Considering an upgrade of your Practice
Management, Tax or Professional Accounting software?
It’s never easy making a decision on
which Practice Management, Tax and Accounting suite is best
placed to carry your firm forward for the years ahead. What
questions do you need to ask? How much time should you spend
on testing the software? Are the products on the market robust
and scalable if your firm grows? How do you find out how
one product really compares to another?
At APS we believe in competition and a level playing field for suppliers and
buyers alike - so we want to arm you, the client, with 10 Key Questions that
all the suppliers on your short-list should be prepared and ready to answer – to
help make your selection process easier to manage.
At the end of the day, you need to make a decision, so our primary recommendation
would be to talk to your choice of each supplier’s clients – don’t
gamble on what we suppliers have to say, ask our clients!
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The
questions you need to ask |
Why
do you need to know this? |
APS |
What
does this mean from the customer’s perspective? |
| 1. |
Functionality |
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Ask for a product
demonstration, followed by a more detailed review of
the software on your short-list (make sure you review
more than one supplier!)
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A detailed look
at the software will give you a real taste of what
you can do with the available systems. If you test
the systems yourselves, there will be no smoke and
mirrors or surprises down the track, and you will be
able to see how the available products in the market
stack up against one another.
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We believe, and
our clients tell us, that APS Advance is still some
way ahead of any competing product in the market. So,
ask us for a detailed review – we’re more
than happy to let you put our software through its
paces before you buy.
Also, talk to our clients about their review process and why they subsequently
chose APS.
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APS’s prospects
can test our software and ‘Access the future….
Today’. APS has a long track record of reliable
and consistent delivery to our clients – without
the broken promises.
Clients receive a fully integrated suite of modern Windows products utilising
Microsoft industry standard technology.
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| 2. |
Team stability & experience |
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Check on the stability
of each supplier by requesting details of annual staff
turnover for the past three years. Anything more than
10% staff turnover (in any department or collectively)
could spell trouble.
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Stable teams produce
stable software and successful implementations. A stable
team moves from implementation to implementation taking
with it all the experience gathered in previous engagements.
On the other hand, a constantly changing team leads
to slower, less-informed installation, training, implementation
and support.
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APS has consistently
seen less than 5% annual staff turnover since 1994.
Consequently, our clients still deal with the same staff and management
today as they did back then.
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Our sales, consulting
and software development teams have been together for
a long time and have a deep understanding of clients’ requirements
leading to fast and efficient implementation and relevant functional
upgrades.
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| 3. |
Up-to-date software – across
the entire suite |
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Ask each supplier
if their proposed suite of software including their
Accounting, Tax, Practice Management and Document Management
products have been developed on the same platform.
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A single suite
of software, developed using the latest development
tools and technologies, will ensure better integration
and optimum productivity for your practice.
On the other hand, different products within a suite of software created
with different generations of technology will rely on plug-ins and patches – thereby
reducing your operational efficiency and integration capability.
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The APS suite of
integrated products has been developed using the latest
technologies on a single platform - with no legacy
or proprietary systems employed.
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Clients receive
a streamlined product-suite of software meaning functionality,
ease-of-use and productivity are a given – unlike
other suppliers who are supplying PM, Tax and Accounting
products that have been developed using several generations
of technology.
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| 4. |
Systems’ compatibility |
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Ask each supplier
to confirm if their products integrate with any of
the competing products in the market or with other
3rd party providers of software to the profession.
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You may want to
buy one Practice Management platform but continue to
use another supplier’s legacy tax product for
a period, or integrate with another supplier’s
Corporate Affairs or Document Management system – don’t
just accept statements such as ‘it integrates’.
Satisfy yourself as to the extent and reliability of
the integration by asking for a demonstration.
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APS Advance can
be used in conjunction with any legacy software supplied
by its competitors.
Our Advance Fusion technology enables us to integrate with a wide variety
of 3rd party software solutions to the profession in such a way that
information can be maintained, accessed and reported on centrally.
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You can buy Advance
on its own or as part of a fuller APS product-set – either
way, if you are not ready to move fully to APS in one
go, you can still use other suppliers’ products
too.
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| 5. |
Your choice of
client references |
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Ask for a full client
list of each supplier so you can choose
who you talk to about their products.
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You need access
to a full client list to ensure nothing is stage-managed
in the supplier’s favour. Don’t put up
with anything less!
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The APS team is
highly regarded among its clients – just ask
them. Call any APS client and let them tell you what
they think of the service we provide and the people
that deliver it.
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APS clients and
prospects can talk to whomever they wish – there
won’t be stage-managed client discussions selected
by APS. Clients choose who they want to talk to and
ask the questions they want to ask.
