Download as docx, pdf, or txt
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
You are on page 1of 8

Student-ID number:

Module name:
Tutor name:
Academic year/group bubble:
Contents

Introduction...........................................................................................................3
Adopted new technologies in accounting and finance practices..........................3
Positive impact on accounting and finance practices...........................................4
Negative impact on accounting and finance practices..........................................5
Conclusion............................................................................................................7
Bibliography.........................................................................................................7
Introduction

The current economic conditions are marked by the impressive and rapid progress of
information technology but also by the use of the Internet which have changed the business
environment. Currently, most of the accounting and financial problems cannot be solved if
the new technologies are not used. Computers, phones, tablets, data storage devices and many
other personal digital devices that are used by companies and especially in accounting to
streamline tasks.

Accounting is the art of measuring, classifying, recording and communicating financial


information that includes all events but also transactions that take place in the activity of a
company. Information technology is certainly a tool used in order to process data, store it,
organize it and transmit it through the use of electronic computers. Information technology
manages all data, knowledge used and all information provided by economic entities in order
to meet business objectives in relation to its mission and strategies.

The purpose of this essay is to discuss the impact that new technologies have on accounting
and financial practices. The essay aims to discuss the concept of adopting new technologies
in accounting and financial practices, but also about the positive and negative impact in
accounting and financial practices of new technologies adopted.

Adopted new technologies in accounting and finance practices

Using IT in the business environment increases the ability and efficiency of companies to
record and manage their financial transactions. The development of new technologies is
closely related to accounting and financial practices due to the way they combine and
complement each other so as to make the practices more efficient and how they can be used.

Due to the very fast access to information and the elimination of redundant operations, IT but
also the connection through the Internet have come to determine important changes in the
way professional accountants work and have helped to improve the financial reporting
system. The technological changes facing the experts in the accounting and financial field
offer them the opportunity to take advantage of many challenges in the field and in their
profession, but also to help the companies in making decisions based on the financial
accounting reports. Forman, C., McElheran, K. (2012),

In the business environment, the adoption of new technologies aims to help managers,
accountants and not only, but especially to provide them with the necessary support in the
decision-making process. Due to the systems offered by IT, due to computer technology,
accounting data are transformed into information and notions that have the final purpose of
being used for decision making at different levels of management.

Positive impact on accounting and finance practices

The positive impact of the use of new technologies in accounting and financial practices
outweighs their negative effects or impact. The new software tools used to process financial
and accounting data in companies, tools such as: accounting software, software for audit
work, spreadsheet software or software to improve performance contribute to improving
competitiveness in companies.

One of the positive impacts is the ability to record and track accounting transactions more
efficiently. Ghasemi et al.,(2011)
Also, through financial systems and computerized accounting systems, the activity of experts
in the field of accounting and finance is positively influenced and increases the company's
competitiveness in the global market. Mostyn, (2012)
Therefore, the increase of efficiency represents the advantage and the main positive point
specified by the two authors.

According to the report provided by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the
number of people using the Internet and therefore new technologies to make work more
efficient, more efficient, reduce costs and many other benefits is on the rise. In 2005, in
developed countries 50.9%, compared to 100 inhabitants of the population used new
technologies, compared to 2015, 10 years later where the percentage reached 82.2%, also
compared to 100 inhabitants .
There are situations in which accountants perform accounting and financial activities up to a
certain level, depending on the complexity and size of the companies on which it is based, but
do not use modern technologies to streamline and help perform tasks, and in this In this case,
the managers of other departments in these companies tend to create their own information
systems to help them make decisions and carry out their activities. (Beaman & Richardson,
2007) And this represents a second positive impact, namely the fact that it will increase
transparency throughout the company, regardless of the department.

Also in terms of the positive impact of increasing transparency between departments of the
company, Lyian, in his paper states that the accounting information system and the use of
new technologies in accounting and financial practices can be used to connect any
department in the company with a another department or branches of a company among other
branches. It helps and contributes to an improvement of the communication between the
business partners, but especially the fact that the volume of false, unfounded information or
even the taking over of the financial and non-financial data will be reduced. (Lyian, 2013)

Among the advantages of using new technologies in accounting and financial practices are
the more accurate processing of financial-accounting data using computers, much more
efficient and fast access to appropriate accounts, more efficient error detection and more
efficient control over information, keeping accounting and financial data for a long period of
time (years) and detailed representation of financial information. (Comin & Ferrer, 2013)

