Category: online accounting

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Software and the Business Lifecycle

Every year, roughly 4.5 million US small businesses are started. The fuel which drives the American economy, small businesses account for more than 99% of all businesses in the US. And job creation happens in small business, which means growth also happens here. Growth happens at every stage of a business if the business is moving forward. From just starting out to achieving large enterprise status, the lifecycle of a business carries with it a multitude of learning moments.

As businesses implement solutions to manage accounting and operational needs, there is often less consideration for the agility of the solution to meet changing and expanding business needs than there is for affordability and the immediacy of the implementation. Small business owners frequently adopt solutions because they fit the needs now, not understanding what may happen when the business outgrows the solution. Sometimes a product meets the functionality requirements quite nicely yet can’t handle the increasing volume. These are among the issues facing growing businesses and forcing stakeholders to make more buying decisions regarding the software supporting the operation.

Each stage of a business where functional or process requirements change drives to another software buying decision. This buying decision is most often met with angst, as considerations include not only cost, but data conversion vs re-loading, new process or system design and setup, user training, proofing the system (running parallel?) and a host of other issues, not the least of which is the business benefit to be derived.

If information is power, too many businesses are losing that power when they migrate from one software product to another.

Businesses often lose valuable historical information by leaving transactional and other detail data behind when they change from one business software system to another.  This should be an area of focus and key discussion point when any change to systems is considered.  After all, the insight and business intelligence gathered over the years was likely instrumental in helping the small business grow to become a successful big business and will continue to be important for years to come.

Maximizing a return on investment is crucial with any business expenditure, whether it is in people, processes or systems.

The selection of software to support the operation plays a most important role in finding that value return, as the software is what empowers the people, guides the processes and drives the systems’ foundation. Knowing the crucial positioning of the software selection in supporting business growth and recognizing that future changes may risk loss of valuable business intelligence, the importance of the initial selection becomes that much greater.

Mendelson Consulting will help you review your business and processes, building an understanding of what functionality needs to be supported and how the business intends to operate. For businesses looking to take the next step, we help identify where automation can improve efficiency and productivity. With that understanding, we help business owners and stakeholders navigate through the overwhelming landscape of solutions and approaches to find the right one for your business.

At every step and stage of business growth, Mendelson Consulting looks ahead to what’s next, helping our clients plan for the future.

While we don’t have a crystal ball, our experience coupled with industry and product knowledge allows us to make recommendations which minimize loss of valuable business intelligence while maximizing the ROI of the software which it informs.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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Deadline Approaching for QuickBooks Desktop Users

All QuickBooks Desktop Users Are Required to Upgrade to a Current Subscription Model by Sep 30. Yes, the time has come to buy in to the software subscription model or lose access to your books. But at least you get to keep using QuickBooks desktop software, which is worth a lot of you’re already invested in QuickBooks.

Effective Sep 30, 2024, all existing users of QuickBooks Desktop Pro, Premier, Mac, and Enterprise Solutions v21 (and earlier) must transition to the annual subscription model. For Pro and Premier users, this is a short reprieve. Previously Intuit had announced a July deadline for renewing Pro/Premier licenses. After the now-September deadline, there won’t be any new sales of Pro or Premier licenses. With some of the recent price increases it almost becomes a moot point, as QB Enterprise is now priced similarly (less?) than Premier.

Something notable in all of this is that versions sold under non-subscription one-time licenses will be discontinued entirely. That is just fine for many users, however, as the much older versions don’t “phone home” to authorize the license, so they can keep working. The downside to that is vulnerability. Outdated and unpatched software is more vulnerable to risk than software that is actively updated to protect against various exploits. Best practices demand keeping software updated and patched. Being out of support with your business financial and accounting software is not a position you want to find yourself in.

Starting Oct 1, 2024, QuickBooks Enterprise will be the only QuickBooks Desktop version available for new purchases. For very small businesses, this is going to be a challenge as QB Enterprise is not as affordable as Pro was. These businesses may find that QuickBooks Online works for them, but they will not only miss out on a great deal of QB Desktop functionality that is not present in Online, but they will also be locked into the QuickBooks Online service model of receiving product updates without announcement, not having a backup of your company data, getting bombarded with a revolving door of add-on apps, and having literally no control whatsoever of where your data lives and how Intuit and its companies are accessing it.

If you are using an older version of QuickBooks Desktop, upgrading to the subscription model before the deadline is crucial to avoid any interruption of services.

What does this mean?

  1. Service Discontinuation:
    Failure to upgrade will result in the discontinuation of services such as QuickBooks Desktop Payroll, Payments, Online Backup, online banking, system updates, security patches, and live support. This could potentially disrupt your business operations.
  2. Immediate Action Needed:
    To ensure uninterrupted business operations, we strongly recommend planning your upgrade without delay.
  3. Advantages of Upgrading:
    Intuit encourages existing Desktop subscribers to upgrade to the current version (Desktop 2024) to benefit from the latest features, improvements, security updates, and bug fixes. Updated software also improves compatibility with current versions of Windows, Microsoft Office applications, Gmail services and other solutions that use modern methods of account protection and authentication.

