Decisions on financial management systems (FMS) can be the trickiest of all. First, there’s a great deal of choice – there are literally hundreds of potential supplies out there. Second, which options will best suit your business?

You need to recognise that financial clarity across all businesses is becoming a business necessity, especially in the post-recession age. The ‘more for less’ mantra that has pushed business operations during the two years of the downturn will become the new business norm.

Senior executives are looking, and will carry on searching, for technologies that can help measure, analyse and drive continuous improvements in the financial performance of operations. FMS can help executives – but only if you purchase the right technology.

Your search for a finance system should be guided by three key watchwords: functionality, integration and reputation. The functionality of your selected FMS will vary with the size of your business and the demands of your operation.

High levels of automation are now available, allowing employees to ‘self serve’ in relation to their own finance information. The right reporting and business intelligence tools will also allow you to analyse data and produce decision-making reports quickly without the pain of manual extraction.

Other time-saving functions are likely to be important such as electronic procurement, which allows the electronic procurement of goods, and workflow for the easy distribution of information. Care organisations may also require intelligent income management to more easily manage varied invoicing requirements.

Always think about the finance applications you require both now and into the future and ensure the supplier you identify has the breadth of functionality to meet your needs as well as the capabilities to deliver a single, integrated solution. Finance applications that aren’t integrated will result in a lack of both organisation-wide automation and financial visibility.

When sourcing a supplier, think carefully about your requirements and pick a reliable and reputable partner that understands UK regulations and business requirements and that has a strong track record of successful FMS implementations.

What to look for when you purchase a financial management system is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

There is little point investing in internal staff if you are going to cut workers at the earliest sign of a downturn. Training and employing staff is a costly process and it is surely remiss to write off such investment.

Before getting to the point of redundancies, your organisation needs to have a strategy to ensure workers are committed, productive and ambitious. Start by thinking about what type of company you would most like to work for.

If your business is only as good as your people, how can you ensure existing staff are capable of being future executives – and how can you attract the up-and-coming generation?

Concentrate on what types of things would improve the status of your organisation and make people more likely to consider a position in your firm as the right opportunity. That question is only likely to become increasingly important.

Leave nothing to chance. First, select recruitment tools that can help you identify the individual that is likely to be the best fit for your organisation. Weighted matching will ensure the right candidate is offered the right opportunity.

Then look for software that can help you create the right development projects for your new and retained staff. Trained workers feel wanted; prove your commitment through well-managed work experience, workshops and mentoring.

On an ongoing basis, use specialist analytics software to ensure worker performance is valued, rather than just monitored. The right metrics will show how staff are aligned with the broader goals of performance, ensuring people costs are not wasted and promotion is more likely.

Finally, make sure the obvious details – payment terms, absenteeism levels and succession planning – are not ignored. Workers will quickly feel aggrieved if they believe their efforts are being ignored at the expense of other less productive employees.

An integrated approach to human resources software can help with all these elements. Your business is only as good as your people and the right technology will attract employees and keep retained staff keen.

Next generation leadership is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

To answer such a question, let’s start with a given: technology is undoubtedly the common underlying thread for all modern businesses. Whether your company is a producer of widgets or a specialist in high quality services, it will definitely rely on technology to ensure business operations run smoothly.

Such reliance on IT, however, does not necessarily mean software is a core specialism of the business. Your company – whether it operates in the manufacturing, finance or public sectors – will know what it does best and why.

For most firms, it is unlikely that your expertise lies in IT applications. Many IT specialists can now offer you the ability to tap into such software resources cheaply and effectively. Rather than looking to manage applications in-house, you should concentrate on your core activities and look for external assistance.

Managing internal IT can be a risky business – bespoke solutions can lead to bespoke problems, whose solutions lie beyond the skills of internal teams. Thankfully, many firms are beginning to recognise the potentially potent mix of an IT skills gap and the need to keep IT running in a cost-effective manner.

