Does AI Adoption Affect the Value of an Accounting Practice

Several accountants have spoken to me recently about the AI seminars they've been attending, and where real value now sits inside their practices. Is it still in traditional compliance work, or increasingly in productivity gains and system-led efficiency?

From what I'm seeing, both.

There are two camps forming, and I talk to owners in each of them every week.

The early adopters are embracing automation and AI, lifting productivity and freeing capacity in what remains a tight labour market for accountants. That shows up in stronger margins and greater buyer appeal. Their challenge is knowing how far to go. New tools appear constantly, and the real question is not which software to use. It is where the technology genuinely adds value for clients or the team. The most sensible view I hear: AI should help people make better, faster decisions for clients, not replace professional judgement.

The sceptics have heard the hype before. They remember being told the cloud would replace them, and before that, that computerised ledgers would. What they run instead are well organised traditional firms built on client relationships, trust, and consistent compliance. And here is the thing: demand for those practices remains strong. Buyers are not walking away from good firms because the owner has not attended an AI seminar. Loyal clients, a stable team, and clean recurring fees still sell, and sell well.

So who is right? In a sense, neither, because it is the wrong question.

What buyers actually price is not the technology. It is what the practice runs on. A firm where the systems, whatever they are, produce consistent work without depending entirely on the owner will always transfer better than one that lives in someone's head. AI is one way to get there. Tidy workflows and a good team is another. Plenty of practices at the top of the price range have modest technology and excellent habits.

Where the sceptics do carry risk is at the margins. A buyer comparing two similar practices will notice if one has the capacity to grow without hiring and the other is at its ceiling. That gap is starting to show up in what buyers are willing to pay, and I expect it to widen over the next few years rather than close.

The opportunity is not in abandoning what has worked. It is in refining it. And whichever camp you sit in, the practice that transfers well is the one that runs on systems and relationships, not on the heroic effort of its owner.