1. Compliancy: It’s not a great feeling having the IRS look over your shoulder, threatening the life of your business. No body wants to cut corners or fudge numbers when it comes to your finances, but sometimes you just don’t have access to the information you need. Microsoft Dynamics ERP software ensures you have tracking capabilities and audit trails so you’re never put in a bad situation. You can trust the numbers and have confidence that the IRS won’t find discrepancies.
2. Accurate Financial Positioning: Not knowing where you stand financially can put numerous halts on business. This makes it difficult to make informed business decisions that affect the sustainability of your company. Microsoft Dynamics ERP software helps you see where you stand with easy-to-read and easy-to-analyze dashboards and Key Performance Indicator (KPI) reports. You’ll no longer be making “Best Guesses” about your business, thus putting you ahead of the competition.
3. Reducing Accounting Overhead: Most companies don’t realize the overhead they acquire within their accounting department because of manual procedures. They figure that’s how it’s always been done and it seems to be working. Many companies are realizing that Microsoft Dynamics ERP cuts down unnecessary overhead because it automates daily accounting tasks and integrates with third party software. It would be wise to run a “what if” scenario of how ERP software can actually save you money, just by cutting back resources.

Every business needs a tool to help manage their finances. This can vary from Excel Spreadsheets to an advanced ERP system such as Microsoft Dynamics ERP, but whatever your situation, make sure you have your financial management in check. If you have questions on how Microsoft Dynamics ERP can help you, contact us at Sikich.

By Sikich, Microsoft Dynamics ERP Partner based out of Missouri

Three Reasons Why ERP Software is a Must for Financial Management is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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InterDyn Artis has the Microsoft Dynamics GP expertise needed to help their lumber clients meet these challenges. One of our Microsoft Dynamics GP clients, Edwards Wood Products (Edwards), founded in 1969 and headquartered in Marshville, North Carolina has grown into a premier lumber business operation with 5 locations throughout South Central North Carolina. Their business operations consist of procurement of forest properties, transportation to/from the mill, complete mill operations, pallet manufacturing, kiln drying/grading, and distribution of high grade hardwood lumber for domestic and overseas markets.

As a smaller business Edwards found RealWorld to be a satisfactory system but as their business grew the RealWorld system just did not cut it. Because of this growth and complexity, Edwards began an evaluation of its business solution and decided it wanted a more powerful, higher-end solution. After a review of multiple industry specific solutions, Edwards decided that a foundation built around industry leading Microsoft Dynamics was the right choice.

Before Microsoft Dynamics GP, month-end closings were difficult to complete and very time consuming. One of the main reasons Edwards looked to a new solution was for financial reporting needs. With RealWorld, financial reports weren’t being completed thoroughly or in a timely manner, causing considerable concern for Edwards’ executive management who needed to make critical decisions based on the company’s finances.

Financial statements for all business operations as completed by location, division, and work center were prerequisites of a new software package. Microsoft Dynamics GP met and exceeded expectations from a reporting standpoint.

With Microsoft Dynamics GP, Edwards has established a core business system foundation that has dramatically increased the efficiency of the operations by automating data flow and reducing manual labor. Other benefits include:

• Financial Reports: Management Reporter has significantly lessened the time spent waiting for financial reports. Critical business information is retreived in minutes—these reports were unobtainable with RealWorld and had to be completed as a separate process within Excel. Edwards saved aproximately 2 days each month by automating the preparation of its financial statements.
• Intuitiveness: As a user-friendly system, employees quickly adapted to Microsoft Dynamics GP after the implementation with virtually no downtime. In fact, employees were able to generate much better reports in considerably less time.
• Daily Processing: Microsoft Dynamics GP has provided a vast improvement in the day-to-day processing of accounts receivable, accounts payable, and collections. What previously had been a multi-step process is now a very simple process, saving both time and effort. Edwards saved an estimated 40 hours per month by automating accounts receivable.
• Labor Rededication: Employees who were dedicated to running RealWorld and generating reports in Excel are now focused on profit generating opportunities within Edwards.

Watch a short video of Edwards Wood Products and learn how Microsoft Dynamics GP gave them the edge to remain competitive in today’s lumber market.

