Xero

The accounting and bookkeeping industry is buzzing with talk about AI. While it might seem like just another buzzword, artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to be a game-changer for firms in Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, and other APAC markets, by helping to solve the persistent talent shortage.

Here are three reasons why embracing AI can help your practice thrive.

#1. Digital-focused firms will far outpace traditional

Just a few years ago, the most progressive accounting practices were the ones that had replaced paper receipts with cloud accounting tools. Today, the difference is between firms that still rely on desktop-based systems and those that are integrating AI-powered platforms into their daily workflows.

This isn’t about chasing the latest tech trend. It’s about remaining competitive. Many firms across the APAC region are already moving ahead with digital transformation. In Singapore, government programs are helping accounting firms adopt new technologies quickly. In Australia, initiatives from the ATO – like e-invoicing and digital lodgements – are encouraging firms to work more efficiently using modern tools.

Those utilising AI are already are already realising significant time savings, improved accuracy, and greater client satisfaction. For firms that have yet to start the transition, the risk isn’t falling slightly behind, but rather being left out of the future entirely.

#2. The talent shortage is persisting

Across the region, accounting faces an urgent talent challenge. The number of new graduates entering the profession is falling, and burnout and lack of career flexibility remain persistent concerns.

But there’s a clear opportunity: AI can help reframe what a modern accounting career looks like. By reducing repetitive tasks and freeing up capacity, firms can offer junior staff more meaningful, value-adding work. This ultimately aligns with what younger professionals expect from a career today.

Max Whiteley, product domain expert at Dext, says there’s more that technology players can do for the accounting industry in the age of AI. 

“The role of the accountant is changing and we can do so much more to project that out into the industry,” he says.  

Digital-native employees, often more comfortable with new technologies than their more experienced peers, can play a leading role in the successful adoption of AI-powered workflows. This shift not only makes firms more attractive employers but also ensures they stay current with platform updates, features, and best practices.

#3. You can invest more time into strategic advisory

Applied AI can automate everything from document capture to bank reconciliation. For junior team members, that means more time reviewing outputs and applying professional judgement, rather than manually preparing data.

For senior accountants, the value proposition is even clearer. With the administrative workload reduced, they can focus more on strategic planning, cash flow forecasting, and providing clients with deeper financial insights, whether that means helping a Brisbane café recover after unexpected business costs or advising a SaaS business in Auckland on how to scale effectively.

Importantly, AI also enables better mentoring. Senior staff can involve junior colleagues in advisory work earlier in their careers, building technical and interpersonal skills faster while enhancing the firm’s ability to serve its clients.

“Tech enables me to do the advisory piece,” says Whiteley. “It helps me with accuracy. Even just with my day to day communication.”

Looking ahead at the firms who adopt AI

The point of AI is not to replace accountants, but to enable them to do their best work. 

The firms who adopt AI-powered workflows now will not only navigate the skills shortage more effectively, but also attract and retain the next generation of talent, build stronger client relationships, and successfully position themselves as strategic advisors.

“At the end of the day, they’ll be the ones that remain in business by providing the speed and strategic advisory work their clients will come to expect and demand,” says Stephen Edgington, Dext’s chief product and technology officer. 

 “Adopting AI doesn’t remove the human element – it amplifies it.” 

Dext is a powerful bookkeeping automation tool that leverages AI to extract data from documents, track expenses and mileage. It connects to 11,500+ apps, banks and more to streamline bookkeeping workflows. Connect Xero to Dext in the Xero App Store. 

The post Top three reasons to bridge the accounting skills gap with AI appeared first on Xero Blog.

Making confident business decisions is tied to the quality of information used to make those decisions. To truly plan for the future, you need tools that offer foresight and clarity. So we’re thrilled to introduce two major enhancements to analytics in Xero: cash flow manager and AI insights.

These powerful new features are designed to help you stay in control, enabling you to anticipate your cash flow needs and uncover trends. You’ll be able to collaborate more efficiently with your accountant or bookkeeper to turn these insights into decisive action.

I’m also excited to share that Analytics (powered by Syft) is now available in early access to customers in the United Kingdom, after rolling out to all small business users in Australia and the United States. 

Get a clear view of your future cash flow (available now)

Cash flow manager gives you a detailed, easy-to-use overview of your cash position today and in the future. It’s now available to all business plan customers with early access United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. This tool moves beyond simple reporting, enabling you to:

• View your cash flow multiple ways: Get a quick understanding of your cash movements and current position by choosing the view that works best for your business. 
• Forecast with confidence: Plan proactively for what’s around the corner. The cash flow manager tool analyses historical payment patterns to predict recurring transactions. It also suggests an expected payment date based on a customer’s previous behaviour, and enables you to view your expected cash position up to 180 days out.
• Scenario plan your next steps: Understand the impact of different financial outcomes and support your decision-making. You can add one-off or repeating manual transactions and adjust individual transactions. 

Uncover trends with AI insights (available now in beta for US users)

Get clear, actionable summaries of your financial data in seconds with the new AI insights tool. Currently available in beta for customers in the US, it turns complex data into quick and shareable insights while you’re working in Xero, so you can turn information into action more easily.

Instead of manually digging through static spreadsheets and reports, simply select from suggested prompts to understand the “why” behind key trends in your profitability. This helps you to make strategic decisions with confidence and gives you and your advisor the same view of what’s driving your business.

You can find AI insights in profitability graphs within the visualisations section. We’re gathering feedback to refine this feature and we’ll then look to make it available in more regions and within more analytics features.

In summary: Powerful tools for confident decision-making

We’re really thrilled to see analytics in Xero continue to evolve, bringing powerful tools to help small businesses thrive. With the expanded availability of the cash flow manager and innovative AI insights, Xero is dedicated to providing you with a clear, holistic overview  of your business’s performance, enabling you to make confident, proactive decisions about your financial future. 

The post Analytics powered by Syft adds new powerful features and begins UK rollout appeared first on Xero Blog.

As a small business owner, finding time for marketing can be challenging. In fact, Constant Contact’s report,  The Current State of SMB Marketing, found that more than half of small businesses worldwide say they have only an hour or less per day to spend on it.

When time is tight, working smarter, not harder, is crucial to achieving the most impact for your business. That’s why many businesses are turning to marketing automation to get the most out of their limited time.

Marketing automation software can help you engage the right audience with the right message at the right time. For example, it can send a welcome email to a new subscriber, abandoned cart messages to prompt a purchase, or a birthday message to a loyal customer or client. By integrating a digital marketing platform like Constant Contact with other business tools like Xero, you can also use real-time data, such as invoice status, purchase items, activity and more, to trigger pre-built automations, making your marketing more targeted, effective, and efficient.

These are the exact benefits that Xero and Constant Contact have partnered up to provide to their small business customers. By connecting Xero and Constant Contact, businesses can automate communications to customers based on invoice status and activity, ensuring targeted, tailored messaging, an enhanced customer experience, and up-to-date return-on-investment (ROI) and attribution reporting so you can track the impact in real money. And because it’s automated, it makes the best use of your limited time, allowing you to focus on what matters: growing your business.

Five marketing automation tips for your small business

Here are five tips to help you get started with marketing automation.

• Define your audience and goals. Before you automate, take the time to understand who your customers are and what you want to achieve. Your goals might include increasing engagement, cross-selling, or growing your customer base. Ensure your goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound).

• Make the most of today’s technology. Use marketing automation software to nurture leads with welcome emails, to promote engagement with personalised messages, and to send payment or purchase confirmations. Utilise AI-powered digital marketing tools to create or refine content, map out campaigns, and build automation paths in seconds.
• Utilise professional templates. Many digital marketing tools provide pre-built email templates to get you started quickly. Look for templates specifically designed to work with your existing business software. For instance, an invoice payment in Xero can automatically trigger a templated ‘thank you’ email from Constant Contact, ensuring timely acknowledgment and a professional customer experience.
• Measure performance. Don’t just set it and forget it. Use the analytics available in your digital marketing platform to monitor your efforts. By tracking delivery and engagement metrics, you can understand how your customers are interacting with your marketing. Use these insights to intelligently test, refine, and improve your campaigns over time.
• Know when to automate, delegate, or collaborate. Automation is a powerful tool, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. Understand which tasks can be automated, which ones require a human touch, and where collaboration is key. This balanced approach will help you maximise the efficiency of your marketing efforts and drive better results.

