technology Archives - Wiss & Company, LLP

The Importance of Investing in Technology and Automation

Written on February 16, 2023. Posted in Startups, Technology.

By Matt Barbieri The pandemic turned the working world on its head, forever changing how businesses operate. When working from home became the norm, companies were suddenly faced with managing remote staff. As a result, technology and automation solutions that previously seemed visible over the distant horizon became the daily office tools that made business continuity possible. Now that the dust has mostly settled, it’s a great time to reflect on what we’ve learned from...

End Technology Whiplash With Cloud-Based Accounting

Written on February 9, 2023. Posted in Outsourced Accounting & Tax, Technology.

By Carolyn Hall In a world defined by technology, it can often seem like everything is moving at lightning speed. Industries get transformed before our very eyes, making the world as it was five years ago almost unrecognizable. This revolution is now reaching into some of the most unexpected places and departments in companies — like accounting — and shaking things up. As a result, technology has created the need for new hard skills and soft ones. It’s enough to make your head spin. Understandably,...

Innovative Businesses Require Forward-Thinking Financial Advisors

Written on February 7, 2023. Posted in Early Stage, General Business.

By Matthew Barbieri The founders of innovative businesses—ones making waves in technology, life sciences, and new media—are focused on impact. Unimpressed with the status quo, these talented entrepreneurs are working to drive change meaningfully. Many of these leaders bring specialized skill sets perfect for helping them carve out a new niche or even launch a new industry. They surround themselves with intelligent, creative teams and build businesses that allow their talents to shine...

Part 7: Keeping Your Industry Front and Center

Written on January 18, 2023. Posted in Technology.

By Luis Vargas In an earlier post, we discussed the pros and cons of customization vs. using an “out of the box” solution. When selecting a technological solution, it is worth thinking about your initiative in the context of your industry. There may be any number of technology solutions specific to your industry that, when used wisely, can help you achieve your goals faster and with less friction. After all, they were designed with you in mind. On the other hand, sometimes a technological...

Part 6: Thinking Big, Starting Small: The Power of Being Agile

Written on January 10, 2023. Posted in Technology.

By Luis Vargas Technology moves fast. Being able to move with it—acting quickly, and efficiently, and pivoting when necessary—is one of the keys to success. But speed is not the only consideration. Making smart decisions is equally valuable. “Failing fast” means taking an iterative approach to problem-solving—being open to the possibility of failure as a way of gaining information. Failing can give early indications of what does and doesn’t work and can save time and money in the...

Part 5: Invest in Change Management

Written on December 22, 2022. Posted in Technology.

By Luis Vargas Once you lay out the specific aspects of the investment—which initiative to prioritize, how to measure success, who will lead the project and how much customization is needed—you can shift focus to your employees and your strategy for guiding them through the future change. Managing change throughout the lifecycle of your initiative will be critical to creating a culture of innovation and securing ROI. There are five phases of change management—as you strategize how...

Part 4: Carefully Consider Customization

Written on December 12, 2022. Posted in Technology.

By Luis Vargas Every business has unique needs, and it can be tempting to customize existing software solutions to meet those needs precisely. However, customization requires specialized coding skills and, in some cases, custom implementation, which can cause a cascade of challenges. Further revisions will require more code; future releases could be impacted, necessitating even more code. If the customization impacts the software’s functionality, the vendor is typically not responsible...

Part 3: Find Your Innovation Champion

Written on December 7, 2022. Posted in Technology.

By Luis Vargas You’ve selected your project and you’ve lined up your KPIs. Now it’s time to drive that project forward and over the finish line. But how? It’s all too common for IT initiatives to get bogged down in bureaucracy, inertia, and poor communication. To overcome those obstacles, you need someone who can pilot the project from beginning to end. You need someone who can craft and share a vision of what the initiative will do, respond to objections, and break through stumbling...

Part 2: Measuring Success – Understanding the Project’s Key Variables

Written on December 1, 2022. Posted in General Business, Technology.

by Luis Vargas You’ve put time and effort into selecting the right IT project—naturally, you want it to be successful. But what does “success” really mean? Without a clear definition, knowing when and if your project is truly successful is impossible. Clear, measurable targets, also known as Key Performance Indicators, or KPIs, are critical because they provide data that helps you track your progress. Good KPIs help evaluate the success of a particular activity and even help you...

