July 22, 2010

Updated: Sage MAS 90/200 Product Roadmap

Posted by Amy Shaver under Technology, What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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On July 21, Sage issued an updated roadmap describing added features and details about upcoming versions.  These roadmaps are published and updated on a regular basis to provide a guide for upcoming versions of Sage MAS 90/200.

The next release for Sage MAS 90/200 will be Sage MAS Intelligence at the end of August.  Sage MAS Intelligence (SMI) is a financial reporting replacement for FRx (which is being discontinued by Microsoft as of December 31, 2010).  SMI is an Excel-based tool that provides pre-defined financial reports, access to all MAS modules (not just GL), user-level security and consolidation of multiple companies.

In addition, the new roadmap outlines the proposed Product Updates for MAS 90/200.  Product Update 2 was released on July 14.  Future product updates are slated for September 2010, December 2010 and March 2011.  In addition, Version 4.45 is scheduled for release in October 2010.  Version 4.45 will provide Microsoft SQL Server 2008 support (new license customers only) and enhancements will be made to the payroll, sales order, purchase order and accounts receivable modules.

Sage ERP MAS 90 and 200 Roadmap – July 2010

 

July 20, 2010

How To Reduce IT Costs and Stress

Posted by John Shaver under Business Strategy, Technology | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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How can your small- to mid-sized business drastically reduce Information Technology (IT) costs and minimize the stresses of dealing with IT?  The answer is in the clouds.

Almost a year ago we completely eliminated our Exchange and Sharepoint servers.  Those two applications managed our e-mails and documents.

What replaced them?  Google Apps.  We quickly and easily moved all of our e-mail, documents, spreadsheets, images and presentations up to Google’s servers in the cloud.

My favorite part of Google Apps is a component called Google Sites.  Google Sites gives us the ability to setup a site for every project and share that site with our customers and business partners.  Sites make collaborating with the project team more effective by providing a real-time project management tool.

Let’s say that your design team and distribution center is in the Unites States and your manufacturing plant is in Mexico.  A Site could be created each time your company creates a new design.  Everyone on your project team would have the appropriate access to project scope documents, design images and the issues list.  Since these documents are maintained in real-time on the Site, management would have constant access regarding whether or not the project is staying on track.

So, how exactly does Google Apps reduce costs and stress?

Using Google Apps eliminates license fees for software such as Exchange and Sharepoint and it eliminates the need to pay IT costs to support and upgrade these applications.

There are two versions of Google Apps:  Standard and Premier.  The Standard version is free.  We elected to go with the Premier version at $50/user/year.  The Premier version provides us with additional storage space (25GB as opposed to 7.4GB) and includes spam filtering and virus scanning.

Because you are able to leverage Google’s virtual servers, you no longer have to worry about technical issues with servers at your site.  We were able to get rid of all but one server (and our goal is to get rid of it as well).  Not having to deal with servers was a huge reduction in stress for our company.

Are there downsides?  Of course.  We have experienced occasional periods of sluggish performance.  And without internet access it is a little tough to connect to the cloud.

If you are a real Excel power-user you may be disappointed in the functionality of the Google Apps spreadsheet.

However, here is the beauty of these types of Apps:  they are constantly being upgraded (sometimes daily).  The upgrades happen without any effort on your part and they are included in the annual price.

Will they eventually catch up to the functionality level of Microsoft Office?  Yes they will.  And I think they will surpass that functionality in the not too distant future.

Is your company using Google Apps?  If so, what has been your experience?

If not, why not?

 

June 30, 2010

Sage MAS 90 and 200 Product Update 2

Posted by John Shaver under What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |
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By mid-July, Sage will make Product Update 2 available for version 4.4 of Sage MAS 90 and 200.  Any customers who are on a current plan with their Sage maintenance agreement are eligible to receive the update.

In an effort to provide additional features and benefits on a more timely basis than the traditional once-a-year upgrade, Sage is releasing Product Updates on a quarterly schedule.  Each of these Product Updates will include both customer-requested features and select additions from the Extended Solutions catalog.

The modules that are enhanced in this Product Update are Accounts Payable, Bank Reconciliation and Paperless Office.  In addition a new utility is being added that will assist with identifying any data issues prior to the installation of the Product Update.

Accounts Payable:

  • ACH Electronic Payments.  Reduce operating costs and lessen the risk of lost or stolen checks by paying your vendors electronically.

