Computers, mobile phones, iPads, the auto-mobile, the Internet, the list goes on and on.  

Henry Ford is alleged to have once said that if he had asked his market what they wanted, the response would have been "A faster horse..." (although to be fair, a horse probably emits less nasties than your average Volkswagen diesel these days...). 

Innovation drives disruption which in turn drives William James' quote; early adopters will almost always have the advantage.  When it comes to tax and accounting software providers it is no different: there are the companies who innovators and there are those who have missed the curve are trying to catch up - but will always struggle; there are also those that may hold large market-share, but then again so did Nokia; if you rely on them, they are a potential risk to your business.

If you are responsible for the tax and accounting processes in your organisation whether you are a business or an accounting firm, if you outsource or not, change is coming, in fact, it's already here and given the pace of change, there's more to come, so be prepared.

Alan