Top Accounting Challenges and How NetSuite Provides the Solutions
December 31,2025
Accounting is perhaps the most complicated calculation option, or maybe that is what it has been made out to be. There are several regulatory compliances, and data security requirements are a few key elements that you should pay very close attention to.
Apart from that, there are issues such as a shortage of talent and international expansions. The factors like technological innovations and economic uncertainty are a few other factors that you should focus on.
The actual challenges in proper accounting include the right technology, smart processes, and better visibility into your financial data. That is where the modern accounting tools in ERPs like NetSuite help you achieve the best standards in addressing the challenges being faced by the accounting professionals.
How do the Accounting Challenges Affect Business Operations?
If the challenges in accounting are not addressed properly, the effects can move beyond the finance department alone. Here are a few ways that the accounting challenges can impact the normal business operations.
1. Delayed decision making – Improper accounting can make you lose proper financial visibility. This can make the strategic decisions quite difficult. Since the decisions depend on historical data, the decision making may be severely affected.
2. Cash inflow crisis – Your business can go off guard with a lack of information on receivable and payables. It can result in unexpected liquidity challenges and can even put constraints on your growth.
3. Compliance and audit risks – Fragmented data may create an audit exposure. Any missing data can also result in regulatory penalties.
4. Employee burnout – Accounting teams can get burned out because of the manual work. They may face high stress levels and lower morale.
5. Missed growth opportunities - There is no bandwidth left for strategic analysis, scenario planning, or identifying cost-saving opportunities.
6. Constraints to scalability – As your business grows, there will be a severe breakdown of the manual work.
7. Data inconsistency – The required information is stored in different systems. This can give rise to discrepancies. This will lead to confusion throughout the organisation.
8. Competitive disadvantage – If you do not use advanced techniques for accounting, you will fall behind those who use such tools. You will have no time for making better-informed decisions and adapting quicker to market changes.
9. Fraud and security vulnerabilities - Weak controls, unclear audit trails, and outdated systems create opportunities for fraudulent activity or unauthorised access. The longer these vulnerabilities exist, the higher the risk.
What is NetSuite Cloud Accounting Software?
NetSuite is a comprehensive cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform. It unifies the accounting and finance management with other core business functions into a single system.
The platform's cloud architecture eliminates the need for on-premises infrastructure and manual system maintenance. It also offers built-in compliance features that automatically adapt to changing GAAP, IFRS, ASC 606, and tax regulations across multiple jurisdictions. NetSuite transforms accounting from a manual, reactive function into a strategic, data-driven operation.
What are the Common Accounting Challenges and Their NetSuite Solutions?
The most common accounting challenges that most businesses face can be well understood through the table below
| Category | Challenges | Explanation for the Challenges | NetSuite Solution |
| Financial Control & Accuracy | Manual Data Entry and Errors | Manual data entry across spreadsheets introduces human error, duplicates, and inconsistencies. They can move through the financial reports. | NetSuite automates transaction recording and eliminates spreadsheet silos. Real-time data capture delivers greater accuracy and a single source of details. |
| Financial Control & Accuracy | Data Silos Across Departments | Separate systems in sales, inventory, HR, and accounting don't communicate. This creates visibility gaps and requires hours of manual consolidation. | NetSuite integrates all business modules into one platform. All departments work from the same data. That eliminates manual consolidation. |
| Financial Control & Accuracy | Manual Journal Entries & GL Impact | Lack standardization and proper controls. Incorrect account coding and entry duplication. Mi-statements of financial reports. | You can get all the financial details in one place. It helps in efficient reconciliation and accurate figures.
