Compliance: Technology, Talent and the Client Experience.

• Author: Barry, Tom

The impact of technology, talent and customer expectations is shaping the continual change and evolution of the accounting profession. And the need for firms, their employees and their clients to adapt to these changes has never been greater. Technology has quickened the pace and created efficiencies. There's a war for the best talent. And clients have different expectations of what a relationship with an accounting firm really means.

Younger employees make up a majority of the workforce and their needs are driving innovation and shaping the future. How an accounting firm takes a proactive approach to these marketplace demands has a direct influence on its success. I sat down with several business leaders to discuss how technology talent and the customer experience are adding value to their organizations--and the lessons accounting firms can learn from their experiences.

Technology as an Efficiency Driver & Value-add Proposition

Leveraging technology allows for audits to be handled more efficiently and in less time, and accounting firms can offer a more competitive and seamless service for technology-enabled audits. Technology is changing almost all industries, and I discussed its impact with Sean Skuro, CFO of Tender Greens (tendergreens.com/our-story), a growing restaurant chain that otters healthy, sustainably farmed food at a reasonable price.

Q How has technology influenced and shaped the growth of Tender Greens and its brand in the marketplace?

Skuro: "Tender Greens couldn't be where it is today without leveraging technology. We've always put a strong emphasis on automation, particularly as it pertains to manual and repetitive tasks. While my responsibility is improving the efficiency of the accounting department, I make sure to incorporate each department's perspective before we launch any new technology.

"Technology has helped to optimize our accounting department. As we've grown from 17 to 28 restaurants, we close the books faster and more accurately, with fewer resources and more controls. Technology has allowed us to reduce head count despite the increasing complexity of our responsibilities. We have implemented several integrations with system vendors. Among our most notable automated processes:

* AP, workflows and statement review;

* R&M workflow and processing;

* Bank statement reconciliations;

* Period end close procedures; and

* Expense reporting.

"We will continue to pursue increased efficiency through technology. Our goal...