Simon Goodyear, co-founder of mTrio and a respected Salesforce MVP, previews his session with Jessica Pillow at Accountex 2017: Elon Musk has been quoted as fearing AI, but he also set up a new company to explore the technology to make direct connections between a human brain and a computer. While we will not be plugging you into our mobile devices to show your our latest Automated Practice Management software, we will be able to show you how the technology behind a quality software package can reduce human interaction. Running a busy Accountancy practice requires all kinds of support from staff, systems and technology so managing all this information is crucial to deliver an exceptional service for your clients, as well as ensuring your staff are working efficiently and enjoying what they are doing. You may have a great practice, but if your staff hate all the niggles of your systems they'll not be happy and will either be looking to leave, or not giving their best to the firm or you clients. With great technology your systems will be able to send reminders to your clients based upon year end dates, no need for reminders for your staff to send a letter, it just happens, automatically.

Written by Joel Oliver, MyFirmsApp: The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help run Accounting firms may sound like something that is straight out of a science fiction novel but now the likes of Amazon, Google and Microsoft are spearheading AI, the world of Accountants is likely to be the latest in a series of industries to be affected by its' rise. We're working on AI because we think more intelligent services will be much more useful for you to use." – Mark Zuckerberg According to a Deloitte report, the impact of cognitive technologies on organisations is expected to grow substantially within the next three to five years. Add to this the Google prediction that by 2029 robots will achieve human intelligence levels and that by 2025, 33 per cent of all occupations will be performed by robots and it soon becomes apparent that AI has already shifted into the mainstream. There is no doubt that disruptive technology is turning the Accountant's relationship with clients on its' head. Advances in mobile technology are shaking up traditional methods of communication and clients are engaging more with their smartphones and expecting fast service responses from their chosen advisers anytime, anywhere.