3 takeaways from the 2020 Accounting Business Expo

Earlier this month we attended the Accounting Business Expo, and for the first time, the event was 100 per cent virtual. It was a great opportunity for hundreds of industry professionals from across the Australian finance, accounting and business sectors to connect and delve into key topics that were affecting and impacting businesses of all sizes – especially relating to COVID-19.

Whilst a lot of discussions took place across the two-day event, there were a few recurring topics which we have decided to take away and discuss a bit further.

1. Businesses operations in a post-COVID world

This is a question on pretty much every business owners agenda. What is the new normal and how do businesses operate in today’s world, but as well, adapt to change – and quickly! 

2020 has really been a year of transformation for us all. It doesn’t matter if you are a global corporation or a local coffee shop, the way we do business as a result of COVID-19 has fundamentally changed. With strict social distancing and lockdown measures in place, businesses need to adapt to a new style of working, including, in some cases, making the switch to virtual working. This means equipping your staff with all the tools they need to complete their work from their home and enable digital collaboration company-wide – both from a personnel and operational point of view. 

At Spenda, earlier this year we decided to make the switch to a 100 per cent virtual work environment. The nature of our business makes virtual working a possibility so we have adapted and taken full advantage of this and found that not only has our performance improved, we feel a lot closer as a team. The key here is to be nimble, adapt to the changing times and find digital solutions that help your business continue to work as normal – which brings us onto our next takeaway…

2. Digital transformation is key

Another key topic that was discussed revolved around digital transformation in businesses. This year, the way we interact with each other and how we do business has significantly changed. Gone are the days where we would thoughtlessly hand over cash in a store in exchange for goods or services. Similarly, with less physical interaction, consumers have resorted to more online shopping, supermarkets prefer the tap-and-go payment option and we have begun to move away from traditional manual paper-based processes, such as invoicing and stocktaking. Not only are these digital processes more COVID-safe, but they are also more effective and convenient to both businesses and consumers. 

Essentially, the move to digital is now a must for all businesses and it will become increasingly difficult for businesses who have not made any kind of digital transformation to continue as they once did. The future is digital. 

3. The need for better efficiency

As digital transformation opens up the doors to many possibilities, new and innovative solutions are entering the market every day that promise to deliver businesses exciting ways to operate and communicate. As we move away from traditional paper-based manual processes, businesses need to think about where their inefficiencies exist and how they can better streamline their processes. What needs to be implemented to improve the virtual working experience for employees? How can you make it easier for customers to pay you? How can you better manage your stock? What can you do to improve your customer experience journey on your eCommerce site?… the list goes on.

First, you need to take a close look at your existing processes and then create a path towards simplifying how you do business. Let’s take invoicing as an example. In Australia alone, over 53% of invoices are paid late, with a further 20% paid to the wrong account and another 20% the wrong amount entirely.* This comes down to manual errors that waste a lot of time and money. And, did you know that it costs businesses three times more to use paper invoices, as it does to generate e-invoices?

And what about cash flow? We all know that cash flow is king for any business, so have you got the right payment agreements in place with your suppliers, and do you offer payment solutions that enable your customers to not only pay their invoices but pay them on-time? When you break it all down, making the switch to digital could become a huge saving in both time and money for any business.

Solutions like Spenda can really help businesses of all sizes to streamline and automate processes, have better operational efficiency and most importantly, improve cash flow. It’s one digital solution covering all areas of a business that enables data sharing and collaboration without paper, transcription or human error. And one that can become your complete ERP management software partner, or that can simply integrate with your existing accounting or financial system.

To sum up, when it comes to running a business in 2020 and beyond, going digital is key. On top of this, the idea of less is more has suddenly become a reality. Meaning, the fewer systems you have in place to manage different aspects of your operations, the better – saving you precious time and money in the long-run.

If you’d like to learn more about how Spenda can streamline your business and save you time and money, book in a free demo or get in touch with us.

* https://www.xero.com/small-business-insights/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/xsbi-report-paying-the-price.pdf