Monthly Archives

August 2017

Current Technology & Five Key Tips to Keep Up

By | MIP Fund Accounting, Nonprofit | No Comments

Change is the only constant in life and technology is no exception to that rule.  Technology is such a huge part of our daily lives – personally and professionally, so it’s crucial to keep up.  It’s important for your organization to stay current, stay supported, and take advantage of new features, recommendations, security, and maintenance offered by your software partners.

So, what can you do to prepare your organization for all this change and ensure you’re fully prepared once the latest and greatest version is live? This can be a challenge, whether the upgrade is a push-button overnight process or a six- to 12-month undertaking with intense testing.

Here are some tips to help you prepare for your next software upgrade.

Familiarize Yourself with the New Features

    • *Software vendors typically make release notes available well in advance of a required or suggested software upgrade. Research and understand what is being updated, so you’re not surprised by new functionality and features, once you’ve gone live (or been delivered your test environment). New features often range from necessary security updates to exciting new functionality. Knowing what the changes are, up front, will allow you and your team to take full advantage of all the latest features right out of the gate and reduce potential post-live frenzy.

 Check System Requirements

    • *Upgrades typically come with new system requirements, and it’s important to ensure your system can accommodate the new requirements prior to beginning the upgrade. A decision might also need to be made on whether a fresh installation is needed or if it’s suitable to install over a previous version of the software.

 Prepare Testing Plans

    • *Review your testing plan with internal and external stakeholders, and forward key dates and milestones to anyone affected. Nothing is worse than coming into work one day with a brand-new system and not knowing it was happening! This can set employees back tremendously as they learn the new system and/or need training.
    • *Once you’re familiar with all the changes and requirements, a testing plan should be developed for all business-critical processes. Depending on the complexity of the software, this might be done after the upgrade has already been pushed live (in SaaS solutions), or it could happen in an independent testing environment with exhaustive User Acceptance Testing (UAT) prior to deploying to a live environment. In either scenario, test cases should be created for end-users to verify their business-critical tasks are functioning as expected after the upgrade.

 Define Points of Contact and Contingency Plans

    • *Make sure there is a defined point of contact within your organization, as well as with the company providing the new software version. Processes should be defined prior to the upgrade on who to contact (and how) should something go wrong during or after the upgrade. Is there a rollback plan if UAT does not pass? What kind of support is offered after go-live? How do you report issues and potential bugs? You will save a lot of time and potential headache if this information is gathered prior to the upgrade!

 Back Up Your Data!

    • *Prior to performing an upgrade of any kind, a backup of all your data is essential. A loss of        even a small amount of data can be detrimental to business. Protect yourself and your                customers’ data by ensuring proper backups have been made prior to making any changes.

      Change may be inevitable, but it doesn’t have to be painful, and Welter Consulting is here to help!  While upgrading your organization’s enterprise software may seem a little overwhelming, with a solid plan in place and a little prep work, you’ll be excited about the change and all the new features and functionality that come with it.

      Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information.

Mandatory Fun: Why Requiring Vacation Time for All Means a Better Workplace

By | HR, Nonprofit | No Comments

“I’m too busy to take a vacation!”

Have you caught yourself saying that? If so – stop. Just stop, right now. Because we’re here to tell you that fun is mandatory. Vacations aren’t just a nice thing to do. They’re important for your productivity, creativity, peace of mind, and a happy workplace.

Take Vacation – Please

Time off helps workers recharge their batteries and refresh their creativity. Studies have shown that staying busy all the time, or engaging the left brain (the logical, reasoning brain) for long periods of time depletes the creative energy needed for fresh thinking and ideas. In other words, time spent daydreaming on a beach or strolling the lanes of a foreign city is great for refreshing your left or creative brain.

To Check In or Not to Check In?

In order to fully reap the benefits of taking time off, it’s best not to check in at all, or to check in sparingly. Some executives may feel they should check in at regular intervals, setting times when they are available during vacation for quick calls or messages. Others check text messages but not email or voice mail. It’s important to set your own boundaries when it comes to taking time off.

