Business & Technology
Only 6% of UK firms would use AI time for advisory
Ravical has published research showing that only 6% of UK accounting firms would use time freed up by AI and automation to generate new advisory revenue, highlighting a gap between firms’ growth ambitions and their ability to deliver advisory work at scale.
The findings are based on responses from 500 senior decision-makers at accounting firms with more than 50 employees. They challenge the assumption that greater efficiency in compliance work will naturally lead firms to expand higher-margin advisory services.
In practice, most respondents said it would not. The data shows that 94% of firms would not use additional time created by AI or automation to grow advisory revenue.
Instead, firms pointed to structural barriers within their organisations, including skills gaps, inadequate preparation infrastructure and a lack of repeatable processes for turning advisory opportunities into income.
Half said the main obstacle was a mismatch between compliance and advisory capabilities. The research found that firms are generally well set up for process-led compliance work, but are less prepared to identify, develop and convert advisory opportunities consistently.
That matters because advisory work is widely seen as the next source of margin growth. The survey found that 89% of firms believe advisory services will drive future margin expansion, while 48% said expanding advisory is their main strategic focus over the next three years.
Yet many appear unable to match that ambition with delivery. Compliance work is predictable and process-driven, making it easier to standardise and automate, while advisory work depends more on judgement, context and commercial understanding.
Respondents recognised that distinction, with 89% agreeing that compliance scales through automation while advisory relies on individual expertise.
In practice, many firms still depend on systems and workflows built for compliance. As a result, advisory work remains tied to individual effort rather than a repeatable model that can be rolled out across teams and clients.
Ravical’s data suggests the problem is not identifying advisory openings in the first place. Almost all respondents, 96%, said they were confident they could spot advisory opportunities across their client base.
But firms also said they were losing business. On average, respondents estimated that 33% of their clients’ potential advisory spend still goes to competing providers.
That gap between identification and conversion appears central to the report’s conclusions. Firms may believe they can see the opportunities, but many lack the internal structure needed to capture the revenue consistently.
When asked how they would use time freed up by automation, respondents gave answers that underlined the pressure on existing operating models. They were as likely to put that time into clearing compliance backlogs, cutting working hours or reducing headcount as they were to direct it towards advisory services.
The research found that 28% would use extra time for compliance backlogs, 26% for reduced working hours and 17% for headcount reduction. Those choices suggest efficiency gains may be absorbed by operational demands rather than redirected into new services.
Joris Van der Gucht, chief executive officer and co-founder of Ravical, said the results point to a deeper issue in the profession.
“There’s a clear assumption in the market that if firms free up time, advisory growth will follow.
“What our data shows is that the constraint isn’t time, but whether firms are equipped to use that time differently.”
Advisory gap
The figures also come at a time when many firms report strong underlying performance, with respondents pointing to growing revenue per client and solid compliance margins.
Even so, the report argues that those conditions may not last. If growth continues to depend mainly on compliance work and existing pricing strength, firms could struggle over time to build a broader service mix.
Van der Gucht said the profession has spent years making compliance work more efficient, but advisory services require a different operating model.
“The industry has spent years optimising compliance delivery.
“The next phase is different. It’s about building the systems that allow advisory services to be delivered consistently, rather than relying on individual capacity.”
Las Iguanas, which runs 44 sites across the country but none currently in Oxfordshire, had warned it would “inevitably enter administration” if the deal was not sanctioned.
It previously operated an Oxford branch in Park End Street, which closed back in June 2017, leaving the county without any of the group’s Latin American-themed restaurants.
The chain is owned by Iguanas Holdings Ltd, a subsidiary of The Big Table Group, which also sits behind several familiar high-street brands including Frankie & Benny’s, Bella Italia and Banana Tree.
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In May, the company confirmed it had gone to court to seek approval for a restructuring plan intended to deal with its heavy debt pile.
At the time, bosses said that, without the move, the business would not be able to continue trading and would be forced into administration.
The court has now backed the plan, allowing around £37 million of debts to be cancelled or compromised and giving the chain a financial lifeline.
As part of the rescue, The Big Table Group is injecting £3 million of new funding into the business as part of a wider turnaround strategy.
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The deal also paves the way for reduced rents at certain sites and agreements with landlords on some outstanding sums, easing pressure on the company’s day‑to‑day cash flow.
Mr Justice Meade approved the scheme at a hearing in London, clearing the way for the restaurant operator to avoid collapse and continue trading.
The group has stressed that the restructuring relates only to the legal entity that holds the chain’s property leases and related costs, and does not involve the wider Big Table business, its suppliers, its employees or any of its other brands.
All 44 restaurants are continuing to operate as normal while the rescue plan is implemented, with the company presenting the deal as a way to secure the long‑term future of the brand and safeguard sites and jobs.
SSEN Transmission has joined the European Network for Cyber Security as an Information & Knowledge Sharing member, bringing a major UK electricity transmission operator into a European cybersecurity network for critical infrastructure.
The membership gives SSEN Transmission access to ENCS research, technical documentation and knowledge-sharing with European transmission and distribution system operators. Key areas include testing, operational technology security operations and the development of cybersecurity practices for grid infrastructure.
SSEN Transmission operates the high-voltage electricity transmission network across the north of Scotland. Its network covers more than a quarter of the UK’s land mass and includes substations, overhead lines, underground cables and subsea cables.
