Technology in Practice

The first day of work at a new company can cause anyone to experience a wide array of emotions. While Net at Work had proven repeatedly that it promotes a welcoming, entrepreneurial, and collaborative environment in which I was sure to flourish, I could not help but allow nerves to take over. Unlike many of my colleagues, I commuted to New York from Princeton. This gave me time to thoroughly play out any scenario I could face during this daunting experience. However, no amount of planning could prepare me for the wonderful FYA program experience ahead.  A Warm Welcome At the New York office, I experienced smiling faces, informative brainstorming sessions, and new friends. All my previous nervousness dissolved once I stepped into the conference room, and I immediately found myself laughing and learning with a cohort of like-minded professionals. My colleagues and I were brought up to speed on the company by the two program leaders, Vera and Stephanie. They did a wonderful job of cultivating an open, nurturing environment while challenging us to develop strong connections that would last throughout our careers. This warm yet professional work environment flourished during the off-site excursions. More Than Work The off-site excursions allowed me to develop personal relationships with other individuals in the program. These experiences offered a way to get to know my cohorts without having a laptop in front of me. For the last excursion, we ventured to Washington Square Park, up a winding staircase, and into an unsuspecting apartment. This large room had been converted into an industrial kitchen, with a long dining table off to the right. Here, we learned to make homemade pasta under the instruction of a professional chef. I will always remember the almost exhausting effort it took to turn a few eggs and some flour into three types of pasta: ravioli, pappardelle and malloreddus. To this day, it is the best pasta I have ever tasted. “The FYA program was a perfect bridge between university and professional life…I quickly found myself surrounded by co-workers sharing the same experience and professionals aiding me on my path to success.” One Program, Many Experiences While the off-site getaways were a terrific way to bond with my co-workers, the rotational assignments allowed me to gain institutional experience. The rotations were a perfect way for me to meet different members of the organization and get a better feel for our software solutions. It’s rare that you get an opportunity to dip a toe in three different pools before deciding which to swim in. I did not take this experience for granted and jumped into the Acumatica, NetSuite, and Sage X3 teams headfirst. From hands-on data migration for Acumatica to an on-site sales meeting for NetSuite, I often found myself challenged in ways I had never experienced before. Both the rotational and program work activated my problem-solving skills. From developing a business process review to crafting a company-wide report guide, my collaborative senses were consistently heightened. While, like anyone, I often found myself engulfed in my rotational assignments, it was always nice to escape the solo projects and work with the other FYAs on the current program project. The six months, three rotations, and numerous program projects prepared me perfectly for the day I was assigned to my final team, Acumatica.  A Perfect Transition The collaborative and hard-working environment meant that my teammates and I could depend on each other, which only strengthened our bonds. The off-site excursions and good morning texts turned these teammates into friends. This experience has given me more laughs, knowledge, and connections than I could have ever imagined.

