{"id":8187,"date":"2021-06-01T10:12:23","date_gmt":"2021-06-01T14:12:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/?p=8187"},"modified":"2025-04-24T10:57:31","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T14:57:31","slug":"how-will-automation-affect-the-accounting-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/how-will-automation-affect-the-accounting-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"How will automation affect the accounting industry?"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/category\/accountants\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Accountants<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHow will automation affect the accounting industry?\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\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\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \">Published <time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2021-06-01T10:12:23-04:00\">June 1, 2021<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"How will automation affect the accounting industry?\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/how-will-automation-affect-the-accounting-industry\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/author\/keirthomasbryant\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"40\" height=\"40\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/04\/Keir-350x350.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" alt=\"Keir Thomas-Bryant\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/04\/Keir-350x350.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/04\/Keir.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 40px) 100vw, 40px\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Keir 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<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The most recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/practice-of-now\/\">Practice of Now<\/a> research from Sage showed that nearly half of all accounting professionals (45%) would like to automate repetitive, time-consuming accounting tasks, such as data entry and number-crunching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">20% of respondents said they were already investing in automation, while 43% said they plan to in the next three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Make no mistake. Just like desktop computing in the 1980s and 90s, and the Internet in the 2000s, we\u2019re entering a time when automation is impacting the industry \u2013 whether we like it or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But this raises questions we aim to answer in this blog. And we start with the simplest question of all: Why automate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-why-automate-accounting\">Why automate accounting?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Automation for an accountant is all about value. It o\ufb00ers accounting and bookkeeping practices the opportunity to focus on delivering more for clients, with less expense.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<a\n\t\tclass=\"button button--primary gate-3eb55016-f276-4a58-ad70-f13a7bc386ad\"\n\t\trole=\"button\"\n\t\tdata-button-location=\"content_area\"\n\t\thref=\"#gate-3eb55016-f276-4a58-ad70-f13a7bc386ad\"\n\t>Download now<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why should any staff member spend time collating, organizing, and processing large amounts of data when automation can do it, and in an e\ufb03cient way that will help you be more successful, achieve your ambitions and perform at your best?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s a handful of specific benefits to automation that need calling out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Structured, clean data:<\/strong> Data outputted by automation tends to be of higher quality than human-keyed output. Automation doesn\u2019t suffer from fat finger syndrome! This accuracy allows you to understand and do more. Automated data is well-structured, too, so can also cleanly \ufb02ow between systems, meaning that automation can be explored and adapted to the very end of a process, not just in part.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Data at the heart of client conversations<\/strong>: Traditional client accounting based on previous periods moves to the background of what an accountant offers. Instead, automation delivers real-time data, allowing for pre-emptive problem solving. This opens-up conversations around tax planning, as one example. Reporting tools can provide live impressions on the most pressing and relevant insights and feed in directly to management decision-making.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Data security<\/strong>: The world\u2019s awash with data protection regulations \u2013 from the NY SHIELD Act, to the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Data flows within automation processes provide reassurance around the quality of your procedures, ensuring an additional level of client-side protection against fraud or data breaches.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Better workflows: <\/strong>This is true even if the client doesn\u2019t want to change! Automation often allows you to adapt your work\ufb02ows to bene\ufb01t those clients that do not want to adapt or learn new processes. This could mean having better ways of handling clients who still rely on you to work through their (disorganized) paper records, or removing administrative tasks from payroll clients like the distribution of pay checks and handling of basic queries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-automation-is-being-used-today\">How automation is being used today<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are three key areas where automation is already being used today within practices. This indicates the path that automation will take in future too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Automatic data creation<\/strong>: This is the lowest-hanging fruit and is perhaps the most obvious too. Issuing invoices from within an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/6-features-sage-accounting\/\">accounting application<\/a> means the data is already there, with no need to input it manually. Similarly, issuing a purchase order within the application allows seamless tracking of expenditure. The data can then seamlessly continue a journey, such as being reconciled against bank statements later, or being used for audit purposes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Document fetching<\/strong>: Next, there\u2019s the data that is digital but that isn\u2019t already in your system. Examples might include supplier PDFs, such as those from utility companies. Automation here means the data is reliably recognized, coded, and published directly to the ledger. This kind of data might arrive by email or some other electronic means.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Capturing data<\/strong>: The next step is to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/autoentry-helps-digitize-your-business\/\">capture data<\/a> from sources that are print based, in order to get it into your systems. This might be data from printed receipts you or your staff are handed (e.g. from stores), or from printed invoices or purchase orders you\u2019re sent. Paper continues to make the world go around, even if this is the 21<sup>st<\/sup> century!