Learn what accounting practice management involves, common challenges firms face, and how Summit supports smoother workflows, expense control, and scalable growth.
Running a modern accounting firm takes more than technical knowledge. It requires structure. As client demands grow and deadlines stack up, firms need smart systems in place to keep operations running smoothly. That’s where accounting practice management becomes essential.
It’s the engine that powers day-to-day operations: scheduling, communication, task management, billing, and compliance. But without the right tools, teams risk getting buried in admin, losing visibility, or missing key client deliverables.
What Is Accounting Practice Management?
Accounting practice management refers to the systems and processes used by accounting firms to manage their internal operations and client work. It’s the foundation that supports every workflow, from onboarding a new client to delivering a completed audit or filing a corporate tax return.
It includes everything from:
- Task and deadline tracking
- Team scheduling and capacity planning
- Document sharing and storage
- Client communication and collaboration
- Time tracking and billing
- Compliance monitoring and reporting
In short, it’s about bringing structure and clarity to an environment where accuracy, trust, and deadlines matter deeply.
Explore more on how this ties into expense management for accountants.
Core Functions and Tools
To manage all of this, firms typically rely on a combination of tools, some digital, some still manual. But to work efficiently at scale, they need these functions under one roof:
- Scheduling & task management: Keeping track of deliverables across multiple clients, staff, and tax deadlines.
- Time tracking: Monitoring billable hours per engagement or service type to ensure accurate invoicing and client reporting.
- Client communication: Centralised channels for sending updates, sharing documents, and requesting information without chasing emails.
- Document management: Secure, cloud-based access to files, working papers, and client submissions.
- Invoicing & billing: Automating recurring fees, project-based invoices, and time-based billing with integration to accounting systems.
Without unified workflows, firms rely on patchwork systems causing duplication, miscommunication, and wasted hours.
Common Challenges in Managing an Accounting Firm
Even the most experienced teams face operational challenges. Some of the most common include:
- Juggling high volumes of client work, especially during tax season or audit cycles
- Manual workflows for invoice approvals, timesheets, or expense submissions that eat into billable time
- Disconnected systems; one for time tracking, another for billing, a third for emails that don’t talk to each other
- Limited real-time visibility into project status, staff workload, or spend against budget
These issues slow down service delivery, frustrate staff, and make it harder to scale. Without finance workflow automation, firms struggle to maintain profitability while delivering consistent quality.
Benefits of Practice Management Software
By centralising day-to-day workflows, firms can increase visibility, reduce inefficiencies, and focus on high-impact work that drives client satisfaction and profitability.
Here’s how the right software makes a difference:
Improved Productivity
When repetitive tasks, like tracking deadlines, assigning work, or chasing approvals, are automated, your team gets back hours every week. Instead of spending time updating to-do lists or managing task allocation manually, you can automate recurring engagements (e.g. monthly bookkeeping, quarterly GST filings) and free up capacity for more strategic tasks. Everyone works from the same system, reducing confusion and improving turnaround times.
Faster Billing Cycles
Time tracking tools built into practice management software allow staff to log billable hours as they work - by client, service type, or task. This means invoices can be generated automatically, reducing the gap between project delivery and payment. Integration with your accounting system ensures that clients receive invoices on time, with accurate breakdowns, and payment status updates are synced in real time.
Reduced Manual Work in Financial Workflows
Approvals, expense categorisation, and reporting are often the most admin-heavy parts of a firm’s back office. Practice management software (especially when paired with tools like Summit) automates these processes with rules-based logic. Expenses can be routed for approval based on department or value, while standard categories are applied automatically. That means fewer delays, fewer errors, and a smoother month-end close.
Learn more about how SaaS-based tools can reduce complexity in our blog on SaaS spend management for startups.
Better Client Service
Clients expect fast, secure, and responsive communication. With built-in portals or shared document spaces, firms can eliminate email chains and reduce back-and-forth when collecting information or sending deliverables. Everything is stored in one place - signed letters, working papers, bank statements - making it easier for both your team and your clients to stay on the same page.
Scalable Growth
As your client base grows, so do your deadlines, staff, and compliance needs. Practice management software provides real-time visibility into team workloads, project timelines, and task completion. This helps partners plan ahead, allocate resources efficiently, and avoid bottlenecks. It also reduces onboarding time for new hires by standardising processes and giving them one place to access everything they need.
With the right solution in place, accounting firms can stop reacting to problems and start proactively managing client work, team performance, and financial health. Less time on admin means more time adding value, building relationships, and growing your practice sustainably.
How Summit Supports Accounting Practice Management
While Summit isn’t a full practice management suite, it fills a critical gap in the financial workflow: automating invoice approvals, managing expenses, and ensuring your accounting data stays clean and current.
Summit integrates with your existing tools, so client invoices, recurring fees, and out-of-pocket expenses are tracked, approved, and categorised without extra admin. You can set spend policies, route approvals by partner or department, and access real-time data across all firm operations.
Our platform is especially useful for firms looking to reduce manual entry, eliminate duplicate approvals, and bring visibility to operational spend.
Want to simplify finance workflows in your practice? Talk to us today and discover how Summit supports accounting firms with smarter automation and real-time control.
