Milwaukee Nonprofit CFO’s Guide to Nonprofit Financial Systems

Traditionally, choices for financial systems involved one brand over another.  Today, the choices have multiplied exponentially:  which brand, which platform, and what would best serve your nonprofit.

Join JMT Consulting Group, an independent nonprofit consultancy, to learn about choosing the correct financial system for your organization and how to evaluate on-premise, hosted and cloud-based solutions based on the resources available to your nonprofit.

Enjoy lunch on us and network with other local nonprofit financial and executive directors.

You will learn what to zero in on when your organization is ready to change your financial system by:

• Understanding you organization’s needs
• Determining the ROI of any changes
• Learning what to look for when choosing a new system
• Discovering if your system is the cause of your inefficiencies
• Gaining knowledge of hosting in the cloud environment
• Defining your organization’s goals

We will be comparing and contrasting two successful financial systems designed specifically for nonprofits – Intacct andSage Fund Accounting.

Upcoming locations and dates:

• Mason Street Grill, 425 East Mason Street, Milwaukee, WI 53202
• June 23, 2011 (12:30 – 2:00pm)

All are welcome, but seating is limited, so please register today by contact Noelle Hasser at (888) 368-2463 or email her atnhasser@jmtconsulting.com.

CFO’s Guide to Nonprofit Financial Systems Coming to 2 Locations in Chicagoland

Traditionally, choices for financial systems involved one brand over another.  Today, the choices have multiplied exponentially:  which brand, which platform, and what would best serve your nonprofit.

Join JMT Consulting Group, an independent nonprofit consultancy, to learn about choosing the correct financial system for your organization and how to evaluate on-premise, hosted and cloud-based solutions based on the resources available to your nonprofit.

Enjoy lunch on us and network with other local nonprofit financial and executive directors.

You will learn what to zero in on when your organization is ready to change your financial system by:

• Understanding you organization’s needs
• Determining the ROI of any changes
• Learning what to look for when choosing a new system
• Discovering if your system is the cause of your inefficiencies
• Gaining knowledge of hosting in the cloud environment
• Defining your organization’s goals

We will be comparing and contrasting two successful financial systems designed specifically for nonprofits – Intacct and Sage Fund Accounting.

Upcoming locations and dates:

• Phil Stefani’s, 437 N Rush Street, Chicago, IL 60611
• June 21, 2011 (12:30 – 2:00 pm)

 

• The Capital Grille, 5340 North River Road, Rosemont, IL 60018
• June 22, 2011 (12:30 – 2:00 pm)

All are welcome, but seating is limited, so please register today by contact Noelle Hasser at (888) 368-2463 or email her at nhasser@jmtconsulting.com.

 

Technology Working in Favor of Nonprofits

Have you ever postponed investing in a new accounting system for your nonprofit because of the cost to buy or add new servers?

Or maybe your organization doesn’t have a large (any) IT department to support replacing or upgrading to a better accounting solution and so you’ve made due with the system that you have (inadequate as it may be).

You’re not alone.  But here’s some good news:  new options are available to nonprofits that take advantage of hosting and Cloud Computing and Software as a Service (SaaS).

In addition to traditional, powerful, on-premise fund accounting like Sage MIP Fund Accounting, JMT Consulting Group has added two more options for nonprofits.

Hosted Solutions – Sage MIP Fund Accounting is housed on servers on your behalf.  You access the applications via your desktop but there is no “backroom” in your office housing a stack of servers that would need to be purchased, maintained, upgraded, etc.  Because your solution is hosted, it’s pretty much ready to go – deployment is far less complication.  Likewise, you do not have to worry about the manpower and associated costs and hassles of upgrading the software each time there is patch, fix, of new version released.

Cloud Computing/SaaS – JMT Consulting Group added Intacct to our portfolio of solutions because we know just how beneficial and economical Cloud Computing would be for nonprofits.  Cloud computing offers all the same benefits of a hosted solution – rapid deployment, eliminating the need for IT with regards to upgrading and managing the solution, diminished costs associated with servers and new hardware, and accessible anywhere you have access to the internet.

The best part is that you don’t sacrifice any features or functionality with these solutions.

We like it when technological advances help nonprofits worry less about infrastructure, hardware and software and allow you to achieve your mission.

For more information, Tech Soup has a great article: Why Should Nonprofits Care About Cloud Computing?

Or give us a call at 888- 368-2463 or click here for more information.

Professional Knowledge Firm or Software Vendor

JMT Consulting Group is a professional knowledge firm dedicated to improving the impact and effectiveness of our nonprofit clients.

There’s a significant difference between a nonprofit software solution provider and a professional knowledge firm.  Most nonprofit software solution providers only offer one solution.  As a result, regardless of your nonprofits particular operations, requirements and mission, it is in the best interest of the software solution provider to recommend the nonprofit software they represent.  That may not be the best solution for your organization.

Would your nonprofit be best served by an on-premise solution, Software as a Service (Saas), Cloud-based or hosted?

At JMT Consulting Group we review your needs and make our recommendation based on the best product fit for your nonprofit organization.

We take a look at different facets of the organizations and make recommendations on business process analysis and improvement; technology planning and consulting; and business process outsourcing. Based on our findings, we then refer to our portfolio of solutions including such brands as Sage, Intacct, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, Convio, etc., to make our product recommendation based on the best product fit.

