CPA Technology Blog

CPA Practice Advisor’s Thought Leader Symposium Takes On Technologies And Workflow Evolution

The top thought leaders in the public tax and accounting field will come together on February 19-21 at Omni Hotel and Resort in Dallas, Texas, for the second annual CPA Practice Advisor Thought Leader Symposium.

DALLAS – January 30, 2012 – The top thought leaders in the public tax and accounting field will come together on February 19-21 at Omni Hotel and Resort in Dallas, Texas, for the second annual CPA Practice Advisor Thought Leader Symposium. This year’s event is sponsored by Sage, Thomson Reuters,Office Tools Professional and CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business. Additional co-sponsors includeFujitsu and Avalara.

The annual symposium unites the most influential practitioners, consultants, media and other experts who cover the tax and accounting profession, with the top technology vendors, to explore trends and events affecting the profession, as well as to help shape the future of technologies that professionals use. Attendees represent tax and accounting firms of all sizes from across the United States, and include several who have been honored by the American Institute of CPA’s and other professional organizations.

“Public accountants are in the business of making other businesses more efficient and successful, a mission that has never been more critical than in today’s economy,” said CPA Practice Advisor Executive Editor Darren Root, CPA.CITP. “The CPA Practice Advisor’s Thought Leader Symposium connects influencers who have a direct understanding of the needs of practitioners and vendors who create technologies and services. Our goal with the Symposium is to identify and shape the technologies needed to advance the profession in the years to come.” Root is also a practicing accountant and consultant based in Bloomington, Indiana, and holds the AICPA’s Certified Information Technology Professional designation.

Topics to be discussed at the symposium include strategic planning, technology, risk management, performance, micro-computing accounting systems, profitability, organizational growth, emerging technologies, public accounting trends, start-up tips, social media outreach, tax, audit, client services, green accounting, accreditations, measurement, software solutions, and workflow.

In addition to recognizing each of the Top 25 Thought Leaders for 2012, CPA Practice Advisor will name a new inductee into its Accounting Hall of Fame, an honor designed to recognize the ground-breaking achievements of individuals who have significantly contributed to the shaping of technology and workflow practices in the profession.

The Top 25 Thought Leaders for 2012 are: Greg Anton, CPA; L. Gary Boomer, CPA.CITP; Jim Boomer, CPA.CITP; Jim Bourke, CPA.CITP,CFF; David Cieslak, CPA.CITP; Gale Crosley, CPA; Chris Frederiksen, CPA; Michelle Golden, CPF; John Higgins, CPA.CITP; Tom Hood, CPA.CITP; Randy Johnston; Roman Kepczyk, CPA.CITP; Allan Koltin, CPA; Mark Koziel, CPA; Barry Melancon, CPA; James Metzler, CPA; Edi Osborne, Rick Richardson, M. Darren Root, CPA.CITP; Gary Shamis, CPA; Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP; Doug Sleeter; Brian Tankersley, CPA.CITP; Rick Telberg and Jennifer Wilson.

CPA Practice Advisor (www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com) is an independent information source for public tax and accounting professionals, dedicated to providing them with the resources they need to make informed decisions regarding implementing various technologies in their practices. The magazine’s audited circulation of more than 40,000 tax and accounting professionals look to it for its editorial independence and integrity.

CPA Practice Advisor and its digital offerings are published by Cygnus Business Media (www.Cygnus.com), one of America’s top business-to-business media publishers, reaching millions of professionals annually. Cygnus is leading the way in providing targeted content to top decision-makers and organizations. The company’s corporate initiatives and organizational architecture are built with one goal: fully engaging audiences in Aviation, Building & Construction, Public Safety & Security, Agriculture vertical markets and a variety of other industries.

Tax Research, Rethought and Mobile Apps for Practitioners

There are a lot of questions about how social media outlets will change the way practitioners do tax research in the future.  While practitioners need access to authoritative publications and interpretative guidance, there is also a need to ask a peer a question.  In the past, we might have done this at the water cooler, or over lunch with a peer, but in the age of the virtual office, these opportunities may be more difficult. 

While Intuit is a long-time provider of tax tools for individuals and practitioners, they have shown some fresh thinking in their professional tax research offering.  The tool, ProLine Tax Research, includes authoritative content from BNA and IRS Forms/Publications.  Peer to peer advice is facilitated on a virtual community.  Questions and answers can be searched and retrieved at will from a user community.