With the right tools and integrations and a strong marketing automation strategy, you can enhance your marketing, work more efficiently, and drive growth for your business.

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Constant Contact is a powerful marketing automation platform that delivers a simplified marketing experience in less time and with better results. With world-class support and onboarding, backed by expert professional services, it’s easy to get started with marketing automation. 

As a Xero customer, you get a free trial of Constant Contact and 50% off any plan for a limited time. Learn more about this offer and how Constant Contact offers a seamless integration and onboarding experience for Xero customers in the Xero App Store.

The post Five automation tips to boost your marketing strategy appeared first on Xero Blog.

Every year, the Xero Asia Awards are our way of saying a big thank you to the amazing accounting and bookkeeping partners who empower the region’s small businesses to thrive. They are catalysts for innovation, advocates for digital-first accounting and trusted advisors who support Asia’s SMEs at every turn.

This year, we evolved our award categories to better reflect the diversity of our partner community in Asia. We also introduced a new video submission format, giving partners the opportunity to tell their stories in their own words. 

To everyone who submitted a nomination, we’d like to say a huge thank you for the time and effort you put into your entries. The judges were truly blown away by the passion, creativity and heart that came through!

It was a tough but rewarding judging process, and on 7 August, we came together to celebrate this year’s winners and finalists. It was an incredible evening of connection, conversation and well-earned recognition. 

There were also a ton of memories made – many of which were captured in our photo gallery from the night here!

Now without further ado, please join everyone at Xero Asia in congratulating this year’s winners:

Partner of the Year – Singapore

• Winner: Harvest Accounting
• Finalists:
  • Profectant Corporate Services
  • WLP Group

Partner of the Year – Malaysia

• Winner: CKP
• Finalists:
  • Caltrix
  • KEMM Corporate Solutions

Partner of the Year – Rest of Asia

• Winner: Logiframe
• Finalists:
  • PT Auxilium Perkasa Group
  • Fastlane Group

Total Xero Award

• Winner: Fastlane Group
• Finalists:
  • Logiframe
  • WLP Group

Digital Innovator of the Year

• Winner: Harvest Accounting
• Finalists:
  • ASL Advisory
  • Ventureskey Solutions

Advisory Partner of the Year

• Winner: CKP
• Finalists:
  • Logiframe
  • WLP Group

e-Invoicing Champion of the Year – Singapore

• Winner: WLP Group
• Finalists:
  • Accounting Superhero
  • Harvest Accounting

e-Invoicing Champion of the Year – Malaysia

• Winner: Caltrix
• Finalists:
  • CKP
  • KEMM Corporate Solutions

To all our winners, finalists and everyone who took part: thank you for being the driving force behind small business success across Asia. Your work doesn’t just change businesses – it changes lives, communities, and even entire economies.

Thank you again to everyone who took part. We’re already looking forward to next year’s awards, so here’s to another year of partnership, growth and success – and we can’t wait to see what you achieve next!

The post Xero Asia Awards 2025: Congratulations to our winners appeared first on Xero Blog.

Xerocon is fast approaching and we’re excited to bring the Xeroverse together to connect, learn and get inspired in Brisbane this September. It’s always a fantastic opportunity to see firsthand how Xero’s ecosystem of connected apps can help your practice and your clients’ businesses thrive.

We’re proud to have nearly 80 app partners showcasing on the exhibitor floor this year, giving you dozens of opportunities to find solutions for whatever business challenge or need you’re coming with. 

We’re especially proud to introduce the eight apps from this year’s event partners. Read about them below and make sure you pop in for a visit at the Xerocon exhibitor hall. 

Dext

• What it is: Dext is bookkeeping automation software that serves as your business’s financial data hub. It brings together all of your clients’ financial paperwork, transactions and invoices in one easy-to-use platform, so you can streamline your bookkeeping and accounting workflows. 
• What it does: Dext slashes the time it takes to capture and categorise expense and invoice data and automatically publishes it to Xero. It eliminates much of the manual drudge work that slows bookkeepers and accountants down and helps businesses know their numbers, without the hassle. 

Join Dext’s breakout session on Discovery stage 4 on Thursday, 4 September at 11:45am to explore the intersection and impact of AI on accounting firm structures and learn how you can prepare for what’s next for the industry. 

GoCardless

• What it is: GoCardless offers a global bank payment network that allows businesses to collect payments directly from their customers’ bank accounts.
• What it does: Its integration with Xero simplifies the accounts receivable process for your clients by automating the collection of recurring payments. This means less time chasing invoices and more time focusing on growing their business.

Don’t miss GoCardless’s breakout session on Discovery stage 4 on Thursday, 4 September at 2pm to learn how to protect your client from the strain of late payments. 

ANZ

• What it is: ANZ offers a range of tools and services designed to help small businesses succeed, including direct bank feeds to Xero.
• What it does: The bank’s direct feeds to Xero automatically send and imports transactions into Xero, saving you and your clients valuable time on manual data entry. With apps available for both New Zealand and Australia, ANZ makes it easy to keep your financial data up-to-date.

BGL

• What it is: BGL provides software solutions that empower accounting professionals to manage compliance and company administration for their clients. 
• What it does: BGL has developed powerful apps like CAS360, which automates company compliance and document management, and SimpleFund360 for self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) administration. With their latest innovation, SmartDocs360, BGL is taking document management to a new level by using AI to automatically identify, name and file documents.

Cin7

• What it is: Cin7 offers a suite of inventory and order management solutions designed to streamline operations for product-based businesses. 
• What it does: Cin7 Core is great for small businesses needing to manage inventory, while the Cin7 Omni app is a powerful solution for wholesalers and retailers, providing advanced features for managing sales channels and inventory across multiple locations. These apps integrate with Xero to keep sales, inventory, and financial data in sync.

Constant Contact

• What it is: Constant Contact is a digital marketing and automation platform that helps small businesses connect with their customers and drive sales. 
• What it does: Its integration with Xero allows businesses to sync customer data for more effective marketing campaigns. Whether it’s email marketing, social media advertising, or lead generation, Constant Contact gives your clients the tools to grow their brand.

Translucent

• What it is: Translucent is a reporting and consolidation app for businesses with multiple Xero entities.
• What it does: It automatically consolidates financial data across all your clients’ Xero organisations, creating a single source of truth for all their financial reporting. With Translucent, you can generate comprehensive reports and dashboards without the hassle of manual data consolidation.

WorkflowMax

• What it is: WorkflowMax is an all-in-one job management solution for Xero users in service-based industries. It helps businesses track jobs, manage time and costs, and get a clear view of their profitability. 
• What it does: Its seamless integration with Xero helps save time, improve performance, and reduce admin stress for service-based businesses, such as creative agencies, architects, engineers and IT consultants.

Are you Xerocon-ready?

Our event sponsors are ready to show you how their apps can help you and your clients. Visit them at their stands, attend their breakout sessions, and get hands-on with live demos to find the perfect solutions for your practice.

See all the exhibitors who’ll be at this year’s Xerocon to compile your list of must-see apps.

The post Meet the 2025 Xerocon event partners appeared first on Xero Blog.

Running a small business is no small feat. Between chasing invoices, managing teams, and navigating macro-economic curveballs, it’s easy to forget to pause and celebrate the wins, big or small. But our latest research reveals that recognising milestones isn’t just having a feel-good moment, it’s good for business.

According to our global study, over three quarters (84%) of small business owners say celebrating achievements boosts employee morale, while a majority (82%) say it improves wellbeing, and over two thirds (71%) believe it positively impacts business performance. That’s a compelling case for a celebration — or at the very least, posting a celebratory emoji.

Yet, despite these clear benefits, one in five small businesses don’t celebrate at all. Why? Of those that don’t celebrate, some say they’ve never thought about it (53%), others worry about costs (38%), or fear setting a precedent they can’t maintain (21%).

For many, getting to a milestone isn’t always smooth sailing either. Nearly half of owners feel motivated and excited in the lead-up. But many also report anxiety, uncertainty, and stress until the goal is hit, when those unsettling emotions flip to pride and happiness, showing that the journey is just as important as the destination.

In a world where small businesses are the backbone of the economy, recognising progress isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s essential. Celebrations fuel motivation and remind teams why they do what they do. Celebrating also significantly builds resilience by fostering self-efficacy—that “you got this!” feeling. This confidence encourages more ambitious goal-setting and leverages momentum. This might explain why businesses who celebrate milestones experience higher revenue increases, on average, than those who don’t.

