When I talk to clients about AI, many say they’ve dabbled but don’t really see where it
fits in. I get it—I'm just a regular old (emphasis on old) accountant, not a tech guru. But
after some experimenting, reading, and plenty of YouTube tutorials, I’ve found AI to be a
serious time-saver.
At Axia, we lead Accounting Advisory and Outsourced Accounting practices, giving us
deep visibility into how clients manage their day-to-day operations. A core part of our
job is improving and automating those processes.
Here are a few real ways we’re using AI in practice—no coding background required:

�� SOP Documentation
We all know SOPs are essential—but creating them? That’s another story.
Here’s how we make it easy:
During client onboarding, we record a process walkthrough via Zoom or Teams and
generate a transcript. We feed that into a chatbot (we use OpenAI’s ChatGPT Teams
license, which keeps data private), and ask it to draft a detailed SOP. We can even add
video clips to generate screenshots. What used to take hours now takes minutes—and
the output is great for training and continuity.

�� Creating Complex Journal Entries
Need to pull data from multiple sources, reconcile it, format it, and get it upload-ready?
AI is surprisingly good at this. With the right prompts, it can read Excel files, PDFs, and
other documents, and output a polished JE file. There’s a bit of trial and error at first, but
once it’s dialed in, it saves real time.

�� Creating a Process Automation
Once we’ve documented a process or created a sample journal entry, we ask the
chatbot: “How could we automate this?”
It often comes back with a plan using RPA (for data extraction), Python (for formatting),
and AI (for classifying or reconciling data). It even writes sample scripts to guide
implementation. You don’t have to be a developer—but it helps to have a tech-savvy
team member.

✅ This is Part 1 of a 2-part series where I’m sharing hands-on ways we’re using AI to
make accounting smarter, faster, and more scalable.
�� Curious how this could apply to your team? DM me—I’d love to compare notes or
help you get started.

How We’re Using AI in Accounting (Part 2 of 2)
In Part 1—I shared how we’re using AI to streamline SOP documentation, journal entry
creation, and even build out end-to-end process automations. In this post, I’ll share
three more use cases we’ve seen deliver big time savings and insights for accounting
teams.

�� Technical Accounting Research
Even the most experienced accountants need to consult the literature from time to time.
AI can help you get there faster.
Feed in a set of facts and a chatbot can quickly identify the relevant guidance, apply it to
the situation, and draft a technical memo—complete with background, citations, and
conclusions. It can also draft disclosures or notes to the financials.
Of course, you still need to verify its output, but I’ve cut hours off my research and
documentation process using this method.

�� Account Reconciliations
Have large volumes of data to reconcile? AI makes it a lot easier.
We’ve dropped in GL data and subledger exports and asked the chatbot to identify
mismatches. In one case, a client’s subsidiary AP ledger didn’t match the GL. The
chatbot found transactions missing on each side—no formulas required.
Yes, you could use VLOOKUPs or ERP modules to do this too—but in many cases, this
method is faster and more flexible.

�� Using AI in ERP & Finance Systems
Most finance systems now include AI features—but few clients are taking advantage of
them.

For example, Sage Intacct offers a Financial Review tool that automatically highlights
variances between periods and budget, and helps you drill down to investigate. It’s a
great example of AI quietly doing work in the background that used to eat up hours of
time.

Final Thought: It’s Not About Replacing Accountants—It’s About Elevating Them
We’ve found that even small experiments with AI can help you reclaim hours, reduce
manual effort, and produce more consistent, higher-quality outputs. You don’t need to
be a developer. You just need to be curious.
�� Thinking about how to get started, or want to swap ideas? DM me—I’m always happy
to share more on what’s working and what we’ve learned.