Dear AccountMate Clients,
Working in accounting and financial management software, this is our busiest time of the year, but I wanted to take this opportunity to say “Thanks!” We’re closing out our own fiscal year here, getting ready to enter our 14th year of business, and just posted our highest annual sales ever – which is supposed to get tougher to do the longer you’re in business, right? <grin> While I’m not ready to say The Great Recession is over, one thing it caused us to do was focus our business – which we did by dropping network services and concentrating on AccountMate support. The result has been steady growth the last couple of years as we added to our staff and significantly added to our AccountMate client list. So, whether you’re relatively new to working with us or an old-timer from the Y2K efforts, I want to say THANKS!
Thank you for being our client. You have choices. We’re proud to be yours.
Thank you for giving us your feedback. We listen, read and react to all of it with the goal of improving how we do business. We forward product improvement suggestions so they benefit everyone.
Thank you for trusting in us. We understand that running a business is tough, and that our relationship with you is a cooperative one where we have to provide value with every interaction.
Thank you for a wonderful 2010. We look forward to supporting you in 2011 and beyond.
Speaking of focusing your business, one popular option that’s proven to be very successful is outsourcing information technology infrastructure. The popular terms for it are “cloud computing” or “software as a service” and the gist of the idea is that you’re no longer responsible for the care and feeding of the application infrastructure (that’s all resident outside your organization and just works) plus the large initial cost of the application itself is avoided in lieu of a low monthly fixed amount that is easily budgeted.
Here at NexLAN, we outsourced our Exchange Services a few months ago and have been very happy. We also have a handful of clients that are already making use of outsourced server hosting for their AccountMate installations, so we’re pleased to relay that, on December 28th, AccountMate officially announced the availability of AccountMate Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Additional benefits of this include a secure data environment, simple off-site remote access, and fully automated data storage/backup. For a functional overview please see the AccountMate SaaS Overview and contact us for complete details, including pricing.
On the running front, had a great time at the Jacksonville, Florida Marathon serving as an official “pacer”. My goal was to finish as close to three hours and thirty minutes as possible and keep up a “running banter” to distract/motivate other runners trying to attain that goal. If we’re even passingly acquainted, then you know I had no problem with the banter <grin> – and the running went well too, as I finished in 3:29:45 bringing in a group of a half dozen VERY grateful runners to their first Boston Qualification run.
I’ve just started my annual training cycle for my fifth consecutive Boston, with a goal of coming in under three hours – which is kind of a mental dividing line of being “a pretty good runner” versus being “a really good runner”. I’d like to see if I can still come down on the “really good” side at the ripe old age of 45 on the notoriously tough Boston course.
Finally, I’m still soliciting donations for The Polar Plunge to benefit the Special Olympics, where I’m a softball coach. It’s a mad dash into a frozen lake, where they will literally have to use chain saws to cut away ice so we can take the plunge, on Saturday, February 26th. Make a donation and I promise pics in the March NexLAN/AccountMate NewsLine.
Regards,
Kevin E. Stroud
NexLAN, LLC
https://nexlan.com
Two Things to do RIGHT NOW!!!
Lock your January 2010 fiscal period
Every year we have a handful of clients who call because someone has typo-ed the year in a transaction and it has posted 12 months back. The best (and simplest) way to prevent this is to lock January 2010.
In General Ledger, head to <Housekeeping><Posting Period Restrictions> and check the boxes for each module to restrict posting in that period. You can also use this during the year to keep transactions from hitting periods that have already been audited and approved – and you can always unlock the period if you really have to post back.
Photocopy your wallet
While somewhat of a running joke to be included here with AccountMate-specific information, I always list this as we have new clients on distribution for our NewsLine – and because I believe it’s important!
We all know that having a regular backup of important information is important. So, every January I take all of the cards out of my wallet, line them up facedown on a photocopier and hit the button. Everything is flipped over, a copy is made of the backs, and the pages are filed until next year.