Celebrating generates positive emotions that, as per Fredrickson’s “Broaden and Build Theory,” enhance wellbeing by broadening perspectives and encouraging the pursuit of new successes and relationships. It also offers vital psychological detachment from the consuming nature of small business ownership. This separation allows for mental and emotional rejuvenation, often leading to new insights and perspectives.

It turns out that those moments when an owner feels they ‘made it’ are deeply personal. From making a first sale, to relocating to a new office, to upgrading the company coffee machine, small business owners define success in their own terms.

One founders made-it moment was when someone wanted to work for her company, MumPod. It might seem small to outsiders, but to Ros, it was monumental. Seabin’s made-it moment was successfully crowd-funding for a capital raise – a feat which the founders’ friends ensured he made time to celebrate. Seeing SuvaNova’s work live on TV at the Super Bowl constituted another made-it moment, an undeniable cause for celebration. 

While the Xero research found that small business owners spend an average of US$2,794 on celebrations, meaningful recognition doesn’t need a big budget. Scott Goodfriend who founded Ultimate Food Tours in New York, takes time to recognise his progress by sitting quietly with a coffee.

The study shows that it doesn’t always have to be all work and no fun. The path to success is rarely linear, and celebrating the made-it moments along that journey is just as vital as reaching the final destination.

The global research report includes unique insights by country for Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.

What comes to mind when you think of a moment you felt you’d made it in your business? Share yours and tag @Xero on LinkedIn, Instagram or Facebook, and @XeroAccounting on TikTok. 

The post Why celebrating wins can be a big deal for small businesses appeared first on Xero Blog.

For the last year, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside some brilliant minds on the SME Digital Adoption Taskforce, contributing to the vital work it’s doing to accelerate technology adoption among UK small businesses. 

The SME Digital Adoption Taskforce has now published its much-anticipated full report, outlining its vision for a more digital-first future for the UK’s small- and medium-sized enterprises. The taskforce, a body originally established by a previous minister, has seen its crucial, instrumental work championed and continued by Gareth Thomas MP. Its ability to survive recent governmental changes is a testament to the widespread consensus on the transformative benefits of digital adoption..

The report lays down a sensible foundation, building on its interim recommendations to create a single point of accountability, make the most of AI, improve data access and establish standards for eInvoicing. These are all welcome and necessary steps. They reflect a fundamental truth: that digitalisation is absolutely critical for unlocking economic growth and productivity.

Keeping pace

Throughout this whole process, it’s been clear we need truly ambitious plans and small businesses would benefit from the recommendations going even further. We need to be bolder and learn from the global leaders who are setting a formidable pace in SME digitalisation.  

Again and again, we hear from small businesses that time, access to capital, and confidence are pressing issues that push digital transformation down the priority list. Many feel overwhelmed by choices and unsure where to begin. Unless the UK moves beyond foundational recommendations to decisive, well-funded action, there’s a real risk it could be outpaced by other countries. 

While this independent report commissioned by the Department for Business and Trade is welcome, its findings demand a faster and bolder response from the entire UK government. This responsibility cannot be confined to a single department; it must be integrated across Whitehall, driven by clear, top-down leadership.

My role at Xero, overseeing emerging markets, provides a unique vantage point on how different governments are tackling this very challenge. So what’s working elsewhere? 

• Singapore: A nation that consistently demonstrates what ambitious, state-backed support looks like. Its multi-faceted Go Digital programme offers up to 50% funding for SMEs to adopt pre-approved IT solutions through the Productivity Solutions Grant. This isn’t just advice; it’s direct financial muscle that de-risks investment for a small business owner.
• Malaysia: The Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation provides a clear, structured digital journey for small businesses. A cornerstone is the comprehensive Digital Maturity Assessment tool which gives businesses a tailored roadmap for improvement. This is complemented by a range of funding options and advisory services, creating a holistic ecosystem of support that guides businesses from one step to the next.
• Australia: The report’s call for eInvoicing standards is a move in the right direction, but  Australia’s mandatory eInvoicing regime using the Peppol network goes one step further. It’s a clear policy directive that drives widespread adoption, streamlines supply chains, and reduces payment times. This decisive approach creates a level playing field and accelerates the benefits for the entire economy.
• New Zealand: The Digital Boost programme is a masterclass in practical skills development. This free, government-funded online learning platform has already helped thousands of small businesses improve their digital literacy through accessible tutorials, workshops, and direct support. It proves the power of accessible, state-sponsored training in building the confidence and capabilities of entrepreneurs, a model the UK should closely examine.
• The United Arab Emirates (UAE): Here the government’s ambition is palpable. Initiatives like the Entrepreneurial Nation offer not just funding but also mentorship and access to a global network of partners. There’s a clear, top-down drive to create a world-leading digital economy, with SMEs placed at the very centre of that vision.

The common thread: urgency and action

The common thread that unites these diverse markets is a sense of urgency and a commitment to tangible, well-funded and often mandatory initiatives. The UK taskforce’s report has diagnosed the problem. Now, it needs to prescribe the cure.

The report needs to be seen as the starting line, not the finish. To help UK small businesses unlock the power of technology, we need the kind of bold, decisive action we’re seeing elsewhere. This includes:

• significant, easily accessible incentives that directly subsidise the cost of proven technology
• a national, government-backed digital skills programme that is free, high-quality, and accessible to every SME owner and their staff
• a clear and ambitious timeline for mandatory eInvoicing to unlock the productivity gains, as seen in markets like Australia
• an empowered government body with the authority and resources to drive this agenda forward with purpose and pace

Time and time again, we’ve seen what a vibrant and resilient SME community the UK has. These businesses are the engine of our economy and have bold ambitions to innovate and stay at the forefront of change. 

Let’s learn from the world’s best and give our small businesses the tools and support they need, not just to survive, but to thrive and lead in the global digital economy.

The post The UK’s digital roadmap for SMEs appeared first on Xero Blog.

Who do you think of when you picture a small business owner? Perhaps it’s a friend or a family member; maybe it’s your local barista; it might even be someone you used to work with who’s redefining the way an industry works. Whoever comes to mind, chances are, everyone answers the question differently. And this is why it’s such a privilege to work with and support small businesses.

Diversity is the fabric of Australia’s cultural identity. From trade and tourism to migration and multiculturalism, our industries and society are woven together and made stronger by their differences. This applies to small businesses too; it’s part of the reason why they’re the lifeblood of every economy around the world. 

There was once a time when ‘Mum and Dad’ shops were, arguably, the only thing synonymous with small business. But now, in 2025, entrepreneurship means different things to different people. Not only is the prospect of owning your own business seemingly more accessible, it’s enticing. Why? Because Australians are redefining what it looks like to be an entrepreneur. More than this, they’re realising that traditional ideals of success (having a career job or working nine to five) don’t necessarily equate to living a full, satisfied life. This is inspiring generations to choose what success means to them, and chase that vision through entrepreneurship.

So, what do Australian entrepreneurs want? Xero’s ‘It’s your business’ report found that, amongst all this diversity, three distinct archetypes emerge: lifestyle entrepreneurs, ambitious achievers, and situational founders. Of course, entrepreneurship is a personal journey, meaning there are nuances we simply can’t capture within these groups. However, if we’re to examine the profile of entrepreneurs today, these archetypes portray some important distinctions amongst the rich variety to be found.

Identifying these similarities is important as it gives those of us striving to lift small businesses up (government and industry associations, larger enterprises, local communities, and many others) a blueprint for how to support and incentivise entrepreneurship in Australia. This is all so we can continue to foster small business success by learning from and being inspired by their stories, some of which feature in the pages of this report.

Take Heaps Normal, for example, a company started by three mates on a mission to innovate beer with a non-alcoholic alternative. Not only have they disrupted the local market, they’re changing how people come together all around the world.

Then we have Nabula El Mourid, who created a Facebook group to help other mums make healthier choices when grocery shopping. Fast forward to today, and her app Supermarket Swap influences $5 million worth of sales at supermarket checkouts every week, including mine. But what’s most impressive is how Nabula has architected a life where entrepreneurial drive and being a mother who’s present for her children aren’t competing forces.

And finally, there’s Tom White, who moved to Coffs Harbour from England 15 years ago. Unable to find work in the industry he trained in, Tom took matters into his own hands, and he now runs one of Australia’s beloved outdoor furniture retailers, The Best Backyard.

