How to select the right accounting software.A process for evaluating the best packages for your organization. There's an old saying, If you ask the wrong question, you're you're Contraction of you are. you're you are you're be likely to get the wrong answer. That certainly applies when CPAs ask which accounting software product is the best. The fact is, there is no best. There is no single product that suits everyone's needs, but there are probably several that suit one company's specific requirements. So, since the problem is matching software products with a user, the correct question is: How should I go about finding the packages that are right for my business or client? When it comes to accounting software, the search begins by examining both the products' features and the vendors behind the products. Because accounting software contains hundreds--if not thousands--of features, this may seem like an overwhelming task. While such assessments are not exactly easy, they are not overly difficult, because only a handful of features are critical to making the right choice and we will focus on those features. In evaluating a package, here are the key questions you should ask: * Does the software provide customization tools? * Is the vendor financially sound and reliable, and can it provide the technical resources my organization will need? * Can the product deliver the type of financial reporting I require? * Will the underlying technology meet my current and future needs? * Is the product's account-number structure suitable for my business? * Since e-business (Electronic-BUSINESS) Doing business online. The term is often used synonymously with e-commerce, but e-business is more of an umbrella term for having a presence on the Web. has become so important, does the package provide Web integration? * Can it handle foreign currency? * Is it easy to use? * How much does it cost? The articles in this series examine all these questions--with the goal of providing directions for identifying software products that meet your requirements. CUSTOMIZATION The single most important question you need to resolve before deciding on an accounting software package is whether it can be customized--and, if it can, whether the customization will meet your requirements. In the 1980s, the most successful accounting software developers allowed users to modify their products' source codes--the underlying programming that could be altered only with the vendor's permission--and even then only a programmer (1) A hardware device used to customize a programmable logic chip such as a PAL, GAL, EPROM, etc. See PROM programmer. (2) A person who designs the logic for and writes the lines of codes of a computer program. with knowledge of the product could modify the source codes to add fields, calculations and capabilities to the product. Many users accepted vendors' invitations to modify the software. But they soon discovered modification was a very expensive and complicated job, involving months of programming. Worse, while such efforts were successful for many customers, others were left in chaos when the modifications didn't did·n't Contraction of did not. didn't did not didn't do work properly, leaving their financial recording and reporting tools inoperative Void; not active; ineffectual. The term inoperative is commonly used to indicate that some force, such as a statute or contract, is no longer in effect and legally binding upon the persons who were to be, or had been, affected by it. or badly compromised. Source code modification had all even graver drawback DRAWBACK, com. law. An allowance made by the government to merchants on the reexportation of certain imported goods liable to duties, which, in some cases, consists of the whole; in others, of a part of the duties which had been paid upon the importation. . Once a code was changed--even slightly--the product no longer could be upgraded without losing those modifications. So the product's users faced a no-win no-win adj. Informal Certain to end in failure or disappointment: trapped in a no-win situation. no-win Adjective choice: If they wanted to upgrade, they had to forgo all the modifications that had made the product fit their specific needs. The vendors also were unhappy: They couldn't could·n't Contraction of could not. couldn't could not generate new revenue because, after spending a fortune modifying a product, users generally opted to stick with the old version rather than risking--and financing---a second source code modification. A further complication complication /com·pli·ca·tion/ (kom?pli-ka´shun) 1. disease(s) concurrent with another disease. 2. occurrence of several diseases in the same patient. com·pli·ca·tion n. was the fierce competition among vendors to add as many features to their software as possible on the theory that, if they didn't, their products wouldn't would·n't Contraction of would not. wouldn't would not wouldn't would rate well against the competition in the comparison reviews featured in many professional magazines and trade journals. And as more features were added, the software became more difficult to use. Today, most of the leading accounting software products offer a good alternative to source code modification. Instead of changing the underlying codes, the developers now develop their products with built-in built-in - (Or "primitive") A built-in function or operator is one provided by the lowest level of a language implementation. This usually means it is not possible (or efficient) to express it in the language itself. customizing tools that are easy to use. For example, many of today's products provide user-definable fields--those that aren't aren't Contraction of are not. See Usage Note at ain't. aren't are not aren't be earmarked for any particular function but that allow customers to attach their own custom functions and labels to them. Thus, users can create special fields to accommodate additional information for customers, vendors, employees, inventory items and jobs. User-definable fields now are found in accounting software packages of all price ranges including the economy-priced Peachtree Peachtree can be several things:
