MAKe TiMe To

Issue Issue23 | | 2010 2011

TIPS, TRENDS, AND CONNECTIONS FOR USERS OF THOMSON REUTERS SOFTWARE

SOLUTIONS

MAKe TiMe To

EXPLORE Positioning yourself for life outside of the office

+

The Year Ahead: Our projections for what 2012 will bring

Z IT’S ABOUT PEOPLE

TIPS & TRICKS

JoN BARoN sHARes HIs THouGHTs ABouT uC 2011

MAKe THe MosT oF YouR soFTWARe, sTARTING ToDAY

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DAVe HAINsWoRTH

He’s lIVING HIs DReAM

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SOLUTIONS

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issue 3 | 2011

FEATURES

10

Dave Hainsworth: lIVING THe DReAM

4 14 6

G

ALSO INSIDE

NewsliNe UltraTax CS embraces multiple monitors; new Accounting CS features; connect through ARNE when you’re on the go; plus more.

Tips & TacTics From electronic filing and printing Form 706 to creating strong passwords and incorporating social media into your Web Builder CS website—we have all the answers.

Questions or feedback? Email your thoughts to [email protected].

WHAT WIll 2012 BRING?

Join our online users’ forum, at CS.ThomsonReuters.com/Community. Find more on the web, at CS.ThomsonReuters.com. CS.ThomsonReuters.com/Facebook

9

Pulse Poll

CS.ThomsonReuters.com/Twitter CS.ThomsonReuters.com/YouTube CS.ThomsonReuters.com/LinkedIn

Solutions is published by the Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters, 7322 Newman Boulevard, Dexter, MI 48130; 800.968.8900. Printed in the United States. Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters, Issue 3, 2011. Cover: Copyright 2011 REUTERS/Andrew Winning; page 4: Copyright 2011 REUTERS/Jason Lee; pages 7-8: Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters/Bryan Hoeft (Brooks Carlson, Louie Calvin, Frank Swierz, Scott Mueller); pages 10-12 and above: Copyright 2011/Dave Moser (Dave Hainsworth); page 13: Copyright 2011 Dave Hainsworth (Alaska); back cover: Copyright 2011 Fujitsu (scanner).

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CS

VIEW POINT

Going Mobile: UC 2011 If you attended the 31st Annual users’ Conference

contrary, the 2011 user’s Conference was one of

for Professional Tax & Accounting Firms (uC)

our biggest ever. Its continuing popularity proves

in November, you already know about the huge

a simple truth: It’s about people.

impact that mobile computing is having on the tax and accounting profession. It’s well known that new

It has always been about people, and about one

technologies tend to take on a life of their own once

simple question: What can you do for me? That

they’re unleashed on the market. But we’ve never

question is becoming more and more important

seen anything like this.

as tax and accounting professionals stake out their changing role, less computational and more

Nobody, myself included, predicted just how fast

advisory. ultimately, our role is to help you provide

mobile would take hold, or the sheer number of

new and better answers.

possibilities it would have for business. We’ll soon

rds

ve

be introducing new mobile applications that will

If you attended the 2011 users’ Conference, I

allow your clients to access their portals on mobile

hope you came away with some new answers as

devices, enable your clients’ employees to enter

well as some new questions. I’d like to thank this

time and view check stubs on their smartphones,

year’s attendees and everyone else who uses our

and much more. And it’s just the beginning. There’s

technology to do more, to build stronger client

no doubt that mobile will change the way you

relationships and more profitable firms, and to turn

and your clients work.

challenges into opportunities. There are exciting times ahead and I’m pleased to have you with us.

still, while I was at the users’ Conference, I felt a certain irony talking about the anytime-

Thanks for another great year,

anywhere mobile office with attendees who had

ghts

flown thousands of miles in order to be physically together in the same room. Gatherings like uC are just about the oldest social network there is, and new technologies like mobile and cloud computing

Jon Baron

haven’t diminished their appeal one bit. on the

President, Professional, Tax & Accounting, Thomson Reuters

If you weren’t able to make it to this year’s conference, you can catch up on our newest developments, watch a video of Jon’s keynote address, look at photos from the 2011 users’ Conference, and much more at cs.ThomsonReuters.com/Uc.

