After two years in online format, the management software company, Wolters Kluwer, held yesterday in Barcelona its long-awaited Forum Advisors, aimed at professional offices. It was a long-awaited edition, not only because of the amount of new content on tax and labor matters that had to be presented, but also because face-to-face and physical contact were recovered in this traditional event for the sector (29 editions have been held) .
The conference took place at the National Theater of Catalonia, with a very tight agenda starring not only the heavyweights of the company in Spain, but also specialists in different regulations that will affect or are affecting advisers and consultants.
During the event, attendees were able to attend demonstrations on the advantages of the cloud through the use of online solutions such as a3innuva | Accounting, a3innuva | Payroll or a3invoice. The Advisors Forum has also offered attendees a speed consulting, an express advice space in which expert consultants from Wolters Kluwer have analyzed their businesses to advise on their possible transformation; a cloud coffee, to share challenges of cloud technology; and a wall of ideas materialized in several touch screens in which they have been invited to convey suggestions for the transformation of their businesses.
With the aim of continuing to innovate, grow and transform the role of advisors, this year the forum had a space in which good practices and innovative content have been shared through presentations, interviews, round tables and success stories, to discuss trends and developments in innovation, technology and business models.
Font has offered the keys to the office of the future at the beginning of these talks, in which the Strategies and opportunities that open up with the help of the European Commissionhow to grow the business through flexible solutions and how to make offices profitable through collaboration.
The opportunity for business transformation posed by the Kit Digital program has also been analyzed by the Director General of Red.es, Alberto Martinez Lacambra as well as the main regulatory developments, such as the implications of the labor reform and essential aspects before a Labor Inspection, with the former Labor inspector, Anthony Benavidez, and the adaptation of the billing software derived from the Law against tax fraud, with the Treasury Technician at the AEAT of Andalusia, Bartholomew Borrego.
Finally, the Advisors Forum was closed by the ex-soccer player, Joan Capdevila and the team performance specialist Alvaro Merinoauthors of the book Building a winning team, who have transferred learning from their professional field to improve organizations.
Tomás Font: «The office of the future will be cloud»
Tomás Font, CEO of Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting Spainopened the event developing one of the main messages of the day, «the office of the future«. “ANDhe future is something indeterminate, it is a generic concept to define what office profile or how we see that office. And not everyone is going to arrive at the same time and in the same way.
Likewise, Font recalled that a business is not the same as a company, in terms of operations. “The company has an operating principle designed for the medium-long term, while the business is more short-term.” The manager supported in the 180 years of history that the multinational has and its experience in different economic and business cycles to be able to attribute the characteristics of resilience and flexibility, as an organization.
This journey, coupled with experience working in different countries, brings Wolters Kluwer to to be able to have a very complete vision of the offices, as well as foresee the technology that is to come. «Operationally, the function of the law firm that we see in Spain or other countries is quite similar because it is oriented towards fulfilling the formal obligation of its clients. What is not the same is the pace of ICT adoption that we see in each country, in this way, it allows us to see where we are going».
Yes ok the collaborative model It has taken almost a decade to be implemented in Spanish law firms, the next step is to work on a purely cloud. «We see the office in the cloud, from a technological point of view, because ICT developers are making new software only in the cloud and because the concept of ‘always connected’ is changing the relationship with our clients«.
Font also recalled the advantages of this model, in terms of costs, speed and innovation. However, he recalled that Wolters Kluwer it was not going to discontinue its products on premise. «We come from a model where we work more proactive than tax. We believe that the migration will take place, but because the client wants it and sees its advantages».
Finally, the manager recalled the challenges that the firm has faced in these months, and those that are yet to come. Among them, changes in the portfolio, an erosion of margins and a “huge legislative feast that has exhausted the teams”.
