AI by industry · Professional services
AI for accounting firms: what to automate first
An accounting firm gets the most from AI by automating the chasing: missing documents, unsigned engagement letters, repeat client questions and deadline reminders. Technical judgment and sign-off stay with the CPA or preparer. Westward can build these pieces on the firm’s own accounts, with a person approving anything that goes out.
Talk through your firm with the person who builds it
A free 30-minute call. You leave knowing which part of your accounting firm to hand to AI first, what we would build, and roughly how long it takes.
Pick what you want AI to take off your plate
The work around the work
Most of a busy season goes to waiting for W-2s, 1099s, K-1s and the bank statement that never arrives. The return itself is only part of the load.
That waiting is where automation pays first, because it needs no tax judgment.
Then onboarding and questions
A new client needs an engagement letter, an organizer, access to documents and a clear list of what is due when. Existing clients ask the same questions every year: when is my refund, what do you still need, did you get my estimated payment.
Protect client data
Tax return information is protected by law and by professional standards. Check what any tool does with client data, and what your engagement letters say, before you use it. This is a general note, not advice.
Picture this
Examples of what it can look like. Illustrations, not clients.
It is March. A list shows twenty clients who still owe a K-1 or a statement, and each has already had a friendly, specific reminder.
A new small business owner signs an engagement letter online and receives the list of documents you need, matched to her entity type.
A client emails “did you get my estimated payment?” and the answer is drafted from your records for you to approve.
The rules that apply, in their own words
“unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce, are hereby declared unlawful.”
Sources
- IRS: Circular 230: The rules for people who practice before the IRS.
- NIST AI Risk Management Framework: The U.S. standards body’s framework for using AI responsibly.
- 15 U.S.C. § 45 (FTC Act, Section 5): The federal ban on unfair or deceptive business practices, ads included.
Talk through your firm with the person who builds it
A free 30-minute call. You leave knowing which part of your accounting firm to hand to AI first, what we would build, and roughly how long it takes.
Questions
Can AI prepare tax returns?
Software already does the math. AI can help sort documents and flag oddities, but the preparer reviews and signs.
Is it safe to put client documents into AI tools?
Only with tools you have checked: where data is stored, who can see it and whether it trains anything. Accounts stay yours.