Posted by Plus Sales on Fri, Jul 23, 2010 @ 11:39 AM
by Brian Morris, brian@plus.ca
One of the more frustrating tasks for the average Accpac user occurs when they are presented with a multi-line order, which needs to be rekeyed on a regular basis. Not only does this waste a lot of time in the sales/order entry departments, but it can potentially lead to errors on subsequent orders. There a few methods of automating this process, but let’s first consider the most basic approach: the copy orders function.
In the example above, the OE clerk has just posted a complicated order for ACME Plumbing, with different comments attached to various line items. If another customer then places a similar order to the one just created, the Copy Order function would be used. To run this feature, click on the icon found in the O/E Transactions folder of Order Entry, as in the image below.
On the screen that pops up, you need to enter the Customer Number of the client you want to copy from and to (in the case of a repeat order for the same client, this number could be identical). Then you simply need to specify the quote or order number that you’d like to clone, and click on the blue arrows.
Once clicked, you will then see the individual line items from the cloned order appear (see below). If any of them need to be modified or deleted, you can do this from this screen. In addition to the standard order entry fields, you can also edit the Optional Fields by selecting that tab on the same page. When the order looks correct, just hit the “Create” button at the bottom-left of the screen, and the new order number will be displayed.
That concludes our look at the Copy Orders function, but in an upcoming post we will look at other methods of reducing duplicate entry, such as employing Standing Orders. Please check back often, and post any questions or comments below!
Posted by Alison Boons on Mon, Jul 05, 2010 @ 01:18 PM
As you are all aware, the HST arrived on July 01, 2010. Some of you may have noticed the difference on your purchases over the weekend, some may have not. Either way, it is here!
Have you not changed all your systems over, or are unsure what you should be charging HST on? The CRA still has HST sessions available & Plus is still offering our fixed fee services to help you implement the HST.
If you are still stuck, 5 days in to the new tax, give us a call today! We are here to help!
Posted by Wendy Gorrie on Fri, Jun 25, 2010 @ 12:38 PM
Sage North America has recently launched a new website (Portal) in an effort to better serve all of their customers.
For us "old dogs" who need some assistance learning these new tricks here are some quick links and helpful information to assist with the transition to the new site.
Accessing the New Portal
The contact person in Sage's database, for your company, would have already received an email from Sage with, see email below, your new Account ID#, details about settings required for Internet Explorer in order to view the portal and details on how to register for access to the Portal. Details of that email are as follows;
Important Logon Information for Your Account
Company Name: <>
New Account ID: <>
As we previously informed you, Sage is in the process of significantly restructuring our internal business management systems. This change will help provide you a unified experience with Sage including more personalized service and a new customer portal.
Your new account number is listed above. Please keep this email in your records to use when you contact us. This will help us access important account information as we help serve you.
We are also excited to announce the launch of our new Sage Customer Portal. You will be able to access account information, key information on your software, and access online support tools.
In order to access the customer portal, you will need to register for a user name and password using your account ID. If you use Internet Explorer 8, enable compatibility view. Go to Tools > Compatibility View Settings and click "Add".
Follow these instructions, to ensure you gain access today:
1. Click here to access the portal logon.
2. Click on "Need to Register?"
3. Select "Register as an Individual" and enter your new Company ID (provided in this email) in the box after "Enter your Sage Company ID or Reference Number".
4. Click "Register".
5. Enter your contact information. Your email address will be your log in ID to the Customer Portal.
6. Select and enter your password. Your password must contain at least 8 characters with at least one alpha, one numeric, and one special character.
7. Click "Save".
After your initial logon, you can visit https://customers.sagenorthamerica.com/, click "Logon" and use your new logon information you've just created. If at any time you have questions about how to log on or accessing information, please contact Sage at 877-828-6372.
You can also visit Sage's customer site for more information including frequently asked questions, video demos on how to use the new site, and more. Click here to learn more.
Navigating the New Portal
Ensure that you read and follow the instructions for Internet Explorer setting changes you may need to make, based on the version of Internet Explorer you are currently using.
Once you have logged in to the Sage Portal this link will direct you to a customer resource page where the most common navigation links are predefined for you.
Customer Technical Resource Center
Sage Accpac ERP | Sage CRM
Note: Please make sure you are logged into your Portal account for the links listed below to work.
Communities & Online Resources
Links to Commonly Visited areas in the Customer Portal
Product Downloads & Service Packs
Please note that the below links requires a current maintenance or support contract
Language Overlays
Please note files for Language Overlays for 5.6 Sage Accpac ERP are included with the program.
