1.

Mobile tools

b. Impact of IT to accounting professions

Mobile tools in IT industry has created a broadband mobile connectivity to the internet and this bring
much conveniences impact to a businesses and the accounting workforces.

There are a few integrated mobile tools in the IT industry such as smartphones, tablets, phablet ( a
combination of phone and tablet ).

It has bridges both accountants and their clients in a closer way in the accounting industry. They can stay
connected with each other whether in the office, home or even traveling abroad.

Nowadays, accountants are greatly dependent on their mobile devices to access the accounting data.
Example of the mobile accounting app that can be access anywhere and anytime by a business is called
the Xero

*put qr code link to Xero apps https://www.xero.com/my/features-and-tools/mobile/xero-touch/

https://www.xero.com/my/features-and-tools/accounting-software/ to access. include video
https://tv.xero.com/detail/video/5127833256001/intro-to-xero:-small-business-accounting-software

other eg, MYOB, and Intuit

This on-the-move mobile accounting app enable a business owner to be easy to send invoices, approve
and create expenses, input receipts and reconcile through smartphones and tablets.

With mobile tools, accounting workforces are able to have fingertip access to communication and
information whenever and wherever they need it. Plus, with the innovation and creation of mobile
tools, it can also attract publicity and new clients and to better service the existing customers.
Some accountants also developed their own mobile profitability analysis app that shows the effect of
changes in pricing. There is one regional UK accountancy firm was able to attract purchasers in
Switzerland, Norway, France, UAE, India, New Zealand, Australia, the US and Canada.

c. Benefit or opportunities

By exploiting mobile tools, accountants can be benefited by:

• creating a more connected workforces- allowing staff to more efficiently perform tasks and
collaborate across the organization.

• using ‘anywhere, anytime’ access to information quickly and easily – enable quicker decision making
and management

• enabling managers and employees to make informed decisions faster and improving productivity –
Mobility solutions can break down organizational barriers by integrating data from multiple sources into
mobile views, delivering new opportunities for faster decision making.

• supporting collaboration across the other businesses in the industry - They also can be designed for
collaboration across the enterprise, with features such as sharing screenshots, images, video, and other
media through the application or through email and text message. Text messages or emails can include
deep links to directly connect recipients to live mobile views and allow multiple people to view the same
synchronized information in real time.

• being agile enough to grasp new opportunities as they arise, and having the tools to predict financial
performance with greater precision to reduces losses and maxmise profit- This enables company
management to continuously monitor the financial records of the business and resolve issues early
before they balloon into big problems.
  contribute to gross domestic product, stimulates employment and raises productivity
 Save Money (And The Environment)
Say goodbye to all those paper invoices, checks, envelopes, and stamps. With mobile
accounting, everything is electronic and therefore, more cost-effective. You’ll save money (and
precious trees) by not having to purchase paper goods every month just to keep your business
running. In addition to the cost savings of going paperless, you’ll no longer have to worry about
losing a receipt, invoice or check.

2. Cloud based technology

b. Impact of IT to accounting professions

Cloud based technology began as a metaphor for the internet. It is a type of Internet-based that
provides shared computer processing resources and data to computers and other devices on demand.

In other words, it connect millions of computer into a network of interactive computing data platform.
At the simplest level, ‘cloud computing’ is about using internet-based technologies to provide or gain
access to IT resources that are held on physically remote computers.

With the development of cloud based technology, the accountants have been developing the different
type of cloud and cloud-based services. The first accounting software that are available as online
services are the systems for bookkeeping and accounting.

According to 2012–13 ACCA–IMA research, there is an unanimous agreement on the significance that
cloud computing will have as it becomes increasingly adopted by accountants and the finance function;
some 72% expect this to happen during 2014–15.
Using cloud-based infrastructure such as computers and data storage can provide access to unlimited
resources without the need for up-front investment, maintenance or IT expertise. But the
consumptionbased, pay-as-you-go approach is a mixed blessing. For eg, the pay-as-you-go approach can
create challenges for accountants and their organisations. For example, lack of integration between
systems and their associated data can be a barrier to efficiency.

Farewell to desktop software

With the cloud based tech, the amount of desktop software is going to reduce until there is very little
left. If technological problems and security issues are resolved and communication lines are reliable,
then most applications will be available in the cloud by 2020. Analysts expect that before 2020 IaaS will
emerge as the largest segment in the public cloud, as uptake of Business Process as a Service (BPaaS)
and cloud Business Process Management (cloud BPM) grows, acting as a third-party providers in the
cloud ecosystem to take over more business processes, including advertising and marketing, human
resources, operations and sales, and finance and accounting.