Of course, none of these businesses or others got to where they are today without the support of others – from fellow entrepreneurs to loved ones to the all-important advisors. What’s surprising, however, is that few are looking beyond the here and now. Many lack long-term goals or a plan for the future, making it near impossible to work towards an endgame.

No matter the archetype, worrying about cash flow, or supporting a team while trying to live up to other life commitments is a balancing act. But having an endgame – a clear vision of what you’re working towards, be it a business sale or a legacy to hand down – can be what makes the hard work worthwhile; the pay off when a dream becomes reality.

We live in an exciting era of entrepreneurship indeed, one where you don’t have to look or behave a certain way, or strive for the same thing as the person next to you. So, who do you think of when you picture a small business owner? Maybe you see yourself. Whether it’s right now or in the future, every Australian can forge their own path. It’s your business, so make it what you want. 

Head to the ‘It’s your business web page to download the full report today. 

The post Why supporting diversity in small business is critical to Australia’s economic future appeared first on Xero Blog.

Get ready for Xero’s new navigation and homepage, which will be available to all Xero customers soon. We’ve been busy talking to our 30,000 beta testers to find out what they love about the new experience (and what they think we can improve). 

We’re not just listening, we’re putting your feedback into action. Feedback from beta testers has already informed several upcoming improvements, including how we present third-party apps, prioritise key elements in the navigation, and surface the most relevant information in the banking widget.

The good news is you don’t have to be a beta tester to try out the new experience before it’s available later this year. Head over to the new navigation and homepage web page to test drive it for yourself using an interactive prototype.

Here’s what two of the beta testers have told us about their experiences. 

Melissa Neighbour, Director and Principal Planner at Sky Planning, Sydney, Australia

How would you describe the overall experience? Has anything stood out to you as significantly improved?

The whole design is more sleek and modern. I also really like the ability to customise the widgets according to the information that I want to see. I like the recent invoices paid widget because we rely on meeting invoice milestones before we do certain work, and previously that information was a lot harder to find. Now it’s really quick – I can see it at a glance, so it’s a lot more streamlined and means we’re moving faster and getting projects completed more quickly. 

I also love the cash in and out widget. That used to be at the bottom of the dashboard, and now it’s my first widget because I like to see how much money is coming into my bank account each month – I check that, if not once a day, twice a day, every day. That’s the most important information I want when I open up Xero – I love counting my money! 

How has the new homepage saved you time or made a process more efficient?

In terms of what’s important to me as a business owner, the main things that I do in Xero are checking my cash flow and what invoices have been paid. Being able to customise the widgets to put these two front and centre is definitely saving me time. Before the recent invoices paid widget, it took three clicks to get that information; I’d have to go through the awaiting payment widget, which was a lot slower and clunkier. It’s also been less of a barrier for my team, who aren’t as familiar with Xero. Now, they can just go and look at the homepage instead of having to search for that information (or ask me!).

What advice would you give to other Xero users who might be feeling nervous about the new navigation and homepage?

I think that Xero has done a good job in making it very simple and intuitive. So while there are changes to navigate, it’s not onerous and it’s easy to find what you need. I just dove straight in and it didn’t take long to figure out what had changed.

If you had to sum up the main advantage of the new homepage in one sentence, what would it be?

Simple, clean and beautiful.

Fabien Gendron, Business, Tech and Tax Advisor at Reach CPA, British Columbia, Canada

What’s your favourite thing about the new navigation or homepage?

I think the fact that there’s a bit more space for the widgets. They’re a little bit bigger, but that doesn’t take away from the homepage being nice and clear and the screen is not overly busy. It’s a bit more spacious but you still see the important information you need right there.

Could you share an example about how the navigation or the homepage has changed a part of your daily workflow? 

Tax being front and centre on the navigation is great; previously I would have had to go through the reporting menu and star the reports I use the most. So to have all the tax info in one place is great. I think one way to improve it even further would be if we could turn off or hide the provinces that aren’t applicable, as not all my clients are registered for tax in every region.

What aspects of the new design do you think your clients will appreciate? 

Having the separate sales and purchases in the navigation is a big improvement. Also probably just the general lightness of the homepage interface.

What advice would you give to other Xero users who might be feeling nervous about the new navigation and homepage?

I think keeping an open and a curious mind. And, to be honest, Xero has made it very easy to adjust. I would say be patient and stay curious with it.

The post A new Xero is coming: What two beta testers think appeared first on Xero Blog.

For goods-based businesses, managing inventory and purchases is at the heart of daily operations; it’s about having the right stock at the right time, minimizing manual effort, and making informed decisions to fuel your growth. We know these critical tasks can often feel like a constant juggle, taking valuable time away from what you do best.

Over the coming months, a series of new inventory enhancements designed to give you greater clarity, control, and efficiency in these key areas will be rolling out. The first key updates: bulk inventory adjustments and a refreshed purchase order experience, both designed to save you valuable time and reduce errors.

Streamline your stock counts with bulk inventory adjustments

For any goods-based business, keeping your inventory quantities and costs up to date is critical for accurate financial reporting, maintaining the right level of stock, and having reliable data to inform business decisions. 

“Bulk Adjustments is a fantastic step in the right direction and will be a big time saver” – Josh Wilson, The Software Coach

Adjusting your inventory items more efficiently has been a highly requested feature in Xero Product Ideas, and we’ve heard how important this is to you. With that in mind, we’re introducing the ability to adjust inventory items in bulk, making your workflow much more efficient.

This new feature will allow you to effortlessly select multiple tracked inventory items and update their quantities in one go. Whether you’re completing a large-scale stocktake, quickly correcting discrepancies, or simply keeping your records pristine, you’ll soon be able to do this faster, with fewer errors, and with far greater accuracy.

Here’s what this means for your day-to-day:

• Save time: Update multiple stock items in a single, streamlined action.
• Enhance accuracy: Reduce errors often associated with repetitive manual entries.
• Streamline stocktakes: Simplify stock management, especially during peak periods like End of Financial Year.

And for those who prefer the precision of single-item adjustments, that option isn’t going anywhere. This update simply expands your toolkit, giving you even more choice and control over your inventory management.

Learn more about bulk inventory adjustments and what it means for your experience, on Xero Central.

A fresher, more efficient purchase order experience

For goods-based businesses, we know efficient ordering is crucial for keeping your inventory stocked and your accounting in sync. To make this process simpler and more streamlined, we’ll be rolling out a refreshed purchase order experience soon. This update is designed to make managing your orders more intuitive and efficient, while also building the foundation for even more valuable features to come.

The first change you’ll see in the coming months is an update to the main purchase order list view. We’ll be improving the layout to maximize screen real estate, giving you a clearer overview of your orders. You’ll notice:

• Cleaner list management: Deleted purchase orders will be automatically removed from your main list by default, making it easier to focus on your active orders. Don’t worry, you can still easily find them using a new filter in the search bar.
• More orders at a glance: A new ‘compact view’ option will allow you to see more purchase orders on screen at once, similar to other areas in Xero.
• Personalised views: Customize which columns are shown in your purchase order list and their arrangement. You’ll also be able to set a specific purchase order status as your default page view, so you instantly see what matters most to you – whether it’s drafts, those awaiting approval, or all purchase orders.

Simplifying your business, now and in the future

Bulk inventory adjustments and the new purchase order experience are just the beginning – we’re making inventory management in Xero faster and smarter, helping to give you greater visibility and control over your stock, with more updates coming soon.

The bulk adjustment feature is being actively rolled out to Xero customers globally, the new purchase order experience will be coming soon after. If you don’t see them in your account just yet, don’t worry; they will be available to you very soon. Get ready for a simpler, more efficient way to manage your business operations, now and in the future.

The post Streamlined and simplified: New inventory features for goods-based businesses in Xero appeared first on Xero Blog.

We know the journey of a small business owner can be challenging: as a small business owner, you feel the pulse of the economy directly. The Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) program is designed to help you understand these trends, navigate the current landscape, and make confident, informed decisions for your business.

The latest XSBI data for Australia, New Zealand and the UK paints a picture of slowing small business sales growth in recent months. Let’s explore what this means for you.

Sales growth slows across the board

Central banks in Australia, New Zealand and the UK have reduced official interest rates, but this hasn’t translated into strong, sustained sales growth for most small businesses. 

