Cloud ERP

Article Dean Dorton

The Cloud has revolutionized how companies are able to use their ERP solution to grow their business versus just managing their finances.
This article will talk about the benefits of cloud computing that are causing tens of thousands of businesses each year to leave archaic legacy accounting systems behind.  The best, of course, is being able to make it home in time to enjoy a margarita on Cinco de Mayo. But here are four additional reasons to move from legacy software that were shared by our own Microsoft Dynamics GP customers (customers that we’ve helped move to Intacct).

Cloud-Based– The top reason our customers moved from an on-premise ERP solution to Intacct was to leverage cloud technology. The cloud gives them access to their accounting solution from any location. Since Intacct is easily accessed through your web browser, a CFO can review their custom dashboards or reports no matter where they are. Because Intacct is cloud-based, Its quarterly upgrades are done behind the scenes, with no disruption to users and at no additional cost. With updates every quarter, Intacct is consistently the best-in-class option. This also allows you to work with your consulting firm of choice since they can access your accounting ERP solution, with your permission, straight from their office no matter where they are located!

Dimensions– Intacct dimensional reporting is an altogether new way to track and report on financial and operational data while simplifying your chart of accounts.  Dimensions will give you quick access to the up-to-date insights that allow for instantaneous decision-making and help drive growth.  With Dimensions, you’ll have the flexibility to set up reporting in numerous ways to drill down into a company’s data. 

“Creating one GL account and using dimensions to split out the reporting requirements was an administrator’s dream!”- CFO who switched from Dynamics GP to Intacct.

Reporting– Intacct’s reporting capabilities are the best among ERP solutions in the industry.  Not only are the reports in-depth and customized to what is important to your business.  Easy to configure and generate, you won’t be using stale, weeks old data to inform your decisions. You’ll have the most up-to-date information and clearer insight.  Intacct integration capabilities makes it easy to pull in data from different entities and sources to give you an even more complete view of your business.

Dashboards– Intacct offers customizable dashboards that are specific to the people on your team.  You can see what’s important to you and they can see the key data and reports around their areas of responsibilities. Dashboard gives you real-time status of key performance metrics. You can click down on hyperlinked figure to see the transactions behind the totals – gaining granular visibility into what’s driving your company’s performance.  Dashboards offer an easy way to get a quick glance at key measurements and metrics that CFOs, CEOs, and Controllers need to run a company.

All of these benefits add up to tremendous time savings.  The cloud will help you streamline processes and eliminate cumbersome manual steps.  And, it might even mean you can leave the office in time to enjoy a Happy Hour margarita!

Article Dean Dorton

When your team is scattered all over the globe securing new business and pushing data, you can’t afford for systems to be down during crunch-time, or worse, to experience a data breach.

Your team, especially when providing a service, has to answer to your client with confidence that their data is safe in your hands. One weak link in the cloud security chain can damage client trust, your reputation, and your business. Intacct knows this, and it’s the reason their best-in-class cloud ERP solution puts your security first.

Applications Designed for Rapid Growth and Data Control

Because service-based businesses often experience rapid growth, they heavily rely on their applications’ security to be up-to-date and reliable. Also, more hands are often simultaneously using their systems.  Lots of data going in and out, sent by many different people can open the door for security instability.

Throw in the mix that your team members may travel, or may be rooted in multiple cities or locations, with varying secure connections, and working from multiple devices. With so much activity and diversity, you need security expertise on your side.  

Intacct cloud security is designed for strengthened security with:

  • Two-step user verifications and enforced password changes, so your data won’t slip into the wrong hands.
  • Granular levels of access control, so only qualified people are the ones making changes in your system.
  • Tight log-in parameters with customizable IP ranges. You decide how far your data will go.

Systems Fortified with Layered Protection

As a service-based business, if you have an IT department, it’s probably highly-specialized, or streamlined for efficiency. Their expertise often means supporting your expertise by working closely with clients. So these teams don’t always have the time or resources to stay on top of the latest security developments.