Hoeft er:

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neWsLine CS Professional Suite® & Enterprise Suite™

A N

ACCOUNTING Accounting Cs™

on Ac rec an in of ac

Accounting Cs Client Access Cs Professional suite Accounting Products

INTRoDuCING

engagement Cs®

aRNe Mobile

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT FileCabinet Cs® GoFileRoom® MOBILE APPS Mobile Cs™

aRNe (the accountant’s Resource Network) is the complete online community exclusively for tax and accounting professionals. It offers a way for you to connect with your colleagues through forums, groups, enhanced profiles, friend networks, article commenting, and more.

PAYROLL Accounting Cs Payroll myPay solutions® FIRM & WORKFLOW MANAGEMENT Practice Cs®

Now, with the debut of the ARNe Mobile app for your mobile device, it’s even easier to take the ARNe Community with you anywhere you go.

FirmFlowTM TAX ultraTax Cs®

ARNe Mobile gives you on-the-go access to the ARNe forums, with the ability to: • Read recent activity • Comment • Browse topics • Search for a particular thread • Start a new discussion • Mark all posts as read look out for additional ARNe features in future updates. log in and learn more at cs.ThomsonReuters.com/aRNe.

Gosystem® Tax Rs

Upsize Your Workspace

Fixed Assets Cs® Planner Cs®

a one-, Two-, Three-, or Four-Monitor setup with UltraTax cs

ToolBox Cs®

Preparers who want to take advantage of multiple monitor desktop configurations will be happy to learn that the 2011 release of ultraTax Cs includes the ability to present the input screen view, the statement data view, the form view, the prior year data view, and the view of diagnostics on multiple monitors—all simultaneously and automatically synchronized.

CLOUD COMPUTING saas leasing Virtual office Cs®

In addition, to simplify communication with your clients, one of the monitors can be designated as a “Client View monitor,” allowing a secondary Form view to face toward your clients as you’re meeting with them to review their returns.

WEBSITE DESIGN Web Builder Cs®

And each monitor that you choose to dedicate to ultraTax Cs will be customizable so every preparer can choose his or her preferred combination of ultraTax Cs windows.

CLIENT PORTALS NetClient Cs®

Find out more by viewing the “using Multiple Monitors in 2011 ultraTax Cs” video available on the ultraTax Cs home page.

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SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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he

s

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ACCouNTING Cs: New Features and enhancements on November 1, 2011, Accounting Cs users received two highly anticipated new features in the most recent release of our next-generation accounting software: 1. The ability to consolidate clients by account grouping or account number. 2. The new Accounts Payable feature, which allows both firm and clients to record payables and payments, track cash requirements, and produce aging reports to enhance cash flow management.

other improvements to Accounting Cs increase usability and make day-to-day tasks faster and simpler. The enhancements include: # accounting cs Accounting Cs now identifies and displays the source of a transaction (import, conversion, bank reconciliation adjustment, etc.) on the status bar in the enter Transactions screen. # accounting cs client access Clients who have access to both Accounting Cs Client Access and FileCabinet Cs through Virtual Client office will be able to send

Accounting Cs documents directly to FileCabinet Cs. # payroll Accounting Cs Payroll now supports individual direct deposit allocations per deduction, enabling you to make direct deposit payments for employee health savings accounts (HsAs), alimony, etc. for your clients’ employees. To see a complete list of the latest Accounting Cs enhancements, log in to your web account at cs.ThomsonReuters.com and select Product enhancements from the support drop-down menu.

NewsbeaT CHANGes To BloG FoRMAT You may have noticed a few changes to the format of our NewsBeat online newsletters. To take advantage of recent website enhancements, you’ll find that NewsBeat articles, as well as other important news, are now available in blog format in our new Blogs & Articles section. Now you can read your NewsBeat content as it’s released, comment on or

PRACTICE CS: Online Client Collaboration Expanded The 2011.2.0 release of Practice Cs

Use clieNT poRTals To TRaNsFeR Files,

enhances online collaboration between

acQUiRe elecTRoNic sigNaTURes

you, your clients, and your standalone

once you’ve created client portals in

contacts (bankers, attorneys, etc.),

Practice Cs, to transfer files back and forth

thanks to the ability to create private,

simply choose a contact, select the files, and

secure client portals in Practice Cs.

click send—the files will move to the client

share articles, and even subscribe to the blog channels of your choice. For more information, visit cs.ThomsonReuters.com/ community/blogs.

portal automatically. You can also request If you’re adding a client, Practice Cs can

files from the client, create new client portals

automatically create the new client portal

on the fly, and offer your clients the option

for you. If you’re creating a portal for an

to provide their signatures electronically—a

existing client, you can choose the option

great time-saver with engagement letters.

to add a portal. Practice Cs will even alert you if potential matches already exist so

To learn more about Practice Cs, call sales

you can avoid creating duplicate portals.

at 800.968.8900.