HAVE IT YOUR WAY There are many levels of customization. For a summary of the customization capabilities of some of the popular accounting software packages, see exhibit 1, page 63. Exhibit 1: Accounting Software Customization Capabilities
Customize Customize
Reports Forms
For the low-end market
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 Yes Yes
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 Yes Yes
Peachtree Complete Accounting
for Windows 6.0 Yes Yes
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 Yes Yes
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes Yes
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials Yes Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 Yes Yes
Platinum for Windows 4.6 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 Yes Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 Yes Yes
Visual AccountMate 4.0 Yes Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes Yes
Platinum ERA 4.2 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 Yes Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 Yes Yes
SBT Executive Series 3.10 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes Yes
Provide Customize
Blank User Input
For the low-end market Fields Screens
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 No No
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 No No
Peachtree Complete Accounting
for Windows 6.0 Yes No
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 No No
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes Yes
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials No Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 No Yes
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 Yes Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 Yes Yes
Visual AccountMate 4.0 Yes Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes Yes
Platinum ERA 4.2 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 Yes Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 Yes Yes
SBT Executive Series 3.10 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes Yes
Customize Modify
by Source
For the low-end market Level Code
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 No No
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 No No
Peachtree Complete Accounting
for Windows 6.0 No No
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 No No
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes Yes
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials No Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 No No
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 Yes Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 Yes Yes
Visual AccountMate 4.0 No Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes Yes
Platinum ERA 4.2 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 Yes Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 Yes Yes
SBT Executive Series 3.10 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes Yes
Financial reports. The most commonplace customization capability is the ability to create new financial statements or edit existing formats. Some products also allow users to change fonts, add lines and even insert a company logo. However, although such customization is widely available in today's top packages, some products still can't produce custom-tailored financial statements. Forms. With this feature, a user can tailor A tailor is a person whose occupation is to sew menswear style jackets and the skirts or trousers that go with them. Although the term dates to the thirteenth century, tailor a program's forms formats, adding or rearranging information on payroll checks, invoices and packing slips A packing slip, sometimes known as a packaging slip or customer receipt, is a shipping document that accompanies delivery packages, usually inside an attached shipping pouch or inside the package itself. . For example, a user might want to continue using old preprinted checks or invoices even though the company has just upgraded to a different accounting system. This customization feature allows the user to adjust the printing to fit the old design. Input screens. This lets the user customize input screens--a feature that many leading vendors have added in the last few years--so fields can be added to track additional data about a customer, an inventory item or a job. Users typically can rename Re`name´ v. t. 1. To give a new name to. Verb 1. rename - assign a new name to; "Many streets in the former East Germany were renamed in 1990" , rearrange re·ar·range tr.v. re·ar·ranged, re·ar·rang·ing, re·ar·rang·es To change the arrangement of. re and even hide existing fields. More sophisticated customization tools allow the user to validate To prove something to be sound or logical. Also to certify conformance to a standard. Contrast with "verify," which means to prove something to be correct. For example, data entry validity checking determines whether the data make sense (numbers fall within a range, numeric data data entered into the system, force (override An arrangement whereby commissions are made by sales managers based upon the sales made by their subordinate sales representatives. A term found in an agreement between a real estate agent and a property owner whereby the agent keeps the right to receive a commission for the sale of ) data and even calculate data based on other information entered elsewhere in the system. Other sophisticated features include the ability to set the tab order The tab order of the controls on a form determines the sequence in which the focus will change when the user strikes the tab key. Usually the tab order is right to left within each row of controls. Not all controls can receive the focus. of user fields, insert drop-down boxes (menus) and embed em·bed also im·bed v. em·bed·ded, em·bed·ding, em·beds v.tr. 1. To fix firmly in a surrounding mass: embed a post in concrete; fossils embedded in shale. third-party software applications that will appear on the input screen. Source code. In many cases, it's it's 1. Contraction of it is. 2. Contraction of it has. See Usage Note at its. it's it is or it has it's be ~have possible to purchase the rights to modify a product's source code. While this isn't is·n't Contraction of is not. isn't is not isn't be as necessary today as it once was, some companies have unique needs that require it. Some accounting products allow users to implement customizations for just one user, a specific group, or all users. Others provide the customization tools as part of the standard product or they sell special software tools for that purpose. Still others discourage users from customizing their software, leaving that to their value-added resellers A value-added reseller (VAR) is a company that adds some feature(s) to an existing product(s), then resells it (usually to end-users) as an integrated product or complete "turn-key" solution. (VARs). For example, Solomon Solomon, d. c.930 B.C., king of the ancient Hebrews (c.970–c.930 B.C.), son and successor of David. His mother was Bath-sheba. His accession has been dated to c.970 B.C. According to the Bible. IV provides extensive customization tools for users while SBT SBT Symplastin bleeding time Professional Series provides its VARs with a customization tool kit designed to help them implement custom changes for their customers. VENDOR RELIABILITY No matter how good a product is, users still must rely on continued support from the vendor. For this reason, you want to be sure your vendor is reliable, has the resources to meet your requirements and will be available when needed. Many first-time accounting software users are inclined to disregard vendor reliability--focusing primarily on the product's quality, price or both. However, selecting a product and then entrusting it with all your financial data is not unlike the goals of a marriage: You want a fruitful fruit·ful adj. 1. a. Producing fruit. b. Conducive to productivity; causing to bear in abundance: fruitful soil. 2. , long-term Long-term Three or more years. In the context of accounting, more than 1 year. long-term 1. Of or relating to a gain or loss in the value of a security that has been held over a specific length of time. Compare short-term. relationship. Once the product is installed, the customer depends on the accounting vendor to supply updates for payroll taxes Payroll Tax Tax an employer withholds and/or pays on behalf of their employees based on the wage or salary of the employee. In most countries, including the U.S., both state and federal authorities collect some form of payroll tax. , sales taxes sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. and even depreciation rates. The customer also must rely on the vendor to fix the inevitable bugs, provide support and continually con·tin·u·al adj. 1. Recurring regularly or frequently: the continual need to pay the mortgage. 2. enhance the product to run on the latest platforms and operating systems Operating systems can be categorized by technology, ownership, licensing, working state, usage, and by many other characteristics. In practice, many of these groupings may overlap. . The continued success of the accounting software vendor has a direct bearing on the customer's continued success with the product. The bottom line is that it's usually best to avoid vendors with limited resources. Typically, the best accounting software vendors are profitable and supported by staffs that are both knowledgeable and large enough to meet the needs of its customers. In addition, they should have large distribution channels. Those that sell software as a sideline sideline See on the sidelines. tend to be less committed to the business. If the vendor is publicly traded, it's relatively easy to gather information about its financial health. But if the vendor is privately held, you'll you'll Contraction of you will. you'll you will or you shall you'll will have to do some investigating: calling on its current customers and insisting that they provide sufficient in-depth in-depth adj. Detailed; thorough: an in-depth study. in-depth Adjective detailed or thorough: an in-depth analysis information on its resources. FINANCIAL REPORTING A primary objective of any financial accounting system is to provide accurate financial statements on a timely basis. A frequent