Saving time by making your employees’ tasks easier and more efficient is one way that your business computer system can save money on hourly wages, but check writing software can take those savings to another level.

Do you have an HR department or payroll team? How long does it take them to write out individual paychecks on payday, print payroll stubs and match them with each hand written check? Are you paying those employees by the hour? That could be a huge waste of money and time. How much do you pay for an order of pre-printed business checks through your bank or check printing company? Have you ever run out of checks and had to wait for an order to be fulfilled?

Check writing software can help save the time spent writing checks as well as eliminate the cost of expensive business checks. A good software program will even store payroll information and print stubs with each check saving your team a great deal of time and hassle.

When you print checks with software you have a solid record of each transaction which you can hand record in a ledger or simply print out for your accounting department. Whether you are paying a few hundred employees or ten, the benefits are the same- less time and less money spent. The software can be installed on all of the computers that need to access check writing tasks and linked through your network to update all the systems when a transaction is made.

You have already got the business computer systems, now look into check writing software to really put it to work for you and save your company some significant money!

Piracle’s controller, Kandice Lambert, CPA, and marketing intern, Whitney Baum, recently researched and wrote an article that will be featured in the Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants’ journal the Journal Entry.

Lambert and Baum worked hard and researched ways that CPAs could help the businesses they come in contact with, develop stronger internal controls and get rid of detrimental practices.

Internal controls are processes that make sure there are a system of checks and balances when it comes to Informational Technology, payroll, accounting and so on. Baum and Lambert interviewed a number of different CPAs in Utah and asked them what tools and controls they would suggest to better a company’s internal controls.

One of these tools was Piracle’s own Create-a-Check. CPA’s said the software was helpful as an internal control because it helped to reduce the risk of check fraud. Using pre-printed check stock is risky, as there are multiple ways it can be stolen, replicated or just used to write fraudulent checks.

Another tip that Jonyce Bullock, an advisory partner for Squire, gave was to be careful with users and passwords within an accounting system.

With any accounting system, there should be ranks of users, who have certain permissions in the accounting system. For example, if a CFO has to approve large transactions written by one of his or her subordinates, he or she would have more permissions on the accounting system, than the person creating the payments.

This should be implemented in any system, no matter if it is self developed, or bought, the accounting system should have users with different permissions. Even if the IT personnel design the program, they shouldn’t be able to get in and out easily; otherwise there could be trouble for a business.

Bullock also suggested keeping hard to crack passwords, and never sharing the administrator password. She said she had clients who, although they had their own users with permissions, all had the administrator password memorized, so they could authorize anything they wanted.

The problem with this is that sometimes employees don’t understand the accounting system. There is chance for human error that is not reconcilable after completing it and then approving it with the administrator password. It may seem easier to give the administrator password to employees to make their jobs easier, but it doesn’t make it easier when there is money taken out of the company and there is no way to see what user did what.

Not only that, but employees with the administrator password pose a dangerous threat to companies because they could take money from the organization and there would be no record of who did it, without using their own users. This could make a company lose money, and quick.

For more tips from CPA’s and to see how Piracle’s Create-A-Check can help increase internal control, keep your eye out for the next UACPA Journal Entry, or go to www.Piracle.com.

Many times to make things easier for the employees who have access to the business check book the authorized person will pre-sign several checks. Those checks could be stolen and used in various ways to empty the company checking account. Check writing software eliminates that possibility.

Each person who wishes to write and print a check must log in to the system and there will be a clear record of the transaction. This makes stealing checks without being detected virtually impossible, because everyone must be authorized to use the program and sign in using their credentials.

The security of your company’s financial information is important to you, so why would you spend so much money on printed bank business checks and then just store them in the office? Not only is check writing software a security measure, it’s also a time saver and money saver.
Hand writing checks takes up time while using bank printed business checks can be expensive.

Wouldn’t it be better to put your computer system to use and install check writing software to meet all those needs as well as providing you with easily printable ledger sheets, instant reports and payroll stubs?

When it comes to the security of your company, security cameras may help, but eliminating the possibility for theft and invasion of your checking account is a big step that any responsible business owner should be aware of to ensure that they are not taken advantage of by a potential thief.

SuiteWorld 2013 let NetSuite clients, and potential customers, as well as different vendors come together for a week of information, educational seminars, breakout sessions, networking, and a good time.

Bechard said the Piracle team had a great time at the conference, and one of the best parts was letting people know that Piracle Pay System for NetSuite was available. This new software, which lets NetSuite users streamline their payment processes, write and print checks with MICRtoner ink and blank check stock, process electronic ACH payments at any time and place, is integrated seamlessly within the native NetSuite program.