Today’s software must be designed and deployed with industry-specific needs and functionality. InterDyn Artis, a Microsoft Dynamics partner located in Charlotte North Carolina, provides the lumber industry with tailored Microsoft business solutions that extend far beyond the robust accounting functionality found in Microsoft Dynamics GP. By integrating logging, lumber inventory, time clocks, equipment maintenance, and other systems, InterDyn Artis has knitted a best of breed technology. Contact InterDyn Artis today and let us help you become competitive in today’s lumber market with Microsoft Dynamics GP.

by InterDyn Artis, North Carolina Microsoft Dynamics Partner

Microsoft Dynamics GP Meets the Challenges of the Lumber Industry is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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1. Improve in multiple accounting management areas. Obviously, the release of Microsoft Dynamics GP 2012 will improve GP to a whole new level. This launch will include improvements to fixed assets, accounts payable, accounts receivable, bank reconciliation and more. Although the version will launch in 2012, it will be later, so will affect your business in 2013. Nevertheless, something great to look forward to.
2. Turn the heat up on the cloud. The cloud was hot in 2011, and it will continue to be hot in 2012 for Microsoft Dynamics GP. Microsoft is committed to offering ERP solutions in the cloud so companies of all sizes and growth stages can benefit from the advanced business functionality.
3. Provide even better business intelligence features. Reporting is top of mind for the majority, if not all organizations when their ERP solution is involved. If you can’t see or analyze the information it’s gathering, then it’s not really improving your business. Because everyone wants better and streamlined reporting, there may be more than your company needs, but Microsoft has covered the bases on this one.

I’m confident Microsoft Dynamics GP will keep its 2012 New Year resolutions as Microsoft’s roadmap is pretty clear on the three points above. If you would like more information about Microsoft Dynamics GP, please contact us at Rimrock Corporation.

By Rimrock Corporation, Toronto Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner

New Year’s Resolutions for Microsoft Dynamics GP is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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As an insurance agency, they had unique reporting requirements and had to report on a statutory basis instead of an accrual basis. With QuickBooks, they had to jump through a lot of manual hoops to make the reporting fit their needs and even then they felt it couldn’t be 100% trusted. They knew manual processes increased the risk greatly for entry errors.

They also didn’t have the ability do detailed budgets in QuickBooks because the tracking capabilities didn’t go deep enough. This meant budget allocations were extremely difficult to manage because they couldn’t see what department needed funds and/or resources at any given time, making room for a lot of financial miscommunication throughout their organization. In QuickBooks, they never really had an audit trail because changes weren’t tracked appropriately. When someone made an adjustment, there was no tracking of who did it, when they changed it, or even why they made that change. In addition to compliance risk, this escalated confusion across the company.

One of the biggest pains they experienced was in accounts payable. They have many vendors they work with across multiple states that require unique tax code requirements and more. QuickBooks didn’t allow them to consolidate vendors, so each time they had to send a check, they had to create a new account. This greatly limited their ability to track payments because they had so many that went out on a regular basis.

These growing pains were essentially time bombs ready to go off if an audit team showed up. Luckily, our experienced consulting team and Microsoft Dynamics® GP was able to help them out of this bind with a number of enhanced financial and reporting functionalities:

• Unique Reporting: With Management Reporter in Microsoft Dynamics GP, they now have access to the reporting they need. They can have separate general ledgers that helps create statutory reports versus the normal accrual reporting. They can also see segmented financial statements so if they need reports for multiple departments, they can produce a consolidated statement and drill down into individual departments. It’s set up similar to a reporting tree and really helps our client gain insight into their business finances to make better decisions as well as proactively resolve issues before they even start.
• Advanced Budgeting: Because of this detailed reporting, they can monitor their current expenses against their revenue to determine whether they’re going over budget in a particular department or have an excess of money that can be leveraged elsewhere. These reporting trees have allowed our client to do proper allocations across departments so departments are now funded appropriately.  Microsoft Dynamics GP also gives them the flexibility to do multiple budget versions so they’re never really restricted by their accounting solution.
• Tracking: Our client now has complete audit control of their General Ledger. In Microsoft Dynamics GP, they can make an adjusting journal entry and have complete tracking of who made the change, when it was altered, and the reason behind it. These tighter audit controls included in Microsoft Dynamics GP make their accounting system more secure so they can be confident in their records.
• Multiple Vendor Locations: Our client can now manage their accounts payable much more efficiently and their vendors get paid on time. Accounts Payable in Microsoft Dynamics GP allows them to consolidate their vendors. If one vendor has multiple addresses, they can create it under the same master account, making reporting much more accurate and easier to manage. At any given time, they can see where the payment is based on a payment ID. This efficiency as greatly improved their cash flow as they can now strategically plan and schedule payments to meet the needs of their vendors as well as their cash flow needs.