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| Financial Reporting | Financial Reporting | Compliance with GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) disclosure requirements demands detailed documentation and audit trails. Managing multiple standards manually takes a lot of time | NetSuite supports multiple accounting standards simultaneously and automatically generates compliant reports. Multi-book accounting handles GAAP and IFRS from the same data. |
| Cash Flow & Liquidity | Cash Flow Management | Without real-time visibility into receivables, payables, and cash positions, companies struggle to forecast accurately and maintain healthy liquidity. | NetSuite provides real-time cash visibility dashboards that aggregate data across AR, AP, and bank transactions. Daily forecasting becomes data-driven. |
| Cash Flow & Liquidity | Late Payments and Credit Control | Poor visibility into customer payment status and a lack of automated reminders lead to overdue invoices and increased collection efforts. | NetSuite automates payment reminders, flags overdue invoices, and provides customer creditworthiness visibility. This accelerates collections and reduces DSO (Days Sales Outstanding) |
| Revenue & Profitability | Revenue Recognition | Complex revenue recognition rules (ASC 606) create reconciliation headaches and audit risks when managed manually. | NetSuite has in-built tools, such as SuiteBilling, that automate revenue recognition in accordance with ASC 606. Rules-based automation ensures consistency and creates audit-ready documentation. |
| Revenue & Profitability | Expense Tracking | Scattered expense reports, manual reimbursements, and a lack of spending visibility make it hard to control costs and identify savings. | NetSuite integrates expense management with AP and reimbursement workflows. Real-time tracking helps identify spending patterns and flag unusual expenses. |
| Reporting & Forecasting | Slow Financial Close | Month-end closes tied to spreadsheets, manual reconciliations, and approval workflows stretch into weeks, delaying financial reporting. | NetSuite accelerates close cycles with automated reconciliations, centralized workflows, and real-time account balancing. Close time has reduced from weeks to days. |
| Reporting & Forecasting | Ineffective Forecasting | Building forecasts from disparate sources and guesswork leads to inaccurate predictions that become obsolete quickly. | NetSuite provides integrated planning tools with historical data analysis, scenario modelling, multi-dimensional analysis, and real-time data for dynamic forecasting. |
| Reporting & Forecasting | Limited Financial Visibility | Finance teams see the full picture only after the month-end. Real-time operational metrics remain invisible until reports are manually compiled. | NetSuite with role-based dashboards delivers real-time visibility for finance teams into revenue, margins, cash position, and operational KPIs on demand. This makes controlling and analysing financial operations easier across the organisation altogether. |
| Payroll & HR Accounting | Payroll Management | Complex multistate and multi-country payroll regulations, withholdings, and remote employee location determination create compliance risk. | NetSuite, being a true cloud ERP, makes it easier to handle multistate and multi-country payroll scenarios with automatic tax calculations and compliance filings. HR integration ensures data accuracy. |
| Payroll & HR Accounting | Employee Expense Reimbursements | Managing expense reports, approvals, and reimbursements drains time. Weak policy enforcement leads to questionable expenses and delays. | NetSuite integrates expense management with payroll. Automated policy enforcement and approval workflows eliminate delays and ensure consistency. |
| Taxation & Compliance | Tax Compliance & Audit Trails | Meeting audit requirements across multiple jurisdictions while maintaining detailed documentation and staying compliant with evolving tax regulations demands vigilance. | NetSuite maintains complete, auditable transaction records with built-in compliance documentation: multi-entity and multicurrency support complex tax scenarios. |
| Taxation & Compliance | Multicurrency and Global Accounting | Managing multicurrency transactions, handling translation differences, and consolidating subsidiaries under different accounting standards can be complex. | NetSuite's global accounting engine handles multicurrency transactions with automatic conversion and consolidation. Supports local GAAP and IFRS standards. |
| Technology & Integration | Legacy Systems & Lack of Integration | Traditional solutions force manual data transfers between systems. This creates errors and redundant data entry. | NetSuite replaces legacy system patchworks with an integrated cloud platform. All modules communicate seamlessly, eliminating data transfer issues. |
| Technology & Integration | Data Migration Challenges | Moving from legacy systems risks data loss, mapping errors, and incomplete historical information that undermines reporting credibility. | NetSuite provides comprehensive migration services and tools. Validated migrations preserve historical data integrity during cloud transition. |