Bank Reconciliation:

  • Automatically reconcile checks.  Use an electronic file downloaded from your financial institution to automatically mark checks as cleared.
  • Positive Pay export.  As a way to combat check fraud, many financial institutions are now requiring and/or offering lower bank charges for customers who implement a Positive Pay system.  The Positive Pay Wizard generates an electronic file containing key information about your checks.  That file is transmitted to the bank for use in comparing with the physical checks that are presented for payment against your account.
  • In check, deposit and adjustment entry, the comment field has been expanded to 2,048 characters.
  • Tighter controls over Bank Reconciliation adjusting entries.  You can specify which users are allowed to access and make adjust balance entries.
  • Enter checks, deposits and adjustments on-the-fly without leaving the Reconcile Bank screen.
  • Utility to recalculate the totals of all outstanding check, deposit and adjustment entries that have not been marked as cleared.

Paperless Office:

  • If you pay your vendors using the new ACH Electronic Payments for Accounts Payable, the Paperless Office module will create, electronically send and retain PDF copies of checks, extended stubs and remittance advices to your vendors.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions.

 

May 13, 2010

Incentives to Hire The Unemployed

Posted by Amy Shaver under Business Strategy | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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The HIRE Act (Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment), enacted March 18, 2010, is a plan to create jobs by providing a temporary tax break to companies that hire workers who were previously unemployed or worked part time.  Two new tax benefits are available to employers:

  1. The payroll tax exemption.  The first benefit provides employers with an exemption from the employer’s 6.2 percent share of social security tax on wages paid to qualifying employees.  This benefit would be effective for wages paid from March 19, 2010 through December 31, 2010.
  2. The new hire retention credit.   Businesses will also be eligible for a general business tax credit of 6.2 percent of wages paid to the qualified employee (employee must be retained for at least a year), up to a maximum credit of $1,000.

Visit the IRS website for more detailed information and check with your tax adviser on whether the new HIRE act applies to your company.

 

May 11, 2010

Potentially Costly New 1099 Regulation Slipped into Healthcare Bill

Posted by Amy Shaver under Business Strategy, Technology | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |
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Section 9006 of the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) mandates that after December 31, 2011 all companies will have to issue 1099 tax forms not just to contract workers but to any individual or corporation from which they buy more than $600 in goods or services in a tax year.  Chris Edwards of The Cato Institute published an insightful article entitled Costly IRS Mandate Slipped Into Health Bill about the new regulations.

The bottom line could be that this change may radically alter the nature of 1099 filing and require businesses to issue millions of 1099 documents each year.  The two key changes are:

  • 1099′s would be used to track payments not only for services but also for tangible goods.
  • Businesses would be required to issue 1099′s not only to individuals and partnerships but also to corporations.  This list could include items such as a new computer purchase from Apple, airline tickets for next year’s conference, monthly office rent and phone bills.  Almost every vendor for every business would become a 1099 vendor.

The full impact of this new regulation won’t be known until the IRS issues its regulations.  That will probably happen sometime next year.  We will continue to update this blog as more details are made public.

The Cato Institute was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, and is a highly-respected non-profit public policy research foundation headquartered in Washington, D.C.  For more information, visit www.cato.org.

 

April 22, 2010

Sage Announces A Blog

Posted by John Shaver under Business Strategy, Technology, What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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This past Thursday,  Sage unveiled their brand new corporate blog.   The folks at Sage chose me to become one of a select few guest writers for the blog.

My first post entitled “Why Does Work Suck?” explores an idea that has become a fundamental part of our business and personal philosophy.  That idea is a Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE).  The basic concept is for businesses to eliminate fixed work schedules, required meetings and rigid vacation/sick/personal policies and to focus on achieving results.

I expect to be a regular contributor to the Sage blog with as many as one post per month aimed at educating  some two million global Sage customers and prospects about a host of business and technology topics.  Some of my upcoming topics include:

  • How to reduce IT costs and stresses
  • How to initiate a project within your company
  • What is project management and why is it important?
  • Pricing strategies
  • How to choose a web designer

If there are any topics you are interested in learning more about, please feel free to make suggestions via a comment.  The topics can be specifically related to Sage and Sage products (such as MAS 90 or MAS 500) or anything related to business and technology.

The Sage blog is part of Sage’s overall social media strategy.  You can follow them on the Sage fan page on Facebook and on SageERP for Twitter.

And if you have not already checked them out, here are links to our blog feed, Facebook fan page and my Twitter page:

 

April 19, 2010

Updated: Sage MAS 90/200 Product Roadmap

Posted by Amy Shaver under Technology, What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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On February 18 I published an article (February 18 article) about Sage’s roadmap for upcoming versions and product updates in MAS 90/200.  By accessing the link below you’ll find a new roadmap published by Sage in March.  The new roadmap contains updated information specifically pertaining to the Extended Solutions that are expected to be incorporated into upcoming versions of MAS 90/200.

Extended Solutions are customizations for the MAS modules.  Previously, Sage announced they were getting out of the Extended Solutions business and would turn over support and future enhancement of the bulk of the solutions to authorized developers.  However, they are retaining 56 of what are considered the ‘most used’ solutions.  These 56 solutions will be gradually incorporated into future MAS 90/200 product updates over the next several years.

