Accounting Software Implementation in SMEs: A Research Study

This research report investigates the effectiveness of accounting software, particularly focusing on its implementation within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Australia and India. The study highlights the growing trend of cloud computing in accounting and its impact on software development, emphasizing the need for tailored solutions for start-ups and small firms. The research employs a qualitative methodology, utilizing secondary data from journals to compare the adoption of accounting software in both countries. It explores the evolution of accounting software, from basic features to integrated systems including Customer Relationship Management, Human Resource Management, and Supply Chain Management. The report contrasts the more advanced adoption in Australia, with software like MYOB and Xero, to the market in India, where software like Tally is prevalent. The study also analyzes the challenges faced by SMEs, such as affordability and the need for customized ERP solutions, and suggests recommendations for software vendors to cater to specific industry needs and enhance ERP implementation. The conclusion emphasizes the potential for ERP adoption in smaller Indian companies and highlights the advantages of accounting software, including reduced operational costs and improved financial efficiency. The report also discusses data collection methods and the findings of the research.

Running head: ACCOUNTING RESEARCH
Accounting Research
Student’s Name:
University Name:
Author Note

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Research Methodology
Small and medium-sized enterprises contribute to the rate of employment in OECD
countries by 60 to 70 percent . The small and medium sized enterprises worldwide continue the
move towards Cloud Computing thus Cloud computing has opened another dimension in the
field of accounting software. The major advantage that the cloud computing can provide is that
the same strata of information is available to all the employees at the same time along with free
accessibility and applicability of the major applications by utilizing the platform provided by the
cloud. The research that has to be conducted specifically targets the newly developed or start-up
business houses and small scale firms consisting of the Board of directors that constitute of youth
in majority. This is a significant fact in case of the research because it reveals that the young
generation of the world economy depends on technology more than just manual labor.
Technology has literally become the means by which a modern man perceives his environmental
surroundings. Thus the need for accounting software solution arises. In the past ages accounting
software that had been developed mainly focused upon components like Accounts Receivable,
Accounts Payable, Payroll and General Ledger. But with time the concept of accounting
software for small scale firms have changed. In the modern day accounting software depend
upon Customer Relationship Management, Human Resource Management, Dashboards, Supply
Chain Management and other applications. The major focus of the modern accounting software
makers is to simplify the data or information provided by the organization, customization of the
required data or information in accordance to the specific requirement of the firm, integration of
the entire accounting operation with the facility of cloud computation. The problem with the
small and medium-sized enterprises is that they often look for accounting software that has a

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large number of features but come with an affordable price ("Cite a Website - Cite This For Me",
2017).
Certain examples of the accounting software that is utilized in Australia and has become
popular in Australia are MYOB Live Accounts which specifically provides s cloud enabled
software that manages the functionality of a cashbook to be precise; MoneyWorks Express is
another software that is required by small and medium-sized enterprises for solving their
accounting needs; QuickBooks Online plus Web Payroll is utilized by small business houses like
coffee shops in Australia. It should be noted that the features provided by most of the accounting
software in Australia provide more or less the similar features because of a highly competitive
market ("Cite a Website - Cite This For Me", 2017).
However in India the evolution of the accounting system has not been such widespread.
However the current condition of the Indian market is different. This means that enterprises in
India have been using simple accounting software such as Tally, QuickBooks, Marg Accounting
Software, Busy Accounting Software and Profitbooks ("5 best accounting software for small
businesses in India - Your Finance Book", 2017) .
This research aims to measure the effectiveness of the accounting software that is
implemented in Australia. In order to find out the effective implementation of accounting
software in small and medium-sized enterprises a qualitative research method has been adopted.
The effect and result of the adoption and implementation of the accounting software in the small
and medium business enterprises in different nations especially India and Australia has been
analyzed for the purpose of research of this particular study. The resources used for gathering
information or secondary data have been derived from journals that provide a description of the

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current condition prevailing after the implementation of the respective accounting software. The
primary aim of this research is to chalk out the winning points and failures regarding the
implementation of the business accounting software in the small or medium sized enterprises in
Australia and for a better understanding of the issue a comparison with the implementation of
small business accounting software in India has been executed (Tijani & Mohammed, 2013).
The accounting software revolution that took place in India started in the later part of the
eighteenth century. Due to the reason that the accounting rules and regulations are governed by
certain laid down or established principles the accounting software packages in India gave rise to
a highly competitive market because of the fact that they were able to provide the same range of
features and facilities. The implementation of the Enterprise Resource Planning software has
specifically revolutionized the accounting framework in India. The power of ERP has been
further influenced by the facility of cloud computing.
Most of the small or medium sized businesses in India do not utilize any kind of ERP
software either due to the fact that they do not get the apt or suitable software solutions that
match with their requirements or they are not aware of the values and features provided by the
ERP software. The major demand now in the Indian small or medium sized enterprises is the
implementation of the ERP software technology. This is due to the availability of continuous and
strong internet connectivity in most of these firms. The small business accounting software that
also have certain limitations like restriction on the number of accounting transactions or the
number of users. Another limitation that is faced by the small or medium sized enterprises in
India is that the sellers of the ERP software provide a vast range of facilities and features which
are never or rarely utilized by these small scale enterprises therefore they are indirectly paying
for the development costs that are unnecessary from their perspective. The large scale ERP