The decision comes as cyber threats to essential services face growing scrutiny from governments and operators. The UK National Cyber Security Centre reported 204 nationally significant cyber incidents in the year to August 2025, up 130% on the previous year, including cases affecting critical infrastructure.
Shared concerns
ENCS is a non-profit membership organisation that works with critical infrastructure groups and security specialists across Europe. Founded in 2012, it supports members through applied research, technical security requirements, testing, education and training.
Its network includes transmission system operators, distribution system operators and regulators. By joining as an Information & Knowledge Sharing member, SSEN Transmission is entering a forum focused on common cybersecurity issues across energy networks, rather than a bilateral arrangement with a single partner.
That matters because electricity operators increasingly face similar challenges across borders, especially in the operational technology environments that underpin power networks. Utilities must also respond to a regulatory climate in the UK and EU that places greater emphasis on secure systems and formal cybersecurity practices.
“Cybersecurity is a shared challenge across Europe’s energy sector, and collaboration is fundamental to staying ahead of evolving threats,” said Anjos Nijk, Managing Director of ENCS.
“Across both the UK and EU, regulatory frameworks place clear requirements on investment in robust security practices and secure systems. We are pleased to welcome SSEN Transmission to ENCS and strengthen cooperation across the sector,” Nijk said.
Cross-border work
For SSEN Transmission, the arrangement broadens the expertise available to its operational technology and cyber teams. The company is in the middle of a wider investment and build-out programme tied to the electricity network in northern Scotland, where infrastructure upgrades are closely linked to reliability and the transmission of power over long distances.
Operational technology security has become a particular concern for energy operators because these systems control physical assets and industrial processes. Disruption in these environments can have consequences beyond data loss, affecting electricity flows and service continuity.
Participation in the ENCS network will help the UK operator look beyond domestic peers and compare approaches with companies across Europe. That includes exchanging practical experience on security operations and learning from work already carried out elsewhere in the sector.
“Joining ENCS provides an opportunity to collaborate with peers across Europe at a time when regulatory expectations around energy network cybersecurity continue to evolve. With the growth journey that SSEN Transmission is undertaking, it is vital that we look beyond our UK peers to ensure we are tapping into best practice across the continent to solve the shared problems and escalating cyber threats we face as operators of essential services,” said Iain Dougan, Head of Operational Technology and Cyber at SSEN Transmission.
The announcement also points to closer links between UK and European operators on cybersecurity despite differing national systems and regulatory structures. Grid operators often face the same technical risks in industrial control systems, supply chains and field equipment, making sector-wide exchanges valuable even when assets remain nationally owned and managed.
For ENCS, adding a large British transmission operator extends its reach into a strategically significant part of the European energy system for electricity transmission and offshore network development. For SSEN Transmission, the membership places it inside an established network focused on the cybersecurity of critical energy infrastructure.
The backdrop remains a rise in serious cyber incidents affecting organisations that run essential services, with the UK recording 204 nationally significant cases in the year to August 2025.
Kirtlington Community Shop and Cafe is currently under construction, after a community share offer running since 2020 raised the funds for the purpose-built business in the village west of Bicester.
Already the project is gaining recognition, as it has been shortlisted as a finalist for the Rural Community Business Awards 2026.
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The annual awards, sponsored by Lands Improvement and hosted by Woodstock-based charity Plunkett UK, have named the rural businesses in the ‘One To Watch’ category.
Celia Hawkesworth, chair of the management committee for the new shop, said: “We’re thrilled to be one of the finalists in the ‘One To Watch’ category.
“We’ve been working hard on this project since 2020, and it’s an honour to be recognised alongside the best community-owned businesses when we’ve barely got started.
“Exciting times are ahead as we work towards opening our new shop and cafe later in the summer.”
Locals came together after the village’s shop closed in 2020, and since then successfully raised £233,500 towards the £275,000 target funds needed for the project.
This includes £180,000 raised through a community share offer, meaning villagers have personally invested in the scheme.
READ MORE: Police at ‘unauthorised encampment’ of caravans in Oxford park
A ground-breaking ceremony was held on April 10 this year to mark the beginning of construction of the much-wanted community shop and cafe.
The new shop and cafe, designed to bring services ‘back to the heart of the community’, will be housed in a purpose-built, energy-efficient building next to the village hall.
Plunkett UK, a national charity which supports people in rural areas to set up and run a wide range of businesses in community ownership, provided the village group with ‘invaluable’ advice, according to the committee chair.
The charity’s vision is to create resilient, thriving and inclusive rural communities by extending the number of democratic, community-owned business from the more than 850 already operating in the UK.
Its rural community business awards celebrates businesses that contribute to their areas across nine different categories, from the ‘going green’ award to ‘team spirit’ and ‘young person’.
READ MORE: Listed village pub near Banbury up for sale after 13 years
Sarah Benn, Relationships Team Leader at Plunkett UK, said: “It has been inspiring to see so many people nominate their local community-owned businesses, truly emphasising the significant role they play in their communities.
“We celebrate the considerable impact each one is making it its local area and we are looking forward to next month’s awards event when the winners are announced.”
The award ceremony will take place at The Royal Society of Chemistry in London on Thursday, July 2.
The Kirtlington Community Shop and Cafe is expected to open later in the summer.
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