Types of cloud computing

At present, on-demand pay-as-you-go public cloud services fall into three broad categories:

• Software as a Service (SaaS) • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), and • Platform as a Service (PaaS).

SaaS Any user of a free email service (such as Yahoo!) and social networking tools (such as Facebook)
has used SaaS, and stored some of their data in a ‘public cloud’.

IaaS Users access remote computers and use them for storing data and performing computer-based
processes. Amazon Web Services started this in 2004 and has since been joined by other providers.
PaaS Online access to the software and hardware needed to design, develop, test and deploy
applications, plus applications-hosting and various associated services. Force.com (from salesforce.com)
and Google App Engine are examples.

Benefit or opportunities

• Ease of access, scalability, data sharing and collaboration, With cloud accounting, you can easily locate
invoices and bills or identify whether a payment was missed. Cloud-based accounting solutions also
allow business owners to regularly collaborate with their accountant to ensure that all financials are up-
to-date which makes filing taxes much easier and smoother.

• 24/7 access

• Real-Time Updates
Not only are cloud accounting companies constantly making real-time security updates to your software
but these systems provide real-time updates to your data. With a completely up-to-date view of your
current financial situation, you’re able to make better-informed decisions about the financial future of
the business.

• reduced up-front costs, Expenses that are charged at the beginning of a contract, project or business
activity, eg, version upgrades, maintenance, system administration costs and server failures are no
longer issues. Instead, they are managed by the cloud service provider.

• pay-as-you-go charges based on consumption, a more cost effective way to resource IT in accounting
department.

• Basis for developing new products and services

 Cloud-based accounting solutions also protect your data from natural disasters and you can
even invite other users to view the data with limited access. Cloud-based accounting companies
ensure that the security and privacy of your data is always airtight and they’re constantly
making updates to guarantee this.
3. Artificial Intelligence mobility

b. Impact of IT to accounting professions

Artificial intelligence (AI) describes a machine or software that can demonstrate behaviour
indifferentiated from the human brain.

Nowadays, most of us have used software that can emulate the decision making processes of an expert.

AI applies to a broad range of machines and software that demonstrate characteristics of intelligence,
and that are often described collectively as ‘intelligent agents’. AI systems are the data, people,
procedures, hardware, software and knowledge needed to develop these computer systems and
machines.

Although an agent intelligent enough to replicate the human brain is not yet a reality, there are many
examples that can demonstrate limited ‘intelligence’, depending on how this is defined.

Intelligent behaviour can include: learning from experience, determining what is important, handling
complex situations, understanding visual images, being creative or imaginative, and other
characteristics. AI is a vast area of computer science. It includes a number of branches, such as genetic
programming, pattern recognition, neural networks

The achievements of AI supercomputers such as IBM Watson attract understandable publicity. IBM
Watson uses Natural language processing (NLP) to understand human speech, make sense of huge
amounts of complex information, rank answers based on probability, and learn from its mistakes.

The great news is that the advancements in artificial intelligence and applying AI and machine learning
technologies to bookkeeping, is getting to be a reality with most major accounting software vendors
presently offering capabilities for automating data entry, reconciliations and at times, even more. By
2020, it’s expected that accounting tasks, including audits, payroll, tax, banking, etc. would be fully
automated with the use of AI-based technologies that will disrupt the accounting field in such a way that
it never was for the last five hundred years, bringing big opportunities and serious challenges as well.

Many traditional bookkeeping tasks, the ones that everyone loves so much are already being performed
by AI. Accounts payable and receivable AI handles much of the work of initiating payments and
matching purchase orders. Automated data entry and data categorization help accountants more
quickly analyze broad financial trends. There’s some particularly advanced AI at Deloitte, where natural
language processing aids in contract interpretation.

Accountants and finance professionals increasingly rely on the expert knowledge built into software to
work efficiently and effectively in a range of scenarios – particularly in rule-based areas such as
compliance. Smart software is being used to ensure the consistency of audit-related processes and their
compliance with International Auditing Standards; software for applying eXtensible Business Reporting
Language (XBRL) tags to financial information, and learns from the decisions made by its users

E-commerce businesses are using AI chat bots to gain attention, engage users, and to act as sales
people, as well as FAQs and support agents: the bots use sophisticated algorithms to interpret natural
language questions and then deliver answers using online chat or computer-generated voice – they even
integrate back into accounting, CRM, and inventory systems.
 To understand how AI is changing accounting procedures, let’s look at updated document review
processes at EY and Deloitte. Both firms once had to undertake labor-intensive processes after
legislative changes or transfers of ownership of client assets. As revealed in a Forbes piece last year, AI is
now doing the job of looking through convoluted contracts. The result for EY and Deloitte, among
others, is a more rapid conclusion to the legal process.

c. Benefits

AI helps to recognize pasterns, so humans won’t have to. If AI based software already cataloges entries
for human only to check there is significant time saving and error reduction.
This allows humans to perform only high skilled, interesting tasks, while the boring, repetitive, time
consuming ones are left for the machines.