Here’s a look at what’s happening in your country:

Australia: After sales growth rates of 4–5% year-on-year (y/y) in late 2024 and early 2025, sales growth for Australian small businesses slowed to 3.0% y/y in the June quarter. This is well below the long-term average of 7.8% y/y.

New Zealand: Small business sales have barely grown over the past nine months. The June quarter saw a 0.1% y/y fall in sales, following a modest 1.1% y/y rise in March and a 0.5% y/y fall in December 2024. 

United Kingdom: The UK also saw a significant slowdown, with sales growing just 2.3% y/y in the June quarter, less than half the pace of the March (5.5% y/y) and December (5.1% y/y) quarters. This is also below the 8.7% y/y long-term average.

Industry spotlights

XSBI data revealed that sales performance varied across industries, with trading especially hard for those exposed to discretionary spending.

Australia: Sectors linked to government spending, like healthcare and social assistance (+7.2% y/y), and public administration (+7.9% y/y), continued to perform well in the June quarter. In contrast, industries reliant on household discretionary spending, such as hospitality (1.5% y/y), had softer sales growth. Education sales were 1.2% lower than a year ago in the June quarter, probably due to fewer international students.

New Zealand: Agriculture was a standout, with sales growing over 10% y/y in the previous three quarters. In contrast, industries sensitive to discretionary spending or interest rates, such as construction, faced significant challenges. Construction sales, which have been declining since mid-2023, fell 6.4% y/y in the June quarter. This is concerning because a weak construction sector can drag down other industries like retail.

United Kingdom: Retail sales were the weakest industry in the June quarter (-0.6% y/y) while real estate services have seen no growth for a year. Hospitality sales growth also remained below the national average (+1.5% y/y). These trends highlight a reduction in discretionary spending by households. The one exception in the discretionary spending category was arts and recreation which showed 3.4% y/y growth.

What this means for your business

This challenging sales environment makes effective business management more critical than ever. Despite tough conditions, as a small business owner, you can take some powerful steps to supercharge your business.

Focus on cash flow: With sales stagnating or slowing, it’s really important to be diligent when managing your cash flow. Do what you can to ensure you get paid as quickly as possible, by offering convenient and multiple payment options, and keep a close eye on your expenses. 

Work with your accountant in real time: Economic uncertainty is high, largely due to constant shifts in US trade policy. Heightened trade tensions mean economists now expect global economic growth for 2025 to be slower than they thought it would be earlier in the year. The uncertainty could impact all small businesses, even those not directly involved in exports. Domestic factors, like potential new employment legislation in the UK, are also adding to the uncertainty. Making decisions about hiring new staff, expanding product offerings and buying new equipment is hard if you aren’t sure what will happen to the economy or your customers. In such a climate, planning is difficult, but anticipating potential impacts helps, and your accountant can support you to understand your numbers and navigate this period with greater confidence.

Look after your customers: Many small businesses depend on regular customers, especially during tough periods. One way you can build on their loyalty is to reward it by offering regular specials or loyalty programs for your best customers. 

The current economic climate demands vigilance and adaptability from small business owners. By staying on top of your financial health and carefully monitoring broader economic trends, you can position your business to navigate these challenges successfully and thrive.

Want to know more? See the Xero Small Business Insights webpage for more detailed insights.

The post Navigate challenging sales with confidence: What the June quarter XSBI data means for your business appeared first on Xero Blog.

It’s not easy being a small business in the UK. While resilience has long been their hallmark, today’s environment is testing even the most adaptable firms. Economic uncertainty, rising costs and evolving customer expectations are being compounded by digital and regulatory changes. For many small businesses, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to know which developments matter most and how to respond.

For small businesses, you can’t control the pace of change. But you can take practical steps to navigate it with more clarity and confidence. Here are three actions every small business should consider now to stay one step ahead.

Don’t ignore AI (even if you’re not using it yet)

Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to play a central role in the UK’s innovation strategy, as highlighted by the £2bn investment in the recent Spending Review. And it’s starting to attract more structured attention from the government. In January, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) published the AI Opportunities Action Plan – a strategic roadmap aimed at accelerating AI adoption, boosting productivity and preparing the ground for future policy.

Although not legislation, the plans signal a clear intent that the government intends to make AI more accessible across the economy, including for small businesses.

To prepare, it’s a good idea to stay informed and open to AI developments. Experimenting with automated systems and tools, or speaking to trusted advisors, can uncover simple ways to take advantage of AI, such as automating invoice reminders or improving cash flow forecasting.

Those who invest time in understanding what’s possible now will be better positioned to adapt and grow as AI technology and policy evolve.

Make technology work for you, one step at a time

The pressure to digitise can feel overwhelming, but transformation doesn’t have to happen overnight. New research shows that equipping small businesses with the right technology could unlock £77 billion in economic growth. However, inertia and uncertainty prevent many from getting started.

The most effective approach is often the simplest: identify a major day-to-day pain point – whether it’s cash flow, inventory, or time tracking – and test a tool designed to address it. There’s a growing ecosystem of digital advisors, including accountants and bookkeepers, who support small businesses with finding the right technology for them. 

Free trials and government-backed support schemes, such as the now-concluded Help to Grow initiative, have helped thousands of businesses access discounted software and expert guidance. While that particular scheme has ended, its legacy underlines the role public policy can play in encouraging digital adoption, and more initiatives are likely to follow as the government continues to prioritise productivity and innovation among SMEs.

Progress in digital adoption is cumulative. Each step builds confidence, capability, and competitiveness, allowing you to adapt at your own pace while still gaining tangible benefits. It also puts you in a stronger position to adapt quickly if new policies are introduced, reducing stress and helping you keep ahead of the curve.

Adapting to HMRC’s tax transformation

One of the most significant regulatory changes on the horizon is the rollout of Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for IT). From April 2026, self-employed individuals and landlords earning over £50,000 will need to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC. Those earning above £30,000 will follow in 2027.

This shift is part of HMRC’s broader Transformation Roadmap, published in July 2025, which outlines the government’s vision for a more modern, efficient and automated tax system. The roadmap emphasises digital-first approaches and aims to reduce administrative burdens for small businesses.

To avoid disruption and a last-minute rush to comply, begin preparing now. Digital record-keeping will not only be mandated by government, but delivers long-term benefits such as improved cash flow visibility, faster collaboration with accountants and fewer end-of-year surprises. With the Transformation Roadmap setting the stage for financial administration, small businesses can’t hide from changes as the government puts technology at the heart of tax reform.

Xero is here to support you through these changes, with our HMRC-recognised software as well as helpful resources and human support when you need it. Xero’s Simple plan has access to everything small businesses need to be MTD-compliant, from digital record-keeping right through to final submissions. 

Navigating change with confidence

The digital and regulatory landscape is evolving fast. While you might not have control over every new development, you can take charge of how you adapt. By staying informed about policy shifts like MTD for IT, evaluating digital tools that make practical sense and building confidence with AI-powered tools, you can turn potential disruption into opportunity.

Support and guidance from a range of sources, including industry groups, government schemes and trusted advisors, can help you make informed, sustainable decisions. Ultimately, when small businesses thrive in a digital world, the whole economy benefits.

The post Three actions for UK small businesses to stay ahead of digital policy change appeared first on Xero Blog.

We’re updating Xero payroll for New Zealand to make it easier for you to manage leave and comply with New Zealand’s Holidays Act requirements. 

Features that were initially introduced for new Xero users in August 2024 will be rolled out to everyone using Xero payroll in New Zealand later this year. A conversion tool will be available in Xero to help you make the switch.

What’s changing

• You’ll be able to assign each employee an employment type, making it easier to set up and maintain accurate leave entitlements.
• Leave balances will move from being tracked in hours to being tracked in weeks and days, aligning with current Holidays Act requirements. This also means you’ll no longer have to manually adjust leave balances when working patterns change.
• An end date can now be included for employees on fixed-term contracts 
• A tool will be available in Xero later this year to help you easily make changes and use the new payroll features.

Note: Once you’ve changed to using the new payroll settings they will become your default. You won’t be able to switch back to the old setup.

What to expect

When the payroll updates are ready, you’ll see a banner on the Employees page in Xero payroll which will guide you through the steps to set up and start using the new employee type and leave units.