Sage ERP Accpac Payroll clients can find the instructions and downloads for Payroll Tax Updates, Click here. The following communication excerpt was sent out regarding the downloading of Payroll Tax Tables;
Tax Table Update - July 1, 2010
Both the U.S. and Canadian governments have announced changes that may affect your Sage Accpac ERP Payroll Update Plan (PUP) clients. Sage has incorporated these changes into the July 1, 2010 payroll tax updates for Sage Accpac versions 5.4, 5.5, and 5.6, which will be available for download on June 22, 2010. CDs will ship at the end of June.
Sage has received feedback that Portal navigation is challenging & have included the steps necessary for navigating these downloads.
Follow these steps to find your Tax Updates to download:
- Log on to the portal by entering your username and password (you must be logged in or you cannot access the Tax Updates)
- Click here
- Read the Download Instructions
- Select the Tax Update you need to install
Important Update: Installation Process Change
Activation Codes are no longer required. This modification to the installation process requires some additional requirements. Please ensure you update your installation process appropriately.
Critical: Product Update Requirements
Before installing the payroll tax update, you must verify your service pack or product update level first. More details on the error you will receive if you are not running the correct Product Update for your version can be found in the Answer ID 28923 Knowledge Base article. To verify what service pack or product update you have installed, click the System Information option in the Help menu in your Sage Accpac ERP program.
- If you are on Payroll 5.4A, System Manager Service Pack 3 or higher is required
- If you are on Payroll 5.5A, System Manager Product Update 3 or higher is required
- If you are on Payroll 5.6A, it is recommended that you install Product Update 1 before installing the Tax Update
Resources
The Knowledge Base offers several articles to assist with completing your update, including:
Sage Accpac Customer Support is prepared to help you during the hours of Monday - Friday from 6:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PT.
Plus Computer Solutions is volunteering to assist Sage as part of an advisory council to ensure any usability issues are identified and resolved, if you have difficulty with navigation or have any questions about the new portal here are some helpful contact numbers.
How do I contact Sage for assistance with the Customer Portal?
For assistance with the Sage Customer Portal for Sage Accpac ERP or Sage CRM, contact Sage at 1.877.828.6372.
If you do run into difficulty and are having trouble obtaining help, please feel free to contact me at wendy@plus.ca or by phone at 604.420.1099 I will do my very best to assist you.
Posted by Alison Boons on Tue, Apr 13, 2010 @ 02:13 PM
Plus Computer Solutions Ltd. a Sage Accpac, Sage CRM and Sage Simply Enterprise Accounting software reseller was officially accredited as a member of the Better Business Bureau.
Plus also received the highest possible status a new orginization can receive with an A+ ranking.
Plus Computer Solutions is very proud to be a member of the BBB and will make every effort to ensure we maintain this status.
For more information on the Better Business Bureau of British Columbia go to http://mbc.bbb.org/
Posted by Glen Mund on Wed, Mar 10, 2010 @ 01:19 PM
As mentioned in the previous post, below is some information provided by the CGA that every business should consider so that they are best prepared for the HST.
To begin the preparation process, consider all facets of an organization that are affected by sales taxes (for example, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, purchasing, forecasting and budgeting); this can be a very time consuming task. The benefit of spending time preparing for implementation is a reduction in costly errors, surprises for overlooked issues, and future audit exposures.
Below are a number of issues businesses need to consider for the sales tax implementation.
Collection of Sales Taxes
- Amend Software and/or tax table used to generate invoices, debit and credit notes to accommodate additional tax rates/codes.
- Amend automated system-generated entries (e.g. monthly inter-company charges, monthly rent charges or management fees to reflect the sales tax codes/rates).
- Consider the impact of harmonization on real property contracts during the transitional period and after implementation.
- Determine if prepayments have been made before the implementation date. The transitional rules may be used to determine the tax rate applicable in these situations.
- Develop special codes for point-of-sale rebates for the provincial component of BC HST and OVAT if applicable.
- Do a product and service sales tax analysis. Many goods, services, intangible personal property and real property non-taxable under the old Ontario sale tax legislation will now become taxable as a result of harmonization
- However, unless a supply is specifically excluded from BC HST or OVAT (e.g. books, children's clothing), or under a specific Ontario or BC levy post-harmonization (e.g. in Ontario certain insurance premiums), the sales tax status will be consistent with current GST rules, which will simplify tax administration for businesses.
- Do not delete or deactivate old tax rate codes since it may be necessary to use them after implementation during the transitional period.
- Follow transitional rules for volume rebates, promotional allowances, price adjustments, goods returned or exchanges after the July 1, 2010 implementation date and guidance for goods in transit on July 1, 2010.
- Modify tax tables for Internet web sites. All GST registrants will automatically become registered to collect BC HST and OVAT.
- Review ongoing or long-term contracts that straddle the harmonization date to ensure the correct sales rate is applied (e.g. service agreements, licenses, memberships and leases).