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What Will 2012 Bring? Until there’s an accurate way to predict the future, we’ll continue to rely on the collective expertise at Thomson Reuters to help predict future trends in the profession.

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@

@

SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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Solutions asked four members of the Thomson Reuters management team what they see on the accounting horizon in 2012.

@ Brooks Carlson

Director, Support Operations Carlson started in support at Thomson Reuters in 1990 as an entry-level representative, and worked his way up to department manager by 1998. Today, as director, he supervises the activities of more than 200 staff members. He also oversees the support for the Accounting and Practice Management software product lines.

natural that questions for processors and representatives will increase.

Key woRd FoR 2012: iNNoVaTioN

Carlson is looking for creative, convenient, and cost-effective ways to quickly deliver answers to busy users. some solutions he’s already looking into include phone FAQs that play during hold times, improvements to the online Knowledgebase, and new support tools for customers.

As digital communication and client management software increase efficiency, timely customer service remains a priority. “The industry is making huge strides down the electronic filing path,” explains Carlson. And with these new technological options and processes, it’s

oN The hoMe FRoNT: With seven home-schooled kids ranging in age from 6 to 21, Carlson teams with his wife to oversee operations at home. For 2012, he’s looking forward to moving his third child to college as his youngest continues learning to read.

@ Louie Calvin

Product Manager, Accounting CS Calvin worked his way up on the support side at Thomson Reuters, eventually becoming the team leader and manager of the support group for the Cs Professional suite Accounting products. last year, he took on a new role as product manager for Accounting Cs, and works on market analysis and customer retention, among other aspects.

Key woRd FoR 2012: FleXibiliTy Considering the economy, Calvin says, more educated but unemployed people are going to decide to take a risk and go out on their own. And more start-up businesses will need more flexible, mobile business software. They’ll need to partner with a trusted professional to handle their accounting work and tax compliance.

This holds true for established firms, too, he says. “More firms are going to come up with a remote employee strategy and develop formal policies for employees to work remotely. It speaks to that work-life balance.” oN The hoMe FRoNT: Calvin says he’s still working on perfecting his own work-life balance: He only took his new pontoon boat out on Michigan’s Fletcher Pond three times last summer. so this year, he’s hoping to catch a lot of bass and perch—and he wants to nab a bigger fish than the 46-inch pike his father caught last year.

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“A business person who wants to make educated decisions today can’t wait,” he says. “Business owners today are working outside of normal business hours—they cannot be tied to an office.”

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@ Frank Swierz

Senior Director of Software Development

swierz is responsible for all the software that isn’t tax- or accounting-related, so he sometimes jokes that he’s senior director of “miscellaneous stuff.” What that really means is that he’s responsible for all the firm and workflow management as well as web-based products, like practice management, mobile, and portals. He’s so committed to his job that he wrote the original prototype for the company’s first iPhone app just for fun.

Key woRd FoR 2012: Mobile

“When we showed it at our annual users’ Conference, the customers liked it so much we decided to turn it into a product,” he says. swierz graduated with a computer science degree from Michigan state university and has been building software for about 25 years—the last 14 at Thomson Reuters.

oN The hoMe FRoNT: swierz lives with his wife, surrounded by farmland a few miles from the stadium at the university of Michigan. As an alum of Michigan state university—and the father of a current student—he’s a spartan fan surrounded by Wolverines. He’s crossing his fingers for a spartan Big 10 title, if just for the bragging rights.

“Today’s young adults expect immediate service from everybody they do business with, including accounting professionals,” he says. People aren’t bound to a 9-to-5 work schedule anymore, and that means pushing more tasks to the web and having the ability to go mobile. “If you are an accountant who doesn’t have that ability, someone else definitely will,” he says.

ea ap C

in pr

@Scott L. Mueller

Manager of Training & Consulting

Mueller joined Thomson Reuters in 1999 and manages the trainers and training coordination staff. He also analyzes and reports statistics for the department, with an eye toward improving efficiency.

ideas and how products, processes, and people can work together.