What you can do to prepare now

To make the move as smooth as possible, it’s a good idea to start reviewing your payroll setup including pay runs, employee records and leave requests now. This will make the process easier, save you time, and help ensure everything is ready when the conversion tool becomes available later this year.

• Fixed-term employees. You can now add a fixed-term end date for any employees on a fixed-term contract (see how in Xero Central). This will allow them to be set up as a fixed-term employee.
• Complete review of employee setup. Check out the information about whether your employees are ready to be converted in Xero Central. Key features to check include:
  – pay and work pattern
  – leave balances and entitlements
  – holiday pay setting

What you’ll need to do when the tool is available

• Check employee readiness. We’ll flag any employees where settings need updating and provide guidance on how to amend them.
• Review employment types. Xero will suggest employment types for each employee where possible. You’ll be able to check and confirm these so that your setup is accurate from day one.
• Check leave balance conversions. Review how current leave balances will be converted from hours to weeks and days to make sure everything adds up as expected.

You’ll find step-by-step guidance in-product and on Xero Central before and during the conversion period.

What’s next

We’ll let you know as soon as the conversion tool is available. In the meantime, reviewing your payroll setup and employee records will help make the process smoother when the time comes.If you have questions, our team is here to help. Check out the latest updates and guidance on Xero Central.

The post Bringing employment types and new leave units to all New Zealand payroll users appeared first on Xero Blog.

Growing an ecommerce business is incredibly exciting, especially with dynamic new selling platforms emerging constantly. The prospect of more sales and new opportunities is a huge motivator: recent Capital One research shows that Americans spend an estimated $32 million per day shopping on TikTok, and Precedence Research has valued the global social commerce market at USD$1.2 trillion in 2024 (estimated to reach $19.8 trillion by 2034). 

However, with rapid growth and evolving sales channels comes increased complexity. What starts as manageable bookkeeping can quickly become a significant headache as orders scale and sales spread across multiple platforms.

Getting your ecommerce accounting in order early can provide clearer cash flow visibility, enable more informed decisions, reduce errors, and ultimately help build a robust financial foundation on which you can grow. 

Why proactive accounting is crucial for ecommerce growth

Imagine your online store is booming. Orders are pouring in, and your products are flying off the digital shelves. It sounds like a dream, but without efficient accounting systems in place, this kind of success can quickly lead to problems like these:

• Manual data entry overload: Copying transaction data from various sales channels into your accounting software becomes time-consuming and prone to errors.
• Reconciliation challenges: Matching sales, refunds, and fees from different platforms with your bank statements can become a complex puzzle.
• Lack of real-time insights: Without accurate, up-to-date financial data, it gets hard to make informed decisions about inventory, marketing, and expansion.
• Tax season stress: Disorganised records make tax preparation a daunting and expensive task.

The key to avoiding these pitfalls is setting up automated processes that do the accounting heavy lifting for you. 

Synchronise sales from anywhere with apps

Xero connects with a wide range of ecommerce apps that are designed to simplify selling across online channels. They connect your sales platforms and payment processors directly with Xero, so sales data syncs automatically. This gives you a real-time view of your cash flow and a picture of how each sales channel is performing, so you can confidently make decisions about where and how you sell.

Here are some of the apps available in the Xero App Store that can help streamline your ecommerce accounting with Xero:

Shopify: Seamlessly connect your store to Xero

If you’re running your online store on Shopify, you’re already using one of the leading ecommerce platforms globally. The great news is that the Shopify integration by Xero offers a direct connection between Shopify and Xero. 

Shopify can:

• get your online sales, refunds, and payouts to flow automatically into your Xero account
• reduce manual data entry and keep your sales data accurate and up-to-date
• create a solid foundation for managing your finances as your business grows

Synder: Unify transactions from multiple channels

Many ecommerce businesses sell across various platforms and use different payment processors. This is where apps like Synder become invaluable. 

Synder can:

• automate the synchronisation of transactions from platforms such as Shopify, Amazon, and Etsy, as well as social commerce platforms like TikTok, to Xero
• sync transactions from payment processors like Stripe, PayPal, and Square, directly into Xero
• automatically categorise transactions, handle fees, and ensure that your books accurately reflect your sales and expenses from all sources
• give you a comprehensive and reconciled view of your business performance, no matter how many places you sell from

A2X: Robust reconciliation for high-volume sellers

For ecommerce businesses with high transaction volumes, especially those selling on Amazon, Shopify, and Etsy, A2X offers another powerful solution.

A2X can:

• automatically summarise your marketplace payouts and posts them to Xero, making it easy to reconcile large volumes of transactions 
• help ensure that all your revenue and expenses are accurately accounted for, providing clarity for inventory, cost of goods sold, and profitability
• streamline sales and fees accounting across multiple regions, countries or channels 

Be ready for new selling frontiers

The ecommerce landscape is constantly evolving, with new platforms emerging that offer unique opportunities to reach customers. 

Having automated and streamlined accounting processes means you’re not bogged down by manual reconciliation when it’s time to expand to a new platform. Your financial systems will be agile enough to adapt, allowing you to embrace these new selling frontiers without adding to your administrative burden.

Invest in smart accounting early, and you’ll build a resilient foundation that supports sustained ecommerce growth, allowing you to focus on what you do best: growing your ecommerce business.

Explore all the ecommerce apps available in the Xero App Store.

The post How to simplify ecommerce accounting as you scale appeared first on Xero Blog.

The Xero product ideas platform has long served as a treasure trove of insights, helping us figure out how we can make your experience with our products and features even better.

Recently, we’ve revamped Xero Product Ideas to create a clearer way for you to understand how your suggestions can directly impact Xero’s product development.

From seed to solution: The progress of your idea

Think of your idea as a seed. We want to show you its full journey, from inspiration  to becoming an active feature in Xero. We’ll make sure you’re clear on what we’re working on, and just as importantly, what we aren’t.

Ideas will now fall into one of these categories:

• Submitted 
• In review 
• Existing functionality 
• Feedback 
• Gaining support 
• Accepted 
• In discovery 
• In development 
• Completed 
• Not in pipeline 

When you submit an idea, our community team will review it. They’ll let you know if there are existing features that meet your needs or if we require more detail before it’s ready to share and gain support from other community members. 

While we’ve set some guidelines to help you frame strong ideas, please know that all your feedback is equally vital to us. Even if a post closes, we make sure all that valuable commentary is communicated back to our product teams for wider reporting and deeper insights.

Your voice matters: Guarantees and transparency

Product teams can pick up ideas for discovery or development at any point in their planning cycles. Trending ideas with considerable community support will be reviewed by our product teams and we will share the outcome of their evaluation with everyone that’s shown interest.  Accepted ideas will stay firmly on our product teams’ radar for reconsideration in their next planning cycle. 

Ultimately we know you’re most interested in seeing your ideas come to life (we are too). We love sharing when community-driven features are completed. Last year alone, we released features that met the needs of over 360 ideas instigated by the community.

Being clear and up-front is also very important to us. If an idea isn’t something we’re currently planning to work on, we’ll address that openly. This ensures you have the transparency you need to make the right choices for your business.

To help make  the ideas that are bubbling more visible, our community team will be taking a more active role in moderating and housekeeping. They’ll be tidying up, archiving ideas that have gone stale or haven’t gained momentum, making it easier for valuable contributions to shine.

We’re incredibly excited about the improvements we’ve made to the Xero product ideas platform to make it an even more powerful tool for co-creation. Your ideas truly are the seeds of our future innovations; we’re committed to nurturing them and ensuring your voice continues to shape the Xero you know and love.

Ready to share your next idea, big or small? Head over to Xero Product Ideas and let us know what you think!

The post We’ve revamped Xero Product Ideas: Make your voice heard appeared first on Xero Blog.

We’re always focused on making your financial management simpler, more secure, and more powerful with Xero. So we’re excited to share news of our collaboration in the US with Plaid, a leading fintech company. This effort significantly improves how your business bank accounts connect with Xero.

Our goal is to help you save valuable time and gain a clearer view of your money. The collaboration with Plaid is a major step forward in delivering on that objective.

Why this matters for you

This partnership offers several key benefits for your business or practice:

• More high-quality connections. You’ll soon be able to choose from among triple the number of high-quality bank feeds, with over a thousand new direct connections becoming available. This means more reliable links to a wide range of financial institutions, including many smaller banks and credit unions across the US. 