Though the process takes only a few minutes, it will save countless hours of time if my wallet is lost or stolen. Instead of having to hunt for credit card numbers, health insurance contact information, and proof of identity, all of my data is in two places: my wallet and my files.
Tech Note: Reconciling Inventory Balances with Physical Count Results
Companies must take a complete physical inventory count at least once a year. This procedure is used to facilitate adjustments to the perpetual inventory records for data entry errors, unrecorded shrinkage, losses due to theft, spoilage, or breakage. Once the actual inventory on-hand quantity has been determined by a physical count, the per-unit costs in the inventory ledger accounts are used to determine the total costs of the on-hand inventory. The inventory GL Account ID and the individual inventory item records are then reconciled with the physical count results.
The Physical Inventory Count and Inventory Adjustment functions in the Inventory Control (IC) module allow you to reconcile the inventory balances (quantity and cost) recorded in AccountMate with your physical count. This document discusses how to adjust your inventory balances to match your physical count results.
Article 1263: Reconciling Inventory Balances with Physical Count Results
Tech Note: Reports Needed when Revaluing Foreign Currency Denominated Transactions
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) require companies that carry material amounts of foreign currency denominated receivables and payables to revalue their foreign currency balances before closing the accounting year. Revaluation is essential to ensure that financial statements reflect the current balances as of the financial statement date. AccountMate’s Multi-Currency Revaluation function, which is available in both the Accounts Receivable (AR) and Accounts Payable (AP) modules, provides the ability to revalue the multi-currency AR and AP invoices and calculates the unrealized gains or losses that might result from the revaluation.
This document provides information about the AccountMate reports that can help you to effectively revalue foreign currency denominated cash, customer, and vendor balances.
Article 1264: Reports Needed when Revaluing Foreign Currency Denominated Transactions
Tech Note: Consolidated Ledger Closing Procedures
This document is provided to assist you in performing final consolidation of your General Ledger (GL) account balances. It is designed to help you better understand year-end consolidation of the subsidiary company’s account balances to the parent company’s GL.
Article 1265: Consolidated Ledger Closing Procedures
Tech Note: How Budget Statements are affected by Transfer Data to GL, Period-End Closing and Year-End Closing
This document explains how Budget Statements are affected when you perform Transfer Data to GL, Period-End Closing and Fiscal Year-End Closing.
Technical Tips
Versions: AM8 for SQL and Express
AM7 for SQL and Express
Modules: AP, PO
Q: When I attempted to save an AP invoice I encountered the message “The invoice amount is less than the sum of the Matched Amt and Rev Landed Cost.” The actual invoice amount is less than what has been accrued but all quantities have been received. How do I resolve this?
A: To resolve the issue triggering the message, adjust the Vendor Price in the AP/PO Matching window to make the Matched Amt value equal to the Invoice Amt value. When both amounts match AccountMate will no longer display the message and it will save the AP invoice.
■ ■ ■
Version: AM8.1 for SQL and Express
Module: PR
TIP: AccountMate 8.1 for SQL and Express adds a feature that provides authorized users with the flexibility to set up a company’s official work hours for each day of the week. This information will be used to calculate the number of working hours that fall within a specified pay period. This setting is configured in PR Module Setup ► General (2) tab ► Work Hours Setup area.
■ ■ ■
Version: AM8.1 for SQL and Express
Module: BR
TIP: AccountMate 8.1 for SQL and Express can now be configured to not require users to enter the record count when reconciling bank accounts. To use this feature, unmark the Require Record Count checkbox in the BR Module Setup ► General tab. AccountMate will neither validate the transaction record count in Reconcile Bank Account nor check whether the transaction record counts match in the Information from Bank and Information from System sections. When used properly, this feature will help users perform and complete their reconciliation more quickly.
Subscription Information
If there is someone else in your office who would like to receive this NewsLine, please email newsletter@nexlan.com. In the meantime, browse through our archives.
If you would like to discontinue your subscription to this NewsLine, please click here.