Key woRd FoR 2012: woRKFlow

Key to this effort is mobile, cloud-based technology. “With some of our consulting,” he explains, “we help plant the seeds for mobile or cloud operation—and try to help grow the client’s business.”

Mueller sees a renewed focus on workflow—how everything fits together—rather than on one single product or service. Historically, a trainer or consultant might concentrate on just solving one problem for a client. Now, however, clients and consultants alike want to consider more big-picture

oN The hoMe FRoNT: Mueller is looking forward to his family’s fourth year with a travel trailer. He hopes to spend more family time exploring Michigan with his wife, two daughters, and one-year-old Aussiedoodle dog, Bruin.

AddiTionAl pRediCTionS: Visit CS.ThomsonReuters.com/Solutions to see what’s ahead in client management software and workflow efficiency. Three more Thomson Reuters product managers—Matt Jagst, Melissa Yard, and Christina Kellerhals—share their insights. Plus, listen to Frank Swierz speak more about the year ahead.

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SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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Fo an ot an Fa us us re of w of

o W cu m • • •

• •

CS

A Snapshot of Your Peers Are you familiar with our online Pulse poll? each and every Monday, a new interactive poll appears on the bottom right of our website, CS.ThomsonReuters.com. The replies offer insight into what you and your colleagues in the accounting profession are thinking and doing. For instance, in one survey 41 percent of respondents answered that they use Facebook more than any other social networking site. But did you know that in another poll, just 13 percent of people said they used Facebook to promote their business? Ten percent use linkedIn, but almost 75 percent said they don’t use any social networking at all for business. (A recommendation for the 75 percent: explore the power of social media, as described by Thomson Reuters web marketing expert Bryan Hoeft in the last issue of Solutions Magazine.) other questions have covered business management. We asked whether you were comfortable with the current succession plan for your firm, and the answers might surprise you: • Yes (22 percent) • No (34 percent) • Ask me in another six months—I’m working on it (13 percent) • I haven’t thought about a succession plan (21 percent) • This is a question for my boss, but hopefully I’m in the plan (7.9 percent)

And yes, in case you noticed, there’s 8 or 9 percent yet to be accounted for: Those users said they read “through osmosis.” (Wow! Can you teach us how?) Check out the new polls each Monday at cs.ThomsonReuters.com.

PuLse PoLL ...

A solID

40

PeRCeNT of respondents said they’ve already implemented a secure, private online portal for clients. only 7 percent say they have no plans to do so.

what tool do you use most for staff scheduling? • • • • • •

Dedicated staff scheduling software (7%) Spreadsheet software (12%) Project/workflow management system (12%) Manual method (14%) Other (5%) No formalized process (50%)

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We admit: some questions are just plain fun. We especially liked the one about how users read books. Most of you are still fans of the old fashioned way: paperback or hardcover (67 percent). The rest of you techie geeks came down like this: Kindle (10 percent), iPad (7 percent), computer (3 percent), audio books (2 percent), and Nook (2 percent).

Z

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in Your Words

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Living the dream Dave Hainsworth has accomplished what many are striving for: work-life balance.

dave hainsworth has two goals for his firm, david N. hainsworth, cpa, pc. he wants his clients to fulfill their goals and objectives. and he wants his staff to realize their professional and personal dreams. luckily, he’s also got the tools that make these goals work in tandem and not contradict one another. The secret to his success—and the reason he could spend eight weeks away from his office, cruising in Alaska? A personal commitment to living life to its fullest, knowing your priorities, and having the right software in place. The laNgUage oF bUsiNess It wasn’t always this way. Hainsworth opened his business in 1984, and didn’t even take a long vacation until 2003. A native Virginian, he went to George Mason university, and was inspired to go into accounting by a CPA friend who ran a variety of businesses.

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IN PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS Hainsworth’s golden retriever, Elvis, is a regular and welcomed presence at the firm’s office. SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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FIRM FACTS Z basics: david N. hainsworth, cpa, pc, was formed in 1984 and, including Hainsworth and his wife, has seven employees, three of them parttime. The firm focuses on small businesses, individuals, financial planning, and estate and trust accounting.

