. Measured as a loss in productivity, the report estimates a $335.3bn cost in the US. And an estimated \u00a339.9bn in the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Splitting the admin load<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The report identifies two kinds of administrative burdens: operational and regulatory. The latter isn\u2019t required for the success or otherwise of the business but is required by governments to register or monitor it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The admin burden breakdown is as follows (taken from Table 3-1 within the report):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Data
Administrative sinkhole table<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Business departments such as Human Resources (HR), for example, are typically hit by both operational and regulatory administrative requirements as they seek to produce results that are good for the business \u2013 but that also comply with government legislation intended to protect and provide rights for employees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some administrative sinkholes are entirely regulatory in nature, such as the requirement to pay taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the report doesn\u2019t just identify the problem of administrative sinkholes. It also identifies the best possible solution \u2013 and provides data to back up the assertion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digitisation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The report asked to what extent the businesses surveyed have applied technology across eight core administrative tasks likely to be found in virtually all businesses. The businesses were invited to choose from three possible answers \u2013 Fully, Partly or None \u2013 and from this a \u201cdigitisation score\u201d was produced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results should come as no surprise. Generally speaking, businesses with a higher digitisation score had lower admin costs, expressed as a percentage of turnover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowhere is this clearer than within the largest of the administrative tasks: accounting. By applying digitisation, the cost as a percentage of turnover can be reduced significantly, as is demonstrated by Figure 5-7 within the report:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Data
Cost as a percentage of turnover<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Many businesses might think they\u2019ve already applied digitisation. After all, it\u2019s rare for every employee not to be provided with their own computer nowadays. However, while this kind of digitisation was revolutionary when it began in the 1980s, in recent times there\u2019s been a second revolution \u2013 and one that\u2019s every bit as important. It pushes the admin sinkhole cost savings even further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With that in mind, here are some ways to apply even smarter digitisation \u2013 and in doing so, fill-in those admin sinkholes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choose integrated software<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Only those living under a proverbial rock will not be aware of the masses of business software out there. However, a lesser-known fact is that not all software is created equal when it comes to integration \u2013 that is, accessing sources of data outside of itself or different systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, there\u2019s a profound time and labour-saving benefit for an accountant who\u2019s able to send a client\u2019s tax statement to HMRC with the click of a button, within the software they\u2019re already using for their general accounting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The earlier computing revolution certainly sped things up compared to posting pieces of paper to HMRC. But nowadays, it sounds positively antiquated to talk of processes where you might output a report as a file, visit the HMRC website and manually upload it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even more than this, however, software that provides a single access point and shared data across all departments of a business again saves time and effort. A payroll run that will be reflected instantly within the accounting side of the software means there\u2019s no need to spend time exporting or importing data \u2013 and no need to stress about the fact the many different systems might not be in sync.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go mobile<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The modern business computing revolution can be found in your pocket or bag. It\u2019s a revolution that most of us have already accepted in our personal lives yet many just haven\u2019t made the connection that it can also be applied to business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re talking here, of course, about mobile phones and tablet computers. Apps and the cloud computing services they rely upon are used by the smartest businesses because they encourage more rapid growth \u2013 and that\u2019s before we discuss the basic time and efficiency savings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fundamental to this is cloud computing, which provides always-on access to data, and access from anywhere and using virtually any device \u2013 whether that\u2019s a PC in the office or a tablet computer in a coffee shop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compare and contrast to the aforementioned earlier computing revolution that, while incredible at the time, ultimately chained us to a single desktop computer within the four walls of an office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The physical freedom of using mobile devices simply increases the opportunity to perform admin tasks when it best fits your schedule, or needs. Emails can be answered on the way home on the train. Schedules can be drawn up as you grab a coffee before starting work. VAT returns can be filed from a motorway service station. There really is no limit in that virtually everything you previous did on a desktop computer can now be done using apps, wherever you happen to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Embrace the future<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The introduction of mobile accounting apps brings more than just convenience and time-saving. Technology is ushering in different kind of accounting processes for clients, at least \u2013 and the only reasonable response is to embrace this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, mobile apps bring with them the ability to make instant payments for services, as well as track purchases by simply snapping a photograph of a receipt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What this means is the age-old concepts such as double-entry bookkeeping are no longer relevant to clients. Invoices can be generated and paid instantly, so there\u2019s no need for clients to have an accounts receivable department or to discuss interest accruals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, clients expect and demand this kind of convenience \u2013 and accountancy firms are able to respond with their own integrated client management software<\/a> that can keep up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Professional invoice templates<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t13,471 readers have downloaded this guide\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"invoice\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Join more than 500,000 UK readers and get the best business admin strategies and tactics, as well as actionable advice to help your company thrive, in your inbox every month.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a story as old as the hills: admin overhead is throttling business and preventing growth. However, research commissioned by Sage shows it might be especially true in today\u2019s world \u2013 and potentially devastating to business growth. The Sweating the Small Stuff report, created by Plum Consulting on behalf of Sage, analysed research carried out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":280,"featured_media":11524,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[47,125],"business_type":[115],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[],"persona":[67,72],"imagine_tag":[220,100],"coauthors":[369],"class_list":["post-3117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-strategy-legal-operations","tag-productivity","tag-workplace-technology","business_type-accountants"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-gb","author_name":"Keir Thomas-Bryant","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-616244805.jpg","imagine_tags":{"220":"Accountant accounting","100":"Partners"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice UK","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/280"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3117"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3117\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/11524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=3117"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=3117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}