The Role Of Technology In Accounting: A Review Of Software Options In Australia

The Importance of Technology in Accounting

Question:

Discuss about the Banking Software and Packages in Australia.

Technology has witnessed a number of transformations and advancements in the recent years. There are a number of tools and processes that are based on technology that have been implemented in the past. However, with the changes and transformations in technology, these tools and processes are also required to be upgraded. Such practices have allowed the business sectors to flourish at a rapid rate. One such industry is accounting and finance which has made an advanced use and application of technology and has been home to many transformations.

There are a number of online retailers that have established their e-commerce websites and web applications to offer the services to the clients. Woolworths is one such Australian online retailer that deals in the product categories as groceries and household products.

Organization structures make up for an essential part of the organizations. Woolworths has a three-layered architecture which comprises of senior management at the top followed by middle level managers and department heads. The members of the operational team are placed at the last layer at the bottom (Woolworths, 2017).

Human resources form an extremely important part of every organization. The success and failure of the organization and the projects that are carried out in the organization has a lot of dependence on the human resources. It is therefore required for the organizations to have an adequate culture and structure for enhanced employee satisfaction. There are issues of communication and collaboration that have been witnessed in case of the organizational structure that is followed at Woolworths. There are issues in terms of integration and cohesiveness that have also been observed (Henderson, 2004).

In case of Woolworths, the information systems in the areas of accounting and finance can be acquired with the aid of a number of different methods. All of these methods have their respective sets of advantages and drawbacks. The one that fits the best is acquisition of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software (Yang and Tamir, 2015).

The current issues with the organizational structure will be avoided with the same (Mallery, 2011).

Sales Process at Woolworths

The sales process in the company is executed in four different stages. The initiation of the sales activities takes place keeping the business goals and objectives at the baseline. Gradually, there are opportunities and agreements that are carried out and explored which leads to the fulfillment of the objectives and results in the customer satisfcation (Gulledge, 2002).

Online Retailers and their Use of Technology

Control and monitoring is a necessity for all the activities and operations in all the companies and organizations. In the department of sales, there are issues with control and monitoring that leads to the emergence of a number of frauds and problems (Mohapatra and Patnaik, 2011).

There is an incomplete validation and verification of the compliance with the best practices that is observed that leads to numerous deviations. The quality of the end-product is therefore adversely affected.

Accounting processes were largely paper-based a couple of decades ago. Gradually, there were developments in the technological areas that were carried out which led to the development of the technologies being used in the accounting sector as well (Seethamraju, 2012).

Today, there are automated processes and applications that are being used for the execution of accounting activities. These automated systems not only ease out the entire process but also make the processes faster and more accurate in nature (James, 2016).

There are numerous vendors and service providers in the market that provide the accounting packages and applications (Afpbb, 2016). There are organizations that are actively making use of such applications which has led to the growth of such vendors to over 10,200. There are over 138,000 resources that work in these organizations and the growth rate of the entire sector is estimated to go up by 8% by the end of this year (Bankwest, 2015).

MYOB Accounting Software

There are many accounting software and applications that are available in the market. One of the integrated solutions that are being used widely is MYOB accounting software that offers the following features and benefits.

• Real-time data and information is provided for making accounts-related decisions
• Strong integration with the other systems
• Offline mode can be used for accessing the application
• MYOB complies with the quality guidelines and standards
• Personalization and customization options lead to enhancement of the user satisfaction levels (Myob, 2016).

Intuit QuickBooks

Intuit QuickBooks is an accounting software package that offers increased levels of system qualities and functionalities that lead to enhanced user experience. It offers the following features and benefits.

• Can be acquired by small scale firms as it comes with low cost
• Performance is not impacted by the type of the user or the platform that is being used
• The data of the customers can be easily managed and stored
• Offers the accessibility to the users on the web as well as the mobile platforms
• The package offers excellent and advanced management of the risks (Advisoryhq, 2015).

Saasu

There are many accounting software and applications that are available in the market. One of the integrated solutions that are being used widely is Saasu accounting software. The package offers flexibility and scalability to the users with the following features and abilities. 

• The package allows integration with the other applications and systems in the organization to be easily done.
• The package can be customized in terms of the language options that are available.
• The package can be personalized in terms of the currency options.

Reckon

Reckon is an accounting software package that offers increased levels of system qualities and functionalities that lead to enhanced user experience. It offers the following features and benefits.