Negative impact on accounting and finance practices

Regarding the negative impact of the use of new technologies in accounting practices and the
financial environment, companies and people in general as employers face a reduction in the
supply of jobs, therefore people lose jobs in favor of the use of new technologies. The
negative effects are both fraud and data security issues that arise as a result of IT use, but
these negative impacts are outweighed by the positive impacts, and especially the fact that
they can be kept under control by experts in the field. Ceran, M.B., Güngör, S., Konya, S.
(2016)
This negative effect is one of the main concerns among experts in the field, because this
negative factor is reflected in the security of accounting information in companies. Therefore,
the concern and the negative effect consists in limiting the access to the information from the
companies, confidential information that can be the use of some tools that prevent their use if
they are not offered in an authorized way. Therefore, according to Campbell, he states in his
book that by using computerized systems but equipped with an adequate security mechanism,
it will be restricted or impossible to access and use accounting data and more. Specifically, if
a company's laptop is stolen or lost, it can be quickly tracked and detected if it has security
software installed. (Campbell & Loumioti, 2013)
However, the security of accounting information with the use of new technologies is one.
between problems and negative effects.

Another negative impact in accounting and financial practices is given by the complexity of
the changes that create high needs in continuing education and in the development of new
skills for both users and those who update the system. Thus, the new technological systems
implemented in the financial accounting department must be flexible, easy to manage and
use, but also have the ability to adapt to the very large volume of transactions. He must also
be able to realize and keep the information and organizational changes in companies during
business activities regardless of their complexity.

The adoption of new technologies must have the capacity to be renewable, to be able to
continuously adapt to new technological changes and to the requirements imposed by the
legislation in force, as well as by the International Financial Reporting Standards. Thus, the
complexity of the changes determines the raising of the needs regarding the continuous
education and the development of new competences in the field. This is a negative factor
when it comes to adopting new technologies in accounting and financial practices. Beaman,
I., Richardson, B. (2007)

Therefore, in close connection with the negative factor specified above, the costs associated
with the effort and the need for financial investments that are used for the modification and
maintenance of the infrastructure are also deducted and found. These must be offset by the
benefits that are offered by the IT products and services in each company.
Conclusion

In an economic and business environment that is marked by rapid change, the adoption of
new technologies is becoming one of the most important strategic business partners. IT
improves and contributes to the harmonious development of companies' performance,
determines an increase of competitiveness on the world market and thus determines a positive
impact on all organizational processes, including accounting, finance, human resources and
more.

The adoption of new technologies in accounting and financial practices has led to the
replacement of hand-made accounting work using paper and pencil to replace and evolve to
the most advanced techniques using IT. New technologies used in accounting and financial
practices, including computers, fax machines, printers, smartphones and especially
accounting software have created a huge impact on the accounting and financial field.

The adoption of new technologies brings both positive and negative effects, but they are now
widely used, and at affordable prices by most companies and especially help accounting and
financial experts to achieve professionally, efficiently and faster daily tasks.

Bibliography

1. Beaman, I., Richardson, B. (2007), Information Technology, Decision Support and


Management Accounting Roles, Journal of Applied Management Accounting Research,
vol. 5, nr. 1, pp. 59-68.
2. Campbell, D., Loumioti, M. (2013), Monitoring and the Portability of Soft
Information, Working Paper, nr. 13-077, Harvard Business School, SUA.
3. Ceran, M.B., Güngör, S., Konya, S. (2016), The Role of Accounting Information
Systems in Preventing the Financial Crises Experienced in Businesses, Economics,
Management and Financial Markets, vol. 11, nr. 1, pp. 294-302.
4. Comin, D.A., Ferrer, M.M. (2013), If Technology Has Arrived Everywhere, Why Has
Income Diverged?, NBER Working Paper Series, nr. 19010, Harvard Business School,
SUA.
5. Forman, C., McElheran, K. (2012), Information Technology and Boundary of the
Firm: Evidence from Plant-Level Data, Working Paper, nr. 12-092, Harvard Business
School, SUA.
6. Gallani, S., Krishnan, R., Wooldridge, J.M. (2015), Applications of Fractional
Response Model to the Study of Bounded Dependent Variables in Accounting Research,
Working Paper, nr. 16-016, Harvard Business School, SUA.
7. Ghasemi, M., Shafeiepour, V., Aslani, M., Barvayeh, E. (2011), The Impact of
Information Technology (IT) on Modern Accounting Systems, Procedia – Social and
Behavioral Sciences, vol. 28, pp. 112-116.
8. Liyan, L. (2013), The Impact of Information Technology on Accounting Theory,
Accounting Profession, and Chinese Accounting Education, WHICEB 2013 Proceedings,
Paper 103, pp. 748-753.
9. Mostyn, G.R. (2012), Cognitive Load Theory: What It Is, Why It’s Important for
Accounting Instruction and Research, Issues in Accounting Education, vol. 27, nr. 1, pp.
227-245.
10. http://www.itu.int

You might also like