Large Professional and Administrative Services Firm

Replaced legacy accounting system with automation, saving an estimated $600,000 – $800,000 annually.

We designed and implemented an automated, scalable solution on Azure for a global accounting firm, replacing manual tax form handling processes while reducing error rates. This transformation significantly enhanced operational efficiencies, compliance, and client satisfaction.

Services

Technology & Cloud

Industry

Professional & Administrative

situation

Error Prone Manual Process

A leading global accounting firm was facing significant challenges with their existing manual process of handling tax forms for large partnerships. Their accountants had to manually enter data from potentially thousands of tax forms into an Excel format, which was inefficient and prone to errors.

This manual entry was time-consuming, error prone, and lacked adequate audit and approval workflows. The existing system also struggled to keep track of received and expected files, resulting in potential financial and compliance risks.

Initially, the firm used a homegrown custom extraction engine before migrating to a commercial tool, Abby Flexicapture. The backend was built on the .NET Framework, and the solution was on-premises, causing inefficiencies.

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Impact

High Error Rates

The manual process led to several significant issues. One of the primary concerns was the high error rate due to manual data entry, which frequently resulted in mistakes. Tracking the received and expected tax forms was another challenge, making it difficult to ensure all documents were accounted for. This lack of tracking posed serious compliance risks, as missing documents could lead to financial penalties and client dissatisfaction. Furthermore, the scalability of operations was hindered by the labor-intensive process.

The accountants faced significant challenges:

Handling approximately 100,000 documents annually, which was not feasible with the manual process.
Errors in tracking could lead to serious compliance issues and client dissatisfaction.
Performance degradation and high costs due to storing documents in SQL databases.

Resolution

Legacy System Replacement

To address these challenges, we designed and implemented an automated solution hosted on the Azure cloud. This transformation involved multiple key components and phases.

Scalable and Cost-Efficient Infrastructure: Transitioned from on-premises servers to Azure cloud using modern technologies like .NET Core and Angular, completing initial migration in two months, significantly reducing operational costs and eliminating the need for expensive on-premises server management.
Automation and AI Integration: Automated data ingestion and extraction from tax forms using Azure Form Recognizer, replacing manual entry, reducing errors across 80 forms, and integrated AI tools like GitHub Copilot to enhance development efficiency, performing ongoing POCs to improve data extraction capabilities.
Enhanced Workflows and Improved Tracking: Developed workflows for data review, validation, and approval, and implemented cloud storage using Azure Blob Storage for efficient document management, tracking, and performance improvement.
Resource Optimization: Leveraged offshore teams in Argentina and India for initial document review and development, significantly reducing costs.

Results

Transformative Efficiency Gains

The outcomes of this transformation were substantial. The firm saved approximately $600,000 – $800,000 annually through automation and offshore resources by significantly reducing manual data entry.

Cost savings were further achieved through cloud migration and the adoption of Azure Form Recognizer, significantly cutting operational and capital expenditures. The improved accuracy and reliability of data extraction led to reduced error rates and additional cost savings.

Scalability was greatly enhanced, enabling the firm to handle larger clients and more substantial volumes of documents efficiently. Improved compliance and reduced risk of missing documents led to higher client satisfaction, strengthening trust and loyalty.