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companies in India tend to spend a lot on marketing and advertisement thus the small scale
enterprises also have share the indirect cost of such expenses. The software package that is
provided by these small business accounting software houses either lack the exact combination
of software designs or features that are desired by the clients or they lack the proper or accurate
strategic planning that requires developing a strategy for the future. A particular recommendation
for such a situation is that the new small scale ERP software firms that are entering the business
in the recent times should focus upon or target a specific domain of one or two industries. They
should primarily focus upon providing solution to these industries so that they can develop their
accounting software packages exactly according to the needs and requirements of the target
industries. This will allow them to cut upon the unnecessary cost that is incurred upon unused
features of the software (Cassar, Ittner & Cavalluzzo, 2015).
The implementation of a sustainable ERP requires proper integration with the firm’s
developed system that is concerned with the strategic planning of the operations undertaken by
the firm. The major issues that the small or medium-sized business enterprises face are that they
lack the required marketing strength; the needed analysis of the market that is required in order
to assess and evaluate the requirements of the client, that is innovate the software in accordance
to the necessity of the client is also not executed; the small scale business houses also due to
small setup are not able to cater to more than one client at a time; they also lack enough capital in
order to facilitate the needed changes in business (Daneshgar, Low, & Worasinchai, 2013).
Thus it can be concluded that ERP in India may be widely used in smaller companies in
the future. The utilization of such software will not be limited or confined to the big
organizations. The recommended improvements in the ERP software will surely reduce the time
that is required to implement ERP effectively in a firm. For instance a particular

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recommendation that could resolve the issues faced by a particular small scale organization is
that the ERP vendors may resort to component based solution to their clients. A particular client
may decide to purchase only sales and finance components of business and add the production
and material later. This process is aimed to provide a solution to the issues related with budget
and enable the customer to pay for only those features which they are in need of. Some experts
are also of the opinion that in spite of firms that customize software in order to match the
processes, the processes should be customized in order to match the software (Seethamraju,
2015).
The major problem areas that the ERP industry is facing currently in India is the sudden
changes in the structure of the organization in order to match the current ERP software may
prove to be damaging for the firm. The next problem area in the implementation of the ERP
software is that the firms already utilizing the software will need to have to adhere to the
technical changes that will cost them heavily. A particular solution for such a situation is that the
firms may develop technologies that mitigate the chances of implementing the change in the
software. Lastly the financial constraints faced by the firms in this particular sector also restrict
them from investing in the same. The major reason for such a behavior is the unexpected losses
and expenditures incurred in the utilization of the ERP software. Having mentioned all these
disadvantages of the ERP software, it should be noted that ERP also has clear and constructive
advantages. These are as reported by the small and medium sized businesses in India, reduction
in inventory; decreased cost of accounting and financial operations; reduction in the cost of
operation and reduction in the cost of administration ("Cite a Website - Cite This For
Me", 2017).

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Collection of Data
A particular study is commonly made up of either secondary or primary data. Primary
data is essentially the information that is gathered and examined directly from the source for the
purpose of research. Primary data also indicates that the data is used for the first time. Secondary
data on the other hand refers to the information that has been produced by a third party most
probably for some other purpose. The data that has been collected for the purpose of research in
this particular thesis is secondary data.
Secondary data provides a wider scope of research. This is because the secondary data
constitutes of various documents that provide a review of the subject of research by different
researchers. The major advantage of collecting information from secondary data is that
secondary data focus on establishing a clear understanding of the implementation or investment
in the ERP system. However it is very important to be crucial of the information collected on the
basis of secondary data. This is because the data has been created by different researchers at
different times for various purposes therefore must be analyzed carefully before utilizing it for a
research purpose. The sources of secondary data used in this particular study have been obtained
from research journals.
Findings of the particular research
As compared to the situation prevailing in Australia regarding the implementation of
small business accounting software that is mentioned in the literature review part of this
particular thesis, the condition in India is much more crucial. Australian small and medium sized
enterprises though face some of the same issues like affordability and awareness about the
accounting software they are much more acquainted with the concept of accounting software.

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The availability of a vast category of small business accounting software in Australia like
MYOB, Xero, MoneyWorks Express give the clients a large range of options to choose from
however in India the small business accounting software has not flourished enough. Some of the
software packages like Tally rule the market the small scale market. In Australia the small or
medium sized business providing accounting software are independent and technologically
sound enough to provide the software as per the needs and requirement of their client. Even the
customers opting for such software have their business proceedings modified enough to match
with the software thus the small business accounting software owners do not incur unnecessary
loss or expenditure over the features that are not required by their clients in Australia (Sam et al,
2012). However in India the scenario is somewhat different. The small business accounting
software owners in India are hugely dependent on the multinationals that rule the market and
therefore have to bear a part of their cost that is they have to share in the expenditures incurred
by these large scale organizations in advertisement and marketing. The small scale firms also
lack the proper skill or knowledge to make their accounting software exactly according to the
needs of their client and thus cut upon the extra cost of the unnecessary features and facilities of
the software that is not used by the client. Another issue that persists in India but not in Australia
is that the ERP software implementation in India faces the issue of financial constraints that is
not present in Australia.
Conclusion
Therefore as it can be understood from the findings of the above study the small business
accounting software in Australia have improved in the recent times unprecedentedly. The
packages have become less costly and simpler so that the users can understand their workings
and fit the software properly in order to match their needs. The advantages that are brought about

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by the newest models of accounting software have not benefitted the small or medium sized
businesses but also the large scale organizations. The only major issue that persists with the
accounting software implementation in Australia is that the business owners should be made
more aware about the advantages that are provided by the Enterprise Resource Planning software
and how exactly it will help their business to prosper.
Therefore the future of the small business accounting software is bright in Australia and
with the regular updates and improvements they surely provide both the small and large scale
organizations the scope to get a competitive advantage in business.

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