Automation and the Push for Efficiency- Improving the efficiency of workflows and practice systems is a
key goal of any aspirational accounting firm – and AI-driven automation can be a huge driver of this
productivity. Automatically coding your transactions, for example, speeds up the input of receipts and
reduces the error levels in your bookkeeping. So the job gets done more quickly, the quality of your data
is higher – and your junior staff have more time available for higher value work.

Diving Deep into Your Client Data- AI-based software tools are constantly, and tirelessly, processing,
analysing and deconstructing your client accounting data, 24/7. By taking the outputs from this data
analysis, AI can offer insights into the numbers and then suggest proactive ways for you and your team to
work more closely with business clients. Software can flag up potential cash-flow issues, suggest a
conversation about expense.

 save time and money by automating routine processes and tasks

 increase productivity and operational efficiencies
 make faster business decisions based on outputs from cognitive technologies
 avoid mistakes and 'human error', provided that smart systems are set up properly
 use insight to predict customer preferences and offer them better, personalised experience
 mine vast amount of data to generate quality leads and grow your customer base
 achieve cost savings, by optimising your business, your workforce or your products
 increase revenue by identifying and maximising sales opportunities
 grow expertise by enabling analysis and offering intelligent advice and support
a. Current issues, importance of IT to accounting

A more formal definition of accounting is the art of recording, classifying, and summarizing in a
significant manner and in terms of money, transactions and events which are, in part of a financial
character and interpreting the results of it.

IT or information technology refers to the development, maintenance, and use of computer software,
systems, and networks. It includes their use for the processing and distribution of data. Data means
information, facts, statistics, etc., gathered together for reference, storage, or analysis.

The rapid pace of technological change continues to disrupt traditional procedures in all spheres,
including the accounting profession.

Recently, disruptive technologies such as robotic process automation (RPA), artificial intelligence (AI),
blockchain, smart contracts, and advanced analytics have reshaped existing business models and
facilitated the emergence of new ones wherein repetitive and mundane tasks are becoming less
important and the need for high-level skills is increasing. Though it still will be some time before these
technologies affect the workplace at a significant scale, the current “entry-level” jobs that require noor
low-level cognitive skills may eventually disappear. It has been estimated that at least 50% of the work
that accountants and other professionals are paid for is automatable through currently available
technologies, with an additional 15% automatable through forthcoming technologies.

Importance

Computers, servers, the Internet, wireless and personal digital devices have forever transformed the
way companies conduct business. Software packages have also improved traditional operations and
production processes. Accounting has seen tremendous advancements thanks to the growth of
information technology. Accounting software automates the traditional paper ledgers and accounting
books. These software packages may come with a variety of specialized features or a generic program
that can be customized to current business operations. Companies usually choose accounting programs
based on the size of their operations and the number of users accessing the system. Large companies
may choose system-wide software packages, such as an enterprise resource planning system.
Information technology (IT) has created significant benefits for accounting departments. IT networks
and computer systems have shortened the lead time needed by accountants to prepare and present
financial information to management and stakeholders. Not only has IT shortened the lead time
required to present financial information, but it also has improved the overall efficiency and accuracy of
the information.

The biggest impact IT has made on accounting is the ability of companies to develop
and use computerized systems to track and record financial transactions. Paper
ledgers, manual spreadsheets and hand-written financial statements have all been
translated into computer systems that can quickly present individual transactions into
financial reports.
Most of the popular accounting systems can also be tailored to specific industries or
companies. This allows companies to create individual reports quickly and easily for
management decision making. Additionally, changes can be made relatively easy to
reflect any economic changes in business operations.
Computerized accounting systems have also improved the functionality of accounting
departments by increasing the timeliness of accounting information. By improving the timeliness
of financial information, accountants can prepare reports and operations analyses that give
management an accurate picture of current operations. The number of financial reports has also
been improved by computerized systems; cash flow statements, departmental profit and loss,
and market share reports are now more accessible with computerized systems.
Reports issued to outside investors and stakeholders have been improved by computerized
accounting systems. Improved reporting allows investors to determine if a company is a good
investment for growth opportunities and has the potential to be a high-value company.
Companies can utilize these investors for equity financing, which they use for expanding
business operations.