Brittany, Author at The Latest on Accounting Tech for SMEs

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Saasu Launches Forecasting Tool for Cash Flow

November 18, 2014 by Brittany

Online accounting company Saasu has introduced Forecaster, a new tool which predicts future cash flow for businesses from within Saasu.

“It’s the first time an accounting app provides built-in forward looking cash flow forecasts. This challenges traditional ineffective tools business owners have been stuck with for years. We wanted to create something instantly useful that doesn’t require data entry, plugins or spreadsheets,” said Marc Lehmann, CEO of Saasu, in a press release. “Businesses can now see the future instead of looking in a rear-view mirror.”

Forecaster uses live data to predict how much income is coming in and what expenses are coming up within 30 days. The software uses app intelligence to display the most impactful transactions on cash flow at the top of each column so business owners can see what changes they can make to improve their cash flow position.

For businesses trading in foreign currency, all values get converted to base currency.

Saasu has put together a short (1.20″) video that shows how the forecaster tool works.

Users can drag and drop transactions to different dates in response to requests for extended payment or early payments. This can eliminate blind spots such as customers paying late, knowing how the next pay run will affect your cash position, and delaying payment to a supplier because cash flow is too tight.

Forecaster is available with all Saasu plans at no additional cost. In the video (1.34″) below, Lehmann explains why Saasu introduced the forecaster tool.

New Skype for Business To Replace Lync in Office 365

November 13, 2014 by Brittany

Microsoft announced it would release a new program, Skype for Business, an enterprise-grade communications tool which would be available early next year.

Skype for Business will replace Lync, the audio, video and chat communication tool within Microsoft’s cloud productivity suite, Office 365. Skype for Business will include similar features such as enterprise security, compliance and control.

Skype for Business is both a rebrand and a new product, with Microsoft releasing a new client experience for mobile, tablets and desktops, new server release, and updates to the service in Office 365 under the Skype for Business name, a spokesman told Digital First.

“In the first half of 2015, the next version of Lync will become Skype for Business with a new client experience, new server release, and updates to the service in Office 365. We believe that Skype for Business will again transform the way people communicate by giving organizations reach to hundreds of millions of Skype users outside the walls of their business,” says Gurdeep Pall, Skype corporate vice president, in the company blog.

Skype for Business incorporates familiar and intuitive elements from both Skype and Lync, with recognisable Skype icons as well as the content sharing and telephony capabilities of Lync.

Skype for Business also adds video calling and the Skype user directory making it possible to call any Skype user on any device.

What Happens to Lync?

Skype for Business is the newest version of Lync, which will still exist in previous versions such as Lync 2013, etc., Microsoft says.

Lync users can gain access by updating from Lync Server 2013 to the new Skype for Business Server in their data centres, with no new hardware required. For Office 365 customers, the Skype update will occur automatically.

Microsoft will help Lync 2013 customers quickly adopt Skype for Business by enabling video connectivity between Lync 2013 users and the Skype network by the end of 2014. It will provide administrators with the option to use either the new Skype for Business UI or the existing Lync UI with the Lync 2013 client.

This allows them to take advantage of the familiar Skype interface immediately once Microsoft releases the new client.

Lync Server 2013 customers will be able to migrate easily to Skype for Business Server because Microsoft use the same hardware profiles and provides easy to follow steps for upgrading server software, Microsoft says. There are no changes for Lync 2010 customers.

More details such as call costs, integration of Skype credit and PBX functionality would be released at a later date, Microsoft told Digital First.

MYOB Kounta Updates MYOB's Retailer Strategy

November 10, 2014 by Brittany

Accounting software company MYOB has launched its new online point-of-sale (POS) solution MYOB Kounta, the fruit of its minority investment in the startup in June.

The white label arrangement is a big step towards a broadening of the MYOB brand beyond applications that it has developed in-house.

MYOB Kounta combines accounting and POS in the one program to eliminate compatibility and sync risk between the two systems. MYOB Kounta is particularly useful for retail and hospitality businesses “that require multi-tasking to balance customer service, sales and inventory management”, Andrew Birch, MYOB general manager for connected services, said in a press release.

Features include simplified set-up, order management features, shrinking and wastage tracking, automatic staff commission calculation, on account and lay-byfunctionality. Special features for hospitality businesses include table management, split bills and queue busting.

MYOB AccountRight and MYOB Essentials customers can access MYOB Kounta by using their existing MYOB login details (AccountRight customers must have saved their data file online).

Customers’ accountscan be integrated with the MYOB Kounta system to publish end-of-day journals, accounts receivables and print outs directly. MYOB Kounta also integrates with other accounting software solutions.

While there is a free version of MYOB Kounta available, it limits the user to a maximum of ten transactions per day. Unlimited transactions start from $50 per month.

“It is a single, scalable and adaptable POS platform which is simple to set up and run and delivers data securely to business owners anywhere, anytime on any device,” Birch says.

Lawrence Troiano, owner of Basecamp Espresso, said in the press release that the ability to use MYOB Kounta on any device was a big drawcard.