- Update point-of-sale terminal or cash-register software.
Recovery of Value-Added Taxes Paid (Input Tax Credits and Rebates)
- A business defined as a "large business" (over $10M taxable sales) or a financial institution cannot claim input tax credits for the provincial component on specified restricted expenses. Restrictions will last up five years with a three-year phase out.
- Develop updated or new tax tables/codes for accounts payable systems that automatically record input tax credits or rebates based on embedded taxes. Prepare to code payables for restricted versus non-restricted expenses.
- Do not delete/deactivate old tax rates as they may be required in some situations. If your system can only accommodate one or a limited number of tax rates, develop a manual system to record sales taxes correctly during the transitional period.
- During the transitional period, implement procedures to ensure only the value-added tax paid is recovered. Develop an override procedure to use in instances where old tax rates are charged in error.
- Develop a system to track the federal and provincial components of HST if you are part of the MUSH sector (municipalities, universities, schools, and hospitals) or qualifying non -profit organization.
- Evaluate and update periodic system-generated payments to apply the new taxes
- Make adjustments to the remittance percentages if you are a small businesses or public service body using the simplified remittance methods
- Modify employee expenses reimbursement and allowance software or pre-printed forms for not only the new rates but also the restricted expenses and possibly the use of factors. In addition, watch for special transitional rules for expenses reports that straddle the implementation date.
- Selected listed financial institutions must adjust formulae included in the Special Attribution Method calculation if applicable.
Other Considerations;
- Revise Cash flow projections.
- Update budgets and forecasts.
- Modify purchase orders with pre-printed sales tax information or system generated purchase orders to accommodate the new taxes, e.g. the goods for resale exemption will no longer apply in Ontario or British Columbia
- Modify pre-printed price lists or Internet websites containing sales tax information.
- Develop a system to track bad debt adjustment, tracking the tax from the original transaction
- Develop a process to change taxable benefit remittance rates for the 2010 and 2011 taxation years, if applicable.
- Modify documented procedures for how internal tasks are performed whether automatically or manually.
- Additional calculation may be required for the embedded tax content subject to the change-in-use provisions.
Plan to do a test run of sample data for all modified systems as a result of the numerous changes and revisions. This will reduce the potential for error and surprises when the systems are activated on July 1, 2010.
For more information & to find out how to update your Sage Accpac ERP System join us at our our HST User Group Meeting on April 08, 2010 from 8:30am-11:00am. To register & more information visit; http://erp.plus.ca/HSTUserGroupMeeting
Posted by Plus Sales on Tue, Mar 02, 2010 @ 02:39 PM
By Mitch McNicol, mitch@plus.ca
The IFRS Challenge
There's no longer any doubt: International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) are coming down the pipeline. The business and accounting press are full of news about IFRS, and businesses are realizing they need to pay attention.
Over 100 countries now require or permit IFRS reporting, including Hong Kong, Malaysia, Australia, India, Pakistan, Turkey, Singapore, Russia, South Africa, and also the European Union and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.
In the U.S., the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed a tentative roadmap to IFRS that features a set of progressive milestones. As proposed, the roadmap would let about 110 companies use IFRS for their end-of-year SEC filings for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2009. For the years 2012 and 2013, companies will need to run U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and IFRS reporting in parallel in preparation for 2014 when large accelerated filers must compile their financial statement under IFRS rules and report a comparative statement for the previous two years (2012 and 2013) using both IFRS and U.S. GAAP.
In Canada the timeline is even sooner. The Canadian Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) has confirmed that IFRS will replace Canadian GAAP effective January 1, 2011, for "publicly accountable profit-oriented enterprises." This means that these companies will need to restate statements under IFRS in their fiscal year 2010 in order to be able to file comparatives in 2011.
To find out more about IFRS & how it affects you, join us for our Lunch & Learn on Thursday March 11th from 12pm-1pm PST. This next lunch & learn will cover some of the changes brought on by IFRS such as;
- Presentation of Financial Statements
- More analysis of fixed assets & a different means of depreciation for finance leases & restatement for property.
- Does not allow the Completed Contract method of project costing.
Join us & Learn More:
Date: Thursday, March 11th, 2010
Time: 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Where: Your Desk!
Sign Up Today, click here!
As a customer of Accpac you can rest in the knowledge that Accpac is IFRS compliant. In fact, Sage has produced a compliance guide that every attendee will receive by attending the webinar!
Posted by Glen Mund on Fri, Feb 26, 2010 @ 06:56 PM
I'm pledging to make a referral to a business I want to help as part of an international campaign to make 1000 referrals March 8-12. What a great small business stimulus plan - won't you join me.
http://www.makeareferralweek.com/pledge
Make a Referral Week is an entrepreneurial approach to stimulating the small business economy one referred business at a time. The goal for the week is to generate 1000 referred leads to 1000 deserving small businesses in an effort to highlight the impact of a simple action that could blossom into millions of dollars in new business. Small business is the lifeblood and job-creating engine of the economy and merits the positive attention so often saved for corporate bailout stories.
