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When growth is your top priority, you can quickly outpace the capabilities of your accounting software. From start-up to unicorn and beyond, scale up faster with next level cloud accounting, limitless transactions and more actionable business intelligence.
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The implementation process was faultless, we migrated from QuickBooks and had regular meetings and encouragement to keep us on track. The API was the feature that sold AccountsIQ to us and it has been great. The support is superb so any issues we have ever had have been resolved quickly.
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Zarion Software is a leading provider of Intelligent work management for the financial services sector. Impressed with AccountsIQ's flexible accounting framework, an “out-of-the-box” reporting structure, and a commitment to implementing the system in a way which would serve Zarion’s evolving needs, Ken decided to look no further when he came across AccountsIQ.
Zarion Software is a leading provider of Intelligent work management for the financial services sector. Based in Dublin, Zarion has customers all over the world and partners in the USA, Australia and the UK. As a fast-growing technology company that is centered around providing intelligent data about work and the workforce to Operational managers, Zarion helps its customers increase efficiency by eliminating manual processes and increase visibility and flexibility to enable a hybrid or distributed workforce Digital innovation is not only core to their customer offering, but also to how they approach their own internal processes. When Ken O’Flaherty joined Zarion as CFO and found that their existing accounting system was bogged down with inefficiencies, he knew something had to change.
Ken had to decide whether to resurrect a partially completed implementation or start from scratch with something new. Ken decided to take a fresh perspective and consider other alternatives. Impressed with a flexible accounting framework, an “out-of-the-box” reporting structure, and a commitment to implementing the system in a way which would serve Zarion’s evolving needs, Ken decided to look no further when he came across AccountsIQ.
As a CFO it’s my responsibility to produce the necessary information for decision making. Every business has its nuances and requirements that don’t come with an out-of-the-box solution. Once I started the discussion with AccountsIQ, I immediately felt comfortable with their offering and that they were the right partner for us. I really just wanted to get going with it, which we did, and it’s not a decision I regret.” – Ken O’Flaherty, CFO, Zarion
Once Ken made the decision to go with AccountsIQ, the system went live within six weeks. Built-in templates plus hands-on customer support made the process swift and straightforward.
AccountsIQ offers great support and good processes throughout implementation. It went through ahead of schedule and it was really easy. The upload templates around trial balance, historic data, and banking details were very intuitive. In terms of what we planned and what we budgeted for, we actually came out ahead.” – Ken O’Flaherty
As an SME, Zarion’s accounting needs were fairly straightforward with only a few intricacies requiring special attention. AccountsIQ benefits from an extremely flexible Business Intelligence (BI) coding structure and three tier General Ledger to accommodate these requirements. Larger vendors only seemed willing to provide Zarion with this extra level of customisation at a considerable cost.
Larger vendors don’t offer the same flexibility and level of customisation as AccountsIQ. Their message was: ‘this is not standard, this is going to be a complete workaround, this is going to cost you’… I didn’t get that with AccountsIQ. I wanted an accounting solution that could grow with us in terms of feature functionality and product roadmap. AccountsIQ gave me assurance that this would be the case and it’s proven to be the case.” – Ken O’Flaherty
A key requirement for Ken was that his accounting solution be truly “Cloud-first”, not Cloud as a bolt-on. Built in the Cloud, AccountsIQ enables access at all times from anywhere in the world. This includes workflow features and paperless document management that save time and make it easy to adapt to a remote working environment. Ken found particular benefits with AccountsIQ’s workflow approval processes and auditing.
AccountsIQ helped us accelerate our journey to a paperless system. Invoice and PO approvals are now paperless as standard. Where we’ve really seen a massive benefit is with remote auditing. The extraction of information is so much easier. This year we were able to close our audit in a week. AccountsIQ was fundamental in being able to do that. It’s a testament to the system.” – Ken O’Flaherty
AccountsIQ comes with over 250 pre-built reports to make it easier for financial departments to get going with the software, minimising the need for external data handling. These reports added further efficiencies to Ken’s workflow with the added benefit of mitigating errors.
AccountsIQ’s reporting is really good. With other systems you have to export data and manipulate it in Excel the way you want. Here I found the out-of-the-box reports in the Management Accounts pack reflects the typical needs of CFOs or FDs. Even data around analysis of cash and customers and FX, it does a lot of things very, very well and that saves a lot of headache and potential mistakes.” – Ken O’Flaherty
Cloud-based reporting features, paperless accounting, and time-saving benefits were all key in Ken’s decision to choose AccountsIQ. However, it was AccountsIQ’s focus on development, commitment to innovation, and personal attention that confirmed his decision.
