Last week an article was published in www.vg.hu with a breathtaking news that "I would replace the accountant with a program".
The Számviteli Innovációs Iroda Kft., as a startup company, received a "free" accounting expert system from the eight million HUF grant it received under the New Széchenyi Plan developed.
The above-mentioned article briefly and to the point describes the position of the developer and the profession regarding such and similar programs, it is worth reading. I wouldn't get involved in listing the pros and cons, but knowing the complexity of accounting in a given case, I certainly have serious reservations about such a solution. And this is not conservatism or professional jealousy, perhaps narrow-mindedness, but rather decades of professional experience.
Because what is free in this case? Data recording, which is a part of the accounting workflow, is not even the first step in the process. In all cases, this is preceded by the arrangement, systematization, and then the invoice of the receipts. These tasks will determine how the receipts must be recorded and entered (booked) in a program, system (ledger).
In a significant number of cases, these two tasks can really be automated during data recording and entry, although this is often not typical of Hungarian accounting rules. In such cases, the help of an expert on the phone (accountant) or the audience (forums) is needed. However, this is where the problems begin, since the task can be supported with "wired", programmed choice-decision algorithms, but since "tailored" solutions must be applied not to one enterprise, but to the mass of them in such an environment, it is not possible to tailor such an automated system to the uniqueness of each enterprise . In such cases, the underlying support with the help of an expert accountant who can take these unique parameters into account can be a solution.
Let's think about it, what happens if the company has an Accounting Policy? You may account for private telephone costs in a unique way.
Actually, this does not cause a problem in this system either, it just means an extra service beyond the scope of the free service, which is a paid service. In the same way, you must pay if the company records its receipts in the system late or incompletely. And this can be quite a "punishment".
But what does incompletely mean?
While arranging the documents, the accountant of the company is able to recognize the connections and, as a result, the absence of certain documents. Think about it, a simple example is that based on the serial number of the issued invoices, he notices that an invoice is missing, then he can request it. In extreme cases, an automated system does not request the invoice, but can issue a "penalty" immediately...
Well, it is important to consider what an entrepreneur should choose, a free service in the midst of the conditions that can be read above, or leave this task to a service provider that takes responsibility for its activities.
A business and its manager have enough to do, and in general accounting and taxation matters, the preparation of the average Hungarian entrepreneur does not come close to that of an accountant, so the latter can be recommended to everyone with a good heart.
However, if someone or a business is looking for a cost-effective solution, there is a real alternative. The free software applied to Hungarian conditions is available and can be used, which uses similar automations and can be "tailored" for the company. These are usually not just accounting programs, but rather open source enterprise management systems. Such solutions are SQL-Ledger or BlueERP. These programs are also available for Windows and Linux operating systems, and their domestic development and maintenance are also solved. In cooperation with one of the domestic developers and system integrators, we can provide assistance to our customers for their introduction and development.
Our services include the design, installation and development of these systems as needed. If you are interested in us, find us with confidence.