complaint is that a product won't won't Contraction of will not. won't will not won't will produce the kind of financial reports a company wants. Yet, considering the importance of financial reporting, users typically fail to fully consider financial reporting capabilities when evaluating products. When it comes to financial reporting, many accounting software products incorporate two third-party products--FRx and Crystal Reports--into their packages rather than develop their own. And in recent years those two products have become industry standards. Both work seamlessly with more than 25 top accounting software packages. So dominant is FRx that some products, such as Great Plains Dynamics, Platinum for Windows and Solomon IV, rely on it as their primary financial reporting tool. (For more information about all the products mentioned in this article, see "How to Contact the Vendors" on page 64.) When evaluating software, you should ask whether it works with FRx or, if it doesn't does·n't Contraction of does not. , whether the built-in module exhibits comparable features. Here are some of the key capabilities of FRx: * Produces financial statements with up to 256 columns. * Links financial data from either a general ledger General Ledger A company's accounting records. This formal ledger contains all the financial accounts and statements of a business. Notes: The ledger uses two columns: one records debits, the other has offsetting credits. or other products such as a spreadsheet spreadsheet Computer software that allows the user to enter columns and rows of numbers in a ledgerlike format. Any cell of the ledger may contain either data or a formula that describes the value that should be inserted therein based on the values in other cells. or database application. * Creates calculations such as expenses divided by units produced. * Produces provisional Temporary; not permanent. Tentative, contingent, preliminary. A provisional civil service appointment is a temporary position that fills a vacancy until a test can be properly administered and statutory requirements can be fulfilled to make a permanent appointment. financial statements--that is, as if all unposted transactions have been posted. * Views reports on screen and easily drills down from financial summary information into account and transaction details. * Sends e-mail reports directly to remote users from the report preview screen. * Exports and imports reports to and from spreadsheets The following is a list of spreadsheets. Freeware/open source software Online spreadsheets
* Handles complex calculations such as conditional if-then statements. * Provides a drag-and-drop In computer graphical user interfaces, drag-and-drop is the action of (or support for the action of) clicking on a virtual object and dragging it to a different location or onto another virtual object. utility in the reporting tree so users can see the financial effect of restructuring restructuring - The transformation from one representation form to another at the same relative abstraction level, while preserving the subject system's external behaviour (functionality and semantics). . * Creates virtual roll-up roll-up A master limited partnership in which a number of existing limited partnerships are pooled into a single partnership. structures for reporting at different levels--that is, by store, city, state, territory or country. * Prepares and distributes presentation-quality reports using customized fonts, colors and other formatting options. * Compares revenue and expense figures for different organizational departments by creating side-by-side reports. * Operates in a client-server (programming) client-server - A common form of distributed system in which software is split between server tasks and client tasks. A client sends requests to a server, according to some protocol, asking for information or action, and the server responds. environment. As powerful as it is, FRx primarily offers superior reporting capabilities only from the general ledger module; it's not designed to extract data easily from other modules. This is Crystal Reports' forte An application development system for enterprise client/server environments from Sun. It was folded into the Sun Studio compiler and tool suite, which is based on the open source Netbeans IDE. . It's superb at extracting and reporting transactions from all modules. For example, it can produce a set of mailing labels for all vendors that received more than $600 for the year but failed to provide the proper taxpayer identification number. It also can produce a report for each salesperson, displaying his or her top 10 customers in terms of total s, ales, the outstanding amounts receivable and the profit margin attributed to each customer. Like FRx, Crystal Reports works with many of the top accounting software packages. Some products such as MAS 90 and Acuity acuity /acu·i·ty/ (ah-ku´i-te) clarity or clearness, especially of vision. a·cu·i·ty n. Sharpness, clearness, and distinctness of perception or vision. Applications have even gone so far as to use Crystal Reports to develop all its module reports. Over the years, I have encountered many clients who thought they had to replace their accounting software because of inadequate financial reporting. A number of them, however, resolved that problem simply by adding FRx and Crystal Reports. For a summary of the financial reporting capabilities of selected accounting software packages, see exhibit 2, pages 68-69.