When we went through the detailed needs assessment with AccountsIQ we got a lot of comfort that the system could do what we needed it to do. I also found that, where I had concerns, AccountsIQ was very clear and proactive in pursuing a solution. I wanted an accounting platform that could grow with us in terms of feature functionality and product roadmap. AccountsIQ gave me assurance that this would be the case and it’s proven to be the case.” – Ken O’Flaherty
AccountsIQ Helps Kefron Stay Ahead with Cloud Integration Strategy
Established in Dublin in 1989, entrepreneurial storage business Kefron made an evolutionary move in 2013 when the business expanded into the UK. Kefron has also been successfully extending its digital proposition since then, using technology to help businesses find more efficient ways of storing and managing documents by offering digital solutions such as M-Files Document Management and Kefron AP, accounts payable invoice automation software. With a good understanding of the digital landscape, Kefron decided it was crucial to move its own business processes to the cloud, but was tied to its old accounting system, Exchequer, which had been heavily customised during implementation ten years before. It wasn’t until Kefron reviewed AccountsIQ that their leadership team found an affordable, cloud accounting and consolidation system which could replace Exchequer, and provide a more integrated solution with improved reporting across the group.
Kefron’s Financial Controller Sinéad Brennan explains,
Exchequer consumed a lot of resources and came with a heavy maintenance overhead. We had to wait for new features to become available; in the ten years we used the system, it never really changed. With AccountsIQ, we have an up-to-date, intelligent financial management system which integrates with our billing system and our own Kefron AP automated invoicing solution. It also makes consolidation really straightforward.”
Kefron had invested heavily in Exchequer during implementation with a considerable amount of bespoke work. Although this proved a good solution for the needs of the early business, it proved restrictive in the longer term: newer, cloud-based platforms replace the need for heavy implementation projects because the technology allows processes to be tailored with minimum effort, automated, and easily integrated with other data sources. If Kefron was to make the most of new technology, it would need to move its financial management hub to the cloud.
Outlining her initial concerns about switching from Exchequer to AccountsIQ, Sinéad admits; “We thought switching from Exchequer would be problematic as we relied on a number of key processes which had been tailored for our business. For example, our direct debits were handled in a complicated way which required extensive use of Excel. We realised we had come to develop our processes around the limitations of the Exchequer system rather than using the system to improve processes.”
AccountsIQ’s UK Managing Director Darren Cran explained, “To ensure business continuity, we implemented the core elements of AccountsIQ first while dual-running Kefron’s bespoke elements on the old system. That also gave us a secure platform on which to build further integrations with other applications. By breaking the project down, we were able to complete it in practical stages without interruption to the day-to-day operations, eventually replacing all legacy systems.”
Today Kefron boasts a portfolio of six storage facilities and two scanning bureaux as well as its own Electronic Content Management (ECM) solution and an estate of serviced offices. With lines of business and locations included, Kefron needs to consolidate no less than 15 entities for audit purposes.
Describing the transformation in how she produces complex group reports, Sinéad adds, “Before AccountsIQ, we had to spend a lot of time at year end exporting data and performing a lengthy, manual consolidation process which had systematic errors. We now have a system which allows us to retrieve and review consolidated reports, in real time across the business lines, in just a couple of hours.”
AccountsIQ comes with an optional consolidation module for businesses with multiple entities. Rather than simply amalgamating accounts and leaving much of the tricky work to be done in spreadsheets, AccountsIQ can create and automate more complex protocols; a whole range of branch level ledger codes can be linked to a common set of group codes, which allows entities to have individual coding structures and their own level of reporting, while still providing a group level view across the entire group, in real time.
The system also solves an age-old problem for Kefron in handling inter-company charges. Sinéad adds, “Recharging in AccountsIQ has become a very simple process and saves me lots of time; once I post a debit, a credit automatically appears in the corresponding company. The system automatically handles currency exchange when it is needed.”
Exchequer had been integrated with some of Kefron’s other business applications the old-fashioned way; a piece of middleware was hosted on a server to allow the accounting system to share data with payroll and the direct debit system. Built in the cloud, AccountsIQ’s system architecture means that the integration of these elements is now easier to maintain and doesn’t rely on additional development projects each time the software is upgraded.
