Most firms of accountants are a long way from a paperless office – in fact it often seems that computers produce more paper than the old manual accounting systems!

While top of the range systems that allow files to be logged in and out, multiple reviewers and other complex tracking issues are not within the budgets of smaller firms, packages like Excel are often used to some degree on accounts working paper files.

From SWAT’s experience from reviewing these files, we often find that IT is used inconsistently and illogically, with different staff/departments doing things differently and effectively reinventing the wheel on each job each year.

There is therefore a need for a simple to use, relatively inexpensive software product that will enable firms to easily set-up and tailor accounts files. This should make the process more efficient and enable a more standard approach across the firm. This in turn should help the firm to implement the procedures necessary to comply with the Practice Assurance standards.

A simple solution
Having created the Electronic Audit Toolkit, we see no reason why this product cannot be developed into a non-audit version. This has the advantage of being a simple to use, Excel based package, that can be tailored by the firm and used on any number of PC’s.

An Electronic Accounts File Toolkit would incorporate the forms in the Practice Assurance Manual (PAM) and the layout of the product might be as follows:

Of course the schedules provided would not cater exactly to every situation, so there will be the ability to copy in the practice’s own key schedules and controls.

The file could then be completed on screen or printed and completed in the normal way.

Interested?
Before we commit our resources to developing the product further, we would like to have your thoughts. Is this a worthwhile product? Would your firm find it useful and most importantly, would you buy it?

Any comments on an Electronic Accounts File Toolkit should be sent to info@swat.ltd.uk.

David Norris
July 2005