We’ve been reflecting on our role in the accounting industry in the wake of the global Coronavirus pandemic and there’s no denying 2020 hasn’t tracked the way I’m sure many of us first imagined as we entered the new decade. We’ve always been on a mission to help accounting practices cut through the clutter of day to day practice and firm administration, and the current environment has been a timely reminder of what we set out to do when we started Business Fitness almost 20 years ago – and that’s to help you standardise, streamline & systemise your processes so you and your team can get on with what’s important. This ethos has never been more significant as we all adapt to new ways of working, which is why we are excited to announce the release of a major upgrade to our flagship document management platform, HowNow.
While we’ve pushed out updates and even launched our nimble online interface for HowNow in the past few years, this newest release has been designed with the end in mind – the end being to help your practice thrive and be fit for the future, today.
How can document management do that? Well, we see the release of HowNow X as so much more than document management.
HowNow X provides the full functionality and power of a desktop application, backed by the cloud – giving you the best possible experience and a robust and secure solution for your document management. Our newest version is designed to help your team be more productive with integrations with the broader Business Fitness suite, and advanced document creation automation & PDF editing features. HowNow completely streamlines your document management processes and standardises how your team and clients interact with your documents & information – the backbone of your practice.
Not only that, but the new & secure cloud environment provides your practice with comprehensive privacy and security features, without the need to be on a server or maintain and support on-premise hardware.
Perhaps what we’re most excited about are the new opportunities to leverage the power of the Microsoft Azure platform on which HowNow X is built, allowing us to explore the possibilities of how we can roll out useful AI features designed to do more than just manage your documents. This is an exciting prospect as we look for new ways to help our teams be productive from any location.
At Business Fitness, many of our solutions (including HowNow and Smart Workpapers) already utilise machine learning by offering suggestions and auto-populating fields based on existing data to cut down on double handling. What the new platform offers is the ability to develop these features more extensively – exploring the potential for advanced predictive, contextual automation. Just like your Spotify playlist – imagine working on a CGT tax paper and being given recommendations for similar files colleagues have already prepared, being directed to the required templates and file notes based on an email subject or document title or being able to ask a chatbot to help you locate the information you want.
We’re already utilising AI features like this in our personal lives outside the office, and practices need to start thinking about how they can take full advantage of the latest technology available to them in a business context. We’re excited to be able to provide the capability and opportunity to help you to do so in our newest version.
While the future may be uncertain at the moment, one thing we do know is that being ready for whatever comes next involves much more than revisiting your document management platform. That’s why over the coming months we’ll also be sharing a host of resources and posts designed to get you thinking about the future and what life post Coronavirus might look like, and how your software solutions & practice management processes support you to take your practice from fine to thriving.
HowNow X is now available. You can book an online discovery session HERE.
With HowNow X in your technology stack, we look forward to helping your practice be fit for the future.