5 Accounting Task Management Software Tools Compared: Which One is Right for You?

For accounting teams, accounting professionals working freelance, and accounting firms, finding an accounting project management software is paramount to ensuring accounting workflow. Powerful tools will assist in client communication, thereby enhancing client satisfaction and staying organized; it will also help in avoiding repetitive tasks as tasks will be completed and recorded in real-time and assist in managing workloads such as email integration.

Accounting task management software has emerged as a crucial project management tool. Its user-friendly interface helps firms streamline workflows, meet deadlines, and enhance collaboration with unlimited users.

Additionally, accounting practice management software goes beyond the basic to-do list by providing essential features specifically tailored to the needs of accounting practices, such as advanced reporting, managing client projects, creating task assignment deadlines, and ensuring compliance with regulations, especially during tax season.

This blog article will look into the top five accounting practice management software tools, focusing on their key features, prices, ideal use, and the impact the cloud-based accounting software will have on a business owner using it.

But before that, why use accounting task management software?

Why is Accounting Task Management Software Valuable?

Improved Efficiency

Accounting practice management software is valuable to accounting firms and professionals for its advanced automation features. These features enable repetitive tasks such as document management, client reminders, and billing to be undertaken seamlessly through the intuitive interface, avoiding manual tasks that can lead to human errors.

Promotes Collaboration

In accounting, collaboration between users, accounting tools, and software is essential to ensuring project workflow. With the integration of accounting practice management software, seamless client engagements will occur, third-party tools will function effectively as information flow is guaranteed, and customizable workflow will be guaranteed.

Enhanced Organization

With the accounting practice management software, centralized task management is guaranteed, leading to an enhanced organization. Routine tasks such as assessing financial reports, setting time budgets, reminding clients of tasks, or billing reports can be cumbersome, and those responsible might omit them, negatively affecting the organization. However, with the accounting project management software's centralized platform, these tasks can be seamlessly accomplished.

Increasing Productivity

Accounting practice management software leads to the overall improvement in productivity and output from all the associated stakeholders. This is due to better organization resulting from task management. Essential features in the program, such as task templates, ensure that every party is in control of their responsibilities and works to accomplish them within set deadlines.

Provides Visibility and Control

Accounting practice management software has a user-friendly interface that provides real-time visibility on assigned tasks. This allows stakeholders involved to make informed decisions on individual projects and ensures seamless integration between the client and the accounting firm. Visibility also ensures accountability and transparency between the accounting firm and the client, building on the trust between the two parties.

Key Features of an Efficient Accounting Task Management Software

Despite the wide range of accounting software tools available in the market, caution should be practiced to ensure that one gets the right task management tool that will not only promote client relationships but also ensure workflow. Here are some of the basic and advanced features to look out for.

Workflow automation

The accounting industry has experienced many changes that have revolutionized the industry, automation being one of them. Automation has facilitated secure document storage, enhanced client engagement, accurate financial statement reporting, reduced manual processes and provided affordable pricing plans to clients. The best accounting practice management software should have automotive features as this not only enhances accuracy but also organization efficiency.

Collaborative features

A wide range of software for accountants has advanced features that encourage communication and task collaboration between parties. This works to facilitate project management and enhance client satisfaction.

Document management

For every task or project, there is a mountain of accompanying documents, all of which are important. Effective software for accountants should be able to manage and store these important records. It should also have enough space to store the data. Hence, it should be fitted with a cloud-based Google Drive storage solution.

Task scheduling and assignment

Another additional feature that every accounting practice management software has is the ability to assign tasks to an accounting team, set deadlines, and even prioritize the tasks to be undertaken. This allows for effective project management and provides the client with the ability to control their projects. It also helps to foster understanding between the two parties as everyone knows of their roles and responsibilities.

