Majority of SME owners hope AI will halve their admin time
One in five Australian small business owners are gearing up to invest in artificial intelligence tools, anticipating that these advancements will significantly reduce their administrative workload.
New research from NAB has found that a majority of these entrepreneurs are hopeful that AI will halve their admin time, with nearly 25% of small to medium enterprises (SMEs) having already embraced AI, with 40% aiming for profit growth, and 60% seeking to enhance productivity through these technologies.
Ana Marinkovic (pictured), NAB’s executive for small business, commented on the research, noting AI’s potential to empower small businesses with resources previously accessible only to large entities.
“At NAB, we’re continuing to look at how we can safely harness the power of AI to help make the lives of our small business customers easier while keeping their data and the bank safe,” Marinkovic said.
“One example is NAB Bookkeeper, our new bookkeeping tool that utilises machine learning, a form of AI, to help reduce admin time for small businesses by up to five hours per week so they can focus on the bigger picture.”
Developed in partnership with Thriday, a company supported by NAB Ventures, the tool offers features like automated accounting, invoicing, and tax calculations, aiming to save small business owners up to five hours per week on administrative tasks.
Utilising data from customers’ NAB business accounts, NAB Bookkeeper streamlines various financial management activities, enhancing efficiency in invoicing, cash flow, and tax management.
Highlighting the security measures in place, Marinkovic said that NAB Bookkeeper and its transactions are safeguarded by advanced security technologies and the bank’s rigorous security standards.
“By combining banking, accounting and tax into one solution, we’ve built the first all-in-one financial management platform, fundamentally redesigning how small businesses manage their financial admin and saving them hours each week,” said Michael Nuciforo, co-founder and chief executive of Thriday. “This is a ground-breaking new category of product.”
Currently, NAB is offering a six-month free trial of NAB Bookkeeper, featuring full access without a lock-in contract or tier-based pricing.
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