Research suggests just three per cent of UK businesses plan to replace IT staff to fill the skills gap. But at the same time, 95% believe it is vital to continue investing in IT, with 61% citing managed services as the preferred approach (see further reading, below).

Using a third party to manage your IT applications will produce a range of benefits. Pressure on internal development resources can be reduced and then redeployed towards more productive areas. And rather than having to rely on internal employees to manage applications, you can draw on external specialists to ensure software is up and available.

Non-IT staff will benefit from being able to call on the skills of an applications expert, a managed services firm that knows software and can respond quickly to questions and concerns.

The result is a cost-effective and predictable alternative to internally-managed IT. Managed services – a solution that will help you ensure cash and resources are available for your core activities.

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Further reading:

www.computing.co.uk/computing/comment/2266683/teaching-staff-embrace-managed

Embracing managed services is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

IT leaders have enough problems running operational technology, investing in innovative systems and managing a geographically dispersed workforce. Then, on top of everything, comes governance.

Good governance is all about establishing an IT-based framework that allows the business to make the right decisions about technology investment at the right time. Governance allows the organisation to make a reasoned decision on technology investments based on an effective balance between potential benefits and perceived risk.

Although the aims of IT governance are admirable, the reality for CIOs is often ghastly. The ‘noughties’ were the decade of legislation, with the business facing an increasing raft of financial, environmental and information regulations.

Many of these regulations, given the ability of IT to record and analyse data, affected the technology team. Recent regulations passed as a result of the economic downturn are unlikely to make the CIO’s job any easier. So, how can your organisation cope, and what IT and business process areas should you prioritise?

Some experts (see further reading, below) have suggested that the complicated nature of IT governance means it should not be delegated to the CIO. It is a fair point – good technology practice is essential to successful business practice.

In an ideal world, the business might remove responsibility from the CIO – but in the real world, IT decision makers are often left accountable for governance. Such responsibility means they must take action.

Integration will be crucial; no executive can make the right decisions without alignment between IT investment and business aims. Deeper business intelligence – in the form of corporate performance management – will help you track alignment.

Also keep a tight grip on document management and procurement technology. Fail to keep track of data and paper flowing around your business and you will not be able to respond to governance demands in a timely fashion.

The demands created by IT governance are unlikely to diminish. But the implementation of the right tools and processes can certainly help your organisation cope.

Further reading:

http://www.silicon.com/management/ceo-essentials/2010/06/16/why-it-governance-should-fall-to-the-board-39745996/

Coping with governance is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

That is certainly the common perception of open source – an approach to IT development that promotes the free access and modification to resource materials. Be careful, however, of generalisations.

Once a niche activity, open source is quickly becoming a business norm. Three quarters (76%) of CIOs currently use free software across their enterprise and over half (51%) intend to deploy more in 2010, according to research from Global Graphics (see further reading, below).

That is certainly a considerable proportion of the marketplace. And the reason for such significance can be linked to the increasingly vendor-supported nature of open source software. What is fast developing is a middle ground between openness and commercialisation.

Are you ready, and how far should you go towards being an open enterprise? First, be aware that open source is no longer the preserve of bedroom-based developers.

Growing diversity leaves analyst Gartner (see further reading) to conclude that three distinct categories of open source software will have emerged by the end of 2011: community projects, vendor-centric projects and commercial community projects, which have vendor-independent support channels.

Second, take heart if potential issues surrounding licensing and maintenance concern you. Open source is now a very professional IT activity. At least 70% of the revenue from commercial open source software will come from vendor-centric projects with dual-license business models by 2012, according to Gartner.

Finally, many of your peers are already using open source; in fact, many are reliant on it. The aforementioned Global Graphics research shows that more than half (54%) of CIOs use more than 10 different free software products in their organisation.

Openness needn’t be scary but you need to be prepared for the continued shift towards a subtle combination of free software and commercial community projects. Open source might not be the mainstream but you will need to find key partners that can help you create a conventional approach.

