Digital Technologies in Accounting Firms: Adoption, Impact and New Avenues for Future Research

Abstract

Paper 1 Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on the impact of digital technologies on accounting practice and accountants' roles in the context of accounting firms. Design/methodology/approach – A scoping review of academic studies was used to achieve the study's purpose. Findings – Only thirteen empirical papers on the impact of digital technologies on accounting practice and accountants' roles in the context of accounting firms were identified. Furthermore, the review revealed that discussion papers and anecdotal claims dominate the literature. It is important for future research to consider to what extent the accounting profession, and accounting firms in particular, are embracing digital technology and how it is impacting accounting practice and accountants' roles. The findings also reveal that the challenges and risks associated with digital technologies are unaccounted for and ignored in the literature. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the field of accounting research by providing an overview of emergent literature on the usage of digital technologies and its impact on accounting and accountants' roles in accounting firms context. It is also the first to synthesise and discuss the challenges/risks, as well as the opportunities/benefits associated with digital technologies within that context while also aiming to serve as a catalyst for future research.Paper 2 Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model to explore the factors that influence accountants towards the adoption of digital technologies in accounting firms. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with qualified accountants working in accounting firms of different sizes in the UK, including the Big4. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used as a guide to develop a model for the context studied. Findings – The findings indicate that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use, which are the main factors of TAM, are promoters for adoption. More specifically and beyond the abstract definition of the main factors, the study indicates that efficiency, enhanced decision-making and real-time access are all seen as perceived usefulness, while easy to learn and effortless are the perceived ease of use that promote accountants to adopt digital technologies. In addition, the findings also indicate a new emergent factor as a promoter of adoption: the external environment, including clients' demands, vendors, competition and COVID-19, all strongly impact accountants' technology adoption decisions. However, the study also indicates new barrier factors that influence accountants' intention to adopt digital technologies: the resistance to change and technology-specific factors, such as potential system errors, data volume, and uncertainty of the available software in the market. Originality/value – The study concludes with a conceptual model for the adoption of digital technologies by accountants in the accounting firms' context. This study extends TAM to include the external environment as an important construct to explain digital technology adoption by accountants. Furthermore, it extends the model by incorporating the barrier constructs that affect adoption to provide a holistic view.Paper 3 Purpose – This paper aims to explore the impact of digital technologies on accounting practice and accountants' roles in accounting firms to suggest an extended version of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) conceptual framework which also includes the usage impact. Design/methodology/approach – To achieve the purpose of the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with qualified accountants working in accounting firms of different sizes in the UK. Findings – The evidence reveals that using digital technologies impacts the nature of accounting practice as well as the accountant's role towards their clients, and they are undergoing some changes. As a result, the knowledge and skills required to be an accountant go beyond the technical aspects, and the demand for technology-skilled accountants is increasing. Furthermore, the evidence also reveals that using digital technologies might have unintended impacts both on the accounting practice and the accountants' roles. Originality/value – This paper extends TAM by providing a conceptual framework that proposes the construct ‘usage impact’ and extends the emerging empirical literature on the impact of digital technologies on accounting practice and accountants' roles in accounting firms' context. In contrast with previous limited empirical literature that has focused mainly on the beneficial aspects of digital technologies, this paper is devoted to exploring the positive as well as the unintended impact of digital technologies. This paper provides evidence regarding the effects of the use of new technologies on accounting practice, accountants' roles and skills. Furthermore, it provides empirical evidence regarding some of the unaccounted aspects of digital technologies usage in terms of technology overreliance, deskilling, data risk and decreasing compliance work.