Our commitment:

• Recommend on the right solution for your organization.
• On-time project delivery as scoped.
• On-budget price is guaranteed.
• Always operate with the highest ethical standards.
• Whether you future technology direction is in the cloud or on-premise, JMT works with you to design solutions for the long-term success of your organization.

For more information on how JMT Consulting Group can help your organization, contact us at info@jmtconsulting.com or call us at 888-368-2463.

Intacct Participating in “Joining Forces” – a program for military veterans

Yesterday was a proud moment and an exciting day for us as an Intacct solution provider.

Intacct is part of an exciting new program “Joining Forces,” championed by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, which seeks to improve the economic opportunity for military veterans and their families.  Cloud computing and SaaS will serve as a cornerstone of the program.

Other key partners in the program include SCORE, the AICPA, and Salesforce.com.  The idea is to provide military veterans and their families with a bundle of complimentary training, services and technology.

Please read more about the program at the Intacct blog, the White House website or by watching this video.

 

 

Proud that Intacct is “Joining Forces” with White House

Preview: Nonprofit Best Practices: Cloud Financials

Here is a video of James Linday who will be presenting with Jacqueline M. Tiso and Dan Druker on February 15 – more here.

Enjoy the preview!

Nonprofit Best Practices: Cloud Financials

On February 15 at 1:00e, Jacqueline M. Tiso, JMT Consulting Group, CEO and founder will be presenting with Dan Druker (Intacct) and James Linday, CFO of The Great Books Foundation.

This is a webcast and free of charge, so please join us by registering here.

Here’s what you’ll learn at the web event:

• The key financial management and technology issues facing nonprofit organizations today
• Why cloud computing is a more effective and efficient, lower cost option for nonprofit organizations
• Best practices in evaluating and contracting for cloud computing

James Linday, CFO of The Great Books Foundation will share his first hand experience in moving to cloud financials including:

• His process for selecting and implementing a cloud-based accounting solution
• The ROI of moving to cloud financials and how it has reduced his need for IT resources
• The tangible and intangible benefits The Great Books Foundation has seen by moving to the cloud

We hope you can join us!

Charter Schools Financial Reporting: It’s Time to Graduate from Spreadsheets

Charter Schools have many challenges in the course of the academic year; worrying about audits and grant reporting shouldn’t be one of them.  But if your school relies on spreadsheets to manage grants, or information must be consolidated from multiple school locations, there is a large margin for error – errors that, if severe enough, could lead to a costly audit or worse a loss of funds.

Charter Schools need an accounting solution that can handle the reporting requirements of state and federal funds that it receives.  In addition, your Charter School may receive a variety of grants that come with their own set of reporting requirements.  If you are a start up, you may be taking advantage of a Charter School Program (CSP) Grant.  Other grants or sources of funding may include Special Education Grants to States, E-Rate, Impact Aid and Title 1 Grants to LEAs.

Given the number and complexity of reporting on all funds is why we caution Charter Schools that the selection of accounting software is one of the most crucial decisions your management team will make.  We offer a portfolio of leading accounting software solutions so that our clients won’t be shoe-horned into a system that doesn’t fit all of your needs.  Some Charter Schools may be better served by cloud-based computing, others may want a hosted solution, or it may make more sense to go with an on premise solution.

Further, we can help you find easily integrated complementary solutions such as fundraising, donor management, and fixed assets to name just a few.

We’d be happy to help you in your selection process.

 

Considering new fund accounting software? Some things to think about as you explore.

It’s sort of a mantra of ours that the decision you make regarding your accounting software is one of the most critical choices you can make for your nonprofit organization.  Look no further than the amount of time your accounting and finance team spend on creating monthly, quarterly, and program-specific reports, just to name a few.  Reporting is the key to effective use of the funds you’ve been awarded as well as additional funds you hope to gain.

The solution that works wonderfully for one nonprofit may not be a good fit for another nonprofit.   It’s part of the reason that we represent a number of different fund accounting solutions.  When counseling a nonprofit on software selection, we don’t walk in with a preconceived notion of selling a particular solution.  We want to learn about your organization first and understand the challenges that you face.

There is so much more than just software to consider.  While features and functions are important, there may be other factors that need to be weighed in your decision.  Are you staffed to support a system internally?  Do you have the necessary systems and infrastructure (or the means to invest in them) to host your systems?

Most of the time, there are human and technical resources available to support an in-house system.  But more and more, due to limited budgets and internal resources, we’re being asked about Software As A Service (SAAS) and Cloud Computing.  We believe that this is more than a fad and that it will continue to be a consideration on the list of choices available to nonprofits.  As a result, we’ve recently added Intacct to our product portfolio in order to better respond to the different requirements of nonprofits seeking our help.

If you have questions regarding the various fund accounting solutions on the market, we’d be happy to answer them.  Use the comments section here on the blog or give us a call.  Also, we routinely host free webinars on the various solutions in order for you to learn more about them.  You can see the webinar topics here.

With so many good solutions available to relieve you of tedious, time-consuming, cumbersome manual processes – you should look to a solution that can automate those routines and give you more time to analyze the data – and we’d be happy to help you explore the options in order to find the perfect fit for you.