From Outdated, On-premise ERP to Acumatica Cloud — Riley Sales Trusts Net at Work to Guide its Digital Transformation As a business grows, its technology needs to evolve. Riley Sales, a premier HVAC distributor with locations throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, found itself in this position when its legacy ERP system became a roadblock to continued expansion. But with the help of Net at Work and Acumatica, the company was able to make a digital transformation that has set it up for success well into the future.  From New Hire to New Search  When Brandi Coats joined Riley Sales as CFO in 2018, she quickly learned that the company’s legacy, on-premise ERP system, Infor FACTS, was no longer actively being enhanced with the latest technology that Riley Sales needed to support its growth trajectory. She was tasked with finding a new solution that could support the unique operations of Riley Sales while providing a solid financial foundation. Digital Operations Platform in Progress Fortunately, Riley Sales had a longstanding relationship with technology advisor Net at Work. The industrial distributor brought in its consulting team to discuss the next steps. Together, they evaluated various applications and ultimately decided that the Next Generation ERP solution, Acumatica, was the best choice to move the company forward as part of its overall Digital Operations Platform (DOP), which includes integrated AP Automation solution TRAILD, BI tool Phocas and BillTrust’s eCommerce solution. Today, nearly every employee at Riley Sales uses Acumatica. The company has fully embraced the cloud-based ERP, and this shift allows the company to operate more efficiently, from electronic invoice delivery to faster receivables processing and statement generation. To further maximize its total DOP, Riley Sales invested in a Customer Experience Plan through Net at Work. As part of the plan, Net at Work helps ensure the company’s systems remain updated, tracks progress points, and interfaces with the company’s Managed Service Provider to prioritize and push technology initiatives forward. Custom Fit to Keep HVAC Businesses Running Smoothly Due to Riley Sales’ unique pricing structure, salespeople used to perform many pricing calculations manually, feeding the final price into their legacy ERP system. Net at Work worked with the sales team to create custom solutions within Acumatica to accommodate the structure and eliminate the need for manual entry. These solutions tied into a larger change management approach that spawned a welcome and successful implementation throughout the channel. The Future is Bright Riley Sales is continuing to look towards the future with plans to advance the integration of its eCommerce platform with Acumatica. “Thanks to Net at Work’s help, our B2B portal is already up and running,” says Brandi. “Plus, we are preparing to launch a B2C site in 2024 and also join another online distributor marketplace. Not only does eCommerce free up our salespeople’s time, but it also gives Riley Sales a larger market presence. We can penetrate markets that were out of reach before.” “Net at Work is an ideal partner for us. Their deep knowledge and ability to bring in additional business resources as necessary made this project a success.” With Acumatica at the core of its DOP, Riley Sales makes good on its promise to provide everything HVAC professionals need to get the job done in the Philadelphia area and beyond, all while remaining at the forefront of technology and innovation. Download the full Net at Work success story to read more about Riley Sales’ growth-enabling technology and digital transformation journey. 

Net at Work recently held an End User Group for our clients that were within a short trip to New Jersey.  It was a great meeting with lots of fantastic feedback, idea sharing, and networking. To those there, it was great seeing you, and thank you so much for joining us at the first Net at Work Sage X3 End User Group! To those who were not there, we hope to see you soon.  We are planning three or four more meetings before the end of the year (after the summer in September and October). The End User Group consisted of sessions about connected Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), Net at Work modules (X3 extensions), tips and tricks, and a roadmap presentation from Rob Sinfield, Global Head of Product, Sage X3 at Sage. For all clients, whether you come to an End User Group or not, we are interested in your ideas for Sage product enhancements – you can post here on the Ideas site.  You will need an account to post, but it’s free to sign up.  Let your Team Manager or Account Manager know the link once you post, and we’ll make sure to vote it up! We will be listening to all the feedback we gathered from our attending clients for future events and further improvements in the coming months. If you have any questions or want to participate in a future event, please reach out to your Account Manager, Team Manager, or me at smarshall@netatwork.com.

