The Oswald Murdock Blog
Honest AI news for growing businesses.
Tax, accounts, payroll and AI, explained by accountants who use it every day. Practical, current and written for business owners, not accountants.
Featured · AI and automation
The progress of AI in finance: what it can do for your business today
From automated bookkeeping to live reporting: where AI genuinely saves time and money now, where a human still has to check, and how to start safely.
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AI and automationWhere accounting is heading: our predictions for the next ten years
Point-of-sale bookkeeping, AI talking to HMRC's AI, tax ring-fenced as you earn, and the accountant as translator.
9 min read
Case studiesCase study: GCL Property Group goes from monthly HMRC fines to fully up to date
A receipt app for builders, a CIS agent and daily AI checks against HMRC and Companies House ended GCL's monthly fines.
4 min read
Case studiesCase study: how a London interior design firm cut its month end from 10 days to half a day
An API, a SharePoint WIP platform, automatic Xero journals and a built-in Claude agent took month-end WIP from 5–10 days to half a day.
4 min read
Case studiesCase study: The Unit Group cut bookkeeping from full time to one day a week
Claude and Xero in Slack, automated debtor chasing and bills posted straight from Gmail into Xero: how The Unit Group moved to checking, not processing.
4 min read
Case studiesCase study: Olivia Outred Design moves from processing invoices to checking deliveries
AI matching invoices to goods-in receipts, Xero Projects, monthly project profitability and Xero payment runs for Olivia Outred Design.
4 min read
AI and automationHow much does it cost to automate a small business finance department?
What drives the cost of automating a small business finance department, where the savings come from, and how to work out the payback.
6 min read
AI and automationXero automation for small businesses: what's possible
Bills, bank recs, debtor chasing, payment runs, reporting, API integrations and AI assistants: what you can automate in Xero.
6 min read
AI and automationHow to modernise and automate your finance department: a step-by-step guide for small businesses
A step-by-step guide to modernising your finance department with AI and automation: what to automate first, tools, governance and how to measure success.
5 min read
Growing your businessChoosing an AI-focused accountant in London: 10 questions to ask
Ten questions to ask an AI-focused accountant in London, why each matters and what a good answer looks like, from software and security to deadlines.
5 min read
MTDMTD for Income Tax: what self-employed people and landlords need to know
Quarterly updates are here, and the threshold drops again next April. Who is in, what changes and how to get ready.
6 min read
ComplianceNever miss a deadline: set up your HMRC and Companies House accounts properly
Why you need your own Government Gateway business account, why your accountant should have an agent account, and how to switch on reminders from both.
5 min read
ComplianceCompanies House ID checks: directors and PSCs both need verifying
Every director needs a digital ID check, and so does every person with significant control, separately. Here is how to do both.
6 min read
Growing your businessAccounting basics every business owner should know
Tips and tricks for running a business: cash flow, keeping good records and reading your own numbers.
7 min read
TaxR&D tax relief: track your projects from day one
Flag R&D projects before they start, cost them properly and track them as you go, so the year-end claim writes itself.
6 min read
AI and automationConnecting your apps to Xero: stop re-keying data
How APIs and automations join up your sales, project and payment tools with your accounts.
7 min read
Growing your businessPicking the right accounting software: Xero vs QuickBooks vs Sage
An honest comparison from accountants who work in all three: cost, features, integrations and which suits which kind of business.
8 min read
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