The Benefits of Time Off

Vacation time may be a company benefit, but it offers the company benefits, too. For example, research has shown that workers who fail to take time off impact not just their own productivity but others at work, too. That’s because people who don’t take scheduled time off often find themselves taking unplanned time off like sick days because they burn themselves out. Then, in turn, their work must be completed by others, which adds to their stress. This can lower the overall morale and productivity of the entire team.

Another unexpected benefit of vacation time is that it may lower workplace fraud. The FDIC and the SEC both have policies in place to encourage vacation time. The FDIC, in fact, states that mandatory vacation rules discourage embezzlement. That’s because embezzlement and fraud require a sustained effort over time. Vacation disrupts that time and may make fraud more easily detected if the perpetrator isn’t there to cover his or her tracks.

Lastly, organizations who enforce mandatory vacation policies benefit their bottom line, too. Policies that allow workers to accrue vacation time can set the stage for an expensive payout when someone with a lot of vacation time accrued finally leaves the company. A “use it or lose it” policy prevents vacation from accruing annually. It both encourages people to take time off and prevents a big payout when someone leaves.

Leaders Set the Tone

If you’re in a leadership position within your organization, it’s important that you set a positive tone around taking time off. Never make anyone feel guilty for attending to family or personal needs. Be generous with time off policies, and respect people’s boundaries when it comes to taking time off. That means don’t call them when they’re on their wedding anniversary cruise and avoid sending emails during their vacation unless it’s necessary.

 

People sometimes think that vacation time is frivolous, perhaps a holdover from the old-fashioned Puritan work ethic that drives some people to work until exhaustion. But if you’re too tired to work, you’ll be of no use to anyone – not to your clients, your coworkers, or more importantly, to your family or to yourself. Take time off this summer for your sake and that of your company.

Welter Consulting

Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information.

Mentoring: It’s Not Just for Kids Anymore

By | Grant Management, Mentoring, Nonprofit | No Comments

The concept of mentoring was developed a long time ago to help young people develop business skills. More recently, the concept has expanded to include managers and executives who seek to improve their skills even at an advanced stage of their career. Here’s why mentoring is important at all levels of a professional career and how you can embrace a mentoring mindset – and become a mentor or mentee in your professions.

Here’s why mentoring is important at all levels of a professional career and how you can embrace a mentoring mindset – and become a mentor or mentee in your profession.

Benefits of Mentoring for Senior-Level Executives

Climbing the corporate ladder of success means mastering challenges on each rung before proceeding to the next level. But as you rise to the top, there are fewer peers to share ideas, ask for guidance or clarification, or gather feedback. The expression “it’s lonely at the top” comes to mind.

Mentoring pairs you with someone at or above your level of expertise so that you’re no longer alone. You now have a seasoned professional upon which to bounce ideas, seek input, or ask for help.

Many executives dislike asking for help from their peers within an organization. They may be afraid that asking for help means they are showing weakness as a leader. When your mentor is at the same leadership level as you but works for another organization, the fear of appearing weak evaporates.

Priorities for Executive Mentoring

“But wait,” you may ask, “if I’m an executive, doesn’t that mean that I have mastered the skills I need to do a good job?” Yes, and no.

Executives have clearly mastered many of the skills needed to lead an organization and have gained the trust of others. They may still have blind spots, however. Most executives need help with three areas: delegating, time management, and running effective meetings.

Delegating tasks is a skill many top workers struggle with. They feel it is easier to do a task themselves than to explain and delegate it to others. The problem with this attitude is that you can quickly become overwhelmed with work if you do not have good delegation skills.

Time management is another area many executives need coaching on because they spread themselves too thin. They overbook their schedules or burn out because they do not book any personal or ‘down time’ into their schedules.

Lastly, executives aren’t alone in the struggle to run effective meetings. Running a good meeting is a skill that can be learned. A mentor can coach you through the steps needed to improve your skills in these areas.