Integration with other accounting software

A seamless integration between accounting software ensures that accounting teams can perform tasks without delays or having to rely on a variety of tools, which can result in multiple entries that are prone to errors. Effective accounting practice management software should easily integrate with other Google Drive software, such as QuickBooks Online Accountant, Google Calendar, Xero, and a range of tools. This helps to maintain real-time data records and accuracy in financial reports.

Reporting and analytics

An efficient accounting process relies heavily on accurate project and financial statement reporting. Popular accounting software should support this function, helping accounting teams manage workflows while assisting in the decision-making process.

Client management features

As a project management tool, an effective accounting practice management software should enhance client communication while collaborating with the client to ensure that their requests are met, tasks are accomplished within the set timelines, and transparency is ensured.

Time tracking and deadlines

An efficient accounting task management software should be able to track accounting personnel as they perform tasks and clients and ensure that tasks are completed appropriately and in a timely fashion. This key feature is also suitable as a billing tool, where clients are billed according to time spent on tasks.

Compliance and audit trails

A practical accounting practice management software should provide the accounting team and client with an audit trail of all financial processes undertaken in the system. This enhances transparency and accountability. Additionally, it ensures that the firm and the client are compliant in following all set standards.

5 Popular Accounting Task Management Software

Here is a list of top accounting task management software:

1. Xenett

Key features

• As an accounting practice management software, XenettGO supports the integration of other accounting software and tools such as Xero and QuickBooks Online.
• Client portal works to enhance client collaboration and communication between accounting teams and clients.
• Xenett is equipped with project management tools, such as file and task management features, that offer firms accounting solutions.
• Xenett is equipped with time-tracking features that enhance accountability and transparency. It also has a billing feature that accurately bills clients based on the time spent on projects.
• Its 1099 management feature allows for tracking tasks and exporting data, facilitating task collaboration between accounting teams and other associated parties.

Pricing

Xenett is a pocket-friendly accounting task management software with a range of pricing plans, starting from 30 cents/day to comprehensive packages that charge $9 per month. The prices are charged monthly and can vary depending on the preferred features.

Ideal for

Xenett is an accounting workflow management software ideal for small-to-medium enterprises.

Advantages

• Apart from the basic plan that charges monthly per user, Xenett has additional payment packages that might incur extra charges depending on the features used or tasks performed.
• Xenett has a centralized platform that allows for various tasks to be undertaken without switching to a different interface.
• Xenett allows for the integration of accounting software and tools, which facilitates easy collaboration between clients and accounting teams.
• As a task management software, Xenett features facilitate audit trail and accuracy in reporting, all of which are responsible for workflow management.

Disadvantages

• For clients, the learning curve might be steep, especially for first-time users of accounting software.
• The functionality of some niche software that is not integrated with Xenett might not perform as expected.
• As with any other accounting software, knowledge of accounting is a must. Otherwise, a client can hire an accounting team to manage their tasks/projects.

2. Jetpack Workflow

Key features

• Jetpack Workflow focuses on recurring tasks and workflow automation for accounting firms. This helps reduce repetitive tasks, meet deadlines, and avoid manual processes.
• Offers task management by creating task lists for all parties involved. This helps in assigning roles and responsibilities.
• Its time-tracking features help establish pricing plans and bill clients.
• Jetpack Workflow is an ideal reporting tool because it has client management features, which help ensure client collaboration and efficient reporting.

Pricing

Jetpack Workflow utilizes pricing tiers based on the users per month and the range of features preferred.

Ideal for

Accounting clients or accounting firms that want to automate repetitive tasks, such as tax resolution, annual billing, and filing expense reports.

Advantages

• Its interface is user-friendly for first-time users. For example, it has accounting workflow templates that are easy to fill out.
• An affordable option for small businesses or clients handling individual projects.
• Jetpack's Workflow automating feature makes it an efficient software for accountants.

Disadvantage

Jetpack Workflow might not be an ideal option for medium-to-large enterprises that handle complex accounting processes that require advanced features.

