Accounting Software for Your Number-Crunching Needs

Before cloud computing took hold in the market, it was a wrenching commitment to purchase financial software, according to Rick Telberg, an adviser to software vendors and accounting firms. “Choices were limited to big clunky systems installed by experts and requiring an expert to operate," he says. But now, the cloud has enabled the launch of startups in many different niches of accounting and finance; a company doesn't need to buy a big package at all. "The small business can just focus on what functions they need now and acquire those," Telberg explains.

The stages of accounting automation
Once a business starts paying and billing more than a few invoices monthly, it's time to consider an automated system to track the money. For basic startup needs, think simple, low cost, and no frills. Many of these systems are available as SaaS (software as a service) or mobile applications, with no need to install anything.

A few popular choices include Square for processing customer orders; FreshBooks for invoicing; Chrometa for billing and tracking time; Bill.com for payables and receivables; Wave, a free integrated accounting and payroll app; and SageOne for accounting, invoicing and project tracking. There are many more, of course, and today it's not unreasonable for a company to patch together its own personal financial suite from its favorite apps, says Telberg.

As your company grows and becomes more complex, perhaps adding a product line or a branch office, you'll likely need to upgrade. If more than one person is touching the system, you need e-commerce capabilities, you have an outside accounting firm that needs your data, or you're hiring a bookkeeper to enter data for hours every week, a full-featured accounting system is usually required, says Doug Sleeter, president of The Sleeter Group, a consultancy network providing accounting software advisory services to small businesses.

At this level, products from companies such as Intuit, Microsoft and Sage are common choices, although newer players operating 100 percent in the cloud, such as Xero of New Zealand, are challenging those incumbents with consumer-type interfaces, mobile apps and even new ways to do accounting. For example, Xero reverses some standard accounting processes. "Transactions show up in your bank first and then flow into the accounting system," Sleeter explains.

Making a selection
The plenitude of choices makes it tempting to simply grab something that works fine for now without anticipating future needs, especially if you don't have to install or maintain the software yourself. With financials, however, such a quick decision can backfire. Predict your company's needs five years out and purchase a system that can grow accordingly, says Wayne Schulz, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) and business software consultant. More important, though, is to consider the reality of "vendor lock-in."

"Whether you buy or rent, you will probably find yourself locked into your vendor," Schulz says. "As companies grow, the staff gets too busy to think about a new system. Plus, the vendors make it really hard to get your data out of their systems."

Spend extra time evaluating vendors for a long-term fit. Investigate the meaning behind phrases like "third-party integrations." Cloud applications are by nature easier to integrate because the software architecture is much more open and flexible than older systems. As a result, buyers might assume "integration" means that the vendor's system hooks right into another system with the click of a button. More likely, however, the integration may take some work (with extra fees) by the vendor, which may never have done that particular integration before.

Sleeter takes his clients through a checklist of required features to help narrow down vendors. Do you need to track job costs, labor costs, stock levels, inventory or sales taxes? Operating internationally requires systems that can handle multiple currencies. And then there are the specific vertical requirements, such as escrow systems for real estate businesses, or trust accounts for law firms.

Here are a few parting tips from the experts on upgrading or buying accounting software:

• Modern systems, even those designed for small companies, should have reporting tools that are easy to use even if you're not an analyst. The system should allow staff to easily create reports and share them with other employees and partners, such as CPAs.
• Look for features that save time and money, such as paperless billing and invoicing, or automatic sales tax updates.
• If one business process consumes a lot of time in your company -- for example, billing or shipping -- make sure the system you choose has advanced capabilities in that area.
• Don't obsess about switching to a cloud system if you've been using an on-premises system that you like. Most vendors of installed systems are able to host your application in the cloud so that people can access it from any location and device.

Last but not least, keep this in mind: It's better to get an accounting system before you absolutely need it, instead of waiting until your company is more mature and processes are harder to change.

Read more: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/226577#ixzz2dGoOKiKG

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Accounting Tips to Start Your Business

Unless you're an accountant, the word "accounting" probably strikes fear in your heart -- or a little bit of nervousness, at least. For young entrepreneurs, the feeling is probably amplified. After all, poor bookkeeping out of the gate not only can set a project back in the short term, it can really come back to bite you over the long haul. Even young entrepreneurs get audited, you know. That said, it is possible to avoid the ire of the IRS.

Here are 4 Start-Up Accounting Tips for the Young Trep by:

1. Start off on the right foot. In the same way that you go through your email every morning, or in the same way that you do an inventory review each week, make your business accounting a habit. Set a recurring alarm on your calendar: "Review books!" The frequency is up to you, but you should carve out some accounting time at least once a month, if not more.
    
2. Learn the lingo. The cumbersome terminology of accounting is sometimes the biggest hurdle. Chart of accounts? General ledger? Cash vs. accrual? Accounting lingo isn't natural -- and ignoring what's what won't help you. So take some time to understand the basics. The U.S. Small Business Administration's Small Business Development Centers are a good place to start, as are accountancy groups like the American Institute of CPA's and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
    
3. Find software that fits you. Find the accounting software that's right for you. Don't simply opt for what your friends use. If you're always at a desk, a desktop solution, like QuickBooks Desktop might make sense. If you're like most entrepreneurs and on the go 24/7, something mobile like Xero may make more sense. If you're running your business from your iPad, go with a cloud-based accounting software package like Easy Books or Kashoo, which both offer iPad apps.
    