Being in more control has increased their trust factor greatly in their new accounting solution, and Microsoft Dynamics GP continues to see them through their unique financial management needs.

By The TM Group, Michigan Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM Partner for Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics SL, Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Microsoft Dynamics CRM and SharePoint

Insurance Agency Switches from QuickBooks to Microsoft Dynamics GP for Stronger Financial Reporting Compliance is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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 ERP software is used mostly for financial or supply chain management. Because it manages these important parts of your business, it’s the obvious choice to help your company go green. Business intelligence available within your ERP software gives you the insight needed to make decisions that will help you go green.

 Let’s say you’re trying to decide where to cut corners. How can you make an accurate decision without insight into your sales and operations? With ERP software, you can see if one product or services sells better than the rest, helping you optimize on that profitability. You can also take a look internally to see what kind of issues each of your departments run into on a daily basis. If you can proactively eliminate obstacles by just running some analysis, the more sustainable your operations become and the better chance your company has at going green.

 If you house hardcopy files of your financial documents, it takes up space in your office and it’s extremely difficult to manage or even find information. ERP software helps you keep this financial information on your computer in a safe and secure place. It’s also much easier to file, manage, and track to ensure compliance. While increasing your efficiency, you are saving the trees without the need to print loads and loads of paper.

 Whether you want to attain a greener workplace or simply just do more with less in the New Year, Microsoft Dynamics GP may be the solution you’ve been waiting for. Contact us here at Cargas Systems for more information.

 By Julie Fuller with Cargas Systems, Delaware Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner

Leverage Business Intelligence with Microsoft Dynamics GP for a Greener Workplace is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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35 Questions Every CFO Needs to Ask About ERP Software in the Cloud

This simple, easy-to-follow white paper will  help you compare the benefits and risks of ERP/financial management software in  the cloud.

In the white paper, you will learn about:

• Cloud definitions
• Potential benefits of Cloud ERP
• Common concerns of Cloud ERP
• Compliance considerations for Cloud ERP
• Licensing questions for Cloud ERP
• Sample cost comparison for Cloud ERP vs.  on-premise ERP
• Business challenges and deployment options for  Cloud ERP

In addition to the information above, the white paper also  includes nine informative graphs and a sample comparison chart providing a  simplified 5-year model to evaluate the cost of various ERP deployment options  including on-premise, on demand and hosted deployment.

Download the white paper today and find out all you need to know about ERP in the  Cloud.

And contact BroadPoint, the largest Microsoft Dynamics GP reseller in the mid-Atlantic,  at skane@broadpoint.net or 301-634-2404 for more information on what deployment model will work best for your organization.

Broad Point Technologies, Virginia Microsoft Dynamics partner

Is Your Organization Ready for ERP in the Cloud? is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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• Jumpstarts my business- An ERP solution should jumpstart a business, not hold it back. If you feel limited with what you can do because of your ERP solution, then it’s a major sign that you’re ready for a change of pace. ERP solutions should scale with your growing business and meet your needs now and into the future. Similar to my latte, my ERP solution gives me the little boost I need to get going in the right direction.
• Energizes my team- In addition to jumpstarting business processes, an ERP solution should energize your team, not frustrate them. User adoption can be a huge issue at companies with an outdated ERP solution. The solution ends up causing more headaches than helping, resulting in employees opting out of using it at all. When this happens, no one is on the same page and most everyone is dealing with time-consuming and manual processes. Similar to my latte, my ERP solution gives my employees the energy they need because they don’t have to seek manual workarounds and it’s easy to find the information they need.
• Enhanced productivity- The right ERP solution jumpstarts, energizes, and revitalizes the workplace and a huge benefit of this is enhanced productivity. With people working together, fueled by the real-time and accurate information provided by their ERP solution, productive things happen. Tasks become more efficient, teams become more effective, and team leaders/managers become more proactive. Similar to my latte, my ERP solution gives me the tools to be more productive with my time.

