Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming a defining issue for the accountancy profession, but a new report from BILL highlights a striking gap between ambition and action. While 85% of accounting firm leaders expect AI to improve their business model over the next five years, only 17% expect that improvement to be transformational.

The findings come from Volume 4 of the BILL Accounting Firm AI Ambition Survey, produced in partnership with NewtonX and based on responses from more than 200 accounting firm leaders, managers and above across firms of different sizes. The latest report examines how AI is likely to change firm structures, talent, pricing and business models.

The headline is therefore not that accountants are resisting AI. Quite the opposite. Confidence in its potential is extremely high. The problem is that relatively few firms appear ready to fundamentally change the way they operate in order to capture that potential.

AI ambition versus transformation

The distinction between improvement and transformation is important. BILL found that 85% of respondents expect AI to improve their business model during the next five years, but only 17% believe the impact will be transformational. Most anticipate incremental improvements or remain in a wait-and-see position.

This reflects a wider pattern identified throughout BILL’s four-part research programme. Earlier research found that 87% of firms were highly or moderately ambitious about AI adoption, while respondents reported median time savings of five hours per person each week. Routine tasks such as data entry, categorisation and reconciliation are among the most common areas for automation.

Yet the profession has not necessarily translated those efficiency gains into fundamental changes in its business model.

Ariege Misherghi, SVP, AP & Accountant Channel at BILL, argues that the firms making progress are not necessarily those building AI infrastructure themselves. Instead, they are pushing existing technology suppliers to solve more of the problem, while extending their security and data-governance processes to cover AI risks.

“The one place worth dedicated investment is process,” she says. “Someone has to own how AI changes client workflows and where the value shows up.”

That may be the most important lesson from the research. Successful AI adoption is not simply about buying software. Firms need to redesign the processes around it.

Automation could reshape the workforce

The report also points towards a significant change in the accountancy workforce. Some 52% of respondents expect AI adoption to reduce headcount, rising to 68% among firms with more than 201 employees. At the same time, two-thirds anticipate significant changes to the skills required by existing employees, while 58% expect similar changes in their future recruitment needs.

This does not necessarily mean the traditional accountant is disappearing. Instead, the nature of accounting work is likely to change.

BILL found that 47% of firms expect AI to increase demand for IT and technical roles. As routine accounting work becomes increasingly automated, expertise in data, systems, technology and AI orchestration could become more valuable.

There is, however, a considerable gap between ambition and results. Scaling capacity without increasing headcount is one of the most frequently cited AI objectives, yet only 9% of respondents say they have achieved substantial results in this area.

That suggests automation is still at an early stage. Firms may be experimenting with AI, but relatively few have redesigned their operations sufficiently to unlock its full productivity potential.

What is holding firms back?

BILL’s earlier research provides useful context for understanding why implementation is proving difficult. Some 98% of accounting firms reported at least one barrier to AI adoption. The biggest obstacles were implementation cost, cited by 45%, resistance to change at 44%, and concerns about data quality and security, both at 43%.

These hurdles are particularly significant for accountancy firms because they deal with sensitive financial information and operate in an environment where accuracy, confidentiality and regulatory compliance are fundamental.

Trust is therefore central to successful automation. Firms need confidence not only that an AI system can produce an answer, but that its output can be checked, explained and defended. Staff also need to understand how new systems affect their roles, otherwise resistance to change can undermine an otherwise sound technology investment.

Integration is another important consideration. Automation works best when it eliminates processes rather than simply adding another application to an already complicated technology stack. Previous research from BILL and CPA.com found that almost all accounting firms believed they were using technology inefficiently, with manual work, delayed adoption and a lack of integration among the leading problems.

The answer, therefore, is not to automate everything indiscriminately. Firms need to identify where automation can remove unnecessary steps, establish clear ownership of AI implementation, ensure data is clean and secure, train employees and measure whether the technology is actually delivering business value.

AI could change how accountants charge

Perhaps the most interesting finding in Volume 4 is that AI is beginning to challenge the traditional pricing model.

Fixed-fee pricing remains dominant at 66%, while hourly billing is used by 60% of firms. Meanwhile, 68% of respondents are either ruling out new pricing strategies or remain undecided.

That could become increasingly difficult to sustain if AI dramatically reduces the time required to complete traditional accounting work.

One survey participant summed up the problem by observing: “The hourly-fee structure is becoming less profitable because our work became very quick after AI adoptions.” Another argued that AI should enable firms to develop more thoughtful value-based advisory packages and spend more time on higher-level recommendations.

This is where automation becomes much more than an efficiency exercise. If accountants can spend less time processing transactions and more time interpreting information, advising clients and helping businesses make decisions, firms have an opportunity to move from selling hours to selling expertise and outcomes.

The opportunity for accountancy firms

The BILL report should therefore be viewed as both a warning and an opportunity. AI adoption is no longer a question of whether the technology will affect accountancy. The evidence suggests that it already is.

The real question is whether firms will use AI simply to make existing processes faster or take the more difficult step of redesigning their businesses around what automation makes possible.

BILL’s own research captures the challenge particularly well. As Misherghi has put it: “If all we’ve done is speed up a broken workflow, we’ve missed the point.” The objective should be to delete work, remove unnecessary steps and free accountants to apply their judgement where it creates the greatest value.

For accountancy firms, the next phase of AI adoption is therefore unlikely to be won by those that simply buy the most technology. It will be won by those capable of changing processes, managing people through the transition, protecting client data and ultimately developing a business model that rewards the value created by automation.

The 85% figure demonstrates that the profession believes AI will matter. The 17% figure shows just how much work remains to turn that belief into genuine transformation.