Part 1: Maximizing Your Organization’s IT Investments

Written on November 22, 2022. Posted in Investing.

By Luis Vargas, Director, CFO Advisory This is part one of a seven-part series on maximizing your organization’s IT investments. Every organization must decide how to allocate limited human and financial resources across competing needs, and stakes are exceptionally high when selecting suitable IT investments. Research by McKinsey found that large IT projects run 45% over budget while delivering 56% less value than predicted. The same study found that 17% of IT investments...

How to Assess and Resolve Business Process Issues

Written on September 27, 2022. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich As companies grow, they often fail to focus on the technology or resources required to maintain their edge in the marketplace. This can lead to a breakdown in business process optimization, hinder productivity and impact morale. Take, for example, a construction company that approached Wiss after experiencing 300 percent growth over a five-year period. While sales had tripled, the size of the accounting department and the technology used to run the business never...

Optimize Your Transfer Pricing Approach with Technology

Written on September 20, 2022. Posted in Technology.

We are all familiar with the month-end crunch — a scramble to extract the data needed to run the transfer pricing (TP) monitoring calculations, determine adjustments, investigate inconsistencies, gain approvals and book those all-important TP entries. Then focus might shift to a new acquisition, which will require harmonizing TP policies, stress-testing existing policies, facing new data source challenges and dealing with unraveling processes. And then the tax authorities serve up...

Q&A: Breaking Down the Chip Shortage

Written on March 9, 2022. Posted in Technology.

Though some of the supply chain delays are related to staffing concerns related to COVID, the most prevalent disrupter is the chip shortage. As supply chain continues to be a topic of discussion for consumers in all industries, and a pain point for most manufacturers and distributors, the below interview sheds some light on the cause of the chip shortage and the outlook for the next few years. Eskander Yavar, BDO’s National Manufacturing Practice Leader, sat down with Tom Stringer,...

ERP Trends to Watch in 2022

Written on January 10, 2022. Posted in Technology.

By Alex Volpi, Technology Advisory Practice Leader More than ever, businesses are investing in technology. Worldwide IT spending is totaled $4.2 trillion in 2021, an increase of 8.6% from 2020, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. Companies are constantly bombarded by the term ‘Digital Transformation.’ Overhauling manual internal processes, retiring legacy business software, and implementing modern cloud technology is the goal for many business...

R&D Tax Credits for the Technology & Software Industry

Written on November 9, 2021. Posted in State & Local Tax Services, Tax, Tax Alerts, Technology.

Generate cash from your past and future investments to develop or improve software. If your company has paid for software to be developed or improved in the U.S., you may be eligible for federal and state R&D tax credits equaling up to 25% of qualified spending. If your company is financing such activities outside of the U.S., the incentives may be even greater. These dollar–for–dollar offsets against regular income tax liability have enabled many startup and mature businesses...

R&D Tax Credits for the Healthcare Industry

Written on October 19, 2021. Posted in Healthcare, State & Local Tax Services, Tax, Tax Alerts.

Capitalizing on evolving patient care through past, present, and future innovation. R&D is likely to be a continued priority for the healthcare industry, as organizations in the space work to address the emerging needs of the aging population, respond to trends in telehealth and value-based care and fend off competition from new entrants, like Amazon, which has signaled that healthcare is a key priority for growth. If your organization has worked to develop a new or improved...

5 of the Most Common Reasons Software Implementations Fail

Written on September 21, 2021. Posted in Technology.

By Alex Volpi, Technology Advisory Practice Leader Your organization just selected a new software application to deploy to the business, now what? As humans, we are hardwired to resist change. This is particularly true when it comes to software implementations. Employees throughout the organization are going to be impacted by this change, some more than others, and communicating that change is coming early can make all the difference. According to a survey of more than...

5 Benefits of Implementing an ERP System to Your Business

Written on September 2, 2021. Posted in Advisory Services, General Business, Technology.

By Alex Volpi, Technology Advisory Practice Leader At some point, companies will reach a point where spreadsheets, disparate systems and disjointed processes are no longer cutting it. This is where Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems come into the picture for many organizations. In fact, 96% of emerging businesses that are leaders in their industries use an ERP system, and 95% of companies saw an improvement in their business processes after implementing an ERP system,...

Latest Cyber Security Threats

Written on April 16, 2020. Posted in Technology.