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Through use of the above, automation is proven to drive down the time taken on manual tasks, and in turn the whole cycle of work. It reduces processes that might have taken two weeks to two days, and from two days to two hours. This is a signi\ufb01cant resource saving, but automation also speeds up the ability to then process that data (management accounts, tax reporting, year-end processes, and payroll).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The focus therefore does not have to be restricted to a single part of the process, but can be opened up to thinking about streamlining end-to-end work\ufb02ows across di\ufb00erent departments or services within the practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/05\/illustration2-300x211.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8189\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let\u2019s take a look at employee expense management, as one example. In an automated world, employees capture receipts on their cellphone using its built-in camera. Managers can then approve the expenses on similar mobile devices, and the data continues its journey to the accountant for processing. Because the data is already in the system, reconciliation is also automated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s all there is to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Consider the manual process, without automation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The employee has to keep their receipt upon purchasing something (a difficult task in itself!). They then hand it to their manager, complete with a form providing details. Once it\u2019s cleared the manager\u2019s approval, the receipt and form are then sent onto the account where, with maybe 100s more, they have to be manually inputted into the system. Then this data has to be manually sorted, split into document types, manually inputted into one or more systems, and reconciled against bank statements. All of this is labor intensive and, in our modern world, entirely unnecessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-future-of-automation-in-accounting\">The future of automation in accounting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To predict future applications of automation in accounting, you can look at your existing workflows to see if three indicators are present:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Processes or workflows are resource intensive, which is to say, they involve significant amounts of relatively unskilled human-only effort (e.g. interpreting paperwork). Imagine what employees could do if free from these tasks \u2013 and imagine the caliber of individuals you could recruit if this drudgery wasn\u2019t an expectation for those new to the profession.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There\u2019s substantial amounts of data that, in a perfect world, needs to live inside a computer system, rather than be scrambled across many systems or pieces of paper. This might be because there\u2019s a need to create a more easily-followed audit trail, for example.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There\u2019s a need for data security that isn\u2019t being addressed. This is becoming increasingly the case as government regulations force businesses to take care handling data for individuals. Payroll is a perfect example, and an area with a serious need for automation.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-machine-learning-and-ai-in-accounting\">Machine learning and AI in accounting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the present time, the automation buzzword is machine learning. But what does that mean for accountants?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Machine learning is a specific technique that allows computer software to learn both from experiences and data, and this self-learning is what underlines the new era of AI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Machine learning is built on advances in cloud computing that have provided the huge data samples that machine learning typically needs, as well as reduced the cost of processing power and increased processing capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By teaching machines to learn for themselves and to do the mundane tasks, we can enable ourselves to have time to focus on what we humans are best at \u2013 creativity, strategy and interacting with other people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A good example of machine learning in accounting is automatic bank reconciliation and ledger coding. Here\u2019s a situation where tasks are easy for most humans yet also very mundane \u2013 and disliked for this reason. Sure, computers since the early days have been able to match numbers \u2013 a $33.93 client receipt vs a $33.93 debit from an account is an obvious match\u2026 Right? But these old school computers don\u2019t know what ledger or code to use, or even whether that particular $33.93 entry is the one that should be consolidated, compared to another $33.93 debit that occurred a week later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is where machine learning provides a solution. It learns from watching humans process data. It sees the inherent patterns in bank reconciliations and uses a balance of probabilities to autocomplete human tasks. Often, this feels spooky to humans, because we\u2019re so used to computers being mechanically predictable. When machine learning is effective, computers seem to have gained a sixth sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Machine learning gets better the more data it has access to, and this is why the cloud is so invaluable \u2013 it\u2019s a huge library of data that machine learning can consume.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-conclusion-how-to-start-automating\">Conclusion: How to start automating<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What other tasks can you see within your own work or that of your colleagues that machine learning might one-day enhance? Because you can bet that, in the depths of the programming labs of all software companies, somebody is already working on it. The future is now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This means that accounting professionals have a duty to keep an eye on the technological horizon. Those that embrace these machine learning advancements have a huge competitive advantage, in terms of cost savings and client satisfaction, over those that don\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n \n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Automate your practice<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Automating data entry is not just about the technology. It&#8217;s about the outcomes it delivers for you, your firm, and your clients.<\/p>\n<p>Download our guide to discover the ways you can automate your practice and spend more time focusing on your clients.<\/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\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-3eb55016-f276-4a58-ad70-f13a7bc386ad\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Download now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__downloads\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t566 readers have downloaded this guide\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1259\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/07\/Automate-your-guide.