The new roadmap provides a timeline for incorporation of the Extended Solutions into the core product.  Click the link below to view the updated roadmap.

Sage MAS 90 and 200 Roadmap – March 2010

Sage MAS 90/MAS 200 Roadmap - Updated March 2010

 

April 16, 2010

New Requirements for Customers Who Accept Credit Cards

Posted by Amy Shaver under Technology, What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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Recent new requirements established by the five major credit card networks will most likely affect your company’s ability to accept credit cards.  These new standards are referred to as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS) and were developed by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa International.  Merchants will be required to follow these new standards by July 1, 2010.

Basically, PCI-DSS is a set of requirements for enhancing payment account data security.  The requirements include security management, policies, procedures, network architecture, software design and other measures created to protect customer account data.

There are 12 requirements that fall into six categories.

  1. Build and Maintain a Secure Network: Install and maintain a firewall and use unique, high-security passwords with special care to replace default passwords.
  2. Protect Cardholder Data: Whenever possible, cardholder data must not be stored. You must also encrypt any data passed across public networks, including your shopping cart and web-hosting providers.
  3. Maintain a Vulnerability Management Program: Use anti-virus and keep it up date. Develop and maintain secure operating systems and payment applications.
  4. Implement Strong Access Control Measures: Access to cardholder data – both electronic and physical – should be on a “need-to-know” basis. Ensure those people with access have a unique ID and password. Do not share logon information.
  5. Regularly Monitor and Test Networks: Track and monitor all access to networks and cardholder data. Ensure you have a regular testing schedule for security systems and processes including firewalls, patches and anti-virus.
  6. Maintain an Information Security Policy: It’s critical that your organization has a resource for governing your company’s data security. Ensure you have a policy and that it’s disseminated and updated regularly.

For Sage MAS 90 and 200 customers, versions 4.30.0.18 and 4.40.0.1 are in the process of being certified.   For Sage MAS 500 customers, version 7.3 will be compliant.  In addition, Sage Payment Solutions is a Level 1 credit card service provider and currently is in full compliance.

Please click here for additional information regarding PCI-DSS compliance in MAS 90 and MAS 200.  Click here for additional information regarding PCI-DSS compliance in MAS 500.

Image for PCI-DSS post


 

March 22, 2010

FRx To Be Replaced: New Financial Reporting Tool for Sage MAS 90/MAS 200/MAS 500

Posted by Amy Shaver under What's ahead for Sage and Sage Products? | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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FRx, the financial report writer used with MAS 90 and MAS 200, will no longer be sold by Microsoft after December 31, 2010.  Sage will provide support for FRx through December 31, 2012.

Sage has officially announced that Excel-based software add-on Sage MAS Intelligence from Alchemex will replace FRx as the financial report writer for MAS 90, MAS 200 and MAS 500.  Sage MAS Intelligence will be available in June, 2010.

One of the primary ways that Sage MAS Intelligence is different from FRx is that it supports using ALL of the MAS modules and not just the General Ledger module that FRx is limited to.  Sage MAS Intelligence works with Microsoft Excel 2007 to offer flexible reporting The look and feel is similar to a Microsoft Excel pivot table.  Other versions of Excel are also supported but the reporting wizard will only work with Excel 2007.

Each Sage customer on a current basic maintenance plan will receive one user (named license, can be installed and run on only one workstation) at no charge to replace their FRx single-user product.  Sage MAS Intelligence will work with MAS 90/MAS 200 Version 4.4 and MAS 500 Version 7.3.

Here are a few key points about the new Sage MAS Intelligence reporting tool:

  • Excel-based reporting tool with access to all MAS modules and data.
  • Includes some pre-defined operations and financial reports.
    • Dashboard Analysis
    • Financial Reports
    • Sales & Purchase Reports
    • Financial Trend Analysis
    • Multicompany Reports (connector add-on required)
  • User-level security available
  • Additional add-ins provide extra flexibility:  saving report outputs to specific location, publishing reports in html, emailing capability, ability to run reports from a desktop shortcut.

Stay tuned for further announcements and details regarding Sage MAS Intelligence!  In the meantime, please contact me if you have further specific questions.

 

March 12, 2010

New Webinar – PlanetTogether’s Scheduling Optimizes your Resources

Posted by amontgomery999 under Business Strategy, Technology | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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Join us for a Webinar on August 11

PlanetTogether’s Scheduling Optimizes your Resources

  • Advanced Planning & Scheduling systems save time and money
  • Allocate work to your resources based on your rules and requirements
  • Consider resource and material availability to enable better decisions
  • Coordinate sales, production, purchasing, and management with an interactive manufacturing plan
  • Connect your existing ERP and business systems
Title: PlanetTogether’s Scheduling Optimizes your Resources
Date: Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/699755968

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