All this talk about lattes is making me want one more. If all this talk about an ERP solution is making you want to change out your current situation, feel free to contact us at Cargas Systems. We are a Microsoft Dynamics® GP Partner and would be happy to answer your questions.

By Julie Fuller with Cargas Systems, Delaware Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner

How an ERP Solution is Like my Morning Latte is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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There is no doubt that the economy has made every business think twice about expenditures, operations, and how to remain profitable.  Changes in consumer demand, cost of business, and uncertainty with the global economy have had a significant impact on businesses.  The economic uncertainty has caused businesses to stockpile cash and limit capital expenditures.  This could be one reason behind the slight decline in ERP system purchases.  Many businesses that are not using ERP software right now do not have the full insight into their financials and operations.  This in itself can lead to challenges in understanding whether or not they can afford to purchase an ERP software system in the first place.

ERP software such as Microsoft Dynamics® GP and Microsoft Dynamics NAV provides deep insight into business financials and powerful control over operations.  Microsoft Dynamics GP moves the most important business data, your accounting and financials, from paper and spreadsheets into a single, easy to use program.  Controls within the software ensure that critical data is entered appropriately, reducing the chance for human error.  Automating calculations, approval routings, and financial transactions saves valuable time.  Since the software is so easy to use, your financials are kept current.  No more waiting for month-end or quarter-end to determine the status of budgets or cash flow.  One of the best features of Microsoft Dynamics GP is the Business Analyzer which will help you find the right information and print off intelligent financial reports that will help you make important decisions about your business and keep you competitive in your marketplace.

Microsoft Dynamics NAV takes ERP to a whole new level with modules tailored for the manufacturing, supply chain, distribution, and other industries.  Adding other business operations into software will show you how to streamline processes, remove overlapping tasks and waste, and how to optimize the differentiators  of your business.  Automating business operations, such as inventory management, will help reduce costs, save time, and reduce the chance for errors.  Sales and marketing data can also be entered to help you identify potential sales opportunities, improve customer satisfaction, and build loyalty.

The use of ERP software such as Microsoft Dynamics GP and Microsoft Dynamics NAV is giving businesses a significant advantage over their competition.  Users of ERP software have greater visibility into their business, have more control over their financials, and can make quicker business decisions.  The sales of ERP software are certain to grow as businesses discover that they can afford such intelligent business management software as Microsoft Dynamics GP and Microsoft Dynamics NAV.  Not only can they afford to buy it, they are realizing that they can’t afford not to.

By Jim Krahn with BDO Solutions, Leading Canadian Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM Partner

ERP Software Spending is on the Incline Again is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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Do you need to be able to create boardroom quality reports without having to commission your IT staff for the task?  With Management Reporter this is doable!  Here are just a few of the key enhancements you’ll find in Management Reporter:  

• Improved User interface that is consistent with other Microsoft Office Applications
• Built on a 64 bit environment
• More stable with Microsoft .Net Platform and C# codebase
• Processing takes place on the server rather than the client
• Uses SQL Server for data storage
• Report Library provides a centralized location for report distribution and collaboration

Benefits of using Management Reporter include improved performance and stability and our employees will be to get the information quickly to make informed decisions by having the data in a centralized place in the Report Library. To learn more about reporting capabilities in Management Reporter and Microsoft Dynamics GP, contact DFC Consultants at 800-277-5561.  If you are an existing FRx user,  DFC Consultants can show you how you can upgrade to Management Reporter and how your existing reports will migrate.  DFC Consultants is a Microsoft Certified Training Center and we offer Management Reporter Classroom Training in our Fargo, ND office.      

DFC Consultants is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner specializing in Microsoft Dynamics GP and CRM . Since 1989, DFC has been providing accounting software solutions, training and support in our offices in Fargo, Bismarck, and Dickinson, North Dakota.  Our passion is to assist clients in meeting their goals with professional services and powerful business solutions. 