Applications with multi-faceted reinforcements that protect complex reporting and multi-layered protections fit well with these businesses. Security-focused financial solutions, like Intacct, can fortify against unauthorized users, programs and malevolent systems that can jeopardize your information integrity with:

  • PCI DSS Level 1 certification and 16 SOC1 Type II audited, to protect complex financial reporting, and cardholder information unique to rapid growth and services-based businesses.
  • Biometric access, minimum 128-bit encryption, hardened networks and firewalls, and virus-resistant software.

Airtight Physical, Network and Data Systems

Your business is built on trust. When your clients ask you about how strong your secure your systems are, you need to feel confident that you can walk your talk. The protection you offer is part of your business, so financial data needs to be protected during disaster or failure situations – and if you are not so sure of your safety, your clients won’t be either.

Powerfully constructed cloud systems mean 99.8% guaranteed uptime. Intacct offers airtight systems structure with:

  • Redundant power supplies, generators, network components, and standby servers.
  • 24/7/365 monitored Fortune 100-class data centers.
  • Built on Oracle infrastructure with multiple fiber trunks and mirrored RAID storage.

Secure Cloud-Based Accounting Software Has Your Back

When your cloud-based accounting software takes on the burden of security, it means your budget and your teams are free to do more, without worrying about compromised data, hacked systems, or data loss.

Adequately protecting your business with the right cloud-based reporting, means you can have:

  • Specialized teams are free to stay client-focused.
  • Consistent system reliability.
  • Significant costs savings otherwise spent on data safety, maintenance and upkeep.

Secure the Win          

For airtight protection for your financials reporting, secure the win with the right application for your service.  Contact us so we can use our expertise to free you to focus on your business.

Article Dean Dorton

Still Using Spreadsheets for Your Accounting? It’s Time to Make a Change

Cloud-ERP-switch-Oct-1-blog.jpgYou are a leader in your company and understand numbers. You know you can gain efficiencies and improve ROI by replacing your current accounting system that relies heavily on spreadsheets with a Cloud ERP.

You’ve read thousands of articles, blogs, whitepapers and advice columns confirming that using Excel spreadsheets to complement your financial accounting software is time-consuming and error-prone.

But, still, you’re not getting any traction with the management team. They’re on the fence. Unconvinced. And you wonder: Why, oh why, do they want to continue to use Excel for finance and accounting functions?

Here are some of the most common objections I’ve heard from people who don’t want to give up their spreadsheets and replace them with an accounting software like Intacct. (And I have an answer and a few facts for each objection… )

“It’s fast and reliable.”

Maybe it’s fast if you’re an expert, but it’s definitely not reliable. Hard drives fail and servers crash. Intacct data in the cloud is protected by encryption, real-time transactional data backup and daily full data backup and is always available (1). Intacct guarantees 99.8% uptime (2).

“With Excel the possibilities are endless.”

Yes, but how much time do you spend creating each report? If you are a fast moving company, then you need reports that update in real time and are available on demand –without spending time to download and combine data entered into a spreadsheet. Intacct reporting gives you the capability to easily create reports, graphs and dashboards using dimensions that are updated constantly with new data, and you can do it all without exporting data to a spreadsheet (3). Use the more than 150 prebuilt accounting or financial reports or build your own customized report within Intacct.

“We already have Excel; it is cost effective.”

Intacct customers average an ROI of over 250% (4). DataXu cut monthly financial consolidations from 20 to 8 days across all entities (5). EZShield is saving a great deal of time on employee expense (6) and WebAssign saved $130,000 in annual salary costs (7). There are many more customer success stories on the Intacct web site.

“Excel is the best tool we have for complex calculations such as revenue recognition”.

Really? Will it handle the complexities that are coming with ASC 606? What happens when the terms change on contracts that have tiered pricing or when contracts are changed to add or drop users? You need an accounting system that will standardize and automate these processes as well as ensure compliance with the new standards. Intacct has a contract and revenue management module that gives you the tools to comply with ASC 606.

I’ve heard many more objections for giving up spreadsheets. For each objection, I always find an Intacct advantage. To name just a few…with Intacct:

you don’t have the risk of handling formulas that could eventually get corrupted.
you always know who made a journal entry or any change.
supporting documents are stored in the system making it easier to answer auditors’ questions.
the system automates your process saving you time.
you have a system that grows as your company grows.

Contact us so we can help you create a solid business case for your company to get an accounting system that will grant you independence from Excel spreadsheets.