An accounting system assemblages interconnected processes intended to amass, organize, and account for an organization’s transactions. The ultimate goal of this bookkeeping system is to engender informative reports to sustain an organization’s decision-making. Managers can make well-informed decisions based on their knowledge from these reports generated through an automated system.
Follow a step-by-step approach to assimilate a novel and efficient accounting system into your business. Implementing this approach for your accounting system includes a series of steps that must be undertaken before you are ready to go digital and say goodbye to your old ledgers.
The following list of steps is a theoretical impression of the implementation process in a formal organization. Factors such as the proficiency of your IT department, available resources, and ability to adapt to change will influence the design and related implementation stages essential to achieving the go-live plan.
Plan for Implementing an Accounting System
Before you start with anything else, it is imperative to devise a proposal as a project plan and perform a cost-benefit analysis of the whole project. Rest assured, the benefits outweigh the costs if you are serious about running a professional business. The plan should include:
- The timelines.
- Key milestones to be achieved.
- A list of all required resources for the project.
Planning is the most critical phase of the full implementation because necessary details must be considered for everything to go smoothly.
Hire a Project Manager
The implementation of an accounting system has to be managed carefully. It would help if you designated an individual as a project manager. The project manager’s job is to lead the entire process and form cross-functional teams. Team members represent all departments with a vested interest in the system, using it in one way or another. Since these departments will eventually be the end-users, it is vital to have their input in the implementation process.
Tidy Records in the Previous Accounting System
Insufficient data is one of the main reasons for nuisances when you move to a new system. If you know that your books are imprecise, there is bad transaction coding, invoicing issues, and other areas that need to be fixed, you should always prioritize this.
Trying to start fresh without eliminating old mistakes can result in a colossal blunder. Even the best system in the world will not help you if you have issues related to the credibility of your data. The project manager is responsible for designating a special team to remove bad data clusters and repair them for reuse in the new accounting system.
Data Migration and Pilot Testing
A data conversion plan must be devised as most of your old data needs to be transferred to the new system. The key highlight of a conversion plan is mapping the data according to the new format. Depending on the format support of the old and new systems, the conversion can vary from relatively simple to highly complex. Therefore, before choosing the new system, it is essential to gather all of its technical details to avoid complications later on.
Once all data is transferred, the accounting system must be pilot-tested to ensure it works perfectly. Apart from being technically sound, you need to acquaint the critical people in your company with the new system to work with it efficiently. Arrange a conference room pilot testing for everyone to learn about the essential features from an expert hands-on. You may need to hire someone for the training session, or you can do it yourself.
Configure and Generate Reports
Once everyone is on the same page and your employees understand how to work with the new system, it’s time to configure it to their devices and reap all the benefits. The new accounting system will generate better, more detailed financial reports such as balance sheets, income statements, cash flows, and other reports that can significantly assist you in making critical decisions for your business.
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