Most healthcare organizations don’t have a clear idea of how much it costs them to deliver patient care. In fact, the Healthcare Financial Management Association estimates that less than 10% of hospitals and healthcare systems have cost accounting systems that can accurately provide cost data. But the practice of activity-based cost accounting is beginning to take hold to glean those insights. This process, which has long been used in other industries, can be considerably more accurate than traditional healthcare accounting methods. “ABC, or activity-based costing, is basically a way of figuring out the cost of services based on the activities needed to produce them. It’s like looking under the hood of a car to see what parts are needed to make it work.” Activity-based costing (ABC) defined So how does ABC work? First, a healthcare organization computes the actual cost of services, supplies and other operational areas on a per-case basis. In order to calculate the total cost of care delivery, the entity doing the cost accounting would need access to data from a wide range of providers—including post-acute care and/or ambulatory care providers—and supplies, such as medication. While ABC is much more accurate than traditional accounting methods, this method can require an enormous amount of work and data when involving legacy and manual systems. Even large providers may find this to be financially and logistically difficult using standard accounting software. The role of technology in ABC ABC tends to be more easily instituted among next-generation accounting and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions, particularly as part of a healthcare digital operations platform (DOP). This platform-based approach involves a best-of-breed integration among next-generations systems to provide operational visibility across practices or long-term facilities while automating data collection and reporting processes through Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other modern developments.  Says Thornton, “One of the most beneficial features of a healthcare DOP is the ability to automate many of the manual processes using enhanced workflows. This helps reduce the time and effort required in data collection, cost allocation and reporting just to name a few.” Learn more about incorporating the ABC methods within your own practice by downloading the whitepaper, “Activity-Based Costing’s Time Has Come.” Listen to the MGMA Insights podcast on Activity-Based Costing p:empty { display: none; } .panel-heading p {display: none;}.single-format-aside .single-post-wrap .panel-body p:first-child {font-size: 18px !important;line-height: 170% !important;color: #555 !important; padding-bottom: unset !important;}

As mentioned previously, I have had the pleasure of participating in many transactions over the years and have witnessed good deals and bad. My hope is you find my experiences to be insightful and valuable as you contemplate selling your company. There are many things to think through when deciding if the time is right to sell your business. There are a multitude of considerations once you have made that fateful decision. Previous posts have provided you with “best practices” based on real transactions. This final post will summarize the most important elements in a high-level view for you to follow to experience a positive selling experience and outcome. How Much is Your Business Worth? Start by determining the value of your business – how much is it worth? This can be accomplished through a professional business valuation or by using industry-specific formulas and methods. The most common method in the VAR channel is the Market-Based Method; this method determines the payout over time based on shares of revenue generated to the seller’s customer base by the buyer’s company. This method is the most advantageous from a tax standpoint to the seller and is the easiest to understand and administer. It is very important to spend the requisite time and effort needed to prepare your financials, and other relevant customer and business information. This includes income statements, balance sheets, tax returns, detailed customer lists, and any other documents or information that will be requested by potential buyers. Identifying Potential Buyers and Marketing Your Business Next, identify potential buyers and market your business. This includes creating a professional marketing package, listing your business for sale in online platforms, contacting your publisher representatives who have exposure to buyers in your market (read more in post #4), and then reaching out to potential buyers. Once your business is “on the market” it is important to identify and carefully qualify potential buyers to ensure that they have the financial capability and experience to successfully acquire and operate your business (Read more in post #2). It then becomes a matter of negotiating the sale which includes discussing the terms, such as the purchase amount, terms of payment, and any contingencies. A separate topic from the sale transaction, but included in the pre-sale discussion, is determining your role in the buyer’s company should you choose to continue to work in the business. This is also the time that roles are determined for any employees of your company joining the buyer (Read more in post #3). Closing The Deal After all of that is agreed to it becomes a matter of closing the deal. This includes finalizing the sale and transferring ownership of the business to the buyer. An important element of this part of the journey is the development of a comprehensive integration plan for both customers and any employees that are joining the buyer’s company. It is vitally important that the engagement with acquired customers and the seller’s employees is executed with professionalism and sincerity and care to make the transition a positive experience for customers, employees, and the buyer. This plan must focus on reducing the risk of losing acquired customers and acquired employees to competitors. The value of the acquisition transaction will be greatly reduced for all parties if churn and turnover occur. Conclusion Selling a business can be a complex process and it is advisable to consult with a lawyer and/or a financial advisor throughout the process. Deciding to sell your business is a deeply personal decision. This is a life decision and do not take it lightly. Many owners have worked extremely hard and made significant sacrifices. Most would do it all over given a second chance. This is the time to reap the rewards for all that hard work. I hope you have found this series helpful, and I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors. If you have any immediate needs or want to schedule a meeting to discuss your specific business, please don’t hesitate to email me today.