By David Singletary As more people start working from home, they are taking advantage of online conference services like Zoom. Over 500,000 unique Zoom account credentials were discovered on dark web hacker forums. Exposed data includes victims’ email addresses, passwords, personal meeting URLs, and HostKeys, and were likely gathered through credential stuffing attacks. NJCCIC “The New Jersey Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell “ recommends the following when using...

COVID-19 Spawns New Phishing Scams

Written on March 31, 2020. Posted in General Business, Technology.

by David Singletary As the country and world are trying to deal with recent COVID-19 pandemic, cybercriminals are taking advantage of people’s quest for information. You’ve probably noticed a plethora of emails from every retailer, software company, or business you’ve dealt with in recent years. Cybercriminals see an excellent opportunity to slide in phishing scams amid all the information being sent your way. The following are two examples: What’s...

Continual Planning to Keep your Business Running Effectively During This Crisis

Written on March 16, 2020. Posted in General Business, Technology.

By David Singletary As we all continue to face the abrupt changes in the way in which we work and the pressures on all of us to keep our businesses going during this crisis, I want to share with you some key insights and things to continue to think about as we move through this “remote” time. Please know that I along with our team are here to help you in any way that we can. There are some key elements that each of us needs to ensure are in place to create the most effective way...

Leverage Automation to Enhance Your Accounts Payable System

Written on June 4, 2019. Posted in Technology.

Your organization has embraced advanced technology everywhere it seems to fit. In that way, you’re staying competitive in your industry and meeting the expectations of clients or customers. Nonetheless, if your accounts payable people aren’t leveraging technology to streamline workflow, your company is still missing the mark. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re missing until you make a change. Here are some of the leading benefits of a changeover to an automated AP system. Workflow...

Today’s Software Solutions Vastly Improve HR Staff Productivity

Written on April 29, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services, Human Resources.

Updated 7/30/2019. I recently visited a client company with over 750 employees. The HR staff kept track of vacations on a spreadsheet. Anyone considering taking time off would first call up some poor overworked HR rep and see how many days they had remaining. That rep would have to then manually update the remaining totals. I have to imagine that was pretty much how that staffer spent his or her summer months at work. This same company had a total of about ten spreadsheets keeping...

Recruiting for Millennials

Written on April 10, 2019. Posted in Human Resources.

By Kelsey Silverstein Developing a recruitment strategy that targets millennials is no longer a future concern. It is a present-day prerequisite to obtain top talent. In order to attractively advertise your company to these young professionals, we first need to define them. So, who are Millennials? Millennials are a cohort that range from ages 23-38. In 2017, Pew Research Center found that 56 million Millennials were either working or actively seeking employment, surpassing Gen-Xers....

The Critical Importance of Effective Cybersecurity in Your Business

Written on January 29, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services.

Updated 7/30/2019. Cybersecurity does not offer a return on investment — unless you count stable client relations, peace of mind, insurance against the financial, and public relations disaster that can result from digital criminal activity. In other words, cybersecurity is something that your business will hardly notice if it’s functioning well, and deeply regret if it goes wrong. Harmful effects from data breaches Data breach can be a crisis for your business in a number...

7 Common Mistakes Made by Early Stage Companies

Written on September 18, 2018. Posted in Technology.

By Donna Woronka, CPA, MBA Updated 7/30/2019. Early stage entrepreneurs have plenty on their minds, from developing and launching their new product or service, to establishing customer and vendor relationships, to hiring employees and raising capital to make it all possible. There’s a lot that can potentially slip through the cracks. Issues related to state and federal compliance is an area that is not frequently at the top of the list. In my 20+ years working with over one hundred...

Preparing Your Business for an ERP Implementation

Written on September 11, 2018. Posted in Technology.

There are few administrative initiatives that might prove more challenging to more of your employees in more departments than the launch or changeover of an ERP system. Don’t get me wrong — in time you’ll all feel that it’s totally worth it in terms of enhanced productivity and accuracy. It’s just that you’ll all work up a sweat getting there. In an earlier blog post I described your Enterprise Resource Planning system as being the brain center of your company. So an ERP implementation...

Is It Time to Upgrade Your ERP Software?

Written on April 24, 2018. Posted in Technology.