3. Financial Cents

Key features

• As an accounting practice management software, Financial Cents is designed specifically for accounting teams for its basic features.
• Financial Cents is a user interface that assists in client management and reporting.
• Financial Cents software's task management features, such as sufficient document storage, task lists, time budgets, and a library of templates, make recording financial statements easy, especially for first-time users.
• For accounting firms with teams, the Financial Cents work automation feature is essential in reducing manual tasks that cause errors in financial reporting.

Pricing

Financial Cents uses pricing tiers that are based on features used and the number of users per month.

Ideal for

Financial Cents is a popular accounting software option for small- to medium-sized accounting firms. Its key intake is a dedicated workflow process and task management solution.

Advantages

• It is mostly preferred for its accounting workflow software solution.
• It has a range of features that are ideal for first-time users.
• An affordable option for small business owners in the accounting industry.

Disadvantages

• It is not ideal for a large practice management suite since it may lack vital features.
• Compared to other user interfaces, it does not allow for many integrations with third-party tools.

4. Karbon

Key features

• It is a user interface that supports integration with popular software for accountants, such as QuickBooks Online and Xero.
• Karbon works to ensure client satisfaction. It has features that enhance client communication and collaboration in project management.
• Other robust features include workflow automation, task management, time tracking, and financial reporting.
• It is a popular user interface that encourages team collaboration within an accounting firm and clients associating with the firm.
• It is project management software focused on developing standardized workflow processes. For example, it helps develop simple accounting practice workflow tasks such as billing reports, annual billing, and expense reports.

Pricing

Karbon uses pricing tiers that are based on a month per user.

Ideal for

It is ideal for medium-to-large enterprises whose main focus is on team collaboration and work automation.

Advantages

• It has strong reporting features that incorporate custom fields, such as customizable invoices, and a library of templates that enables users to record and share reports in a single dashboard.
• One of its core features is its automation workflow, which facilitates project management.
• Excellent for team collaboration.

Disadvantages

• It has a steeper learning curve and thus is not ideal for first-time users.
• It is an expensive project management software for small businesses or solopreneur practitioners.

5. TaxDome

Key features

TaxDome is specifically designed for tax and accounting professionals. Core features associated with this user interface include;

• TaxDome offers task management features that assist in document and financial management.
• It has a client portal that facilitates client collaboration.
• Its workflow is automated, ensuring accuracy and transparency.
• TaxDome utilizes e-signatures for verification to enhance user security measures.

Pricing

TaxDome has a Pro plan with all features included, and the pricing plan is annually per user.

Ideal for

TaxDome is ideal for tax and accounting firms or professionals looking for comprehensive solutions for their specific needs.

Advantages

• It has comprehensive features that can be utilized for a range of project management.
• It is ideal for tax and accounting professionals.
• Its client portal features work to enhance client collaboration and communication.

Disadvantages

Due to its comprehensive features, the accounting workflow software is expensive for small businesses as well as solopreneurs.

• It has a steep learning curve and, hence, is not ideal for first-time users.

Which Software is Ideal?

Comparing the above-listed accounting task management software, the ideal choice depends on the needs of the clients and their set priorities.

• Solo Practitioners/Small Firms with Basic Needs: Financial Cents or Jetpack Workflow might be sufficient.
• Growing Firms Prioritizing Workflow Automation: Xenett, Financial Cents, or Karbon are good options.
• Medium to Large Firms Needing a Comprehensive Solution: Xenett or TaxDome offers the most comprehensive feature sets.
• Firms Focused on Recurring Tasks: Jetpack Workflow and Xenett are ideal choices.

Conclusion

Other key deliberations to incorporate before settling on accounting task management software would be budget constraints. Select an option that fits within your budget. It would be wise to participate in free trials, which range from 14-day to 30-day free trial. While considering the cost, an accounting firm or client has to determine if the option selected is ideal for the number of users in the organization. The software of choice should also integrate with existing company software and accounting tools and be efficient in handling complex workflow processes. By considering the points elaborated in this article, I stand to reason that one is fully informed on which accounting task management software fits one's preferences.