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/07\/Automate-your-guide.jpg 1259w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice Accountants newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-ab515c6e-7e90-4c2f-a67e-113872516e8b\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe<\/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<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1064\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/02\/SageAdvice-christina-wocintechchat-com-2JDDn7iSGH8-unsplash-1064x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"Women in tech\" loading=\"lazy\" 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https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1450969748-1215x810.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t<div class=\"card-post__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__label\">Recommended<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-12-22T09:26:06-05:00\">December 22, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">4 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__title-link\"\n\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/fixed-asset-lifecycle-management-efficiency\/\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tStreamline your fixed asset lifecycle from acquisition to disposal\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"card-post__description\">\n\t\t\t\tSimplify every stage of fixed asset management with best practices that reduce manual work, improve accuracy, and keep your organization audit-ready.\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__non-featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--more h4\">More on this Topic<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-1 post-33655 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-accountants category-money-matters tag-accountants tag-accounting-101 tag-fixed-assets business_type-accountants industry-financial-services\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/the-essential-guide-to-sub-ledger-accuracy-and-integration\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/10\/BrandShoot-LND_June2024_Financial-Services_0968-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/10\/BrandShoot-LND_June2024_Financial-Services_0968-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/10\/BrandShoot-LND_June2024_Financial-Services_0968-512x768.jpg 512w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/10\/BrandShoot-LND_June2024_Financial-Services_0968-540x810.jpg 540w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-12-18T15:04:29-05:00\">December 18, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">3 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tThe essential guide to sub-ledger accuracy and integration\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-2 post-33184 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-accountants category-money-matters tag-accountants tag-accounting-101 tag-fixed-assets business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/fixed-asset-reporting-cleaner-reconciliations\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1369567969-1-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1369567969-1-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1369567969-1-768x512.jpg 768w, 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card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-3 post-13397 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-accountants category-free-guides-templates category-money-matters category-strategy-legal-operations tag-accountants tag-automation tag-cfo business_type-small-business business_type-accountants business_type-growing-business industry-financial-services industry-software-saas\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/5-steps-to-build-your-revenue-recognition-strategy\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1181223319-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" 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0-.22-.538q-.108-.106-.247-.164c-.139-.058-.191-.057-.291-.056s-.198.022-.29.061-.174.097-.243.169l-1.72 1.72V3.75a.76.76 0 0 0-.22-.541.76.76 0 0 0-.542-.22zM5.75 8.5C4.24 8.5 3 9.74 3 11.25v7C3 19.76 4.24 21 5.75 21h12.5c1.51 0 2.75-1.24 2.75-2.75v-7c0-1.51-1.24-2.75-2.75-2.75h-3a.76.76 0 0 0-.537.216.74.74 0 0 0-.223.535.76.76 0 0 0 .223.535.74.74 0 0 0 .537.216h3c.699 0 1.25.551 1.25 1.25v7a1.24 1.24 0 0 1-1.25 1.25H5.75a1.24 1.24 0 0 1-1.25-1.25v-7c0-.699.551-1.25 1.25-1.25h3a.76.76 0 0 0 .537-.216.74.74 0 0 0 .223-.535.76.76 0 0 0-.223-.535.75.75 0 0 0-.537-.216z\" \/><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-09-24T15:43:15-04:00\">September 24, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">5 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\t5 steps to mastering revenue recognition for SaaS\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-4 post-13831 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-accountants category-money-matters tag-accountants tag-accounting-101 tag-cash-flow tag-cloud-financial-management business_type-small-business business_type-accountants business_type-growing-business industry-software-saas\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/accounting-compliance-and-reporting-best-practices-for-saas\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" 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2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">13 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tUnderstanding SaaS compliance: Best practices for accounting and reporting\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The most recent Practice of Now research from Sage showed that nearly half of all accounting professionals (45%) would like to automate repetitive, time-consuming accounting tasks, such as data entry and number-crunching. 20% of respondents said they were already investing in automation, while 43% said they plan to in the next three years. Make no [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":280,"featured_media":3415,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"sage_hide_published_date":false,"sage_hide_read_time":false,"sage_hide_share_buttons":false,"_pwl_sage_podcast_buzzsprout_src":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[158],"tags":[2,145,334],"business_type":[312],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[57],"persona":[150,100],"imagine_tag":[222],"coauthors":[542],"class_list":["post-8187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-accountants","tag-accountants","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-automation","business_type-accountants","industry-financial-services"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-us","author_name":"Keir Thomas-Bryant","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/02\/low-value-automation-2.jpg","imagine_tags":{"222":"Accountants"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice US","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/280"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/3415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=8187"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=8187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}