Z websiTe: hainsworthcpa.com

Z soFTwaRe: • ultraTax Cs • Fixed Assets Cs • FileCabinet Cs • Planner Cs • Cs Professional suite Accounting • Client Bookkeeping solution • Practice Cs • NetClient Cs

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“

The software encourages efficiency and allows you unlimited potential. If you have a highgrossing practice, it’s financially rewarding.

“

–David Hainsworth

“He showed me that accounting was the language of business,” he says. “If you majored in accounting and became a CPA, you would have the ultimate of choices for career paths. It was this idea of having a variety of options that appealed to me.”

PODCAST listen to our interview with Dave Hainsworth, where he defines work-life balance. Go to cs.ThomsonReuters. com/solutions.

After graduation, he found a job in a local accounting firm, then decided to take the leap and start his own firm in 1984—“while I was young and had low overhead,” he says. Today, his firm’s specialties include accounting and bookkeeping, business and individual taxes, financial planning, as well as estate and trust work. The financial planning, as it turns out, grew out of Hainsworth’s questions about his own financial future.

“I realized that I didn’t have the answers for my own future,” he says. “And once I went out and sought the answers, then I wanted to take it to a professional level and offer that service to clients.” The RighT iNgRedieNTs He attributes part of the success of his firm to his location in Fairfax, Va., a wealthy suburb of Washington, D.C. The area has one of the highest per capita incomes in the country and is, as Hainsworth says, “a great place to be in financial services.” “There’s always road construction, the federal government, and businesses. It’s a vibrant, diversified area, and it’s always been a dynamic, changing area.”

WINNING WORDS Dave Hainsworth was the winner of the

clients, and offered solutions that help his

“Be our user Profile” contest from the first

business stay efficient. specifically, he notes

Solutions issue in 2011. He’ll be receiving

that “the predictability and familiarity of

a framed copy of this issue’s cover and

Thomson Reuters software allows employees

feature article.

and clients to be comfortable year after year in what programs to use to achieve the

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In his submission, Hainsworth says that

objectives. This stability has allowed us to

Thomson Reuters products have allowed

retain employees, two being here for over

his practice to grow with his employees and

20 years and another for 10 years.”

SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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Ha an ac an sta

Th su Ha ou ac do

“In ac in wh Th as im

“T un gr wh it’

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To on eig wh sa fo ha fis fo

CS

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Hainsworth’s firm reflects this, as it stays flexible and dynamic to meet clients’ needs. using tax and accounting software together—integrating ledgers and tax returns, especially—is one way his firm has stayed ahead of the curve since the start. Thomson Reuters software is a big part of the firm’s success also. With Cs Professional suite Accounting, Hainsworth’s firm becomes “an intricate part of how our clients run their business,” he says. “Providing accurate information in a timely fashion in order to do tax planning or financial planning is important.” “In order to do good planning we need a good accounting system, and the ability to post the information quickly to their portal facilitates the whole process.” With the online software from Thomson Reuters, Hainsworth is supporting clients as they strive for the work-life balance that’s so important to Hainsworth himself. “The software encourages efficiency and allows you unlimited potential,” he says. “If you have a highgrossing practice, it’s financially rewarding. The whole delivery method has been so fascinating and it’s increased our profitability and efficiency.”

“There’s nothing like it, he says. “Being out on the water, going where you want, and eating seafood— it’s just a feeling of freedom.” And he’s thankful that the Thomson Reuters software allows him—and his staff—to work remotely but remain in touch. But even when he’s in the office, those same work-life balance attitudes apply, especially when it comes to elvis. His 15-year-old golden retriever accompanies him to the office every day he goes in. And when his clients drop in and say, “Well, I’m here to see the dog—and by the way, here are my taxes,” Hainsworth knows he’s doing something right. “life goes fast—don’t blink, so make sure you have that balance you want,” says Hainsworth. “I was able to achieve that with the tools and software used in our practice.”

