The Gravita Story: Fighting the Capacity Crunch

Most firms only think about compliance workflow when it starts to break. Gravita didn’t wait. In this on-demand session, Adrian Logan, Transformation Manager at Gravita, walks through how the firm connected working papers, accounts production, and CT600 filing into one consistent workflow – before the cracks appeared. Grounded in research with 350+ UK and Irish accounting firms, it’s essential viewing for any firm that wants to stay ahead of the capacity crunch.

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Morning, folks. I think we’ve got the first few people clicking in. Glad to help you with this. I’ll give it a minute or so, just let numbers ramp up. Another ten or fifteen seconds or so. Right, we’ll get going. Good morning everyone. Thanks for coming along today and joining today’s webinar. Just a quick few housekeeping rules before we get started. Things should run content-wise for about half an hour, and then we’ve allowed fifteen minutes at the end for a Q&A. So forty-five minutes altogether. That Q&A panel is open right now, so feel free to chuck questions in as you go along. The more questions the better. We’ve got the guys joining us today happy to answer them. Today’s session is recorded. So if you have to drop off at any point, then don’t panic. Within about forty-eight hours, a copy of the webinar should come out to you. And at the very end of the session, we’re going to share a link to download the Grow Without the Chaos guide. This is the five-stage digital transformation roadmap that we’re going to be basing it on today. So keep an eye out for that when we finish off.

Today’s session is titled, The Gravita Story: Fighting the Capacity Crunch. The main aim is to discuss how firms are dealing with the capacity crunch—whether they’ve beaten it or are still fighting it.

Introductions

• ​Mark Turley: Senior Account Exec at Silverfin, nearly ten years working with accountants, previously at Xero and other digital transformation solutions.
• ​Aleisha: Head of UK and Ireland for Silverfin, almost five years at Silverfin, previously at Xero, and before that an accountant in practice, managing digital transformation.
• ​Adrian Logan: Transformation Manager at Gravita, over twenty years in technology across public and private sectors, more recently focused on the accountancy sector, introducing and embedding new technology platforms and reviewing processes. Gravita is a private equity-backed firm, bringing together six specialist accounting firms under a single brand, with five offices and about five hundred team members. They pride themselves on being a tech-enabled firm, embracing technology to streamline processes and improve accuracy.

The Capacity Crunch

Q: Do you think at Gravita you’re right in the middle of that capacity crunch fight, or have you beaten it?

Adrian: It’s an ongoing challenge. Clients always want more, and we’re trying to deliver more. We’ve taken big strides to manage time and investment, streamlining where we can, but it’s still a blend between humans delivering part of the process and optimizing technology. Aligning the technology stack after acquisitions is key to building cohesiveness. The challenge is ongoing, especially as clients expect more without increased costs.

Q: Why is the capacity crunch still an issue despite investment in software?

Adrian: There are so many new digital tools, creating a disconnected ecosystem. Investing in the right tools is important, but providers need to connect their products. Manual data transfer between platforms creates inefficiencies. The industry is moving towards a more connected ecosystem, but there’s still room for improvement.

Aleisha: The accounting industry has changed more in the last ten to fifteen years than ever before. The demands on accountants are changing, and new technology is emerging rapidly. The industry is typically risk-averse, leading to uncertainty. With so many options, are firms investing in the right tools and in the right way? The goalposts are always changing, especially with AI and technology advancements.

Key Stats and Insights

• ​Accountants lose 1.2 to 2 hours per day due to inefficiencies.
• ​Five extra hours worked per week per accountant (likely underreported).
• ​25% of accountants report burnout.
• ​89% of firms are investing in software for accounting workflows.

Adrian: Automation and AI tools can streamline work without taking control away from people, but building trust and confidence is key. Breaking old habits is challenging. Burnout is not just about workload but also the mental pressure of constant change.

Aleisha: Introducing technology should make jobs easier, not compound problems. Are firms bringing in tech to support issues or just adding complexity? The human element is crucial—technology alone doesn’t solve everything.

People, Process, and Technology

Adrian: The classic approach of people, process, and technology carries equal weight. The best technology is useless unless people know how to use it and processes support it. Change is constant, and people need support to adapt. The challenge is to be ahead of the game, work with software providers, and support teams to maximize software investments.

Aleisha: There’s a risk of focusing too much on fashionable AI. Firms need to be deliberate about choices and ensure technology supports and embeds processes and people. Good tech doesn’t fix a bad process. Sometimes the answer is to slow down and do it properly.

Adrian: People learn and change at different rates. Deploying technology exposes this. Sometimes legacy ways of working need to be removed to encourage change. It takes repeated effort to change habits, and firms need to be brave and confident in their technology and processes.

Growth: Reactive vs. Intentional

Aleisha: If growth is reactive, it creates chaos; if it’s intentional, it creates scale. Firms can grow organically, but without the right processes, growth adds stress and complexity without increasing margins. A tech strategy isn’t just a list of tools—it’s about concrete decisions on how the firm operates. Tools should remove bottlenecks, standardize processes, or improve decision-making. Successful tech adoption is about fitting tools into a wider strategy.

Adrian: The model of gaining new clients and recruiting more employees isn’t scalable long-term. Technology and accelerating tech transformation are key to sustainable growth. Standardization and automation are foundational for growth. Connecting systems is important, but providers need to improve integration. The goal is to reduce time spent on compliance and free up time for advisory services, which add value to clients.

Adrian: Gravita is currently in the phase of standardizing, automating, and optimizing processes, with ongoing work to connect key systems. Growth is a journey, not a linear event, and processes are continually refined as technology evolves.