“No more chunky registers. My staff and I can take cash register to the customer, if we want to, by logging in on an iPad or even a smartphone,” Troiano says.

“We also love that MYOB Kounta doesn’t hinder our customers’ creativity! They can be really specific about their order, which in the past couldbe tricky to keep track of, and we can easily modify the product on the system to match their special requests,” Troiano says.

MYOB has also made moves into the mid-market with its PayGlobal acquisition and a licensing deal to resell a customised version of cloud ERP Acumatica in the Asia Pacific.

Long-Distance Cloud Accounting From Port Hedland to Perth

November 6, 2014 by Brittany

CASE STUDY: Kathi Hebbard, Director of The Bean Countess, started her business services firm in 2008, she was living in North Western Australia in a small regional area. The Bean Countess is a small business (with a total of 4 staff) offering accounting, bookkeeping and business systems to a range of different businesses throughout Australia, providing the vast majority of their services in an online capacity.

The Pain Point

The regional accounting firm had staff and clients spread over a large area. It needed an online accounting program that people could access from wherever they were.

The Bean Countess’ office is in Brisbane, Queensland and its bookkeepers are in other parts of Queensland and New South Wales. Hebbard’s clients range from Port Hedland to Perth in Western Australia and New South Wales.

Hebbard only visits one client in person.

“We were looking for software that would facilitate staff living in different locations, clients in different locations and have a smooth workflow for everybody,” Hebbard says.

“At the time, the cloud was only just being talked about and there weren’t many softwares available. I researched all of the cloud accounting software I could find… and there were some that could do certain aspects of the business, but not others.”

The Software

JCurve is a relatively new cloud-based application which is a better fit for small businesses than NetSuite, the online ERP system on which it is based.

JCurve Solutions has turned off all other NetSuite modules except for the accounting module which starts at AU$50 per user per month.

Kathi Hebbard, Bean Countess — Kathi Hebbard, The Bean Countess

As a business grows it turns on more modules as required until it is using the full version of NetSuite.

“JCurve is bringing its capabilities down a level to make it accessible to smaller businesses that don’t have the money to invest in proprietary software. And it’s very adaptable, which is fantastic,” Hebbard says.

Was Set-Up Easy or Hard?

The transition to JCurve was relatively easy for Hebbard due to the small size of her business. “It was just a matter of moving our accounts over to JCurve and setting up our customer base. JCurve helped us a lot with getting the new system initiated and smoothing out any teething issues.”

Who Is It Good For?

JCurve is a good fit for small to medium businesses with multiple locations and wanting flexibility in their back office. “It removes the need for you to have as many administrators or accounting staff on site,” Hebbard says.

“That’s a huge advantage to go and hire your talent wherever it is, instead of limiting yourself to what happens to be in your town or nearby you,” she says.

What I Liked

The workflow capability of JCurve is its best feature “without a doubt”, Hebbard says.

The Bean Countess’ employees could access JCurve straight after implementation through an employee portal. Here, employees can find the tasks assigned to them, log their time and download and upload documents to the system.

“It allows my staff to be very flexible in that they can work from anywhere,” says Hebbard.

JCurve is highly adaptable for businesses in different industries. One client with two retail stores in New South Wales is about to open two more. “She can seamlessly run those four stores on the same software, her inventory and everything, and have no problems whatsoever. That would be a lot harder on different accounting software,” Hebbard says.

JCurve’s modular design makes it easily expandable. Modules include inventory, payroll and CRM, as well as more advanced features such as marketing, e-commerce, multi-currency and more.

What I Didn’t Like

Hebbard’s one complaint about JCurve is the steep set-up cost.

“I think I paid around $10,000 or $12,000 which for a really small business is a really big amount of money. Even for a medium business, it’s still a big hit.

It would be good to see a way to make it more affordable, or to be able to even pay it off over two years might be an option,” she says.

However, she says the recurring costs to renew the license are reasonable.

“For one administrator and support JCurve is about $2,500 per year,” Hebbard says.

“It is definitely a huge step up from the price of the other cloud software for small business… but it has all these other capabilities that basic accounting software just doesn’t have.

“So, it’s really dependent on the needs of your business and we pay for it specifically for the workflow and online filing capabilities. I think it’s worth it.”

Why Zapier is My Favourite Tech: Steph Hinds

November 5, 2014 by Brittany

Today Digital First launches the “My Favourite Tech” video series. We will be chatting to accountants about their favourite technologies, and why they find them so useful. These videos are short and sweet – providing you with a quick break that is technically still work related!

In this first video, we talk to Steph Hinds, an accountant at Growthwise in Newcastle, Australia, about Zapier and why it is her favourite tech. Zapier connects together the online applications you use so you can move data easily between them. Zapier “keeps that automation flowing, integrating all those systems back together”, Hinds says.

Next week: Ryan Lazanis from Xen Accounting shares why he accepts payments in his accounting firm with Bitcoin. Tune in and subscribe to our YouTube channel Digital First TV!

Watch the video here: