Staying agile is often imperative for fast-moving businesses facing rapidly changing competitive environments, and Kylie Parker CA knows all about agility.

With background interests in art and dance, Parker instinctively chose accounting because she wanted a career with certainty and good job prospects. At one stage, she was booked to perform in a dance cabaret show on a cruise, but when she realised it clashed with her first tax exam, she made a tough decision. 

"I chose the tax exam over the cruise," says Parker. And that was that.

Through her experience in large firms and running her own practice, Parker has integrated her passion for the arts by specialising in the entertainment industry. But above all, she has seen how the pace of change in the industry over recent years means she needs to be up on the latest technologies to serve clients effectively.

"I could see the future of accounting was online," says Parker. "It's a deliberate choice to have a small firm and be quite nimble, optimising the technology that's available."

"I think technology is changing the role of Chartered Accountants. So traditionally where it was more compliance-based, now it's about how you interpret that data and how you communicate it."

Stay up to date with new approaches

Parker doesn't mince words when it comes to the importance of being tech-savvy for her clients. She compares older, slower approaches to arriving at a doctor's surgery and being offered leeches to treat a blood infection.

"If your back end is not efficient and you're rekeying data then you're wasting client money and your own time. You could be doing things that are much better value."

She mentions that some tasks, which once took six weeks, can now be completed in just four days thanks to automation tools like Sharesight and Xero.

"If people haven't started on their digital transformation journey yet, or even if they personally don't want to do that, there'll be someone in the office who is keen. So find that person and have them become a champion for the clients you're ready to move online. Quite often you'll find your staff members are curious about new technologies and how they'll shape their future careers. If you're not letting them progress through with that, then one, you're potentially going to lose good staff, and two, you're missing an opportunity."

Learning from the CA Catalyst community

For those worried about getting transformation process right, Parker highlights many ways to engage with the wider CA network for guidance and support you need.

I think there is a concern now about not just the data overload but also app overload. There are so many programs out there that it can cause a kind of paralysis," says Parker.

"That's where opportunities like CA Catalyst provide a lot of opportunity, because at the end of the day you want to know a new program is going to work, so you can turn to the people you trust most – your peers – who are already using it."

"Once you've decided you are going to change, delegate that responsibility and actually get out of their way and let them make those choices. Because to not change is going to be worse than anything they're going to do."

Cloud technology allows firms to reimagine the office

Thanks to a highly digital approach, Parker has built a practice that partners with other CAs and finance professionals without needing to be part of a large office environment.

"In the past you used to have to be in an office because that was where all the information was. Now it's in the cloud and so you can work remotely."

With this in mind, Parker finds CA Catalyst a wonderful new way to feel connected with the wider CA community while maintaining her flexibility.

"CA Catalyst is about the community, it's about building opportunities together."