• Enhanced data accuracy and insights. In the US, Plaid will power a substantial portion of the Xero bank feeds that businesses use over the next 12 months. More dependable connections to your financial data ensures greater accuracy and data quality, and having reliable data is crucial for confident decision-making and understanding your cash flow.

• Stronger security. A key focus for us is transitioning to more secure and reliable direct  bank feeds using OAuth, the industry standard for access authorization.  OAuth connections use secure tokens built directly with bank systems, offering a major step up from older methods. Xero will proactively migrate existing feeds to enhanced OAuth equivalents where available, ensuring a more stable, secure and better protected flow of your financial data. 

• Giving you back time. Making financial management smoother, more precise, and more successful will save valuable time for small business owners, accountants and bookkeepers. Imagine what you can do with that extra time: focus on growth, serve clients, or simply enjoy more personal time.

A smooth transition is our priority

The new Plaid-powered bank feed options become available from late 2025. They will roll out in phases to ensure a smooth experience for everyone. The roll-out includes introducing new feeds and transitioning some existing connections to the improved service.

To make the transition easy for you, when it’s time for your connections to be updated, you’ll receive clear, proactive instructions to guide you through the process.

Looking ahead

This collaboration with Plaid is a transformative leap in managing your finances within Xero. It underscores our unwavering commitment to equipping you with the most powerful and intuitive tools available. We’re dedicated to ensuring your small business or accounting practice not only thrives but excels in an ever-evolving financial landscape.

The post Supercharge your success: Plaid joins forces with Xero for enhanced US bank feeds appeared first on Xero Blog.

The new financial year in Australia is here, bringing with it a fresh wave of opportunities and, let’s be honest, a bit of a paperwork pile-up.

As a small business owner, you’re no doubt always looking for ways to streamline operations, boost efficiency, and ultimately, supercharge your business. Using Xero to manage your books is a fantastic start, but did you know you can unlock even more power from Xero by connecting to the right apps? 

Xero is designed to simplify your finances, but even greater potential lies in its huge ecosystem of connected apps. Seamlessly integrated with Xero, these apps allow you to extend its capabilities and tailor workflows to your unique business needs.

This financial year, find out how apps can supercharge some of your favourite Xero features, helping you achieve new levels of efficiency and profitability.

1. Beyond payroll: Simplify employee management

Xero’s payroll function makes it easy to pay your staff and meet ATO requirements. On the Xero App Store you can find apps that connect to Xero payroll to help save time onboarding employees, tracking time and managing leave requests. 

These apps can be particularly handy for businesses with diverse teams or complex scheduling.

Apps to try:

• XonBoard helps you manage new employee onboarding, ensuring a smooth start for your new hires. From collecting documents to automating government obligations, it takes the manual hassle out of the process. 
• Timedock offers precise time tracking. Integrating seamlessly with Xero payroll, this app captures accurate work hours, breaks, and even job costing data. This means less manual entry and more accurate payroll, freeing up valuable time for you and your team.

2. Invoicing made easy: Take the pain out of getting paid

Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business, and Xero’s invoicing features are fantastic for sending professional invoices, tracking payments and sending invoice reminder emails. Apps can help you encourage timely payments and improve your cash flow without feeling like you’re hounding your customers.

Apps to try:

• Statey helps automate the process of sending customer statements, giving your clients a clear overview of their outstanding balances on a regular basis. 
• Paidnice takes invoice reminders a step further by offering automated payment reminders via SMS, and even the option to apply prompt payment discounts or late payment fees directly through Xero.

3. Expenses managed smoothly: Streamline bills and expenses

Managing bills and expenses can be time-consuming, but it’s essential for accurate financial reporting and tax purposes. Xero makes it easy to track your spending, whether reimbursing staff expenses or paying bills. Connected apps can significantly reduce the amount of manual data entry and therefore human error in these processes, giving you more accurate financial records with less effort.

Apps to try:

• Dext makes it easy to keep track of invoices and expenses. Snap a photo of a receipt on the go, email receipts and documents, or sync bank feeds and Dext will extract the key information and publish it to Xero.
• ApprovalMax provides multi-step approval processes for bills, purchase orders, and even sales invoices, ensuring that the right people sign off before anything gets paid. 
• ExpenseOnDemand offers flexible expense management for your team, allowing employees to submit expenses easily while maintaining control and visibility for you. 

4. Sales and inventory, supercharged

No matter what or where you are selling, managing sales and inventory efficiently is key to boosting profitability. Xero helps you manage up to 4,000 finished items in your inventory, and add items to invoices and purchase orders. 

Specialised apps can support you as you launch into ecommerce or expand your inventory volumes, keeping all of your data synced with Xero.

Apps to try:

• Square integrates seamlessly with Xero, allowing you to easily reconcile sales directly from your point-of-sale system.
• A2X automates the reconciliation of your online marketplace sales (using platforms like Amazon or Shopify) with Xero, ensuring every sale and fee is accurately recorded, no matter where it happens.
• Cin7 Core offers advanced inventory management features like ecommerce integrations, robust reporting, and B2B portals, all syncing with your Xero account. 

5. Drive project success: Boost profitability of jobs and projects

For service-based businesses, understanding the profitability of each job or project is critical. The project-tracking feature in Xero’s Ultimate plans help you track time and project costs within Xero. For more complex projects and jobs, apps can provide granular insights into costs as well as help with resourcing and revenue, keeping you constantly in control and helping you make informed decisions to boost your bottom line.

Apps to try:

• ROLL helps professional services businesses with employee resourcing, detailed time and expense tracking, and comprehensive project reporting, giving you a clear picture of each project’s financial health. 
• Tradify and ServiceM8 are invaluable for trade and service businesses, assisting with accurate quoting, managing field staff, timesheets, and customer communication to ensure your jobs run smoothly and profitably from start to finish.

Ready to supercharge your business this year?

Streamlining any one of these five areas – managing employees, getting paid, handling expenses, simplifying sales, and boosting project profitability – can help your small business this financial year. By connecting Xero with the right apps, you’re not just optimising your accounting; you’re working to build a more efficient, profitable, and ultimately, more beautiful business.

Explore all the apps that can power up the new financial year in the Xero App Store.

The post Supercharge these five Xero features with apps appeared first on Xero Blog.

When you work in healthcare, your time is best spent where it matters most: caring for people. But for many healthcare practices, that mission is being held back by outdated systems, manual admin, and time-consuming compliance tasks.

Thankfully, automation is changing that.

From managing patient bookings and rostering staff to invoicing and reconciling payments, smart digital tools and software are giving healthcare providers the freedom to focus on delivering high-quality care while staying financially healthy and compliant at the same time.

Why automation is a game-changer for healthcare practices

For many healthcare practices, manual processes are a significant drain on time and resources. From booking appointments and managing patient records to handling billing and payroll, these tasks can divert valuable time away from what matters most: patient care. Automation helps by streamlining these repetitive tasks, reducing errors, and freeing up staff to focus on more impactful work.

Imagine a world where patient scheduling is seamless, billing is accurate and timely, and reports are generated with a few clicks. This isn’t a distant dream; it’s the reality that automation can bring to your healthcare practice now. 

By embracing technology, practices can improve operational efficiency, enhance the patient experience, and even boost their financial health.

Xero: The foundation for automated healthcare finance

At the heart of any efficient healthcare practice lies robust accounting software. Xero provides the ideal foundation for automating your financial processes. From managing invoices and expenses to reconciling bank accounts, Xero helps healthcare practices maintain accurate financial records with ease. This real-time view of your finances empowers you to make informed decisions and ensures your practice stays on a healthy financial footing.

But the real power of Xero for healthcare practices comes alive when you connect it with specialised apps. These integrations extend Xero’s capabilities, allowing for even greater automation across different aspects of practice management.

Take automation further with Xero-connected apps

To truly unlock the potential of automation in your healthcare practice, consider integrating with apps designed specifically for your industry.

Here are just three Xero-connected apps that can help you create a more efficient and patient-centric practice:

1. Deputy: Streamline team scheduling and time tracking

Deputy makes it easy for healthcare providers to schedule shifts, manage timesheets, and ensure team coverage, all while staying compliant with employment laws and award rates.

With Deputy, you can:

• create and publish rosters in minutes
• track employee hours with digital timesheets and mobile clock-ins
• automate award rate calculations and breaks
• integrate timesheets directly with Xero payroll

Whether you’re managing a small clinic or a large, multi-site practice, Deputy helps keep your workforce running smoothly, your staff engaged, and your payroll accurate.