Exhibit 2: Financial Reporting Capabilities of Accounting Software
Integrates
Integrates With Crystal
With FRx Reports
For the low-end market
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 No Yes
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 No No
Peachtree Complete Accounting for Win No No
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 No No
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 No Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes Yes
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials No Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.LAN 5.0 Yes Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 No Yes
Visual AccountMate 4.0 Yes Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes Yes
Platinum ERA 4.2 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 Yes Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 No No
SBT Executive Series 3.10 No No
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes Yes
Provides
Integrates Built-In
With F9 from Radio
Synex Systems Reports
For the low-end market
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 Yes Yes
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 No Yes
Peachtree Complete Accounting for Win No No
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 No Yes
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes No
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials No Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 Yes No
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 Yes Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 Yes Yes
Visual AccountMate 4.0 Yes Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes No
Platinum ERA 4.2 Yes Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 Yes Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 No Yes
SBT Executive Series 3.10 Yes No
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes No
Provides
Built-In Has Built-In
Graphical Report
Reports Writer
For the low-end market
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 Yes Yes
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 Yes Yes
Peachtree Complete Accounting for Win No Yes
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 Yes Yes
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes Yes
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes Yes
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes Yes
Navision Financials No Yes
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 No No
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 No Yes
SBT Professional Series 5.0 No Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes Yes
Traverse 8.3 No No
Visual AccountMate 4.0 Yes Yes
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 No Yes
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes Yes
Platinum ERA 4.2 No Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 No Yes
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 Yes Yes
SBT Executive Series 3.10 No Yes
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x No Yes
Produces Supports
Hotlink Event
Data to -Triggered
Spreadsheet Reporting
For the low-end market
BusinessWorks for Windows 12.0 Yes No
M.Y.O.B. Premier 1.0 No No
Peachtree Complete Accounting for Win No Yes
QuickBooks Pro 6.0 No No
For the middle market
ACCPAC for Windows Series 4.0 Yes No
Great Plains Dynamics 5.0 Yes No
MAS 90 for Windows 3.X Yes No
Navision Financials No No
Peachtree 2000 4.0 No No
Platinum for Windows 4.6 No No
RealWorld Expertise. LAN 5.0 Yes No
SBT Professional Series 5.0 Yes Yes
Solomon IV for Windows 2.8 Yes No
Traverse 8.3 No No
Visual AccountMate 4.0 No No
For the beginning ERP market
Acuity Applications 4.0 Yes No
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ 5.0 Yes No
Platinum ERA 4.2 No Yes
RealWorld Expertise.SQL 5.0 No No
SAP Accelerated Financials R/3 No No
SBT Executive Series 3.10 Yes No
Solomon IV for BackOffice 4.0x Yes No
RATING RATIOS Another important aspect of financial reporting is built-in ratio reporting. Unfortunately, most accounting software and third-party application developers either ignore this function or don't don't 1. Contraction of do not. 2. Nonstandard Contraction of does not. n. A statement of what should not be done: a list of the dos and don'ts. give it the attention it deserves. Exhibit 2 shows that many vendors say they provide built-in ratio reporting, however, in my view, the number of ratios most of them provide is hardly adequate. One of the few products that does adequately addresses this need is BusinessWorks for Windows--a product that serves the low-end market In the USA, as well as in most developed countries, the low-end market consists of lower-priced products suitable for customers who are not willing or able to spend large amounts of money. In developing countries, some low-end products may be considered high-end or even luxury items. . Each of its modules contains a flash report function that summarizes key financial ratios and highlights key information. The general ledger flash report displays 20 key ratios for the following periods: current, year-to-date Year-to-date (YTD) The period beginning at the start of the calendar year up to the current date. and prior-year. Also displayed are sales histories and balance sheet amounts for the past 24 months. The inventory flash report provides, among other things, inventory ratios, days in inventory, a reconciliation of the inventory account for the month, inventory and cost-of-goods-sold balances as well as highlights of the fastest selling and highest profit items. This is vital information that helps management detect problems in time to take corrective cor·rec·tive adj. Counteracting or modifying what is malfunctioning, undesirable, or injurious. n. An agent that corrects. corrective, n measures. In any company, it's important for management to receive a set of