In this video our Microsoft Dynamics CRM expert will walk you through how to create marketing lists, add members to marketing lists, create email templates, and lastly how to create an email Quick Campaign within the marketing list. Contact Us if you have any questions or would like more information about Microsoft CRM features and enhancements. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }

I have shared many important “do’s” regarding selling your business. Now I want to share several things that should be avoided, or “don’ts”, based on my personal experience, in order to ensure a smooth and successful transaction. Some of these include: Don’t #1: Not prepare financials and other relevant documents: This can create delays in the sale process and may cause potential buyers to lose interest in the business. Don’t #2: Not disclose all information about the business: Failure to disclose important information about the business, such as outstanding liabilities or legal issues, can lead to problems later, and can also damage the reputation of the business and the seller. Don’t #3: Set an unrealistic asking price: Setting an unrealistic asking price can turn off potential buyers and can also make it difficult to negotiate a fair deal. Don’t #4: Not complete your Due Diligence on potential buyers: Not completing your Due Diligence on potential buyers can lead to a sale to an unqualified or unprepared buyer, which can lead to problems in the future. Don’t #5: Not consult with legal and financial professionals: Selling a business can be a complex process, and not consulting with legal and professional professionals can lead to mistakes that can be costly and time-consuming to fix. Don’t #6: Not be prepared to walk away from a bad deal: Sometimes, it is better to walk away from a bad deal than to accept an offer that is not in the best business interest of the business or seller. Don’t #7: Not think about post-sale transition: Not thinking about what will happen the morning after the sale is very, very important and can cause a myriad of issues for both the buyer and the seller in the long run. Don’t #8: Not be flexible and open to negotiation: Being inflexible and unwilling to compromise can make it difficult to reach an agreement and close a deal. Don’t #9: Not keeping the sale confidential: Disclosing the sale of the business prematurely or to the wrong people can lead to negative consequences such as employees leaving, customers cancelling contracts, or publishers renegotiating or changing margins and commissions. IF the buyer is a public company, it is also illegal. Don’t #10: Not have an exit strategy: Not having a clear plan for what you will do after the sale of the business can lead to confusion, disappointment, and regrets. This list of “Don’ts” is based on personal involvement with nearly forty (40) acquisition transactions. Each and every one provided key learning about what works effectively and what should be avoided to have an effective and successful sales process for both the seller and the buyer. Every situation has both “do’s” and “don’ts” and this is no exception. In the next and last post in this series I will provide a high-level summary and roadmap that provides a proven step-by-step process for you, the seller. If you have any immediate needs or want to schedule a meeting to discuss your specific business, please don’t hesitate to email me today.

Planning and executing an effective Due Diligence process is extremely important to ensure you have made the right decision – who are you going to sell your business to and why them? It has become obvious to me, based on the numerous M&A transactions I have been directly involved in, that the most successful transactions have been those in which the seller has had an organized and complete Due Diligence process as well as the buyer. It is critical to point out that a thorough Due Diligence process is also important to both parties. This post will provide “do’s” to creating an effective Due Diligence process that will be valuable to both parties. Do #1: Identify potential buyers. It is generally known who the buyers are in your market segment. If they are not obvious to you then here is where to find them. The best sources are your publisher’s partner account managers and sales managers. They will know who the active buyers are and can be a source of pertinent information about them. Another source is an internet search for sales in the last 12 months of businesses in your category. Most transactions that are relevant to you will have press releases and stories in industry publications like Computer Reseller News, Accounting Today, and others. Do #2: Narrow down the list. It is important to qualify your potential list of buyers utilizing the criteria outlined in my previous blog post; Find a match on Life Values, Ensure the Buyer has the Financial Wherewithal for Transaction, Look for a Buyer with Broad and Deep Technology and Services Portfolio, the Best Buyers have Positive Relationships with Publishers, and they have a Proven Track Record of Successful Acquisitions. If more than one potential buyer emerges then engage with them and qualify to the single best choice. Do #3: Prepare your financials and other relevant documents: This includes income statements, balance sheets, tax returns, customer lists with details on customers with subscription plans and those that do not, what versions of the application software customers are on, and any other documents that will be requested by potential buyers. Do #4: Utilize the following process for your Final Qualifying Cycle: Deep Dive Research on Potential Buyers (Company, Culture, Leadership, Employees, Vendors, Customers, Financial Statements, Policies & Procedures, Reputation in the Marketplace, Opinion of Competitors, Glass Door ratings). Ask to meet with employees and pertinent managers and leaders. Arrange to meet with representatives of Buyer’s publishers. Ask to speak with principals of recent acquisitions by Buyer. Ask for validation of the financial standing of potential Buyer. Ensure the payout process is structured and organized. Review information and make a decision on your preferred Buyer. Do #5: Prepare same information in “Do #4” for your own company to be presented to potential buyer. Following this Due Diligence framework will provide you and the Buyer with a firm foundation of information needed to make a sound and successful business decision. After all, you’ve paid your dues and now it’s time to collect. If you have any immediate needs or want to schedule a meeting to discuss your specific business, please don’t hesitate to email me today.

