Finance decision-makers ‘still have misconceptions about cloud accounting software’

A survey of 1,000 senior finance professionals identified the top concerns preventing people from moving to the cloud.  

The research, by cloud accounting platform iplicit, found the three most common reservations were: 

• Concern that the software cannot unify disparate data across the organisation – cited by 17%.
• The need to retrain existing staff –15%.
• Fears that the software would not deliver on its promises – 15%. 

Paul Sparkes, Commercial Director for iplicit, said: “Our research shows that a sizeable minority of finance professionals are missing out on the benefits of cloud finance systems because of myths about what such software can and can’t do. 

“True cloud accounting software can bring huge time savings to a finance team by automating laborious processes, while vastly improving the quality of data available to business leaders. However, some misconceptions seem to persist.  

“Some finance leaders believe cloud systems cannot unify disparate data across the organisation. Ironically, one of the strengths of some cloud finance software is that it offers a single source of truth for a finance team. All the data – whether for a single entity or a group – is held in one place, with no need to fear that contradictory information is being stored in a silo somewhere else. 

“Although 15% of respondents were concerned about the need to retrain existing staff, our experience shows teams respond very positively to the new system. Training is done in chunks during the implementation process, with a ‘sandbox’ simulation of the live system in which staff can train and practise.  

“It’s understandable that some finance professionals are sceptical that cloud finance systems can deliver on their vendors’ promises. However, research and references will reveal what existing users think of their vendors. iplicit is winning devoted fans for its cloud software, as can be seen from the glowing reviews on sites such as Capterra and G2, as well as our almost zero rate of customer ‘churn’.” 

Many iplicit customers have saved days every month thanks to its software – relieving the burden on hard-pressed finance teams and releasing staff to do higher-value work. 

Paul Sparkes added: “Organisations that rely on outdated, on-premise accounting software have to battle every day with its limitations and its lack of integration with other business systems.  

“Leaders in these organisations are denied the comprehensive, real-time data that drives well-informed decisions. At the same time, the finance team are saddled with stressful manual work and are forced to wrangle data in spreadsheets to produce usable financial reports.  

“It’s our job to show people how transformational the move to the cloud can be, in line with iplicit’s mission to make the complex simple.”    

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