Accounting Benefits from Software as a Service

Most companies today, as well as individuals, rely more on Software as a Service, or Saas, over traditional desktop software products that come packaged, such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint,. SaaS offers a wide range of advantages, such as ease of access and immediate updates and bug fixes. Public accounting is one major area that has benefited from SaaS, with more Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) using SaaS applications due to their effectiveness and efficiency in helping accountants to service their clients.

What is SaaS?

SaaS refers to a software company offering its financial or business programs/services through a secured connection on the Internet. These programs and services are offered on demand. A major advantage of using SaaS applications versus traditional software products is that the traditional product had to be installed and maintained, which meant obtaining updates, buying upgrades, and repairing bugs. With SaaS, these problems are eliminated since SaaS providers do this regularly and effectively, usually providing a schedule in advance to alert customers of updates.

The Benefits to Business Owners

A huge benefit of using SaaS applications for accounting purposes is that QuickBooks Online, and other similar applications, make it possible for you to access your accounting records no matter where you are in the world. You do not need to be at a particular computer to retrieve financial data pertaining to your organization. In addition, all of your financial data are always automatically backed up. Thus, gone are the days where the crash of a local hard drive will affect your business’s financial data.

Risk Consideration

For many CPAs, the benefits of using an SaaS outweigh the risks. Most SaaS Companies have proved their reliability through years of uninterrupted service, which is why SaaS is dramatically changing how CPAs do business today.

Lewis Daidone, a certified public accountant, works as an investment management consultant with BlackRock. Learn more about him by visiting this blog.