• Market study shows that the software offers great customer support and services and has a huge customer base as a result.
• The investments and customer shares are never put at risk.
• Credit management can be done with ease (Carey, 2015).
• There are many billing activities and operations that can be executed with convenience.

Xero

Xero is an accounting software package that offers increased levels of system qualities and functionalities that lead to enhanced user experience. It offers the following features and benefits.

• Implementation time that is involved with this package is quick.
• The software allows the users to execute and carry out reconciliation tasks and activities.
• Users can easily navigate through the application and can also understand the layout pretty easily.
• The tool offers enhanced collaboration and cohesiveness (Miller, 2016).

Cost	Software/Package – MYOB	Software/Package – Intuit QuickBooks	Software/Package –  Saasu	Software/Package – Reckon	Software/Package – Xero
Initial cost – Basic Version	$50 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$12 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$15 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$5 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$9 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days
Cost of the premium package	$99 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$21 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	$180 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days	Depends upon the features that are acquired	$70 is the cost that the users will be required to pay to access the software for thirty days

Cost Details (Advisoryhq, 2015)

• Security attacks in the form of flooding attacks, integrity attacks and malware attacks.
• Hidden costs that are not revealed at the time of purchase (Crowder, 2016).
• Technical faults and failures leading to poor performance or a complete breakdown.
• Operational errors and difficulties.
• Lack of support and difficulty in the maintenance.

Conclusion

Technology is an element that cannot be missed out or played with in the current times. There are various technological elements that are used in the field of accounts with accounting software and systems as the prime element. These systems include the automated set of features and functions. These shall be included in an organization after an in-depth planning and analysis of the operations and requirements.

References

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Afpbb, (2016) The Australian Accounting Industry. [online] Afpbb.net.au. Available at: https://www.afpbb.net.au/Resources/TheAustralianAccountingIndustry.aspx [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Bankwest, (2015) Accounting Services Industry Report. 1st ed. [ebook] Bankwest. Available at: https://www.bankwest.com.au/cs/ContentServer%3Fpagename%3DFoundation/CS/Blob/Document%26id%3D1292539844555%26ext%3D.pdf+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=in [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Carey, M. (2015) Cloud Accounting Overview 2015: MYOB Essentials vs Xero vs Intuit QuickBooks Online vs Reckon One – Digital First. [online] Digital First. Available at: https://www.digitalfirst.com/2015-overview-cloud-accounting-software/ [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

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Henderson, L. (2004). Encoding and decoding communication competencies in project management ? an exploratory study. International Journal of Project Management, 22(6), pp.469-476.

James, D. (2016) 7 accounting packages for Australian small businesses compared: including MYOB, QuickBooks Online, Reckon, Xero. [online] BIT. Available at: https://www.bit.com.au/Review/344651,7-accounting-packages-for-australian-small-businesses-compared-including-myob-quickbooks-online-reckon-xero.aspx [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Mallery, M. (2011). Project Management Portal (PMP) from the University of Washington Information Technology Wiki – https://wiki.cac.washington.edu/display/pmportal/Project+Management+Portal. Technical Services Quarterly, 28(3), pp.365-367.

Miller, K. (2016) Xero Review 2016 | Reviews, Ratings, Complaints, Comparisons. [online] Merchant Maverick. Available at: https://www.merchantmaverick.com/reviews/xero-review/ [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Mohapatra, S. and Patnaik, A. (2011). Sustainability in HRIS implementation through effective project management. International Journal of Project Organisation and Management, 3(1), p.78.

Myob, (2016) Online Accounting Software for Businesses | MYOB. [online] Myob.com. Available at: https://www.myob.com/au/accounting-software/compare [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Ryan, E. (2016) The Evolution of Accounting Software: Past, Present and Future|. [online] Gaaaccounting.com. Available at: https://www.gaaaccounting.com/the-evolution-of-accounting-software-past-present-and-future/ [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Seethamraju, R. (2012). Business process management: a missing link in business education. Business Process Management Journal, 18(3), pp.532-547.

Woolworths, (2017). Woolworths Supermarket – Buy Groceries Online. [online] Woolworths Online. Available at: https://www.woolworths.com.au/ [Accessed 22 Aug. 2017].

Yang, Y. and Tamir, G. (2015). Offshore software project management: mapping project success factors. International Journal of Project Organisation and Management, 7(2), p.111.