3 tech trends accountancy firms can't afford to ignore in 2025

Dayshape

Accountancy practice management software has come a long way. Today, features like automated billing and reconciliations are easily integrated into the day-to-day practice workflow of Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting UK customers.

Our employees work side by side with our customers to create and manage these solutions – driven by a deep understanding of their needs and addressing the rapid changes in their environment.

However, it’s often hard to look beyond improving performance in day-to-day operations. Amid Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic and other disruptions, accountancy practices and their clients are dealing with an unpredictable economic landscape. Future business planning can appear daunting.

However, technology can support accountancy practices (and their clients) in making informed business decisions, and planning for the future. In the first part of our Accountancy Practice Management for Future-Fit Growth series, we’ll explore how they can use technology to define and easily track Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Doing so gives practices closer control of performance tracking, and deeper insights that will inform strategic growth plans.

Saving Time

For several decades, business technology platforms have enabled practices to track performance metrics that they have customised. This highlights areas that qualify for improvement and underpins strategic planning.

Contemporary technology, such as CCH KPI Monitoring, makes setting up KPIs faster and easier for accountancy practices than ever before. This is vital today. The current business landscape demands that firms assess and amend KPIs more frequently, based on fresh market variables. KPIs such as client retention rate and business time-to-recovery have become increasingly prominent performance indicators in the past year. If clunky technology makes KPI management difficult, practices have less time and insight to plan future growth.

Reducing Risk
CCH KPI Monitoring makes it far easier to track KPIs and report on them. This is fundamental in minimising risk. For example, if a KPI is set to track and escalate debt filtered by overdue dates, the ability to easily set alerts and automatically generate reports is critical to practice performance management.

Some practices are manually running monthly reports to measure KPIs. Others are running real-time reporting engines, a key feature of CCH KPI Monitoring. This latter solution allows practices to review essential data at any time – covering both performance management and compliance requirements. They can do so remotely or on-premise.

This means that firms can assess issues before they become problems, and thus act proactively. Real-time reporting is a true asset in building a future-fit practice.

The Proof is in the Practice
A number of Wolters Kluwer customers have been using CCH KPI Monitoring for several years now. Our customers look to us when they need to be right. Ryecroft Glenton has successfully integrated CCH KPI Monitoring with its own system. This consolidates information from several sources, including CCH Central and CCH Practice Management.

“We can use the year end date to trigger a sequence of reminders. Have we asked for the books? Have they been received? If a request to a client has been outstanding for a certain period, the partner will receive an alert via email. For limited companies, we can monitor the corporation tax and Companies House filing deadlines – as well as the different deadlines for pension schemes”

– Ian Smith, partner at Ryecroft Glenton

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“Apogee are not just aprinting company, theyconsult with us and go onto deliver a full end to endservice from concept toinstallation. They go aboveand beyond and we lookforward to continuing ourjourney with them”

Corporate events agency who benefited from greener graphics initiative

“Apogee are not just aprinting company, theyconsult with us and go onto deliver a full end to endservice from concept toinstallation. They go aboveand beyond and we lookforward to continuing ourjourney with them”

Corporate events agency who benefited from greener graphics initiative

“Apogee are not just aprinting company, theyconsult with us and go onto deliver a full end to endservice from concept toinstallation. They go aboveand beyond and we lookforward to continuing ourjourney with them”

Corporate events agency who benefited from greener graphics initiative

“Apogee are not just aprinting company, theyconsult with us and go onto deliver a full end to endservice from concept toinstallation. They go aboveand beyond and we lookforward to continuing ourjourney with them”

As accountancy firms prepare for 2025, resource management is emerging as a crucial driver of profitability, talent retention, and workforce development. The biggest trends are being driven by advancements in technology, enabling firms to streamline operations, enhance employee satisfaction, and deliver better client outcomes. Ignoring this puts firms at risk of falling behind—losing revenue, top talent, and the ability to make informed hiring decisions.

Here are the top tech driven trends transforming resource management in 2025—and why accountancy firms can’t afford to miss them:

1. Recognising resource management as a revenue driver

Resource management is no longer just a cost to minimise—it’s becoming a revenue  generating force. Leading accountancy firms are making the crucial link between resource practices, project profitability, and revenue, unlocking opportunities to protect margins and drive growth.

Technology is the key enabler, empowering firms to draw a direct line between resource management and revenue impact. Advanced resource management software provides real  time insights into project profitability, enabling firms to compare actuals against forecasts and course correct before staffing issues escalate. Full visibility into how staffing decisions influence revenue, costs, and margins equips firms to reduce revenue at risk and maximise returns.

Why firms can’t afford to ignore this:

Without visibility into how resource decisions impact revenue, firms risk remaining in the dark about project performance. Connecting resource management with budgeting and invoicing is essential to unlocking revenue gains and growth opportunities. The ability to evaluate whether projects are resourced, budgeted, and billed correctly—and apply those insights to future analyses—is increasingly seen as a key predictor of success or failure for accountancy firms.

2. Prioritising employee experience to secure and develop top talent

Talent retention remains one of the greatest challenges for accountancy firms, and many are realising the opportunities technology offers to create better employee experiences.

AI-powered resource management tools provide real time visibility into resource availability, utilisation, and suitability, helping firms balance workloads, minimise burnout, and intelligently match people to projects. Features like suitability scoring and utilisation alerts align employees with projects based on skills, availability, and experience— enhancing job satisfaction, work quality, and overall wellbeing.

This approach goes beyond reducing turnover—it’s about building a thriving talent pipeline. Advanced tools also support personalised career development by identifying skill gaps and aligning opportunities with employee goals. By integrating resource management with HR systems, firms can create tailored career paths that foster growth and retention.

Why firms can’t afford to ignore this:   

Losing valuable talent disrupts growth, client satisfaction, and service continuity. Prioritising employee experience helps firms retain top performers, maintain continuity, and build a strong employer brand.

As strategies shift towards a more employee focused approach, resource management data will become critical. It goes beyond balancing supply and demand; it’s about tailoring the employee experience to ensure individuals gain meaningful, personalised career opportunities—a trend set to define successful talent strategies in the years ahead.

3. Embracing AI to predict and plan future workforce needs  

AI-driven tools are transforming workforce planning for accountancy firms by providing predictive insights that help firms forecast resource demand and make more informed hiring decisions.

Real time visibility into resource utilisation, availability, and skills data empowers firms to confidently assess capacity for new projects, optimise their bench, and make strategic workforce investments.

Why firms can’t afford to ignore this:  

Making the wrong hiring investments is costly. Predicting future resource needs is essential for balancing supply and demand and optimising a firm’s greatest asset—its people. With accurate, forward looking insights, firms can make the right investments and hire and sell with confidence.

As the adoption of AI technology grows, resource teams are increasingly able to pre-empt future needs, solve skill and capacity challenges strategically, and adapt to change. This shift eliminates guesswork, enabling firms to plan for sustainable success and maintain a competitive edge.

The takeaway for accountancy firms  

Advanced, purpose built technology has unlocked a new era of resource management. Tailored to the unique needs of accountancy firms, the right software can turn resource management into a powerful driver of profitability, talent development, and operational excellence. The firms that embrace technology designed to empower them won’t just keep pace—they’ll set a new standard.

Get the inside track on resource management trends  

With a 5-star rating, the Resource Revolution podcast is your go to source for more industry leading trends, insightful discussions, and strategies to transform resource management in 2025.

Brought to you by Dayshape – AI-powered resource management technology shaping the future of resource management. Find out more at dayshape.com

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