Sinéad explains, “People are our biggest cost so it made sense to integrate our finance system with payroll. AccountsIQ was able to replicate the process previously created in Exchequer without any hiccups. Our operational billing system incorporates the real data-heavy side of the business. The volume of transactions means integrating billing with AccountsIQ now saves us at least half a day at month end.”
Additionally, the integration offers Kefron the opportunity to improve its service to customers by creating customised billing reports for those whose industry regulators require reports in a particular format. AccountsIQ is able to generate the required information and issue it as standard with customer billing statements.
With the ability to capture and verify key information from paper or digital invoices, Kefron has been able to develop its own paperless workflow solution for invoice processing. Developed using the latest OCR technology, Kefron’s scanning and automated data entry system reduces paper, administration time and errors for its customers across the UK and Ireland. The system is also used internally. Accessing AccountsIQ’s Open API (a portal which facilitates easy integration between two or more Cloud-based systems), Kefron has been able to integrate this with AccountsIQ’s ledger system to create a seamless and automated, two-way process between the systems. The integrated workflow process for Accounts Payable begins with Kefron’s automated document input, registering invoices in AccountsIQ then sending out automated and paper-free approval for budget holders business-wide.
Sinéad adds, “Our accounts payable process is now completely digital and all documents are stored and managed in the system in digital formats. With our old system, we had problems displaying digital invoices on screen and, in the end, we had to print them. With AccountsIQ, we can view and use documents in a variety of formats.”
Financial Controller Sinéad Brennan has plans to take AccountsIQ to the next performance level across the business. Citing her new consolidation reporting pack as an example of how reports have become insights, Sinead continues, “Phase II with AccountsIQ will involve deploying the information it provides me to the operational heads across the business. Just being able to summon a report from my tablet in a meeting using real-time insights is a real benefit. There are so many other parts of the business which could use these insights to help form management decisions at various levels. With a group of managers involved, we could design reports which draw out some really great intelligence.”
Summing up her experience implementing AccountsIQ, Sinéad concludes, “The big difference for me is in the flexibility of AccountsIQ and the ease at which you can access information. I can produce data on my screen at a management meeting which helps to answer questions and solve problems. Integrating best of breed solutions in the Cloud was the right way for us to go; our old system couldn’t change quickly enough and wasn’t sustainable long-term. Our new, integrated model gives us a level of efficiency we have not previously been able to achieve.”
Continuum Commerce Adopts AccountsIQ's Cloud Accounting Software for Real Time Management Information
Continuum Commerce CEO, Eamonn O’Shea, states,
I would have no hesitation in recommending AccountsIQ to anyone that conducts business in multiple locations. It can significantly simplify your management reporting process, while at the same time significantly improving its output. The Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) pricing means we have a full accounting and business analysis system for a fraction of what I would have expected to pay to implement an on-premise solution.
Continuum Commerce was founded in 2000 (formerly known as GCX – Global Currency Exchange) as an independent online payments solution provider. Based in Ireland, Continuum also has operations in mainland Europe, the UK and the Asia-pacific region and has a management team that spends much of its time abroad. Remote board meetings and management updates were previously handled by sending spreadsheets created by re-keying information from their previous accounting package to participants by fax or e-mail. This information was therefore often out of date before the meeting had begun and decisions were being made based on inaccurate information.
Gerard O’Brien, the CFO of Continuum Commerce says,
We evaluated many alternatives and found AccountsIQ offered the most compelling solution. While it provided all the functionality we needed and is available over the web at any time, its reporting capability and especially its Digital Dashboard has proven to be the ‘killer app’ for GCX. There is a wealth of standard reports, and I was able to customise a couple of key reports that I use on a daily basis. The senior team can log on at any time to review our performance metrics. It has really streamlined our business planning and measurement.
Continuum Commerce adopted AccountsIQ for all its financial requirements consisting of:
Gerard O’Brien told us that benefits to Continuum include that AccountsIQ represents incredible value for money with no upfront capital cost. They find that reporting is a key strength – with them rarely needing to export to Excel or re-key anything. The digital dashboard capability significantly improves the management information available to them and a key benefit is that AccountsIQ has extensive functionality which can scale with them as they grow their business. With AccountsIQ’s open API, it was easy to integrate Continuum’s billing engine directly to AccountsIQ which has streamlined their processes and brought considerable efficiency advantages.