Piracle’s designers had to complete six steps through strict NetSuite guidelines to develop software with this seamless integration.

“We had to do a lot to be certified for the Built For NetSuite,” Bechard said. “They announced Tuesday all of the companies that passed the certification, and told customers to look for the Build For NetSuite sign on the booths, and we had that.”

There were breakout sessions, and times when customers and clients could walk around and talk to many of the vendors at the show. After the daytime show, there were parties, dinners and after activities where attendees could meet together, discuss their companies, network and relax.

Bechard said attended CEO  and COO dinners, and was able to network with many of other companies’ CEO’s, CFO’s and COO’s. At these dinners, Bechard said he was able to discuss how all of the solution providers have created novel applications for NetSuite customers who are looking for enhanced functionality.

Besides networking at the actual exhibit, Bechard said these dinners were the best opportunity to get on the front lines and meet the people who have contributed so much to this thriving NetSuite community

“It was nice to be able to meet with those whom you could talk about business with,”  he said.

To see a gallery of picture from the conference, click on one of the pictures below:

The Cloud: What is it?

Being unable to access information and resources is a thing of the past with cloud computing. With the introduction of smart mobile devices, and the fact many people are on the go all the time and need access to certain products and information anytime, anywhere, cloud computing is necessary.

Imagine a company manager is on a business trip, and had to leave their computer or USB drive, but still needed to access a business report and presentation. Perhaps he or she saves the files on a network off of their computer, on a separate server, like DropBox. This way, the manager isn’t limited by where they saved the information; it is accessible anywhere on any computer with an internet connection. Instead of bringing their computer or hard drive, the manager saves on time and money, and still is able to access their report and presentation easily from the cloud.

SaaS, or Software as a Service, models help consumers to utilize the cloud to their full advantage. Because the information is stored off site of the consumer’s computer, by using the cloud they save  computer memory, improve ease of access, and allow other people to access the information no matter how large a file is (unlike e-mail).

Piracle is joining this new technological jump by announcing their newest software, Piracle Pay Services for NetSuite, which is accessible directly within the NetSuite application in the cloud. Piracle also has Xpress Pay Stubs, where anyone who has a valid account can search for their government documents, or see their paystubs, from anywhere.

Online Check Writing: A New Frontier

Piracle’s Piracle Pay Services on the cloud has the ability to create and send ACH electronic payments, allowing ease of access for users, along with the ability to print checks on blank check stock.

Many companies still pay vendors and employees using checks, through this electronic ACH payment, or through physically mailed checks. Using Piracle Pay Services, users are able to do both of these. No matter where or when, check printing can be completed, electronic payments created, and payment processes streamlined, provided the employee has a valid log-in.

Piracle’s complete payment processes in the cloud does even more than just payment processing, however. Users can create encrypted signatures that can be printed directly on checks, or change anything within a check that may have changed, like a phone number or address.

Using Piracle’s XPress Pay Stubs, users can access their government forms provided by the company, or look at paystubs throughout their employment. If an employee was looking to apply for a loan, instead of having to wait for Human Relations for a copy of their government forms, they could sign in, anywhere, at any time, and print a copy of the form they need, or a paystub.

The benefits of cloud-computing are numerous, and as it becomes more popular, Piracle looks to create more cloud access for their products.

This certification tells any NetSuite user that Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite uses their SuiteCloud network, and was designed directly for NetSuite using the NetSuite tools and program. For those users who use NetSuite,  PPS opens directly within NetSuite, and appears as a added menu option:

Piracle’s President and CEO John Bechard said he is pleased that Piracle received the certificate, and that the announcement at SuiteWorld brought Piracle into a great light.

John related an instance where a company had used another payment processing service for a few years that hadn’t worked with their accounting application, and because of that, didn’t know if they could trust Piracle. However, after the PPS launch and certification announcement, a representative of this company went by their booth at SuiteWorld, saw the BFN certificate, and emailed John to tell him they completely trusted PPS because of the certificate.

The Built For NetSuite certificate is highly accredited, and rigorous. Each certified Built For NetSuite application must pass a series of six steps.

First, Piracle and NetSuite signed a SuiteCloud Developer Network agreement, ensuring that Piracle would be making a product for NetSuite, and NetSuite would make it available on SuiteApp.com if it passed all six steps for certification.

Next, Piracle employees and developers were educated on SuiteCloud and how to develop software using the NetSuite platform. The Piracle team received the tools and training they needed to create the best product possible for NetSuite, making sure it could be built directly into the program by taking a series of courses.