financial statements at least monthly, complete with financial ratio reports attached. GRAPHICS A picture is indeed worth a thousand words, but it's probably worth several thousand numbers. You should check to be sure the package you're considering can convert numbers into graphics. Several accounting packages can produce pie, line and area charts from the numerical data Numerical data (or quantitative data) is data measured or identified on a numerical scale. Numerical data can be analysed using statistical methods, and results can be displayed using tables, charts, histograms and graphs. . Exhibit 2 lists which software products also include graphic capabilities. PIVOT TABLE See multidimensional views. One of the most powerful analytical analytical, analytic pertaining to or emanating from analysis. analytical control control of confounding by analysis of the results of a trial or test. tools is pivot Pivot A price level established as being significant either by the market's failure to penetrate it or when a sudden increase in volume accompanies the move through the price level. Notes: A technical indicator, the pivot price is similar to resistance or support levels. tables--a tool used in spreadsheets that allows the user to take data and pivot, or turn, it in many different ways so the information can be viewed from different perspectives. For example, it can show the relationship between, say, sales in various cities and sales of individual products; and then, by pivoting pivoting said of the exercise demanded of a horse when testing a limb for weakness or lameness; the horse is forced to turn very tightly so that it actually pivots on the limb being examined. the data, it can compare sales broken down by cities with those by individual outlets or by individual salespeople sales·peo·ple pl.n. Persons who are employed to sell merchandise in a store or in a designated territory. . Many companies praise pivot tables; for example, Microsoft (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, www.microsoft.com) The most successful and influential software company. Microsoft's software and Intel's hardware pioneered the PC and revolutionized the computer industry. claims the pivot table is its primary vehicle for analyzing financial data. (For more on how Microsoft uses pivot tables in its financial reporting, see "Accounting--the Digital Way," JofA, May 99, page 99.) ACCPAC ACCPAC Accounts Package ACCPAC Accounting Package for Windows offers an excellent reporting tool called BrioQuery, which is basically a pivot table function. This tool queries the ACCPAC database using virtually any criteria desired. The resulting query may then be displayed as raw numbers, charts or in a conventional spreadsheet pivot table format. Other accounting packages allow the user to export data into Excel A full-featured spreadsheet for Windows and the Macintosh from Microsoft. It can link many spreadsheets for consolidation and provides a wide variety of business graphics and charts for creating presentation materials. , which has its own pivot table features, but ACCPAC's pivot tool is much faster and easier to use. HOTLINKING Another important financial report feature is the ability to hotlink hotlink - A mechanism for sharing data between two application programs where changes to the data made by one application appear instantly in the other's copy. Under System 7 on the Macintosh the users establishes a hotlink by doing a "Create Publisher" on the server and accounting data directly to an Excel or Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet--a feature first found in Platinum for Windows. Such a feature allows the user to export financial statements directly to Lotus or Excel as easily as sending the report to a printer. Once in Lotus or Excel, Platinum for Windows automatically inserts the @SUM formulas everywhere, a feature that makes what-if scenarios a snap to create. EVENT-TRIGGERED REPORTING (ALARMS) Many accounting software products have the ability to alert users to predefined financial conditions. With such a feature a CFO See Chief Financial Officer. can create simple calculations that the accounting software continuously compares against a preset preset Cardiac pacing A parameter of a pacemaker that is programmed permanently when manufactured value. When that value is exceeded, an alert pops on the computer screen. For example, a CFO might create calculations to sound an alert if cash on hand falls below $100,000, gross margin drops below 20% or the number of days in inventory exceeds 80. In most cases, there is no limit to the number of triggers that can be established. SBT ProSeries, for example, not only monitors custom events, but it can alert managers by sending them e-mails. As you would expect, many high-end high-end adj. Informal 1. Appealing to sophisticated and discerning customers: a high-end department store; high-end video equipment. 2. accounting products--the so-called so-called adj. 1. Commonly called: "new buildings ... in so-called modern style" Graham Greene. 