USERS’ CONFERENCE: WHY GO? Dave Hainsworth has been to five Thomson Reuters users’ Conferences,

sigNs oF sUccess All this means more time away from their desks for Hainsworth and his staff. Hainsworth has been an avid boater since college, but in the past 10 years he and his wife Pam, who also works at the firm, have started travelling more regularly. Together, they’ve taken five trips to the Bahamas, one to Maine, and two to Alaska, including an eight-week stay in 2010. He watched humpback whales swimming, saw grizzly bears feeding on salmon, took a ride on a crab-fishing boat famous for being on TV’s “Deadliest Catch,” feasted on halibut, sat in hot tubs fed by hot springs, and used fishing nets to scoop glacial ice to fill his coolers for happy hour.

practice, especially where training, networking, and sharing are concerned. He specifically points to: • Hands-on and software discussionspecific sessions • Practice management topics taught by CPA peers • Availability of Thomson Reuters staff to answer questions and discuss programs • An ongoing product demonstration theater • Access to upper management of Thomson Reuters

FRONTIER SHOTS Dave Hainsworth spent eight weeks boating in Alaska. Above, pictures from his vacation.

• Learning about the latest technology

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and says they’ve been helpful to his

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TiPs & TACTiCs

your link to Best Practices Make better use of your software and save time while doing so. accoUNTiNg cs Q: I accidentally entered transactions using the wrong posting period. What’s the easiest way to fix that? A: To change the posting period for multiple transactions at one time, click the edit Multiple Transactions link at the bottom of the enter Transactions screen. # Tip: To track certain types of information for staff, clients, vendors, or employees that do not appear on the standard setup screens, you can use custom fields. To define custom fields, choose setup > custom Fields.

clieNT booKKeepiNg solUTioN (cbs) Q: How can I control which account numbers are available for my CBs client to use? A: You can prevent a CBs client from using certain Gl account numbers. From Accountant’s Assistant, first choose setup > Miscellaneous information, click the checkwriter tab, and specify the account ranges to be restricted. Next, generate the Chart of Accounts for the client to import into CBs.

LEARN MORE Check out more ideas for streamlining your work at cs.ThomsonReuters. com/Tips.

wRiTe-Up cs Q: How can I import transactions from a spreadsheet into Write-up Cs? A: A PDF guide is available from the help topics to walk you through the process. To open the guide in Adobe® Reader, search checklists from the index of the Cs Professional suite Accounting (CsA) help browser and click the subentry called creative solutions accounting ascii File import guide and checklist (pdF). In the help topic that opens, click the link called checklist for importing ascii client data in csa using Microsoft excel. # Tip: Here are a couple of additional tips to help make the transactions import easier: • Be sure that your ASCII fi le transactions are in balance before you begin the import. otherwise, any original out-of-balance transactions would be imported to an out-of-balance state in Write-up Cs. • To see an example of what the spreadsheet fi le

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#

should look like, please refer to case K14391923 in our Cs Professional suite Knowledgebase and click the sample called general ledger Transaction file.

TRial balaNce cs # Tip: Did you know that when setting up a client you can add new Gl accounts without leaving the Tasks / Trial balance window? From the grid in that window, simply press cTRl+a on your keyboard to open a Chart of Accounts dialog to enter and save basic initial setup information for new Gl accounts, which are then immediately available for selection in the Trial balance screen.

eNgageMeNT cs # Tip: Do you have a number of older engagements taking up space in the Tree View window of engagement Cs? You can clean out such older engagements from the Tree View window without deleting them via an archive process, which enables you to still save historical data. To learn more about this process, search for case K30791966 in our Cs Professional suite Knowledgebase.

payRoll cs Q: How can I find out whether a state form has been approved and is available in the program? A: The program’s Home Page provides this information. To open the CsA Home Page at any time, click the Home Page button at the far right of the toolbar. To find form details for a particular state, click the appropriate state flag in the Payroll section of the Home Page.

pRacTice cs # Tip: Resources for New users of Practice Cs A knowledgebase article, titled Resources for New Users of practice cs, includes links to 47 other knowledgebase articles designed to help you start using Practice Cs effectively. These articles include information on topics such as data conversions,

SOLUTIONS [issue 3, 2011]

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Ultr Q: C thro A: N beca Whe date

Ultr Q: T for a of R bein on t Wor A: o for a the > Ra both

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database setup, time entry, billing, accounts receivable, reports, and database maintenance. # Tip: If you’re licensed for Practice Cs (v. 2011.2.0 or higher) and the Client Management module, you can quickly and securely send files to or request files from your clients or contacts from within Practice Cs. When you send a file, you can request that the client or contact sign the file electronically, and you can send a secure message that is available only through NetClient Cs. Note that if the client or contact doesn’t have a NetClient Cs portal, Practice Cs will create one on the fly during the file transfer.