The White Paper is available for download from CPAFirmSoftware.com at the following link:

• Intuit White Paper - Tax Research is Changing

Another place where innovation is taking place is in the mobile space.  Many publishers are creating mobile applications or websites which support mobile browsers for their product offerings.  Mobile applications for practitioners include:

• IntelliConnect Mobile/CCH Mobile from CCH, a Wolters Kluwer Business (iOS, BlackBerry)
• BNA Quick Tax Reference App (iOS, Android, BlackBerry)
• Mobile CS from Thomson Reuters (iOS)
• QuickBooks Connect from Intuit (iOS)

There are many other applications out there related to tax & accounting.  These include the recently announced IRS2GO application, vendor provided tax refund checkers, and many others.  Many authors have written about mobile applications for practitioners in The CPA Practice Advisor, my favorite publication for the tax & accounting space.

Sage Peachtree 2012 Formally Launched

My friends at Sage recently released Sage Peachtree 2012, the latest version of their easy to use business management application.  The product has versions which handle businesses from startups through mid-range businesses who need up to 40 users.  Major new/improved features include:

• Sage Peachtree Business Intelligence, powered by Alchemex, is one of the best new features.  (I wrote about this tool for my April/May CPA Practice Advisor column)
• Sage Advisor Technology gives you tips on how to improve your workflow based on your actual usage (this is one of the topics for my June column), and helps tech support know how you actually use the product.
• The Workflow Management in Sage Peachtree Quantum has been enhanced to allow tasks to be automatically assigned to certain individuals.  This is one of the strongest, least used features in the product, but IMHO, it’s a game changer for the people who use it.
• New components for the My Dashboard tool, which permits customizable dashboard reporting on key indicators.

The application still has unmatched reporting capabilities, including a bundled version of Crystal Reports and a serious Business Intelligence tool  (PTBI)bundled with some higher end versions.  In particular, an optional connector should permit combined reporting with data from ODBC-compliant data sources like CRM systems.  This could get very interesting, and I have some research in progress on this now.

The grid comparing the major versions of Sage Peachtree is at http://www.peachtree.com/productsServices.

Another interesting thing that Sage is doing with Peachtree 2012 is bundling of additional benefits beyond support and upgrades with their Business Care maintenance plans.  For example, two of the three offerings include payroll tax table updates, and all of the offerings include the PT Business Intelligence tool mentioned above, as well as online training and an HR resource center.

There are five releases issued yesterday (5/18/2011) targeted at different markets.  The releases are on the Sage Peachtree website (at http://www.peachtree.com/newsroom/InTheNews), and cover the following topics:

• General SMB topics
• Construction Companies
• Non-Profits
• Business Intelligence
• Manufacturers and Distributors

I’ve been a big fan of Peachtree for a long time, and I think it’s worth any small business checking it out who is considering changing accounting software.

Mobile Monitors 2011

As a recovering auditor, I try to review the options for mobile hardware to be able to advise conference participants on the devices they should be considering for their summer retooling process.  This year, I’m fortunate to have a Field Monitor Pro from Mobile Monitor Technologies (15.4" LCD, clamshell case with keypad on the other side, image gallery of this unit at http://mmt2.com/fmp/gallery.html).  It has 32/64 bit drivers, works and plays well with the DisplayLink drivers for my docking station (it actually is a DisplayLink compatible device) , and is designed to take the level of abuse that road warriors dish out.  Although I just got it a few days ago, it appears to be a BIG WIN, and I love it so far.  I'll be taking it on the road this year, and I'll post an updated report on it to my blog once I have adequately tested it.

The Field Monitor Pro from Mobile Monitor Technologies (mmt2.com) is a USB-connected 15.4” second monitor for use in the field.  Designed for auditors, this should be on your short list for evaluation and purchase this year if you work at client sites 2+ days at a time. For more information, visit www.mmt2.com

 

I also have one of the older Samsung LD displays which are designed for laptop users (mine is a 19").  The 22" is as small as you can buy the Samsung monitors - I asked the Samsung people at CES about this directly this year.  I broke the LCD on one of these a couple of years ago by putting too much pressure on it, and had abandoned using it for fear of breaking it.  As such, the FMP is going to be a big win this year.
 