2. beginning enterprise resource planning See ERP. (application, business) Enterprise Resource Planning - (ERP) Any software system designed to support and automate the business processes of medium and large businesses. (ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) An integrated information system that serves all departments within an enterprise. Evolving out of the manufacturing industry, ERP implies the use of packaged software rather than proprietary software written by or for one customer. ) products, such as Platinum ERA, offer event-triggered reporting. (For more on how accounting software is classified, see the sidebar (1) A Windows Vista desktop panel that holds mini applications (gadgets) such as a calendar, calculator, stock ticker and Vonage phone dialer. It is the Windows counterpart to the Dashboard in the Mac. See Windows Vista and gadget. "Classifying the Accounting Software Market: From Low to High End" above.) However, this high-end feature also can be found in an entry-level en·try-lev·el adj. Appropriate for or accessible to one who is inexperienced in a field or new to a market: an entry-level job in advertising; an entry-level computer. product, Peachtree Complete Accounting for Windows. For accounting packages that don't provide event-triggered alarms, a third-party solution often is available. For example, Forest & Trees (from Computer Associates) can extract data from a host of accounting software packages, spreadsheets and other databases. In addition, the software can dial your phone or beeper beeper - pager if it spots a potential problem. Thus, it can warn of impending im·pend intr.v. im·pend·ed, im·pend·ing, im·pends 1. To be about to occur: Her retirement is impending. 2. problems on a real-time 1. real-time - Describes an application which requires a program to respond to stimuli within some small upper limit of response time (typically milli- or microseconds). Process control at a chemical plant is the classic example. basis, whether you're in a meeting or on the golf course. WHAT DO YOU NEED? As you can see from even this first article in the series, making a buying decision requires close investigation of many diverse areas. One area that often gets lost in the technical assessments of the products is the long-term needs of your organization. It's critical that you evaluate your requirements beyond the immediate future. Businesses grow--and so do their accounting software needs. Also, you must assess how others in your organization use the application and be sure they are included when you make the buying decision. That is not to imply that everyone's needs should be given equal weight. For example, bookkeepers and data-entry staffers tend to place more emphasis on the data-entry task of getting cash and inventory in and out the door, while CPAs focus on providing management with the necessary financial reports. Too often those making buying decisions rely heavily on the bookkeepers' and data-entry clerks' assessments of needs--giving short shrift short shrift n. 1. Summary, careless treatment; scant attention: These annoying memos will get short shrift from the boss. 2. Quick work. 3. a. to the product's reporting capabilities. Don't make these common mistakes. RELATED ARTICLE: JofA Looks at Accounting Software This is the first of three articles. This month we will examine how each product handles customization, the importance of a vendor's financial stability, programs' ability to deliver the type of financial reporting your company or client requires and their capacity for converting numerical data into more accessible graphics. Next month we will focus on how to select the database programs under which accounting software runs and how to select accounting packages with an appropriate account number structure. In the last article in the series, we will describe the Web features of the accounting software, the ability of various packages to handle foreign currency and the year 2000 problem Year 2000 problem, Y2K problem, or millennium bug, in computer science, a design flaw in the hardware or software of a computer that caused erroneous results when working with dates beyond Dec. 31, 1999. and how to determine whether the "look and feel" of the software meet the needs of all those in your organization who use it. In addition, the article will provide resources for more help. RELATED ARTICLE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * THERE'S NO SUCH THING as the best accounting software--no single product suits every business. But there are probably several that suit one company's specific needs. The goal is matching software products to a user. * THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT question you need to resolve before deciding on an accounting software package is whether it can be customized--and, if it can, whether the amount of customization it's capable of will meet your organization's requirements. * VENDOR RELIABILITY IS CRITICAL. No matter how good a product is, users still have to rely on the vendor. It's usually best to avoid vendors with limited resources. Typically, the best accounting software vendors are profitable and supported by a staff that's both knowledgeable and large enough to meet the needs of the customer. * SINCE A PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF ANY FINANCIAL accounting system is accurate financial statements on a timely basis, be sure the product you're considering can produce the kind of financial reports you require--and that should include a wide variety of financial and business reporting ratios. RELATED ARTICLE: How to Contact the Vendors
Products Vendor Contacts
ACCPAC for Windows ACCPAC International
Craig Downing
925-461-6716
www.accpac.com
Acuity Applications State of the Art
MAS 90 for Windows Taylor MacDonald
BusinessWorks for Windows 770-804-5845
www.sota.com
Crystal Reports Seagate Software
Phil Walston
800-877-2340
www.crystalreports.com
FRx FRx Software
Robert Rohan
303-741-8000
www.frxsoft.com
Great Plains Dynamics Great Plains Software
Great Plains Dynamics C/S+ Pamela Kram
281-265-1662
www.greatplains.com
Navision Financials Navision Software--US
Geni Whitehouse
770-798-8386
www.navision-us.com
Peachtree Complete Accounting Peachtree Software
for Windows Cynthia Williams
770-564-5700
www.peachtree.com
Platinum for Windows Epicor Software
Platinum ERA Tami Eshelman
800-999-1809
www.epicor.com
QuickBooks Pro 99 Intuit
Richard Walker
619-453-4446
www.quickbooks.com
RealWorld Expertise. LAN RealWorld Software
RealWorld Expertise.SQL Christine Gilroy
800-678-6336
www.realworld.com
SAP R/3 SAP Software
Ken Bernstein
973-331-6000
www.sap.com
SBT ProSeries SBT Corp.
