In today’s fast paced world of tax, where change is the only constant, the tax department can benefit from a system that increases organization, visibility and manageability of these ever changing items.
Automated Checklist – This is the initial step in the process. Every tax department manages their process with a checklist, sometimes also referred to as a program or step program.
AFRM® takes this to a higher level by assigning each activity in the checklist to a preparer and also specifying a due date for each activity.
Dependencies can be included for each activity and alerts notify you as to the status of any activity you wish to monitor.
AFRM® is great for coordinating with outsourced or co-sourced providers as you now have visibility into their work and a comment platform to manage this process.
Built-in Workflow – Each activity has a built-in workflow which is defined when the activity is created. This workflow considers SoX compliance and ensures that all activities are reviewed at the appropriate level and any exception is further reviewed.
Electronic workpapers – All documents associated with the activity are stored in a secure environment. Whether it is the tax return, final tax provision spreadsheet, estimated tax payment or communication from a tax authority, you have instant access to the document. AFRM® also presents you with prior period’s documents for easy review. For example, when reviewing the tax return, you may want to refer to prior year’s tax returns for reference. These are available with a few clicks.
Increased Visibility – Do you know the status of your team’s work? AFRM® provides you with this visibility on a real time basis. As additional activities or projects arise, they can be assigned based on workload and ability.
Workload balance – Activities may be reassigned based on a full understanding of workload and deadlines. Because each activity contains detailed worksteps, the recipient of an activity is able to complete the activity with little supervision or handoff time.