Cloud technology is synonymous with several business benefits, one of which is enhanced productivity. Cloud technology has transformed how accounting firms work, introducing the concept of simultaneously working on the same platform. Statistics say that cloud data centers will handle 94% of workloads by 2021.
If you are looking for ways to increase productivity for your accounting firm, switch to cloud technology. You might be wondering how cloud hosting services help improve productivity. To clear all your doubts, you must weigh various facets of bringing cloud benefits to your firm.
From streamlining communication between employees and/or clients to minimizing downtime, cloud technology is there to put your business on the path to success.
Let’s move on to understand how cloud computing can ensure higher productivity at work.
1. It Facilitates Collaboration Amongst Employees
Have you ever come across situations where any client-related accounting task got delayed because of the lack of collaboration between CPAs? In the traditional office environment, this routinely happens because accounting professionals have to work on multiple versions of the same account file, share them via emails, and make calculations for billing and taxes.
By switching to cloud technology, your employees can collaborate on the same files in real-time. It eliminates the need for the sharing of files. Also, they can save the accounting data files over the cloud. You can think of cloud hosting as a collaboration technology.
Also Read: Cloud Collaboration: All That You Need to Know
2. It Supports BYOD Practice at Work
A significant proportion of companies worldwide now facilitate their employees to access work files on personal computers or smartphones. Especially for time-critical tasks, business owners cannot afford to wait until the next working day.
Cloud technology helps deal with such situations at work by supporting the ‘Bring Your Own Device’ work-trend. It means you can allow the employees to be more responsive towards work by giving them authorized access to cloud-hosted business applications and data. This benefit of the cloud is highly essential for time-critical accounting tasks.
3. It Helps Optimize In-House IT Infrastructure
When you want the accountants to use different applications, you need to carefully invest in in-house IT infrastructure. Next to its establishment comes the need for regular upgrades and maintenance. For these tasks, you hire IT staff and ensure smooth operations. For a small accounting firm, the investment is significant.
Cloud transition gives them the best of both worlds. They can host business applications on third-party cloud servers without the need to invest a significant amount in local infrastructure. Cloud hosting implies cost-savings for your accounting business.
4. It is Easily Scalable
The workload does not stay the same for CPAs throughout the year. In technical terms, handling multiple clients requires more IT resources. Installing them in the in-house environment means considerable investment for changing business needs.
With cloud hosting, you can have better control over such expenses. Cloud resources are easily scalable. You pay only for the resources you use. If the need arises, you can call your hosting provider to add more virtual RAM or storage to your hosting plan for a specific period.
Recommended Read: Efficiency and Cost Savings: The Ultimate Benefits of Cloud Hosting
5. It is Compatible with Different Accounting Software
Most of the accounting firms have licensed versions of accounting applications installed on local systems. The choice of these applications can be based on the benefits and preferences of accounting firm owners. One reason behind the loss of productivity at these firms is that they use multiple software, which may become difficult for employees to deal with.
With cloud hosting, you can host any accounting software of your choice on the remote servers. Whether you use QuickBooks or Sage software, you can connect with a cloud service provider to host them on the cloud for easy access and compatibility. Most of these cloud servers are configured so that they are compatible with different versions of all the accounting software.
6. It Helps Reduce Server Downtime Due to IT Issues
In-house servers may face downtime due to technical issues, which take a lot of time to resolve. The impact of this downtime is based on the dependency of a business on these servers. For instance, if you have QuickBooks installed on the local devices, any device-oriented problem like hardware malfunction may cause all your team members to sit idle until the issue is resolved.
You can easily avoid such situations by relying on cloud hosting services. Renowned service providers invest in dedicated teams to ensure their clients’ cloud-hosted data and applications are always accessible. Minimum downtime prevents loss of employee productivity.
Is Cloud Hosting Useful for Your Accounting Firm?
Given the increasing adoption of cloud technology worldwide, businesses across diverse sectors are ‘moving to the cloud.’ Before you plan the same for your business, you must understand what cloud hosting is and how it can benefit your business in the long run. With adequate information about cloud advantages, you can better decide how it will be useful for your accounting business.
About Verito Technologies
Verito Technologies provides fully-managed, turn-key cloud hosting solutions for all size companies. We host your favorite tax/accounting software on a dedicated cloud server backed by enterprise-grade security that is SOC2, PCI DSS, SSAE compliant, and our strategically located data centers offer a 99.99% uptime guarantee. Automated backups and a 24/7 support team provide complete peace of mind.