At that time, you may also want to consider your alternatives to how and where you run your QuickBooks Desktop software.

Intuit offers “cloud access” with their QuickBooks Enterprise licensing, but this option is not your only or best option for running your QuickBooks Desktop/Enterprise software in the cloud.

With the bad guys (hackers) and malware being as prevalent as they are, businesses must be vigilant in securing their business and financial information. Shared hosting platforms where service providers allow many users from many businesses to operate on the same servers simply cannot provide the level of security or protection most businesses need.

Noobeh QBonAzure offers some limited shared hosting, but only for customers that have limited requirements and only for a few users. When a company needs more than just “vanilla” hosting for their valuable financial data, we strongly recommend going the private route and having your own cloud server.

Not just a “dedicated” server in a service provider’s network, Noobeh works only in the private Microsoft account of each customer, ensuring that there is absolutely no sharing of any resources with other customers. This allows us to build a system that works specifically for your business, with all the applications and services needed to support all aspects of operation. There aren’t different levels of service or service packages; each system is built and sized for the customer’s unique requirements, and we don’t charge per-application or silly things like that. You need what you need to run your business, and we host that.

Connect with us if you have any questions or need assistance during this transition. We will help you navigate the changes and understand how best to proceed for your business and circumstances, engaging with the right products and services to ensure continuity and set you up for greater future success.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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Enhancing Business Insight: Noobeh Cloud Services and Azure-Based Solutions

Technology is evolving and so are our ways of using it. While the rules of accounting haven’t changed for years, the solutions we use to do the work have changed a lot. Yet there remain many businesses that haven’t yet embraced the idea of fully digital workflows, integrating and automating how data moves through the “system” to provide a comprehensive view of the business and how it is performing.

This is where accountants and bookkeepers can best serve their clients, by helping them implement the platforms and solutions which transform operations and provide greater insight into these areas.

Over 20 years ago, a technology model was developed which allowed businesses and the accounting professionals who serve them to work directly and collaboratively in the clients’ accounting system. By hosting QuickBooks and Sage desktop products on host servers, small business users and their accountants could both access the software and the data in real time.

This new approach was a boon for accountants, bookkeepers and others working with small business clients as it not only enabled closer work, but also provided those advisors an opportunity to do more – and more complex – work with the client. Yet many platforms and working models created barriers to broadening the scope of service or access to client systems, limiting to just basic accounting products like QuickBooks, and not effectively addressing the rest of the business need.

As technology has evolved, so have these transformations.

More accounting professionals understand the benefits as well as the necessity of moving from analog to digital workflows, removing manual entry and improving efficiency and accuracy of data. Yet this improvement doesn’t require changing accounting software and undoing years of learning and business knowledge. Rather, the platforms and connections must be the primary focus, replacing the manual with automation and smoothing out the bumps where data isn’t flowing at all. If the system isn’t in place to handle the complete flow of the data, there is a break. Like a pipe leaking water, this break results in data loss – which is also loss of business intelligence.

A key to all of this is the consideration of where the data ultimately resides. When business data exists in closed silos – whether web-based software or closed hosting platform – it takes a comprehensive approach to collection, storage and analysis. This is among the benefits to be derived from the modern cloud and Noobeh’s Azure-based hosting approach.

Noobeh’s hosting is not just about the desktop or the applications.

The cloud platform, and Azure in particular, also provides resources for data analysis and business intelligence, workflow and data flow automations, improved security and identity management, IoT and computing on the network edge.

For professionals looking to evolve their practices by helping clients go beyond basic recordkeeping and reporting, it’s time to delve into the operational details, data flows and development of real business intelligence and insight. Noobeh Cloud Services and Mendelson Consulting have the platforms and the supporting services to help bring it all together, improving profitability and performance of their clients through the intelligent application of technology.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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Better QuickBooks Hosting with Noobeh

QuickBooks hosting is a type of service that allows small businesses to access their QuickBooks Desktop accounting software and data from anywhere with an internet connection. QuickBooks hosting fits into the modern cloud computing world by providing small businesses with a flexible and cost-effective way to manage their accounting and financial operations.

In the past, small businesses would need to install QuickBooks software on their own computers and maintain their own IT infrastructure to manage their accounting and financial data. This requires a significant investment in hardware, software, and IT staff, and makes it difficult for the business to scale their accounting operations as their business grows.

With QuickBooks hosting, small businesses can avoid these challenges by moving their accounting operations to the cloud. Yet not all QuickBooks hosting providers offer the same level of service or protection for your data.

Most QuickBooks hosting providers run the QuickBooks software and store the QuickBooks data on their own servers, renting space on the servers to its business customers. In most cases, many businesses will share the servers, which increases risk.

Noobeh works only with private environments where customers do not share servers or other resources. Each customer has their own private account and environment which is accessible to only their users via the Internet. This eliminates the need for small businesses to maintain their own IT infrastructure and allows them to scale their accounting and business operations up or down as needed.

QuickBooks hosting from Noobeh provides businesses with a number of other benefits, including:

Increased Security: Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure deliveries have advanced security measures in place to protect customer data from unauthorized access, data breaches, and other security threats.

