CPA Practice Advisor

APR 2015

Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.

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10 April 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com FROM THE TRENCHES By Randy Johnston The Top Technologies for Accounting Firms Firms should not change sofware unless they have thought through the needs, the fnal end goal, and the consequences. L et 's t h i n k about Practice Management changes for a moment. W hy are you chang ing? Easier billing, integration with other applications, capabilities you don't have, beter reporting, easier man- agement of tea m members, more av a i l abi l it y of re sou rc e s , bet ter h a nd le on c o s t s , s i mpl i f ic at ion because you are implementing more re c u r r i n g re v e nu e a nd f l at r at e engagements and projects, incom- patibi l it y w ith new technolog ies, tired of dealing with the publisher, beter project management, sched- uling, beter business development, or something else? You should start by making a list of things you expect to gain and features you'd prefer not to lose. You have to understand why you are starting a sofware selection process and what your fnal, mea- s u reable goa l w i l l be. I f you a re si mply ma k i ng a cha nge because partners don't like or aren't using the existing system, how will you know if the new system is any beter? Does a new system replacement make the frm more money? So What Are The Most Important New Tools an d Programs available? It is clear in the profession that the pace of change is accelerating. Te major publishers of Wolters Kluwer CCH, Tomson Reuters and Intuit have new products in the market or a re developi ng new produc ts for delivery. Furthermore, older genera - tion products are being discontinued, for example, the Client Bookkeeping System (CBS) from Tomson will be phased out by December 31, 2016. New products have been introduced by new and incumbent vendors alike. W hat deserves some of your aten- tion, resources and money? For example, in the areas of Prac- t ice M a n agement a nd Bi l l i ng , a number of new and updated products have been introduced. Included are: • AccountantsWorld Power Practice System • BQE BillQuick • CCH Axcess Practice • Commercial Logic APS Advance • Commercial Logic PowerPM • Commercial Logic TrakTime Central • Thomson Reuters Practice CS Likewise vendors have made sig- nifcant inroads into collaborative accounting and reporting. Examples here include: • FreshBooks – invoicing for Schedule C type clients • SageOne – accounting and project management • Wave – accounting with inexpensive payroll • Xero – accounting with payroll and accountant friendly tools • Accounting Power – an accountant- centric system with good payroll • QuickBooks Online – the major focus of Intuit for accounting • NetClient CS with ACS and Client A c c e s s – T h o m s o n's c l i e n t accounting system • CYMA – notable payroll and Human Resources management • Intacct – mid-market system sup- porting multiple verticals • Sage 300 Online – a robust system updated for online use • Open Systems – a robust system with NFP, construction and other vertical support • Epicor Online – a strong distribution and manufacturing system 1 0 A p r i l 2 0 1 5 • w w w . C P A P r a c t i c e A Randy Johnston is executive vice president and partner of K2 Enterprises and Network Management Group, Inc. He is a nationally recognized educator, consultant and writer with over 30 years' experience. He can be contacted at randy.johnston@cpapracticeadvisor.com . C hanging sofware that is strategic to your practice can be time con- suming, challenging and dysfunc- tional. Not changing can be worse. Tere are reviews in this issue for professional tax systems, Practice Management, and Billing. While I don't have the privilege of reading those before writing this column, I'm sure the reviewers have solid guidance for you. Te reviews answer the "what" is available question. I'd like to talk about the what, who and why.

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