I love the Samsung LD220 (Staples is closing them out at $160 each at http://bit.ly/LD220), and it has full 1080p (1920x1080) resolution.  The major technical concern I have with this device is that it's using a traditional VGA cable, and 1080p is an awful lot of data flowing over a VGA cable - I would prefer an HDMI input so I could use it with other home theater gear.  The thing really stopping me from carrying one of these is the size of the unit.  If you are traveling by car, it's fine, but if you are doing air travel or train travel, unless you put the monitor in your clothing suitcase, it's just too darn big.  It also takes up a lot of desk real estate, and unless you have lots of desk room, it's simply too much.  But boy, it’s pretty.

I am notoriously hard on equipment since I travel over 100,000 air miles a year, and spend 150 nights a year in hotels, so I think the rugged design of the FMP should be a major consideration for buyers, and I think it will serve users well.  It IS a little more expensive, but it's a very high quality LCD unit, and the dot pitch and resolution matches my laptop display nicely.  At $289, it's about $50 more than the Toshiba unit after you add the $40 external power supply to the Toshiba, but it is a LOT more substantial, and is 1.4" more display area as well.

Toshiba’s Mobile Monitor was unveiled at CES this year, and it hit the market about six weeks ago (http://bit.ly/tosmmt).  I was excited about it before I discovered the Field Monitor Pro, as there aren’t many choices for mobile monitors in this area.  Some things to consider about it:
+ The case is a soft case, and I am not comfortable that it gives the LCD the protection it needs to survive planes, trains, and automobiles.  Although it is an inexpensive device, it feels a little cheap
+ Although it says that it will run off of USB power, and it technically will run off of USB power, it's in a very reduced brightness mode.  As such, you will want to get the $40 optional external power brick so you can see the thing.

The other option is to use the approach of using desktop LCD displays with a CaseAce carrying case/harness.  Although the form factors of these monitors are a little clunky, with the built-in stands of these LCD's protruding from the bottom of the devices, this is a workable solution for some.  CaseAce is the brand I've been recommending for this - see http://bit.ly/caseace.  While I don't advocate this use, it might be a way to recycle some of those 17" and 19" displays that you're phasing out for users in the office.  I don't advocate this use unless these older monitors are in pristine condition and the users don’t travel much , but it is an option if you have to improvise.

As a side note, I now carry a 12' HDMI cable with me on the road so I can use the LCD TV in most hotel rooms as a second monitor (since my laptop has an HDMI port).  This is particularly useful for watching Hulu and iTunes shows on the tube if you are not on a schedule where you can watch normal prime time TV.  The big displays are also excellent for reviewing images of scanned documents - they'll keep you from going blind trying to stare at monitors.

Summary:
First choice - Field Monitor Pro $289 @ www.mmt2.com.  The right tool, and ruggedized for your protection.
Second choice - Samsung LD220 ($160 @ staples (http://bit.ly/LD220), add a $70 case to get to $230) (assuming you don't do much air travel)
Third choice – CaseAce monitor harness (http://bit.ly/caseace), plus a desktop LCD. (This is not the optimal solution, but it is workable for occasional users.)

Comments and discussion on this are welcome – please use the form at the bottom of this post.

Extreme Makeover–Website Edition

I’ve been working my tail off for the last couple of months on some big projects for my two biggest clients, and the changes are finally in place.  I’ve been working a lot of changes with my coworkers on the editorial team of the CPA Technology Advisor, which is now know as The CPA Practice Advisor. I provide a lot of the guidance on review criteria here, and have been trying to create review criteria which are sufficiently detailed to help our authors and readers differentiate between products and better understand how the products are truly different.  I’ve also been doing my normal materials writing for K2 Enterprises – four new chapters for a couple of courses.  We’ve got some big conferences coming up – Sage Summit, AICPA Tech+Practitioners,
The OfficeTools Pro Practice Management Conference, and many more engagements in the next few months.  I’ll be doing quite a few web CPE sessions through the K2 and CPA Crossings over the next few months.  Finally, I’ve been working with the NMGI WebCare guys on how to maintain websites for:

• Me (BFTCPA.com)
• K2 Enterprises (k2e.com) as well as the K2 specialty technology sites (CPAFirmTech.com, AccountingSoftwareWorld.com, and TotallyPaperless.com)

Fortunately for you, the gentle reader, the new back end content management systems for the websites will make it a lot easier to make relevant content available without having to use more robust web authoring tools.  The new tools make updating websites as easy as cutting and pasting information out of Word.

I’ve got to finish the edit cycles 5-6 things over the next few days, and will be spending a lot of time in the office and on the road to complete these projects.  In this economy, it’s good to be busy.