4. Value good advice. Chances are, if you spend enough time trying to figure out an accounting issue, you could. But the reality is, you've got a business to run. And considering that you'll need to file taxes quarterly -- not just annually -- there should be a certain degree of urgency involved. For help, look into local resources such as entrepreneur-focused groups for advice. (In Vancouver, where I'm based, we have resources like the British Columbia Innovation Council and the Vancouver Entrepreneur Meetup. Scour your local community for co-working groups as they’ll usually have a schedule of talks and classes specifically for entrepreneurs. WeWork Labs in New York is a great example.) Also, ask former bosses and fellow entrepreneurs to see who they use. Usually, there's great value in an accountant or bookkeeper who specializes in small business. If nothing more, they'll be a voice of comfort if you receive some alarmingly confusing IRS mail.

In the end, accounting isn't really that scary. If you start off right, it can actually be fun. After all, that's where you're going to see your fortunes grow.

Src: http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/4-start-up-accounting-tips-for-the-young-trep/#ixzz2d8d3fXtY

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What Is Accountancy, or Accounting ?

What Is Accountancy, or Accounting ?, What is the difference between "accounting" and "accountancy"? The following are explanation about Accountancy, or Accounting which we have quoted sources :

• Accountancy is work done by accountant: the work or profession of an accountant. Accounting is the activity, practice, or profession of maintaining the business records of a person or organization and preparing forms and reports for tax or other financial purposes
• Accountancy" more as a profession or even a company that does accounting (not just part of a company, i.e. a department).
  Accounting would be the actual activity or process.
• Accounting is the systematic recording, reporting, and analysis of financial transactions of a business. As bookkeeping involves making a financial record of business transactions, it is true to say that the role of bookkeeping is encompassed within the scope of accounting, and the bookkeeping system used by a business would form part of the accounting system.
  Accounting also includes the preparation of statements concerning assets, liabilities and the operating results of a business.
  Accountancy is the occupation related to accounting, and an accountant is the person who does, or at least is responsible for, the work. Accountants often specialize in a particular area of accounting such as taxes, auditing, or management.
• Accounting is a system of financial informations that were collected every day at a company. This processes provide information about a company's financial situation. This includes recording recording financail information and putting it into financial statements for the internal or external users. Internal users are people who manage the activities of the whole company such as general director, deputy general director, and managers. And external users are people who use this statement for their business purposes like investing or buying stockholders and so on.
  Accountancy is one of many kinds of careers in a society. It's the same with teaching, engineering, art, and so on
• Accounting is The art of recording, classifying, and summarizing in a significant manner and in terms of money, transactions and events which are, in part at least, of financial character, and interpreting the results thereof.
  Accounting is called "the language of business" because it is the vehicle for reporting financial information about a business entity to many different groups of people. Accounting that concentrates on reporting to people inside the business entity is called management accounting and is used to provide information to employees, managers, owner-managers and auditors.
  Accountancy is the art of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers.
  Accountancy is a branch of mathematical science that is useful in discovering the causes of success and failure in business. The principles of accountancy are applied to business entities in three divisions of practical art, named accounting, bookkeeping, and auditing.

Accountancy, or accounting, is the production of financial records about an organization. Accountancy generally produces financial statements that show in money terms the economic resources under the control of management; selecting information that is relevant and representing it faithfully.
The principles of accountancy are applied to accounting, bookkeeping, and auditing.
Many tedious accounting practices have been simplified with the help of computer software. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software provides a comprehensive, centralized, integrated source of information that companies can use to manage all major business processes, from purchasing to manufacturing to human resources. This software can replace up to 200 individual software programs that were previously used. Computer integrated manufacturing allows products to be made and completely untouched by human hands and can increase production by having less errors in manufacturing process. Computers have reduced the cost of accumulating, storing, and reporting managerial accounting information and have made it possible to produce a more detailed account of all data that is entered into any given system. Computers have changed business to business interaction through e-commerce. Rather than dealing with multiple companies to purchase products a business can purchase a product at a less expensive price and take out the third party and vastly reduces expenses companies once accrued. Inter-organizational information system enable suppliers and businesses to be connected at all times. When a company is low on a product the supplier will be notified and fulfill an order immediately which eliminates the need for someone to do inventory, fill out the proper documents, send them out and wait for their products.
Accounting is thousands of years old; the earliest accounting records, which date back more than 7,000 years, were found in Mesopotamia (Assyrians). The people of that time relied on primitive accounting methods to record the growth of crops and herds. Accounting evolved, improving over the years and advancing as business advanced.
Early accounts served mainly to assist the memory of the businessperson and the audience for the account was the proprietor or record keeper alone. Cruder forms of accounting were inadequate for the problems created by a business entity involving multiple investors, so double-entry bookkeeping first emerged in northern Italy in the 14th century, where trading ventures began to require more capital than a single individual was able to invest. The development of joint-stock companies created wider audiences for accounts, as investors without firsthand knowledge of their operations relied on accounts to provide the requisite information. This development resulted in a split of accounting systems for internal (i.e. management accounting) and external (i.e. financial accounting) purposes, and subsequently also in accounting and disclosure regulations and a growing need for independent attestation of external accounts by auditors.

Today, accounting is called "the language of business" because it is the vehicle for reporting financial information about a business entity to many different groups of people. Accounting that concentrates on reporting to people inside the business entity is called management accounting and is used to provide information to employees, managers, owner-managers and auditors. Management accounting is concerned primarily with providing a basis for making management or operating decisions. Accounting that provides information to people outside the business entity is called financial accounting and provides information to present and potential shareholders, creditors such as banks or vendors, financial analysts, economists, and government agencies.
Because these users have different needs, the presentation of financial accounts is very structured and subject to many more rules than management accounting. The body of rules that governs financial accounting in a given jurisdiction is called Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or GAAP. Other rules include International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS, or US GAAP.

That's all topic about  Accountancy, or Accounting, may be useful !


Ref : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accounting | http://www.english-test.net/forum/ftopic8602.html | http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081210221609AAs1AbG

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