The week long event also features a killer list of referral experts providing valuable marketing advice.
Do your part to stimulate the economy by telling your world about making referrals and Make a Referral Week - you'll be in good company.
By the way I am not asking you to refer me or Plus Computer Solutions Ltd. I am asking you to refer a business that you feel does a good job and is worth refering to a friend or colleague.
Posted by Glen Mund on Fri, Sep 07, 2007 @ 04:46 PM
By Alan Salmon
The Bottom Line - August 2007
Networking is one of the key tools for building a consulting practice and the Sage Leadership Academy is an innovative program that brings together the owners and partners in consulting practices to share ideas and experiences.
It is modeled on the networks that result from participation in the high level executive MBA programs at Harvard, Wharton, Queens and other schools.
For this column I interviewed Ed Kless, director, partner development and strategy for Sage Software and the facilitator of the academy, at the recent Sage Software Insights Conference in Orlando, Fla. Here is an edited transcript of our conversation.
Salmon: When did the Sage Leadership Academy get started?
Kless: It was started seven years ago by Taylor MacDonald form Sage and Gary Peto, a former top MAS 90 reselling partner. They used the curriculum that was developed by Sam Alfred from Upstream Academy. Sage had been running the program now for the last five years.
Salmon: What's the Academy all about?
Kless: Every year we take between 12 and 15 partner organizations and they send two senior staff members who commit to three retreats over the course of a year. They are focused on helping partners work on their business rather than in their business.
Salmon: What's the selection process?
Kless: We have never turned anyone away. I maintain a list of interested firms and I send out an email two weeks before the Sage Insights Conference in May. I tell them we're going to announce a new class of Sage Leadership Academy at Insights and if they act now they are guaranteed a slot, because we only take 12-15 firms.
Salmon: Am I right that it doesn't matter which Sage products attendees support?
Kless: Yes, the academy is product agnostic. We have partners attend who focus on the small business market, as well as those who concentrate on the mid-market.
Salmon: What's the incentive for senior people in a consulting group to invest a week of their time over a year?
Kless: The key for them is to spend time just thinking. We always start the program on a Sunday as we don't want any distractions, such as blackberries going off. We want their attention focused on the program. The investment of six days over the course of the year pays big benefits because they start to think strategically about their organization, as opposed to just tactically.
Salmon: Is the program similar to the Harvard University executive management program?
Kless: Yes it is. The key element is the peer relationships that are formed. They come back for two follow-up retreats and they then are eligible to join an alumni association of the groups that have already been through the program. This leads to peer accountability. They know that four months after the first retreat, they're going to have to get up in front of the group of their peers and say, "You know, I spent this money on the program and I didn't do anything." That motivates them to drive process changes inside their company.
Salmon: So one of the huge paybacks is the building of a network of friends and business acquaintances.
Kless: Absolutely - and that's one of the things I say on day one - you're going to learn more from each other than you are from myself or the other facilitators. We will provide the materials to start the process but it's the relationships that will make a difference to your organizations in the future, and that's absolutely been true.
Salmon: So what is the cost to participate?
Kless: It's $4500 for the year for two people for six days of leadership training, plus the phone calls that we do in between those retreats. We have found this to be a very effective price structure.
Salmon: Have you had any Canadian partners?
Kless: Sure we have. In the last couple of years, since Sage acquired Accpac, 30 per cent of the group has been Canadian partners.
Salmon: Any difference between the U.S. partners who attend and the Canadian partners?
Kless: Interesting question. My observation is that the Canadian partners have been more open to change.
Salmon: Let's focus on the numbers. What's the return on investment for the partners who spend the money and time to attend?
Kless: We haven't done an adequate job of measuring this. But what we do know is that 60 per cent of the people who are in the Sage Software President's Circle are also members of the Sage Leadership Academy. So it's clear to me that those partners who have been through the program clearly are our more successful partners.
Salmon: And you always run it in Dallas?
Kless: The first retreat is always in Dallas. We use the Hotel Zaza, which is a five-star hotel and it sets the tone for the entire retreat. We're talking about excellence in their business and when they show up at the first retreat in Dallas, they know it's going to be a different experience.
Salmon: So what's the bottom line for Sage and the partners who participate?
Kless: From a Sage perspective we end up with partners who are successful. From the partner perspective they end up with a learning experience that enhances their ability to grow their businesses and build lifetime relationships with their peers.
Salmon: I wish I'd had that opportunity when I was running a consulting practice in the 80s.