The Case for Continuous Accounting

The discovery of fire (more accurately, the controlled use of fire) enabled early humans to cook food, repel carnivorous beasts, and survive past the ripe old age of 22, thus radically altering the course of homo sapiens’ future.
‍
Continuous Accounting is no less game-changing for the evolution of the accountant.

In the last century, slide rules and spreadsheets tethered accountants to the monthly close schedule. Every meaningful task was crammed into a week or two of frenzied work, with beleaguered accountants entering data, double-checking data, and running reports.

After days on end spent matching transactions and hunting for discrepancies, accountants had little time for performing the really important work of Accounting: strategy creation and analysis.

Continuous Accounting changes all of that. When close tasks are spread across the entire month, instead of relegated to the end of the month, accountants are far less frenzied and have more time for analysis. As key activities happen every day through automation, accountants and decision-makers always have access to real-time data.
‍
Because accountants aren’t trying to cram four weeks’ worth of work into one and no longer need to manually enter data, accuracy improves. Tasks that were reserved for the end of the period are embedded within daily activities, which means the pace of Accounting finally aligns with the pace of business.

Continuous Accounting represents not just a physical shift in how the work is done—day-to-day and via automation—but a philosophical one.

With access to real-time information, accounting teams are no longer the proverbial “day late and a dollar short” in delivering financial information. The C-suite doesn’t have to wait weeks—or months—for today’s balance sheet. As such, Continuous Accounting provides accountants with the means and methods to finally move away from the tedious, time-consuming tasks of manual accounting.

Those who practice Continuous Accounting quickly start functioning as ‍highly valuable strategists.

This approach – which creates better utilized, fully empowered accountants, gives way to a mindset of continuous improvement, which is what today’s companies need to create competitive advantage.

Are you ready? Read this ebook to discover how to begin your Continuous Accounting journey and equip your teams to become highly valuable strategies.