2. ShiftCare: Streamlining NDIS and aged care management

ShiftCare is a purpose-built platform for disability and aged care providers that helps manage staff, client schedules, and compliance, all in one place.

With ShiftCare, you can:

• build rosters quickly, even for complex care shifts
• log staff hours and track travel in real time
• capture clinical notes and meet compliance requirements
• generate NDIS-ready invoices

The best part? ShiftCare integrates directly with Xero to automatically sync timesheets and invoices, making payroll and billing easier and more accurate.

3. Splose: Practice management for allied health and therapy teams

Splose is designed to support allied health professionals and therapists by simplifying their daily workflows. It brings together client records, appointment scheduling, treatment notes, and compliance features into one intuitive platform.

With Splose, you can:

• automate appointment bookings and reminders
• create and send invoices directly from client records
• track client funding and NDIS budgets
• sync invoices and payments to Xero for full visibility

This helps your team stay organised and focused on delivering great care while ensuring you never lose track of funding or follow-ups.

The future of healthcare is automated

Embracing automation isn’t just about adopting new technology; it’s about building a more resilient, efficient, and patient-focused healthcare practice. 

By using the power of Xero and its ecosystem of connected apps, your healthcare practice can reduce administrative burdens, improve financial accuracy, and ultimately, free up valuable time and resources to deliver better care. 

The future of healthcare is here, and it’s driven by smart automation.
Explore all healthcare apps and clinic management software available in the Xero App Store.

The post Better systems, better care: How automation is transforming the future of healthcare appeared first on Xero Blog.

Today, I’m excited to share the beta launch of our new navigation and homepage (previously called the dashboard) experience. This goes beyond a fresh new look and a change in name, it’s the new home of all your business key insights and actions. Built for you, with you, this beta is the next step towards a more intuitive and insights-rich Xero.

Our goal is simple: empower you to see your business’s true performance at a glance and tackle the most important tasks, quicker. That means more valuable time back for what matters most. And soon, we’ll begin testing this exciting new experience with a group of Xero customers who have joined the beta. 

I know that many of you will be curious about what’s ahead, so here’s your sneak peek of the new navigation and homepage experience.

Built with you, for you

Every time you log in, the Xero navigation and homepage are your gateway to managing your business, so we know how important it is that we get this right.  

That’s why we’re committed to building it with you, for you. We co-created this experience with almost 3,000 of you – small business owners, accountants and bookkeepers – across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. Your feedback, pain points, and desires shaped every single element, ensuring this new experience delivers what you need. 

And throughout this beta, we’ll keep asking for your input, keep refining, and keep building a Xero that truly works for you, your business and your future.

A closer look: More control, more clarity

So, what’s changing?

A simpler navigation

You told us you want to find what you’re looking for more easily, so we’ve simplified navigation labels and grouped tasks more intuitively. This means you can find what you’re looking for, faster, glide seamlessly between tasks, and ultimately unlock even more value from your Xero subscription. 

You said you wanted easier access to key resources from anywhere in Xero. The improved right-hand panel lets you search, see notifications, get help, take quick actions, and use JAX (your GenAI-powered business companion), saving you valuable time.

Stay tuned over the coming months as we reveal more about the capabilities the new navigation will unleash.

Your dynamic new homepage

The homepage is the central hub of your Xero experience. Now with even more insights, the homepage gives you a quick, comprehensive view of your business performance every time you log in, allowing you to identify and act on critical tasks faster.

You said you want the data and insights to make smarter business decisions. So, we’ve introduced several powerful new widgets and supercharged the widgets you know and love.

New widgets, including task list, recently paid invoices and net profit and loss, give you critical financial information, immediately visible and actionable from your homepage so you can manage your business more confidently. This means you can:

• Focus on your top priorities: The new task list helps you prioritise and take prompt action on things like outstanding invoices and bills.
• Quickly assess your cash flow: See recent payments at a glance to understand what money has just come in.
• Instantly grasp your financial health: Get an immediate overview of your net profit and loss without running a separate report.

With these key insights front and centre, you can make more timely and effective business choices, whether it’s managing expenses, chasing overdue payments, or planning for the future.

Plus, we’ve supercharged existing widgets, like the chart of accounts watchlist. It now shows more information to help you track against your monthly budget with precision.

And because every business is unique, you can customise your homepage to display the figures and insights most vital to you. This is just the beginning. 

What’s next

We’ve notified our beta participants by email today that they’ll have access to the new navigation and homepage beta from next week. Not in the beta? You’ll soon be able to get a further sneak peek via an interactive prototype on the new navigation and homepage webpage. And, if you’d like to be part of future betas to help shape the future of Xero together, consider joining our research panel to participate in surveys and studies and get exclusive access to new features and prototypes.

Over the coming months, we’ll collect feedback from our beta users to refine the experience. Once testing is complete, the new experience will gradually roll out to all of you. But our commitment to delivering you an improved Xero experience doesn’t stop there – we’ll continue to enhance and build with input from you, our community, ensuring Xero evolves with your business needs. 

I’m really excited about this change and the benefits for you and your business. We’ll be here to help you prepare for it before it begins to roll out later this year, and will support you every step of the way. You’ll even have a chance to test drive the new homepage before it launches, so you can understand the changes on your own time. 

We’re updating all our education materials, including YouTube videos and Xero Central articles. You’ll also have access to comprehensive guides (both written and video) and product demo videos to help you navigate these changes. And as always, our dedicated support team will be ready to assist with any tricky questions.

We’re incredibly excited to build the future of Xero together with you and we can’t wait for you to experience the new navigation and homepage. Keep an eye for more updates soon.

The post Get ready for a reimagined Xero appeared first on Xero Blog.

For small businesses, we know that efficient, accurate, and seamless workflows are non-negotiable — especially when it comes to making payments. After all, paying bills and managing cash flow are two crucial tasks, and when managed effectively hand-in-hand, small businesses thrive. But these tasks shouldn’t be a manual headache. 

We also know that more than 70% of US SMBs place a high importance on having their accounting and accounts payable software tightly integrated, but only a small minority actually have access to integrated accounting and accounts payable.

That’s why we’re incredibly excited to share that Xero today announced its plans to acquire Melio, a leading SMB bill pay platform designed specifically for small businesses, accountants and bookkeepers in the US. 

This acquisition is a game-changer and will allow us to deliver an even more powerful and seamless experience to current and future Xero US customers across accounting, invoicing, bill pay and more, in a single integrated platform. 

Why Melio is a perfect fit for Xero customers now and in the future

Today, Melio is already loved and used by Xero customers through the Xero App Store as an app partner. Why? Because it transforms accounts payable from a time-consuming, manual chore into a seamless process. 

Melio’s powerful platform makes payment workflows easy and flexible, offering a wide choice of payment methods to suit the individual needs of each business, all while helping their vendors to get paid faster. Plus, with Melio’s robust approval workflows, customers will have greater visibility and control over every payment being made, helping them and their accountant to better manage their cash flow — a payment solution truly tailored to each business’s unique needs.  

Longer term, we know that bringing together accounting and payments seamlessly into one platform is a critical need for our customers. So we’ll be working hard to embed Melio’s full functionality within Xero to provide a seamless and fully integrated payment solution for both new and existing customers across the US. This means customers will be able to pay their bills without leaving the Xero platform, reducing the time spent manually replicating payments through multiple solutions and lowering the risk of human error. 

This isn’t just convenient — it’s transformational. 

We also believe in giving our customers the freedom to choose the tools that work best for them, recognising that diverse needs often require a variety of solutions. 

For existing Melio customers, we’ll continue to invest in Melio’s payments product as a standalone offering too, leveraging Xero’s go-to-market expertise to build on the great service and powerful features customers rely on today. 

The same applies for our ecosystem partners! We’ll continue to support other payment providers on our platform, just as we always have. This is what our open platform is all about — providing customers with a choice so they can use the software that best meets their specific needs.

We are deeply driven by our purpose to make life better for small businesses, their advisors and communities around the world. We can’t wait to bring this exciting vision to life and deliver even more powerful, integrated payment solutions to our customers.

Sukhinder Singh Cassidy 

Xero CEO

The post Xero to acquire Melio: A payments game-changer for small businesses across the US appeared first on Xero Blog.