UlTRaTaX cs UltraTax/1041 Q: Can short-year 1041 returns be electronically filed through ultraTax Cs? A: No, short-year returns cannot be electronically filed, because many returns go final in the following year. When this occurs, a return is duplicated and short-year dates for the next year are entered.

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UltraTax/706 Q: The amount of the calculated residual estate available for allocation to beneficiaries (as shown on the allocation of Residual estate to beneficiaries worksheet) isn’t being properly allocated to the individual beneficiaries on their corresponding Beneficiary Asset Reconciliation Worksheet. How do I fix this? A: open screen Names (in the General folder) and look for an amount that is being specifically allocated to the beneficiary and being allocated using the benefit > Ratio field in each statement dialog. You cannot use both methods of allocation at the same time.

gosysTeM TaX Rs Gosystem Tax Rs 706 Q: Why can’t I get Form 706 to print? The only things that print are the diagnostic messages. A: Verify the decedent’s date of death. If the date of death is within the year end 2011 and is entered in a 2010 return before the 2010 update, the return will not print. optionally, you can extend the return and wait until the fall, when the 2010 information is added to the platform. Gosystem Tax Rs 709 Q: How can I get the information I’ve entered for gifts

NeTclieNT cs Q: I’d like to provide some guidelines to my staff and clients about creating strong passwords that will keep their portals secure. Can you help? A: The NetClient Cs and Netstaff Cs Help includes a password guidelines and tips topic that provides an overview of acceptable characters, recommendations about types of passwords to use and types of passwords to avoid, and other important information. Please feel free to use this help topic as a template for creating password guidelines for your clients. To access the help topic, log in to Netstaff Cs, click the Help button, and choose Password guidelines and tips.

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NeTsTaFF cs Q: I enabled Microsoft® exchange for a Netstaff Cs user. How do I know when the account setup is complete and the Netstaff Cs user can synchronize outlook data with his mobile device? A: After you enable Microsoft exchange for a Netstaff Cs user, a Virtual office Cs administrator must set up the exchange account, which takes 3 to 5 business days. You can check the status of the exchange account setup by clicking the administration Ng button, selecting the Netstaff Cs user in the users list, and clicking the enable button for Microsoft exchange. When the setup steps are complete for an email address, the message to the right of the address will read “Active.” At this point, the Netstaff Cs user can synchronize his Virtual office Cs Microsoft outlook data with his mobile device.

Practice Cs TAX ultraTax Cs Gosystem Tax Rs WEBSITE DESIGN Web Builder Cs

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web bUildeR cs Q: How can I incorporate social media into my Web Builder Cs website? A: on any or all pages of your firm’s website, you can add buttons that link to your firm’s social media sites. log into your Web Builder Cs administrator account and click site Tools, then social Media to enter uRls for your firm’s Facebook®, Twitter®, LinkedIn®, and/or Google+™ sites.

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to transfer to the form and print on the return? A: Verify that there’s an allocation of the gift and choose what type of gift it is. Then navigate to organizer > list of gifts > basic data and mark the sort schedule a and schedule b (prior period gifts) checkbox and perform a full recompute.

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streamline source Document Management and 1040 Workflow USE SOURCE DOCUMENT PROCESSING our source Document Processing service takes advantage of optical Character Recognition (oCR) technology and Cs Professional suite integration to speed 1040 processing in two easy steps: 1 advanced source document labeling and organizing. FileCabinet Cs users who are also licensed for ultraTax Cs can use source Document Processing to automatically have their scanned client source documents neatly labeled and organized. 2 optional data sharing. FileCabinet Cs users who are also licensed for ultraTax Cs can use the source Document Processing service to extract data from specific source documents for automatic transfer to ultraTax Cs at tax preparation time. The source Document Processing service is available at $6 per client, per tax year—no matter how many scanned source documents are submitted—and includes the labeling and organizing feature, with the data extraction feature included free of charge. For more information about the source Document Processing service, contact us at 800.968.8900 or email [email protected].

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