After this SuiteCloud education, Piracle developers began to design and create Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite, testing, developing and redesigning. NetSuite requires that this design process follows their direct guidelines so that the SuiteApp Piracle was designing would integrate seamlessly within NetSuite.

Piracle’s Corporate Vice President Lynn Shimada, who has been with Piracle since its earliest beginnings in 1991 and  co- designed the first Create-A-Check program, said building the software online was a whole new animal for Piracle’s developers.

The team’s developers have been used to creating desktop applications, so working to build a HTML coded software that integrated seamlessly with NetSuite and was certified by them, was a challenge, but one they excelled at completing, he said.

“Everything we’ve done up until this application, our Piracle Pay Service, has been client server based, which means you load it on your machine and it stays in your machine, or your in-house server,” Lynn said. “Now, this is opening us up into the SaaS software … so that’s why we’re excited about it, because it’s getting us into that environment.”

After development and extensive testing, Piracle sent PPS to NetSuite for review. NetSuite only issues the Built For NetSuite badge and certification if the review team deems the application successfully integrated within the NetSuite application. After obvious hard work, Piracle passed the review and received the Built For NetSuite certification, which was announced at SuiteWorld.

Piracle, a NetSuite user themselves, has been using Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite in-house with great success for the past while, Lynn said.

Piracle was proud to have the badge displayed at their booth at NetSuite’s SuiteWorld 2013 Conference last week.

Piracle Pay System for NetSuite is certifiably Built For NetSuite, as shown at Piracle’s Booth during the recent SuiteWorld 2013 conference.

NetSuite defines the certificate in its SDN Partner Program Guide,  as saying that any NetSuite connecting software, like Piracle, is shown to “comply with basic quality, security and privacy requirements.”

Piracle has been compatible with NetSuite using the desktop oriented Create-A-Check, but wanted to build their technology into the NetSuite program hosted in the cloud. This way, customers never have to leave native NetSuite to access the check writing and electronic ACH payment functionality, it’s built directly into the application.

NetSuite Piracle Pay System integrates seamlessly into NetSuite’s cloud software. Piracle Pay System for NetSuite has a Built For NetSuite certification.

The certified Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite is available on SuiteApp.com. Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite allows users to log into their account anywhere at any time, and write and print checks with the software using Piracle’s check printing supplies, such as their secure blank check stock, or transfer electronic ACH payments. This is a new venture for Piracle, as it is their first software that is cloud-based. This certificate shows the hard work and value Piracle places in its relationship with NetSuite.

One of these tradeshows was OGsys’ User’s Group Meeting which took place over the last few weeks in downtown Denver, Dallas Fort Worth and Houston.  Piracle’s Josie Wollenzien, Channel Sales, was able to attend the meetings.

The view out of the window at the OGsys’ User Meeting in Houston

Josie said she was able to talk to many Piracle customers while at the conferences, which was a great experience.

“One thing customers said again and again at the conference was ‘Piracle just works!‘” she said. “Some of them would say ‘I don’t know how you do it, but it just works.’”

Tara Lockhart, OGsys’ Account Manager, said these End User Meetings take place twice a year and give OGsys clients opportunities to meet other OGsys clients. This way, she said, clients can ask each other questions about the OGsys software, or about problems they may be experiencing with the industry.

“It gives them an opportunity to network,” Tara said.

During the User Group Meeting, OGsys clients were able to learn about a new product, OGdash, from OGsys president Charles Blanton. OGdash provides a way for employees to view company data from anywhere, Tara explained. This information cannot be manipulated, giving the company’s accountants piece of mind. Clients also explored OGsys new software release at the meeting.

Piracle had the privilege of being one of three vendors invited to OGsys User Group Meeting. Tara explained the vendors were there for OGsys clients to ask vendor representative questions and meet them face-to-face.

“Not all of our clients use those solutions,” she said. “It’s always nice for them to know they’re available and get to talk to those sales representatives.”

Tara said because Piracle is OGsys “check printing solution,” it’s important for all our clients to know about Piracle’s Create-A-Check, which is why Piracle was one of the invited vendors.

“It’s a good opportunity to make sure all of our clients know about (Piracle),” Tara said. “Piracle has been a really good partner.”

Piracle’s Booth at the OGsys’ User’s Meeting.

Tara said OGsys clients that are using Piracle find a seamless integration between the two, and if they do have any questions, Piracle’s support is “hands down.”

“The support, the fact that it’s easy and integrated, and any time they need to make a change, it’s not hard to do,” she said. “It’s also cost effective.”

Josie said she enjoyed spending time at the User Group Meeting, as OGsys clients are knowledgeable and pleasant to work with. Josie also said the conference was more intimate so there was more ways for her to connect with current and potential Piracle and OGsys customers.