By David Singletary Updated 7/29/2019. We all know about the rapid pace of technology and the headaches it can cause your company. It can be more than merely annoying. It can also be costly and time-consuming. You’re constantly upgrading your tech hardware or software — or fielding complaints from employees if you don’t. Your ERP solution is the brain center of your company. Depending on your line of business, it’s likely to impact your accounting, HR, sales, inventory and...

Breaking the Accountant Stereotype

Written on November 6, 2017. Posted in Tax Alerts.

By Wiss Associate Think of an accountant, and what do you picture? If you follow the common societal stereotype, you may envision someone with a pocket protector and a beige plastic raincoat who goes to bed cuddling his calculator, with no emotion and no social competence. A person who would rather recite the square root of pi than eat pie. Think of an entrepreneur, and you probably picture an entirely different image. Beyond the sheer sophistication of the word “entrepreneur” itself,...

Yahoo Breach Update: What You Need to Know

Written on October 6, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Wiss Associate Originally in August 2013 hackers stole data associated with more than one billion user accounts. The information was account information such as names, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates as well as hashed passwords and security questions and answers. Yahoo claimed that payment card data and bank account information was not part of the information stolen as it was not on the compromise system. On Tuesday (10/3/17), Yahoo announced it was 3 billion accounts,...

Keep Track of Your Credit Score

Written on September 21, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Joe Turk With everyone concerned about the recent Equifax Data breach, we recommend people remain vigilant and review their credit card, banking and financial transactions on-line very carefully. You can check Credit Karma for your credit scores and activity; however, the service is limited and updated from TransUnion and Equifax every 7 days. The top three credit monitoring services are LifeLock, IdentityForce and IdentityGuard–with LifeLock coming out on top in competitive...

Protect Your Identity: How to Recover from a Data Breach

Written on September 15, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Wiss Associate If you maintain a credit score, there is a high chance you are one of the 143 million Americans whose sensitive information was uncovered in the recent data breach at Equifax, one of the country’s three largest credit reporting agencies. This breach, which lasted from May to July, swiped people’s names, birthdates, Social Security numbers, addresses, and in many cases, driver’s license numbers. What’s more, these cybercriminals accessed millions of people’s personal...

Property Management Software is for Everyone

Written on July 13, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Wiss Associate Did you know the real estate industry is a $15 trillion industry and small to medium sized companies still command roughly 50% of the total real estate market in the United States? This concept has drastically transformed with the rise of Cloud computing and the price of entry–which is much lower than you think. Companies such as Appfolio, Propertyware, RealPage and Total Management are paving the way with complete property management, accounting, tenant portal,...

The Cadillac of Technology: Yardi Aids Companies Both Big and Small

Written on April 26, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Wiss Associate When it comes to real estate investment and property management software, Yardi Technology is the Cadillac of products on the market. Few can compete with Yardi’s scope of offerings, from commercial real estate and construction management to residential rentals and investment partnerships. And while Yardi is one of the longest-standing companies of its kind, it’s also an innovator: It was one of the first such software brands to offer a total cloud-based product. Yardi...

The Maturing Cybersecurity Dangers in Commercial Real Estate

Written on March 14, 2017. Posted in Real Estate.

By Alexander J. Narcise and Robert Risk The real estate world has become increasingly exposed to cyber-attacks given the increase in the amount of multi-family properties that have been developed over the last few years. Developers who were never before in the multi-family market are now collecting personal data from thousands of individuals. Even commercial properties possess very private tenant financial information that could cause harm if penetrated, and regular insurance alone...

Moving Your Business to the Cloud: Increase Flexibility, Savings and Security

Written on March 7, 2017. Posted in Technology.

By Jessica Manas By now you’ve heard about the cloud — that invisible vault that allows you to store data on the internet instead of keeping it on hardware devices. And you likely already use the cloud – whether you realize it or not. If you’ve ever scheduled a meeting on your laptop and it then popped up on your smartphone calendar, or if you’ve ever been relieved to find that your photos still exist after you’ve dropped your iPhone, you have the cloud to thank. Businesses can also...

Key Steps to Take When Adopting New Accounting Software

Written on July 7, 2016. Posted in Technology.

By Paul Ursich Accounting software has certainly changed the way industries function. These systems eliminate numerous manual components of financial organizations while offering businesses countless ways of analyzing and improving corporate performance. Hence, when a myriad of software solutions are at your fingertips, how can you capture the greatest dynamic structure for your business? Execute the following actions necessary to acquire the desired and worthwhile results: Strategize Grasping...