Finding a Mentor and Building a Relationship

Mentors can be found among professional associations, business groups, and other groups in which you already participate. Seek someone whose skills you admire and who you believe you can learn from on a regular basis.

Mentors and mentees should meet regularly, such as once a month. Mentors and mentees should establish clear goals, timelines, and milestones to achieve the goals. Expectations and accountabilities should be set for the relationship so that the time spent working together is focused and practical.

A specific plan, especially a written plan of action, helps with accountability issues. So too does meeting face to face. Schedule time to meet together so that it’s in your planner or calendar.

Lastly, be open and receptive to feedback from your mentor. Growth can be painful, and hearing feedback even if it is couched in gentle terms can be difficult.

 

Mentors are no longer relegated to college graduates entering the workplace. Today, executives at all levels know that having a mentor can make all the difference to their careers.

Welter Consulting

Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information

Are You Ready for the FASB Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2014-09?

By | Abila, Accounting, Audit, CPA, FASB, Nonprofit | No Comments

By now you’ve probably heard of FASB Topic 606. This is an accounting standards update that seeks to provide greater clarity to organizations on how to report revenue. After the initial release of the update, several clarification statements have been issued to help organizations and companies prepare for the new guidelines. As you’re getting ready to implement the new standards (they go into effect for certain not for profits starting December 15, 2017, and for most others December 15, 2018), it’s important to understand both the gist of the update as well as the clarifying statements that have been issued.

What Is FASB Topic 606?

FASB 606 deals with revenue from contracts with customers. FASB Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09 seeks to streamline statement preparation, as well as provide better disclosure to the public and to others. Clear, transparent reporting is essential for nonprofits; it helps build trust between nonprofits and their constituents. With FASB Topic 606 and Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09, the revised guidelines are intended to help nonprofits clearly disclose their relationship with their customers and the revenues such relationships and contracts provide.

Another reporting area that FASB No. 2014-09 seeks to improve is the ability for people to compare financial statements. If revenue is reported differently, it makes it harder to compare them across entities. If revenues follow a consistent reporting pattern, they can be compared more easily.

Clarifications on the Original Statement

Accounting professionals charged with the implementation of this revised standard have asked for, and received, clarification on several items. First, intellectual property issues required several clarifying statements. Organizations who license their IP needed information on how to record revenues. A nonprofit health association, for example, who licenses a special ‘badge’ that packaged food companies can put on their products to indicate they meet specific dietary guidelines needs to understand whether they should record revenues at once or over time as they occur.

So far, FASB has issued four clarifications:

  1. ASU No. 2016-08, which addressed principal versus agent considerations.
  2. ASU No. 2016-10 identified performance obligations and licensing
  3. ASU No. 2016-12, clarified a narrow scope improvements and practical expedients directed at items such as the reporting of noncash consideration, contract modification and completed contracts at transition, collectability matters, and similar matters.
  4. ASU No. 2016-20 which correct loan guarantees, contract costs—impairment testing, and provision for losses on construction-type and production-type contracts. Because this area is so complex, interested people should keep up to date with any further changes on 2016-20.

Caution: Implementation Ahead

With all of the clarifications and updates, it’s difficult to say whether or not organizations are truly ready to implement the new rule. Although many indicate that they are, it may be wishful thinking.

A few other cautions have come above. The new rule indicates that transaction prices should be allocated to each performance obligation based on the stand-alone price. Software companies are paying particular note of this requirement since it may accelerate revenue recognition for their products.

Another area where this may impact revenue recognition is on bundled items. Revenue recognition for bundled, package items may now be considered one item instead of many.

Lastly, revenues must be recorded when it appears probable that they can be collected. For nonprofits, this means that they cannot record as donations or revenues money left to them with conditions attached unless it becomes very clear that those conditions will be met.

Confused? Let Welter Consulting Help

If you’re confused about all the FASB changes and the implementation of these new guidelines, Welter Consulting can help. Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information.