“It’s a great chance to meet our customers face-to-face,” she said. “To introduce our product and to thank those who are currently using Piracle.”

Meeting Piracle customer’s and potential customers was one of Josie’s favorite parts of attending the meeting, she said.

“It’s nice to put a name to a face,” she said.

Piracle helps OGsys customers streamline their payment processes, and provides a long-time solution for check writing and printing using Create-A-Check. The program integrates with the OGsys application to help users print checks on blank check stock, helping save money, boost efficiency and provide a safer way to manage their payments. Create-A-Check OGsys also provides check printing supplies. Piracle is a one-stop-shop for OGsys customers, as they can buy the Create-A-Check software, the secure blank check stock, the MICRtoner ink and printers if need be.

Customers converse during the OGsys’ User’s Meeting in Houston.

The meeting dealt with teaching OGsys users more about how to use their product, and introduce them to new software. For more information on OGsys, and how it integrates with Piracle, please visit www.Piracle.com/Ogsys.

Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite is built directly into the NetSuite accounting application. NetSuite, a widely used Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution, has effectively incorporated their cloud-based services into businesses large and small. With NetSuite leading the way, Piracle followed suit and developed its own cloud-based solution that integrates completely into native NetSuite.

Piracle’s President and CEO John Bechard said Piracle’s move into cloud was influenced heavily by NetSuite. As a NetSuite user themselves for 7 years, John said Piracle wanted to take a step into new technology along with one of their partners, ultimately benefiting customers with complete integration of the two products.

“We’re excited for the value it will bring to our mutual customers,” he said. “By going to the cloud and changing the environment of Piracle, it has allowed us to integrate with NetSuite for seamlessness and integration within their dashboard.”

Piracle’s Direct Sales Manager Jeremy Collins, said this new software is the first online solution for MICR check printing Piracle has offered.

“It launches our journey into cloud computing by offering a fully integrated solution built on the NetSuite platform,” he said.

John said PPS will benefit customers by making Piracle a more efficient company.

“It is a more effective way to process payments whether it’s through our electronic ACH payments, or printing checks either on-site or remotely,” he said.

Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite allows companies in need of different remote access points to process and approve payments remotely, and is ultimately designed to improve payment processing, Jeremy said.

“(PPS offers)the ability to print to blank check stock or produce an ACH file for electronic payment processing,” he said. ” The system also provides e-signature functionality so that checks can print with a signature on them for enhanced security and control.” 

Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite integrates so well with the NetSuite application that it was certified as a Built For NetSuite program, a highly accredited and rigorous certification process. The Piracle designers of the application had to pass six steps, use exact guidelines for development and be reviewed by a SuiteCloud team to pass inspection.

The Built For NetSuite certificate was announced last week during NetSuite’s SuiteWorld 2013 conference, and was displayed at Piracle’s booth, assuring new and current customers that the PPS is fully integrated with the NetSuite application, and is trusted software.

NetSuite’s users can now print and write their own checks, process electronic ACH payments at anytime, anywhere. Before this new cloud-based application, NetSuite users could utilize Piracle’s Create-A-Check software, which was a program downloaded onto the desktop, and only accessible on that computer. Now, NetSuite users can get all of the benefits of Create-A-Check with ease of access from anywhere at anytime directly within NetSuite. An overview of the Piracle Pay Service can be found below.

Piracle Pay Service Overview

When a Piracle Pay Service user logs into their NetSuite account online, they can see the PPS software is integrated into NetSuite.

An example of how Piracle Pay Service is integrated within the NetSuite application. This screenshot shows an example of how Create-A-Check’s account set up is now found within NetSuite’s application.

All of the same services and solutions provided by previous Piracle software are included in the new PPS. Now, when the administrator wants to process an electronic ACH payment while out of the office, he or she could log into this NetSuite software from a laptop, and do so:

A NetSuite user can log in anywhere, and generate ACH electronic payments using Piracle Pay Service for NetSuite.

Just like in Create-A-Check, the Piracle Pay Service generates a PDF and informs the payee and recipient of the electronic ACH payment. All of the other Create-A-Check advantages are within the software as well.

The benefit of PPS is that users can safely and securely print their own checks on blank check stock, remotely. Eliminating pre-printed check stock is an easy way to decrease unnecessary overhead. Using blank check stock also introduces an increased level of security for an organization’s payment management. Piracle Pay Service lets NetSuite users print, process and write their own checks from anywhere.  

Users can see payments processing, checks to be approved, reprint checks, and everything else within the Create-A-Check software, simply built within the NetSuite software. This new cloud-based software will help NetSuite users streamline their payment processes, and take them into the next phase of technology.