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| 6. |
Product Histories & Futures |
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Ask to talk to your choice of
suppliers’ clients to reference-check the history
of the products you are reviewing – and the ability
of the suppliers to deliver an organically growing
suite of software, not just acquired bolt-ons and patches.
Ask for the suppliers’ ‘development roadmaps’ so
you know what tools and functional upgrades are coming
in the next generation of the software – and
what guarantees they can give you that these will be
delivered.
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By talking to suppliers’ clients
you will quickly find out which suppliers consistently
deliver on their roadmap promises – rather than
simply acquiring other software businesses and continually
changing their product direction.
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APS Advance version
8 traces its lineage directly to its first Windows
release in 1994. There have been incremental annual
upgrades each year since then through a client driven
development strategy – a strategy that focuses
on giving APS clients the best and most up-to-date
technology in ‘bite size chunks’ thereby
allowing the firm to absorb the changes and remain
at the forefront both technically and functionally.
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The APS approach
offers clients stability of product and development
path. Clients receive regular product updates and know
where the APS team is taking the suite – and
experience tells them they can rely on timely delivery.
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| 7. |
Upgrades and
Maintenance – value for money |
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Each year your
supplier will charge you an agreed sum in ‘Support & Maintenance
fees’ – and you need to make sure you are
getting value for money.
So, ask for concrete details of what annual software upgrade is included
in the maintenance fees you are being quoted. And for good measure request
details of what annual upgrades have been delivered each year for the
past three years. Also consider what the quality of support has been
like from your incumbent supplier.
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Software suppliers
charge ‘Support & Maintenance fees’ to
fund the continuing development of the product you
have purchased. In return for these fees you should
expect at least one major upgrade to the software suite
every year backed by an experienced and client focused
support team. After all, that is what you are paying
for. If the product is standing still and you’re
not receiving adequate support, you’re not getting
value for your maintenance dollars. Satisfy yourself
that the ‘upgrades’ offered deliver genuine
technical and functional benefits that are in line
with user requirements rather than ‘sales’ gimmicks.
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APS has issued
an Annual Upgrade to its Advance product-suite each
and every year since 1995 – this year APS will
release its 10th annual upgrade: and the cost is covered
by the maintenance agreement that firms sign up to.
Our clients tell us that the service they receive from APS is of a significantly
higher standard than the service they received from their previous supplier.
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APS clients get
quantifiable value for their maintenance and support
expenditure.
When compared to other suppliers, the value of our annual upgrade within
the annual maintenance fee you pay ensures that APS Advance can claim
the lowest cost of ownership. Add to this APS’s unrivalled quality
of service and support and you’ll see why so many firms have moved
over to APS from their previous supplier.
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| 8. |
Implementation
References & Data Conversion |
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Ask each supplier’s
current clients to rate the implementation of the system
they purchased. And make sure you ask them if all their
data (practice management, tax and accounting) was
easily converted over from their old system.
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It’s always
better to find out for yourself how smoothly the implementation
phase of a product installation went – and remember,
each supplier should be able to account for a successful
conversion of all data from the old
system to the new one!
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APS constantly
receives glowing feedback from clients for successful
implementations and fully converted data. Ask us for
access to a full client list – and call whomever
you choose.
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APS has raised
the bar in terms of what clients can expect when installing
and implementing their Practice Management software.
APS has also raised the bar in terms of what clients
now expect in terms of total data conversion.
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| 9. |
System Pricing |
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Some suppliers
will try to convince you they are offering you their
product for little or no ‘upfront’ cost.
Make sure you ask for a 3 to 5 year cumulative cost – so
you can see the true cost of ownership.
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It is important
that you understand the true cost of the product over
a number of years – because most firms will remain
with the supplier they select for at least three to
five years. So, make sure that the full cost of implementation,
future upgrades and maintenance increases are covered
in your proposal.
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APS charges a fair
price for a great product and outstanding service.
We don’t employ smoke and mirrors in our pricing – what
you see is what you get.
Taking into account the full cost of ownership over 3 to 5 years, APS
continues to offer the very best in value for money.
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APS's products
are self-sustaining and can continue to be developed
for the benefit of clients.
Once our clients have signed up to Advance, they know what to expect,
with no surprises or sudden price hikes.
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| 10. |
Ongoing client
input |
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Before you take
your final decision on which supplier to go with, make
sure you will have an ongoing opportunity to interact
face-to-face with the people who develop the products.
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You need to be
able to influence the next generation of the product
you are buying.
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APS hosts its Annual
Conference each year to take clients and prospects
through the next generation of product.
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Conference and
user group input means clients help shape the next
year’s release of our products. The opportunity
to talk to our software developers and have a say in
the product development roadmap has been praised by
our clients.
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