SBT Executive Series Brian Austin
415-444-9900
www.sbtcorp.com
Solomon IV for Windows Solomon Software
Solomon IV for BackOffice Cindy Bechtel
419-424-0422, ext. 485
www.solomon.com
Traverse Open Systems Accounting Software
Amy Reynolds
612-403-5726
www.osas.com
Forest & Trees Platinum Technologies
John Ulery
603-430-6587
www.platinum.com
RELATED ARTICLE: The Power of Ratios A Southeastern aluminum products company was installing a new accounting software package because its financial reporting system had been in shambles for over two years. During the installation I noticed that its days-in-inventory level had risen from 75 to 128 days over a 27-month period. Based on the current inventory ratio, I determined that the company was maintaining $4,700,000 of inventory, while the actual amount that it needed to meet demand should have been $2,754,000--an excess of $1,946,000. Management failed to detect the excess because no one was monitoring financial ratios. A manager told me he knew inventory levels had increased along with sales and assumed--incorrectly, as it turned out--the sales increase accounted for the larger inventory. Once management took corrective measures, it was nearly six months before inventory levels returned to the 75-day range. The error, I estimated, cost the company more than $300,000 in excess interest expense to carry the extra inventory during the three years. RELATED ARTICLE: Classifying the Accounting Software Market: From Low to High End You can buy accounting software for as little as $149. Prices for the upper-end variety run into the six figures. And then there's everything in between. This article focuses mostly on those in-between products. While there is no absolute definition that distinguishes a low-end from a high-end product, accounting software vendors tend to classify clas·si·fy tr.v. clas·si·fied, clas·si·fy·ing, clas·si·fies 1. To arrange or organize according to class or category. 2. To designate (a document, for example) as confidential, secret, or top secret. their products by defining the size of the companies that generally use their packages, grouping them loosely by their sales revenue: Low-end products: Up to $5 million. Middle-market products: Between $2 million and $50 million. Beginning enterprise resource planning (ERP) products: From $25 million to $500 million. ERP products: More than $500 million. Low-end products generally lack features such as consolidation, multicurrency, allocation The apportionment or designation of an item for a specific purpose or to a particular place. In the law of trusts, the allocation of cash dividends earned by a stock that makes up the principal of a trust for a beneficiary usually means that the dividends will be treated as and foreign language capabilities. Middle-market products generally lack heavy industry-specific modules such as process cost manufacturing, hospital management and banking. At the beginning ERP level, products not only meet the financial accounting needs of most companies but they also typically address company information system needs, which is why they are called enterprise resource planning products. This article does not cover ERP software. J. CARLTON COLLINS, CPA (Computer Press Association, Landing, NJ) An earlier membership organization founded in 1983 that promoted excellence in computer journalism. Its annual awards honored outstanding examples in print, broadcast and electronic media. The CPA disbanded in 2000. , is a partner of K2 Enterprises, Atlanta, a professional and consulting organization that provides consulting and technology continuing professional education. His e-mail address See Internet address. e-mail address - electronic mail address is carlton@k2e.com.K2 Enterprises's Web page is www.k2e.com.3 |
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