Data Reporting...It is not the early 2000’s anymore.

So in my first job in practice (back in 2001) I was indoctrinated with Sage Line 50 (as it was known) as the go-to accounting software. One of my very first tasks was to set up Sage with a then small rural business in Norfolk, which has grown over the past 18 years or so into a very well respected and mid-sized growing business – It is great to know and see that they still use the latest version of Sage 50cloud Accounts today. A classic case of Sage 50 supporting the growth of the business over the years, with reliability and certainty.

As part of that role, how did I, as a young 21-year-old deal with reporting and providing the business owners with the information they needed…..........in EXCEL of course!

Alongside the standard reporting library in Sage, I equipped my client with quarterly Management Accounts and various Excel spreadsheets with VLOOKUPS, SUMIFS all to query a static download from their Sage. I would travel to the clients’ premises, and once I had posted the routine journals, accruals, prepayments, depreciation and dealt with any asset disposals it was time to export the data out into Excel for manipulation, grouping and analysis… any maybe the odd graph (which always got the most interest and understanding). If there was then a change required in the data, it was a case of update Sage, and then re-dump it back out into Excel.

Be honest…..who STILL does this? (Don’t worry you are not alone)

The above approach works and the old adage of “if it ain't broke, don’t fix it” might apply….but seriously, this was nearly 20 years ago and technology has moved on so much. Yes, Excel has been updated, Sage has been updated but many of you will I know still use Excel to obtain the reports you need. As we move towards 2020 and the Millennium bug is a very distant memory, shouldn’t you be embracing change and look beyond your Excel spreadsheet reporting towards automation?

With Cascade50 you can eliminate the need for Excel reporting and static numbers on an Excel page. We provide a seamless link between Sage 50, providing cloud-based reporting, meaning you can access all of the information you require from anywhere in the world and on any browser-enabled device. The vibrant dashboards and analytics allow the user to easily identify trends and drill into the detail, using data to make a more informed business decision.

It is not just for the business owner either….becoming an Advisor who adds value to your clients.

Embrace the changes, increase efficiency and above all deliver the standard of reporting and advisory which your clients deserve. It may sound tough but with automation, firms should stop following 20-year-old processes where you charge for your time and not the quality of the advice being provided. Imagine spending 90% less time on preparation, having more quality data and analytics…..that 90% could be invested with the client in understanding and working with them to deliver results.

About the author:

Mark Donaldson has been working with SMEs for over 18 years. A qualified Chartered Accountant in practice, having completed his training with Larking Gowen, he moved to Grant Thornton working in both audit and consultancy services, before leaving in 2009 to set up his own FD consultancy.

Mark has been the FD of a manufacturing business; CFO for biotech, healthcare and life sciences companies; and led a number of bespoke data reporting implementation projects for SMEs.