Planning and accounting software don’t talk to each other
The financial planning and accounting industry is lacking platforms and software that can integrate information between the two professions, which is problematic in view of the scrapping of the accountants' exemption.
Such is the view of William Buck director, wealth advisory, Adrian Frinsdorf, who said that while there had been discussions in the industry to fill this void, it had not yet occurred.
While some software offered limited automatic integration between the two databases, integrating information still involved substantial manual downloading, checking, and running multiple database systems because financial advice software did not have the capability to store tax records, and vice versa.
"I know [with] our accounting software, we have to run separate accounting and financial advice software and we spend a lot of time integrating the two," Frinsdorf said.
"And I know that's the case with manual work across the entire industry."
While software systems like XPLAN offered proficient financial advice software that could produce portfolios and provide financial planning, Class Super offered superannuation software, and MYOB and APS offered accounting software, the offerings were truly one or the other at present.
"It's a bit of a pipe dream and it's a bugbear given the technology world we live in and how much technology has advanced and what we can do on apps for banking these days," Frinsdorf said.
"I can order UberEATS and have someone deliver my food but I can't get an integrated statement for financial planning and tax advice.
"We're waiting for an entrepreneur out there to fix the problem."
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