For small accounting firms, efficiency gains often determine whether growth is sustainable. That reality became increasingly clear for Steve Tonkin, owner of Steve Tonkin & Company, a Lakewood, Colorado-based family-run firm focused exclusively on bookkeeping, accounting, and controllership services for small businesses. With more than 20 years of accounting experience and decades of hands-on work with accounting systems, Tonkin has built his practice around responsiveness, personalized service and practical financial guidance.
But as his client base expanded, the technology supporting that service model began creating friction.
Legacy Systems Were Costing More Than Time
Like many small firms, Steve Tonkin & Co. relied on a mix of traditional accounting software and spreadsheets to manage day-to-day client work. While functional, the setup increasingly slowed productivity. Routine tasks such as reconciliation, transaction review, and account navigation required extra clicks, longer load times, and too much manual intervention.
Those inefficiencies compounded quickly. By early this year, Tonkin had spent an estimated 12 to 15 hours dealing with software support issues alone, time that could not be billed or invested in client advisory work.
“When you’re processing hundreds of transactions across multiple accounts, even a few seconds lost per action becomes significant,” Tonkin says. “It became obvious I needed a better way to work.”
For a small firm where owner time directly drives revenue, those delays represented a real constraint on scalability.
Moving to an AI-Native Accounting Platform
Tonkin began exploring alternatives after hearing about newer AI-enabled accounting technologies on an industry podcast. What caught his attention was not simply automation, but the promise of redesigned workflows that reduce repetitive manual effort instead of layering new features onto outdated systems.
He ultimately adopted Digits, an AI-native accounting platform designed to streamline bookkeeping and reporting processes through automation and real-time financial visibility.
The transition is still underway, but the operational impact was immediate.
Early Results: Faster Reconciliation, Less Friction
Even in the early stages of implementation, Tonkin reports measurable improvements:
- Approximately 20% time savings immediately after moving away from legacy systems
- Projected long-term efficiency gains of 30–50% as more clients migrate to the new platform
- Faster reconciliation workflows and quicker access to current financial data
“The reconciliation process alone is significantly faster,” he says. “The workflow feels more intuitive, and that reduces friction throughout the day.”
Five clients are already fully transitioned, and Tonkin expects most new business going forward to begin directly on the new platform rather than legacy software.
That shift is central to his growth strategy: expanding beyond 30 clients without adding administrative burden or sacrificing responsiveness.
Better Technology, Stronger Client Relationships
The efficiency gains are affecting more than internal operations. By reducing time spent on manual bookkeeping processes, Tonkin has been able to improve responsiveness to clients, often replying to inquiries within hours rather than waiting until after routine processing work is complete.
Clients have also responded positively to the enhanced transparency.
Instead of waiting for month-end reports, they now have access to near real-time financial information, including updated balances, transaction activity, and reconciled account views. That visibility helps business owners make faster decisions and reduces the lag between bookkeeping and action.
“When clients see the system, they immediately appreciate the difference,” Tonkin says. “They have clearer insight into their numbers without waiting for static reports.”
For small business clients, that shift turns accounting from a retrospective function into a more active management tool.
A Broader Trend in Firm Modernization
Tonkin sees this move as part of a larger transformation happening across the profession. As AI and automation reshape accounting workflows, he believes smaller firms that embrace modern platforms will be better positioned to compete, not by lowering prices, but by delivering faster, higher-value service.
“Firms that adopt AI-driven tools will stay competitive,” he says. “Those who don’t risk getting buried in manual work.”
That perspective aligns with broader trends in the accounting profession, where technology adoption is increasingly tied to firm profitability, staff capacity and advisory potential.
For Steve Tonkin & Co., the technology change is not simply about software replacement. It is about creating a scalable infrastructure for long-term sustainability: one that supports future growth while preserving the personal service model that defines the firm.
Tonkin’s goal is straightforward: build a practice efficient enough to grow, but flexible enough to remain client-centered.
“My objective is to create something sustainable,” he says. “The less time we spend on repetitive tasks, the more time we can spend helping clients make better business decisions.”
In a profession where efficiency and advisory value increasingly go hand in hand, that may be the clearest competitive advantage of all.
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