Automation is a key part to transforming finance. In fact, automation has become a top priority for finance leaders in 2023. Automation allows finance teams the flexibility and efficiency to automate the tedious, time-consuming tasks and dedicate more time to strategic and higher-value contributions. The trend in recent years has been toward a more increased investment in technology, with automation leading the pack. In the 2023 Finance Leaders Survey: How Finance Leaders Can Spark Change Net at Work partner Prophix asked over 700 finance leaders about how they currently use automation and their plans for the future. The results show that these leaders are following through with their emphasis on automation in 2023: 27 percent of respondents told us that half or more of their processes are automated 65 percent of respondents told us they plan to automate half or more of their processes by the end of this year. 11 percent say they plan to be fully automated by year’s end. Read on to learn how finance functions use automation and what leaders plan for the year ahead. HOW FINANCE LEADERS ARE USING AUTOMATION Finance leaders said automation is crucial to their future vision. Nearly all survey respondents (97 percent) said they had at least some automated processes. There are three business goals that our respondents plan to achieve through further automation: 1. Transform the business Digital transformation is top of mind for finance leaders. As we go into 2023, 41 percent of our survey respondents said they are using automation to transform their business. A transformed finance function allows its employees to shift the way they think. Instead of approaching their role from a strict recording and reporting perspective, finance teams can drive innovation. Automation positions finance as a strategic contributor to the business: forward-looking, data-driven, and advisory. 2. Focus on high-value tasks Over a third (35 percent) of finance leaders told us they use automation to help their teams focus on higher-value tasks. By automating tasks like routine reporting, allocating expenses, or closing out the month, the finance team can spend their time doing more strategic work like analysis, skills development, and providing strategic insights to drive the business forward. 3. Provide direction in times of uncertainty Nearly a quarter of finance leaders (23 percent) told us that automation gives them the best way to prepare for multiple scenarios. When processes are automated, data can be updated as quickly as it’s generated, which allows forecasting software to create reports quarterly, monthly, or even on a rolling basis. Reports based on the latest data provide actionable insights to finance leaders, which they can share with executive leadership. This type of reporting helps drive more thoughtful decision-making, even when circumstances are rapidly changing. FINANCE WILL INCREASE AUTOMATION IN 2023 One clear theme from our survey is that leaders need to build on automation’s capabilities. With the continued investment in automation planned for 2023, finance teams will realize a wealth of benefits. The time they spend manually entering data and transferring files will decrease dramatically, allowing them to focus on high-value tasks that will position finance as an invaluable strategic asset to the organization. To Learn more about how finance leaders worldwide are elevating the finance function, please contact us. NOTE: This content was originally posted on Prophix.com on April 18, 2023.