| Scalability & Growth | Handling Business Expansion | Growing headcount, new locations, new subsidiaries, product lines, or market entry strain existing infrastructure. Manual processes break down at scale. | NetSuite scales with your business. Add entities, currencies, locations, subsidiaries, or lines without replacing core infrastructure. Multi-tenant architecture supports global operations. |
| Scalability & Growth | Mergers & Acquisitions and Consolidations | Integrating acquired companies' systems and consolidating results across different structures, currencies, and standards is complex and time-consuming. | NetSuite simplifies post-acquisition integration with multi-entity consolidation, automated intercompany eliminations, and varied accounting standard support. |
| Security & Risk | Fraud and Unauthorised Access | Without strong access controls and transaction monitoring, companies face employee fraud and unauthorised transaction risks. | NetSuite provides role-based access controls, segregation of duties enforcement, and transaction monitoring. Audit trails track every change. |
| Security & Risk | Disaster Recovery and Data Backup | On-premises systems are at risk of hardware failure, ransomware, or natural disasters. Manual backups are prone to gaps. | NetSuite's cloud infrastructure provides built-in redundancy, automatic backups, and disaster recovery across geographically distributed servers. It can also detect anomalies in financial transactions through its built-in AI. |
| Sustainability & ESG Reporting | Environmental Cost Tracking | Tracking environmental costs, carbon emissions, and sustainability metrics is difficult without dedicated systems. ESG reporting demands data that traditional accounting doesn't capture. | NetSuite integrates ESG data collection with financial reporting. Track environmental costs and sustainability metrics alongside accounting data for comprehensive ESG compliance. |
Wrapping Up
Overcoming accounting challenges requires sophisticated tools. You should use a unified, automated, and data-driven approach to how you manage financial operations. The organisations that depend on sophisticated tools have an edge over the companies that rely upon manual work.
NetSuite's integrated cloud accounting platform does exactly that. It consolidates financial data into a single system, automates repetitive tasks, and provides real-time visibility. In essence, NetSuite's tools address virtually all the challenges faced by the accounting team.
No matter what sort of challenges you may be facing in your accounting, NetSuite addresses all these concerns and effectively addresses them. It is definitely a must-have tool for sustainable growth.
Don't let accounting challenges hold back your business growth. Schedule a free consultation with Jobin and Jismi today!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How does NetSuite improve accounting accuracy?
NetSuite keeps everything in one place, so you’re no longer juggling scattered spreadsheets or second-guessing numbers. It catches inconsistencies early and helps your team trust the data they work with.
2. Can NetSuite automate daily accounting tasks?
Yes. All those repetitive tasks that eat up your time, like journal entries, approvals, and reconciliations, can run on their own. Your team gets to focus on work that actually moves the business forward.
3. How does NetSuite help with cash flow tracking?
You get a clear, real-time picture of where your money is coming from and where it’s going. No more waiting for end-of-month surprises. NetSuite helps you stay a step ahead.
4. Can NetSuite handle multi-entity and multi-currency accounting?
Absolutely. Whether you’re running multiple locations or dealing with customers around the world, NetSuite brings everything together so your books stay consistent and compliant.
5. How does NetSuite support tax compliance and audit readiness?
NetSuite keeps clean, traceable records automatically. When tax season or audits roll around, you’re not scrambling. Everything you need is already organized and easy to access.
6. Does NetSuite simplify month-end and year-end closing?
Yes. It takes the chaos out of closing. With automated checklists, approvals, and reconciliations, your team can wrap things up faster and with far less stress.
7. How does NetSuite help with real-time financial reporting?
You don’t have to wait for updates or request data from different teams. NetSuite shows your finances live, so you can make decisions based on what’s happening right now.
8. Can NetSuite manage payroll and employee expense accounting?
Yes. Payroll, reimbursements, and expense reports flow smoothly into your financials. Your HR and finance teams spend less time fixing errors and more time supporting your people.
9. How does NetSuite reduce manual accounting work?
By automating the tasks that slow you down and linking every department’s data, NetSuite reduces repetitive work and keeps everyone on the same page.
10. Is NetSuite suitable for businesses with complex accounting needs?
Definitely. Whether you’re growing fast, handling global operations, or managing detailed revenue rules, NetSuite adapts to your needs instead of forcing you to work around limitations.
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