By Vanessa Veflin, North Dakota Microsoft Dynamics GP Partner

Improve Reporting Capabilities with Management Reporter is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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With business intelligence (BI), you can design reports right on your screen and manipulate the columns and rows and scales, remove outliers—generally work out what you want to see by dragging and dropping elements.  BIO business intelligence was written especially for Microsoft Dynamics and, with its deep connectors, can get you up and running in no time.  Here are 7 reasons to consider using BI to meet reporting needs:

1.  Content.  With BIO’s extensive content, even your non-technical people can write and run reports, easing the IT bottleneck and reducing the time you need to wait for new reports to zero.  With pre-programmed reports that can be modified to suit your needs, pre-configured cubes, pre-defined hierarchies, and pre-programmed calculations, creating reports becomes a matter of what you need to see and not what you need to know to get it programmed.

2.  Consistency.  If everyone is using the same data, the same terminology, the same hierarchies, the same calculations, and the same periods, your results will be consistent and reconcilable from one user to another.  You can save and share reports that you create so everyone will be working, literally, from the same page.

3.  Access.  You can run any report on demand.  You’ll have the most current data for decision making.  Or you can run reports for any period you want so you can make accurate comparisons.  BIO will show only the data the user has access to so you won’t have to wait for unnecessary processing.

4.  Flexibility.  When the person who requests the report looks at the finished product, he or she is likely to say, “Oh, this is great!  Can you just add another column for…?”  If this request then has to go back to IT, it could be days or even weeks before the new report is produced.  Sure, you could pre-plan the report, do mock-ups, pull together a focus group to evaluate the mock-up, send it for programming, and cross your fingers that you’ve thought of everything.  But there is usually somebody who wants a “little tweak” that can cause lengthy delays and rework.  With BIO, it takes minutes and a few clicks and, in most cases, the person who needs the information can produce it himself.

5.  The need to know more.  In the same vein, sometimes reports generate more questions than they answer.  “How come this number is so big?”  “Customer X bought only this much in the past 3 months?  I thought they were one of our top 10 customers—what happened?”  “The Eastern region has more revenue than any other region—why is their contribution so low?”  Trying to get the answers through static reports can mean cross-referencing to other reports and a lot of reconciliation work.  But with BIO, questions like these can be answered on the spot by drilling down or pulling up related data that is not contained in the report.

6. Visualization.  BI tools allow you to change your view of the data at a click.  You can change from a tabular view of the data to a graphical view.  Don’t like the graph?  Change the x-axis or the y-axis or change from a bar chart to spark lines.  Or put year-over-year results on the same graph to track seasonality.  Try adding margins to your revenue graphs or inventory balance to your overtime reports.  Or change the periods.  Are outliers skewing the results?  Eliminate them.  Want to look at a subset of the data?  “Lasso” the data and home in on just those data points.  Look at 3 or 4 or even 5 variables at the same time using colors, shapes, and size to represent variables that can’t be accommodated in tables or 2-dimensional graphics.  Graphical visualizations aren’t just pretty—used properly, they can be a virtual light bulb in your data discovery.

7. Consolidations.  This data is in this system and that data is in that system, but sometimes it makes sense to look at consolidated data.  Consolidations of multiple Dynamics databases or Dynamics data with non-Dynamics data in BIO make it easy for your non-technical user to consolidate the data of multiple subsidiaries or financial and operational data.

But keep in mind, BI is not just a reporting tool—it’s a whole lot more.  Business intelligence lets you look at your data visually and manipulate it “at the speed of thought.”  It lets you discover trends, outliers, correlations, and anomalies.  You can dig deeper, consolidate, aggregate, translate, and calculate.  You can use BI to alert you to necessary action, help you make better, more timely decisions, and share your discoveries with the right people through dashboards, PowerPoint presentations, SharePoint, web parts, and, yes, reports.   Think about BI for you next report—think about BIO.

Join BIO for a free business intelligence webinar to get to see how BIO business intelligence software can help you meet your reporting needs.  And please contact me at 203.705.4648 or by email at sandi@bio4analytics.com if you have any questions about BIO or business intelligence in general.

By Sandi Forman of BIO Analytics, Corp., Microsoft Dynamics Business Intelligence (BI) Solution Provider

View demos of our business intelligence software and services for Microsoft Dynamics.

7 Reasons Microsoft Dynamics ERP Users Should Consider BI for Reporting is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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