Nonprofits empowered
AccuFund Accounting Suite V. 5.02
AccuFund Inc.
Nonprofit accounting software developer AccuFund has released the new version of its AccuFund Accounting Suite, with a number of enhancements and new features to help not-for-profit organizations better manage employee travel and work orders, among other things. Version 5.02 includes a new Travel Advance Management module for handling travel and expense requests, and sending approved requests to accounts payable. There are also finer levels of control in the Work Order module, so administrators can control who can initiate work orders, versus who can modify them, as well as enhanced functionality for W-2 corrections in year-end payroll processing.
Keeping up, and ahead
Tax and Accounting Center enhancements
Bloomberg BNA
Bloomberg BNA has been boosting the content and functionality of its Tax and Accounting Center research platform in a number of different areas. For federal tax, there's the mammoth new 2015 Federal Tax Guide; an enhanced selection of election statements; and new collections of tax diagrams and client engagement letters, among other things. In the international tax area, the company has added a wealth of resources and tools, including an International Withholding Tax Chart Builder, a VAT Navigator and Chart Builder, international tax forms for nearly 70 countries, and its interactive International Tax Developments Tracker. Other new tools and resources include the IRC Conformity Chart Builder for state tax, while in accounting they've added Fast Answers: Accounting, with answers to more than 2,800 common and not-so-common questions. It's all topped off with improved search functionality.
Admire the purity
Reconciliation on Fire
Doug Schiller
We all love sharks because of their purity -- all they do is swim and eat. But how much more impressive would they be if they only focused on doing one of those things perfectly? That's the Zen state that Reconciliation on Fire has attained - it lets you compare two ranges, and that's all. Not swimming and comparing two ranges, not comparing two ranges and eating - just comparing two ranges. But once you start to think about it, you realize the vast number of times you need to do that exact thing in the course of your average day as an accountant ... . There's an Excel version that you have to pay for, and a Web version that's free.
Not from the IRS!
TaxBuzz.com
ClientWhys
Like the idea of a Web-based list where taxpayers can find tax professionals, but hate the idea of signing up for the Internal Revenue Service's Annual Filing Season Program? Then consider the new TaxBuzz.com, which offers an online marketplace for tax pros that can include client reviews, as well as detailed information on the individual preparer. It has over 500,000 tax pros in its database, and you can "claim" your profile to personalize it. There are also premium profiles that can include spotlighted placement on map search results, and add-on tools for scheduling appointments, sending reminders, sharing documents, handling e-signatures, and more.
Advice exchange
Pillars of Wealth, Books 1 and II
TLB Publishing; $18.95 each
Doctors and CPAs have this in common: Obnoxious strangers ask them for free advice at parties. They also have this: They've spent so much time and effort becoming experts in their respective fields that they can hardly be expected to be experts elsewhere. That's why CPAs go to doctors when they're sick, and why doctors and other medical practitioners should go to qualified accountants when they need business and financial guidance -- which they desperately do. The two volumes of the Pillars of Wealth series dive deep into the issues that they face, both as individuals and in their practices, and are well worth sharing with your clients in this area (and maybe reading yourself ...).
All chiefs
The Hidden Leader: Discover and Develop Greatness within Your Company
Amacom Books; $24.95
The accounting profession (and every firm and organization in it) is in the midst of a much-discussed search for its next generation of leaders, with the commonly voiced concern being that it will be difficult to fill all sorts of top-level positions in the coming years.
That's certainly important, but The Hidden Leader makes the very interesting point that leadership isn't necessarily about title or position -- it's about what you do and how you act, and you can act like a leader even in the lowliest position. In fact, the book is based on the premise that that sort of leader exists at every level of an organization, and that you should cultivate them. Not to fill positions, but to improve your firm, serve your clients better and hold them up as models for the rest of your staff.
Solve free will
Jetpack Workflow
JetpackWorkflow
The problem with people is free will, which allows them to go off and do things without telling you, or to not do the things you tell them to do, or otherwise operate outside of your direct supervision. While they can't yet be reduced to mindless automatons completely responsive to your will, Jetpack Workflow at least allows you to keep track of what they're doing (if they're staff), or what you need to do for them (if they're clients). The cloud-based task-tracking and management tool is designed specifically for accountants to help them reduce time spent on administration and to better manage client work and staff time.
Things you're bad at
The Truth Doesn't Have to Hurt: How to Use Criticism to Strengthen Relationships, Improve Performance, and Promote Change
Amacom Books; $17.95
We here at New Products have been meaning to tell you that you're terrible at giving constructive feedback, but we weren't able to figure out a nice way to tell you how badly you've been doing it all these years. Fortunately, you can improve your abysmal skills in this area by reading The Truth Doesn't Have to Hurt, which can teach even someone as clueless as you how to criticize employees in such a way that they are able to understand and act on what you're saying, without taking offense the way they usually do with you. The book offers plenty of tips for correcting and criticizing in ways that improve relationships and performance. You need to read it right away.
Glad we had this little talk!
New and improved!
Kashoo released the Kashoo Accounting Quick Entry app for Android devices that lets users capture receipts and invoices quickly and easily. ... e2b teknologies has partnered with collections expert Michelle Dunn to embed her Dunn Collecting resource kit into its Anytime Collect accounts receivable management software. The kit includes collection letter templates and call scripts.
