In the professional services world, things are changing. Thanks to legislation introduced over the last few years, long gone are the days when you saw your accountant on an annual basis in order to prepare the end of year accounts.

Real Time Information, auto-enrolment and the government’s latest item of legislation aimed at businesses, Making Tax Digital, has necessitated that firms need to be far more accurate and transparent with their records.

This has resulted in accountants being far more consultative throughout the course of a year, especially with businesses who are yet to embrace cloud-based bookkeeping platforms. Not only has this provided an opportunity for accountancy firms to expand their offering, but it has brought about questions over how the industry caters for its clients.

One firm has used the latest government scheme, Making Tax Digital, as a launch pad to develop a whole new arm of the business.

Newport-based HSJ Accountants recently launched a technology advisory arm of the business aimed at delivering cloud-based software products to businesses. The new venture, called HSJ Strato, is bringing the best cloud software from across the globe to the fingertips of its clients.

Leanne Owen, partner at HSJ, said: “Strato is all about making the lives of our clients easier. It’s about giving back their Sunday’s spent trawling through receipts and loosening the admin strain so that lost hours can be spent on developing the business; not inputting data and duplicating information.”

Leanne said: “This has been coming for quite some time. It has been borne from conversations and detailed feedback from clients who were losing time and money due to the administrative stress placed on the business. As accountants, we’re here to give the best advice as honestly and efficiently as we can.

“It was time we embraced technology as a key tool to combatting administrative stress. Making Tax Digital is a key motivator for businesses moving their bookkeeping function to a cloud-based platform, but Strato has a far greater remit than just accounting software.”

Leanne said: “The landscape is changing. Information is freely available to businesses and many do not want a compliance-first approach. Accountancy has evolved to be all about problem-solving; from board level to administrative.

“It is an incredibly exciting time to work in the industry, especially as technology develops. It isn’t purely about figures, tax and compliance; it’s about finding solutions that enable businesses to perform as efficiently as possible.”

HSJ Strato will work with businesses on embedding the right technology to take away operational headaches in an effort to reduce administrative duties whilst using automation and cloud-based solutions.