Enhanced Collaboration: Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure allows multiple users to access and work on the same QuickBooks data at the same time, which can improve collaboration and productivity.

Automatic Backups: Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure performs regular backups of customer data, which can help ensure that important financial data is not lost in the event of a disaster or system failure.

Anytime, Anywhere Access: Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure allows small businesses to access their accounting data from anywhere with an internet connection, which can be especially useful for remote or distributed teams.

Totally Private: Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure runs on the Microsoft Azure platform and uses private Microsoft accounts, keeping things absolutely private for your business.

Noobeh’s QuickBooks on Azure hosting is a modern cloud computing solution that can help small businesses streamline their accounting and financial operations, reduce costs, and improve their overall efficiency.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J

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QBonAzure: QuickBooks on Microsoft Azure Delivers Great Success for Small Business


For any business, the resilience and agility of IT systems can mean the difference between performing adequately and performing with great success. When a business elects to run their QuickBooks applications and data on the Microsoft Azure cloud via QuickBooks on Azure (QBonAzure) from Noobeh, they gain numerous advantages not available with locally installed IT.

Microsoft Azure is a highly available platform, meaning that it has built-in redundancy to ensure that applications and data are always accessible, even in the event of a hardware failure. Businesses running on the platform never have to worry about whether or not their server is aging and may fail due to hardware issues.

The platform also allows Noobeh to easily scale each client’s system up or down as needed, without the need for additional installation work. This allows each client business to quickly respond to changes in demand and grow their operations as needed.

With Microsoft Azure, Noobeh can provide from a broad range of security features that are built-in as well as enhancing protection with advanced features and services from Azure, Microsoft 365 and more. This all goes to help protect against data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive information.

Azure has a global footprint, with data centers in multiple regions around the world. Noobeh provides services from all US-based Microsoft Azure regions, allowing businesses to host their QuickBooks in the location closest to their users, reducing latency and improving performance.

Azure also offers a wide range of services that may be integrated with QuickBooks or other business data, such as analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. This allows businesses to gain deeper insights into their financial data and make more informed decisions.

For businesses focused on compliance, Azure meets a wide range of industry standards and regulations, such as HIPAA, SOC 2, and PCI DSS. This can help businesses meet their compliance requirements and avoid penalties.

Overall, hosting QuickBooks on the Microsoft Azure platform can provide businesses with high availability, scalability, security, global reach, integration, and compliance advantages that can help them run their operations more efficiently and effectively.

Noobeh cloud services and QuickBooks on Azure utilize only the Microsoft cloud for their client deployments so that each business client has the benefits of big enterprise technology without the big enterprise price.

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J

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Connecting Your Web Store to QuickBooks on Azure

If you sell products via the Internet using a web store or shopping cart application, then you are probably facing the problem of getting your order and sales activities into QuickBooks and then getting shipping and product information back into the web store. For some, the additional need is to mirror the products and pricing information between the inventory management or financial system and the web store. In many businesses, this is a big chore and requires literally hours of redundant data entry and updating.

As with any manual process, there are many opportunities for errors and mistakes which ultimately cost the business both time and money.

Online selling is a dynamic business, and the sale is made when the customer is ready and willing to buy and the seller has the item available at the right price. The web store (ecommerce system) exists to process this sale in order to meet the immediacy of customer demand. If the system is not up to date with current product or pricing information, then the customer may not find what they want, and the sale is lost.

This means that the connectivity between the online selling system and the inventory/accounting system is of paramount importance in the ability to do business.

Synchronizing inventory information between the web store and the inventory/accounting system ensures that product and quantity information is updated on the web as product is sold and shipped (or received in). At the same time, importing invoices and sales receipts into the accounting system helps to ensure proper and accurate recording of sales and payment information and improves tracking of accounts receivable, shipping charges, and sales taxes.

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To make this connection between the Web store and the inventory/accounting software, an integration solution or connector is generally required. The connector gets installed on the same systems as the inventory/accounting solution (on the same systems as QuickBooks, in this case) and provides the mechanism to synchronize data between the web store and the accounting system.

Integrating an always-on web store with an on-site accounting solution can be a challenge, even for the most tech savvy business owner.

Creating seamless processes for exchanging data between these remote systems requires that both solutions be operating in a secure and accessible platform. While the web store is accessible via the Internet, getting to data in accounting and other systems residing on local PCs or networks is more problematic.

An option that many successful online businesses have adopted is NOOBEH‘s QuickBooks on Azure service, which provides centralized hosting and management for the QuickBooks desktop and any connected inventory or warehouse management applications as well as the integration to the web store.

Enabling the accounting and operational systems to be online and always on, like the web store, allows them to exchange data when and where it is required.

Connecting services in a secure and managed environment introduces new efficiencies and eliminates risk due to data entry errors or lost transactions. The QuickBooks on Azure cloud hosting service provides the system management, platform security and uptime required to ensure that the inventory and accounting systems supporting the always-on web store are also always on.

jm bunny feetMake Sense?

J