Further reading:

http://blog.globalgraphics.com/gdoc/2010/01/free-software-on-the-rise-in-the-enterprise/

http://blogs.gartner.com/mark_driver/2009/12/08/open-source-predictions-for-2010/

Open and ready? is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

The amount of digital information grew 62% to 800 billion gigabytes during 2009 when compared to 2008, according to research from EMC (see further reading, below). The 1.2 zettabytes of information expected to be created in 2010 would be equal to every man, woman and child on Earth “tweeting” continuously for 100 years.

The problem is not going away either. More than 60% of chief executives (CEOs) cite industry transformation and the information explosion as the most significant factors facing their organisations during the next five years, according to IBM (see further reading).

And if the CEO is concerned about a technology issue, then you know you have an important issue on your hands. So, how can the business cope with the surge in demand for knowledge?

It is a crucially important question. Data comes in a number of structured and unstructured forms. These multiple forms create stoves of information that are useless unless the business can understand what data the organisation holds and why.

Understanding such questions will allow the business to ask the most important questions of all: what does this information mean and how can we use it to serve our customers better?

To answer such questions, you need to get a grip on information management. As a starting point, data warehousing techniques – a repository of organisational information – must be allied to broader business objectives.

Create an interface that allows your workers to understand what is actually being held in the warehouse. Then use carefully selected analytics to successfully navigate through the ocean of business data.

Such navigation does not have to be a rough ride, either. Careful integration can allow employees to make real time decisions based on data they can trust.

The effects of the information explosion continue to radiate outwards. But the right technology tools will help you control the impact on your business.

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Further reading

http://www.itjungle.com/tfh/tfh062810-story01.html

http://www.ameinfo.com/231603.html

Manage your information to control the explosion is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme, formerly known as the Carbon Reduction Commitment, was launched in April. So, what does it mean for your organisation?
 
Liability depends on the size of your business and 20,000 public and private sector organisations could be potentially liable, although the majority will simply need to make a disclosure about their energy usage.

As many as 5,000 organisations – those with an annual electricity demand of over 6,000 megawatt-hours – will be required to participate fully, recording emissions and purchasing allowances.

Failure to comply is not an option. Potential fines include £5,000 for reporting delays, £40 for each incorrectly reported tonne of carbon and up to three years in prison for deliberate data manipulation.

Don’t sit back and relax if your organisation doesn’t meet the threshold for the scheme. First, official targets can change. While electricity might be the initial focus, companies in the scheme will also need to start reporting gas and fuel emissions.

Second, organisations can grow. Surely it’s better to be prepared for any eventuality now, rather than waiting and hoping? Third, qualifying organisations will appear in a league table that publicly demonstrates their ability to slash emissions. No business that is keen to engage with its increasingly green customer base will able to dally in mid-table.

So, take a look now at the technology tools that can help you deal with the onerous tasks of monitoring and reporting. Flexibility and integration should be your watchwords, and you should look for an approach to monitoring that includes capacity for performance monitoring and ongoing benchmarking.

Also consider tools that can help you bring down emissions, such as automation and document management. Cut the paper mountain and you can crush carbon emissions.

The scheme aims to help meet the UK’s target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% by 2050. As well as the sustainability concerns, there are serious financial imperatives: official estimates suggests that reducing energy use will save organisations a total of £1bn annually by 2020.

Both environmentally and financially, it is crucial to be prepared for the carbon emissions trading scheme.

Version One have made a whitepaper available, download it here

Be prepared for the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

Now, following a couple of years of economic recession, green computing has gone off the radar somewhat. New business realities mean projects that provide sustainable benefits have been pushed from must-have to nice-to-have.

Such a strategy is misguided. The risk to the environment from errant technology and power use has not diminished.

Estimates suggest that IT accounts for between two and five per cent of total global carbon emissions, more than the airline industry. Analyst Gartner, meanwhile, estimates that data centres account for 23 per cent of IT emissions, a significant and ever-increasing figure (see further reading, below).

