Digitalise your practice in 2025

This content is brought to you by Bright.

Digitalisation is transforming the accounting profession. And, 25 years into the new millennium, technology’s rapid advancement shows no signs of slowing down. 

With game changing developments in cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and automation radically changing the way accountants approach everyday tasks, digitalisation ultimately presents an opportunity to dramatically increase efficiency and productivity for those firms that choose to embrace it. 

For a full overview, we’ve written a whitepaper – The Digital Practice in 2025. Here, we’ll share a quick overview of what digitisation could look like for your practice. 

Positive impacts of using digital software

Technology is at the heart of digitalisation – it’s what’s ultimately driving the industry’s transformation. And with greater tech, come greater impacts. These include: 

• Accuracy and efficiency – automating once manual and error-prone tasks
• Automation and delegation – embedded into processes with cloud-based tools
• Profitability – through enhanced accuracy and streamlined workflows
• Client engagement – enhanced client communication and greater transparency.

With the above in mind, the benefits digital software can offer are clear for most firms. But with a huge majority of accountants using several different applications for their day-to-day operations, how do you know what tech, specifically, you should be using? 

The tech stack of today

In a recent survey, we asked accountants about their digitalisation journey to date – looking at their preferred tools and the impact they had on their firm. 

81% of firms reported that at least half of their tech stack is cloud-based, and 45% stated that they are using a mostly, if not fully, cloud-based tech stack. Which tells you one thing: in 2025 your tech must be cloud-based if you want to keep up with the competition.

Beyond that, the essential tools you can expect to find in a modern practice include:

• Productivity suites – like Microsoft Office and Google Workspace – with built in communications tools (over 80% of firms are now using them)
• Bookkeeping and compliance tools – to help streamline admin, ensure accuracy, and stay compliant with regulations
• Data extraction (OCR) tools – for importing data and automating processes
• General ledger systems – for record-keeping and financial management
• Accounts production and tax filing software – handling the backend processes of producing financial statements and filing taxes
• Practice management software – to manage workflow, allocate tasks, and track work
• Payroll software – to automate processes and integrate with other software.

The tech stack of tomorrow

From making Teams or Zoom a key part of their communication toolkit to using practice management software to delegate work, the above list of tech stack must-haves showcases how firms who’ve embraced digitalisation are already making the most of the tech available to them.

But what’s on accountants’ wishlists for the future? And what does that tell us about how we can expect software to develop? 

When we asked firms what further benefits they wanted to see, we found that: 

• 79% wanted increased cost-effectiveness
• 65% of firms want enhanced integration
• 53% of firms want continuous innovation
• 51% of firms want increased automation
• 49% of firms want improved security measures
• 25% of firms want advanced analytics. 

There’s lots to unpack there (which we do in our full whitepaper), but these responses, above all, reflect a consistent desire to stay ahead in the game – with data security, efficiency, automation, and the ability to use sophisticated data insights to inform strategic decision making, all remaining a core focus. 

Preparing for clients of the future

Making use of a sophisticated tech stack – both now, and in the future – can have an undeniably positive impact on your firm’s day to day running and overall profitability. But digitalisation can also help prepare you for the clients of the future, too. 

Enter: Generation Z. 

Born between 1997 and 2012, Gen Z are now becoming part of the workforce and, unlike previous generations, they’ve grown up in the digital world. They’re a tech-savvy and socially engaged generation who, in short, expect their professionals to use tech in the same way that they do. Which means that prioritising digitalisation is key to staying competitive in the market. 

AI, too, is making waves. While it might not be transforming accounting practices just yet, its potential for the future is immense. As AI technology continues to evolve, becoming part of day-to-day life for clients (including Gen Z), its applications in accounting will likely expand, making it an indispensable tool for the profession, too.

In 2025, digitalisation has become a necessity for firms wanting to take their practice to the next level.

To find out more download our full whitepaper

This content is brought to you by Bright.

Bright is an Award-winning payroll, tax, practice management, and accounting software for businesses across the UK and Ireland.