The Technological Evolution of the Accounting Profession

Written on June 21, 2016. Posted in Technology.

By Bob Risk Towards the culmination of the twentieth century as the advancement of technologies intensified, accounting organizations across the corporate province eyed a distinct change in their routine activities and interactions with clients. Attributable to these transformations, CPAs are urged to acquire the latest innovative proficiencies, freshly blended into the daily operations of each accounting specialist. Bookkeeping, the respected dialect of the business realm, continues...

Using QuickBooks Apps and Features to Boost Accuracy and Productivity

Written on May 17, 2016. Posted in Technology.

By Donna Woronka Millions of companies use QuickBooks (QB) software for accounting because it is affordable, intuitive and user friendly. The majority of users may not know that there are an abundance of apps available on the market today that sync directly into QB. These apps fill in the holes between QB’s functionality and how your business operates. The right apps will reduce manual data entry and make your bookkeeping or accounting department more efficient. If you find that...

A Business Owner’s Duty to Protect Sensitive Company Data

Written on July 21, 2015. Posted in Technology.

By Paul Peterson, Managing Partner, Wiss & Co. LLP No two companies are the same in culture, work environment or the vulnerabilities inherent in their digital landscape. This makes it very difficult to implement a standard way of protecting workers and customers from external data threats to their privacy and security. But nothing is more important to your company’s credibility and positive relationships with customers and employees than safeguarding their sensitive data. After...

Y2K15 Technology Assessment

Written on May 26, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Remember what you went through in the late 1990s as you frantically sought to assure yourself and others that your computer systems would survive the turnover to the year 2000? Fifteen years later, this is a good time to review your technology and infrastructure haves, have-nots and should-haves. But this time around, you don’t have to be frantic. Take your time in 2015 to assess your needs and determine how to invest to meet the demands and embrace the exciting...

Transitioning to the Cloud

Written on May 12, 2015. Posted in Technology.

By Wiss Associate What if you lost your company’s computers, servers and phone system? The culprit could be hackers, natural disaster or technology breakdown, but the end result is the same: You lose nearly everything of importance to your business for an unspecified length of time. Your business is at a standstill until you hire an army of IT specialists to get you up and running again. They’ll get right to it — or at least as soon as they can fit your company into their busy schedule. Because...

Seven Critical Steps to Upgrading your Accounting Software

Written on April 21, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Robert Risk Corporate accounting software generally lasts about 10 years before users get bogged down with a system that’s out of touch with current needs. Perhaps your people use Excel spreadsheets for processes that should be easily automated. Or the company has grown to where your existing software can’t keep pace. Or — worst of all — you can no longer trust the numbers on your reports. As you look for a cost-effective system that will serve your needs now and into the future,...

Welcome to Silicon Alley

Written on March 17, 2015. Posted in Technology.

Tech start-ups meet funding in the Big Apple By Ryan S. Silva, CPA, CFE, CVA Start-up technology entrepreneurs and investors need to take a close look at New York City’s Silicon Alley, if they haven’t already. There’s a reason the name is so similar to Silicon Valley on the opposite coast. Both are geographic centers of tech innovation, but in addition to the young brainpower in early-stage technology development, this tech hub is as much about access to the nearby capital markets. It’s...

Six Ways to Tell if Your Company is Ready for Series A Funding

Written on March 10, 2015. Posted in Early Stage, Technology.

By Ryan Silva It’s an exciting — and nerve-wracking — time as your young company prepares to draw investor interest in Series A funding. It’s most likely your company’s first in-depth contact with the venture capital world, but how do you know your business is ready to take such a step? Here are some things to consider: You’ve put out feelers. VC firms don’t just show up on your doorstep when you need them most. Start your meet and greets long before your company is ready for that...

Make the Numbers Add Up

Written on February 3, 2015. Posted in Uncategorized.

How to ensure successful implementation of new accounting software By Robert Risk At some point, nearly every company will start thinking about upgrading its accounting system when the pain points become difficult to dismiss. Here are a few things to think about before making a complex, long-term decision that affects your entire enterprise. Know when it’s time. Frantic energy — a lot of it — can be one of the first signs that your accounting software system is overdue for an upgrade....

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