But it is not just the need to deal with emissions that shows businesses must think green. With new regulations and continuing pressure from customers, successful companies will make sure their IT usage is monitored and sustainable.

UK businesses are being urged to prepare for a new raft of carbon emission regulations. The result is likely to be that firms will have to produce an end-of-year report – just like in the case of financial results – that shows carbon usage (see further reading).

Customers, meanwhile, expect their suppliers to behave in an acceptable manner. Just like social media has changed how firms interact with their clients, the potential for green business means big firms must ensure sustainability is always considered.

Across all areas of your operations – from financial management to workflow and on to document imaging – look for systems that will help you reduce paper consumption.

Also look for tools that will help you monitor and report carbon emissions. Because reporting on carbon use, which was once a nice-to-have, might soon be a business necessity.

Further reading

http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=530912

http://www.greenwisebusiness.co.uk/news/mandatory-carbon-reporting-could-be-brought-in-before-2012-says-miliband-1074.aspx

Make IT sustainable and win new customers is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

Maybe it has got something to do with maintenance. Ask for perceptions of such functions and many employees immediately think HR exists simply to help serve core business operations, such as finance, sales and purchasing.

It would be anathema to suggest finance is a second rate service that is not crucial to the business. So, why is it OK to simply write-off HR as a second tier service? In short, it is not – and your business is likely to miss out if you take such a blinkered view.

Tough economic conditions mean organisations, particularly in the hard-hit public sector, will be looking to cut costs. Staff reductions are often seen as the first, rather than the last, resort – meaning the HR function is regarded as a means to handing out redundancy notices.

But how can the business know it is cutting the right people? And should it really be cutting people anyway? The answers to such complicated questions can only be provided though a more strategic HR department.

Such a position relies on HR contributing to boardroom debates, something that is often missing in large organisations. Providing such a meaningful focus will rely on clear analysis and reporting.

HR, therefore, needs to take responsibility for facts and figures covering a host of crucial areas, such as productivity output, training value, absenteeism rates and engagement levels.

Corporate performance management – HR-focused business intelligence that includes methods and metrics – will provide the type of detailed analytics that will help HR directors and managers illustrate organisational success.

The right tools will allow you to share HR information across the business. And with the right information to hand, HR directors will be able to take their rightful place at the top table and provide an extremely valuable contribution.

No longer just a service, HR needs to be seen as a strategic function that helps the organisation prove that people really are its most valuable asset.

Is the HR function perceived as having a real impact in the boardroom? is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment

When money is tight, discretional spend takes a back seat. Rather than splash their cash on marketing or innovation programmes, businesses are keen to concentrate on operational expenditure.

It’s often a smart strategy. The reason most firms fold during a downturn is due to cash flow concerns. Cutting back on the nice-to-haves means the organisation will survive and be able to grow in the long-term.

But for every smart strategy there is a considerably less beguiling downside. After all, how do you go about identifying which areas can receive cuts? And how can you be sure the cuts won’t have a detrimental affect?

Training is often considered to be one area that businesses can cut. Rather than being viewed as a means of up-skilling the workforce, additional schooling is often seen as unwarranted extra.

But without top notch training, expensive human resources and IT assets will be under-used and ineffective. Such risks mean you must prioritise training and ensure you deliver a high level of skills to your project team.

Some firms are of the belief than training staff simply provides skills that will be taken out of the business when an employee leaves. That is a misguided approach.

Workers are likely to take a great deal of knowledge when they leave, but your organisation would be well-advised to ensure staff are as informed as possible while employed.

Extra training will keep workers in tip top form. What is more, employees like a challenge. Keep workers trained and they are less likely to leave – and then the additional knowledge will stay in-house anyway.

Give your staff tailored and user-focused training to make the most of your IT systems and they will deliver benefits for the business; benefits that will more than payback the outlay in education.

So is training a really discretional spend? It is time to educate your executive team that such thinking is pure folly.

Training of end users must be a business priority is a post from Advanced Business Solutions - Supplier of accounting software, business intelligence and document managment