The Hidden Costs of Greater Efficiency Greg Cole / Tuesday, July 19, 2011 The drive for greater efficiency and cost savings is relentless as companies continue to face the competitive pressure of ever more crowded markets. Business software is rightly credited with offering those benefits. But new efficiencies often come with a hidden price-tag. Why? Because many software applications require users to undergo lengthy training, sometimes last several days and then take time to become fully operational. In other cases, a new software system or application may ... Read more
Simple. Smart. Fast. Is It Enough? Chris Oswald / Friday, July 8, 2011 Google any business software and you’ll find pages of vendors talking about what their products can do. There’ll be a list of features a mile long. But look for the quantifiable business benefits of the software and it’s harder to find something meaningful. What this means is that savvy IT Managers who ... Read more
Why fax isn't going away anytime soon Blog author (PC) / Monday, July 4, 2011 How faxing is still a valid, smart and possibly indispensible communications tool. I do a lot of travelling to trade shows, clients and partners so am always meeting new contacts and picking up business cards. The other day I decided to have a check through my mountain of business cards (now that all the details ... Read more
Why are our finance teams still so busy? Why are our finance teams still so busy? Blog author (CD) / Thursday, May 19, 2011 These days if you’re a business, charity or government organisation, you’re very likely to use some kind of accounting software. Either you’ll have a cloud-based solution or one bought off the shelf from a specialist, such as Microsoft Dynamics NAV which can then be customized to meet your requirements. You may even have your own completely bespoke ... Read more
Reducing the duty of care compliance burden with electronic document management & delivery Greg Cole / Friday, April 15, 2011 In the USA, UK and Europe compliance with regulations, standards and guidelines set out by regulatory bodies has become a major focus for public and private organizations, particularly relating to financial data. Compliance is ultimately the responsibility of the board of directors, who owe a duty of care to customers, ... Read more
e-Invoicing: get ready for the new rules Blog author (CD) / Wednesday, April 6, 2011 We live in the ‘Internet Age’, the ‘Information Age’, a ‘Connected World’, on a ‘Small Planet’. In our offices, we’re surrounded by technology that makes our lives easier, saves us money, makes us more profit, makes us greener and improves efficiency. Yet simple, straightforward functions like sending an invoice – it ... Read more
7 ways to neutralize the crippling effects of late payments on your business Blog author (CD) / Monday, March 7, 2011 A key knock-on effect of the global financial crisis has been the trend towards late payment of invoices among firms of all sizes, in all countries. Late payment is at best irritating and at worst crippling, especially for smaller businesses. Occasionally accidental, sometimes unavoidable, yet all-too-often deliberate and planned, the effects ripple through every economy... Read more
Improving customer service with fax server software Chris Oswald / Thursday, February 17, 2011 Ever come across those call holding systems that say, “Your call is very important to us”? Meanwhile, you’re kept waiting for 20 minutes for the “next available operator”. Companies that run these systems usually say that customer service is a major priority for them. But it’s ... Read more