Cloud Accounting Software Shines at Alta Vista Tech Event

Live events are back! Well, they are making a comeback but that qualifies as back right? And we thought what better way to kick off our return to the live event arena than by inviting our customers to lunch and showing them the future of cloud accounting?

Free lunch is always a draw, but so was the presentation of cloud accounting alternatives for those expressing an interest in moving off legacy, on-premises solutions. The future of cloud accounting (Sage Intacct and Microsoft Dynamics Business Central being notable alternatives) can help their accounting teams streamline processes and save a ton of time while doing it.

Upgrades vs Updates

A big focus of the legacy on-premises software discussion centers on upgrades vs updates. Vendors of legacy systems such as Microsoft GP, QuickBooks Desktop, or Sage 50/100/300 will correctly point out that their software is a mature product. Being mature products, many publishers of on-prem solutions are focusing primarily on security and bug fixes but not much in the way of new features or functionality.

Where these aging systems are pretty much static products, cloud accounting platforms like Sage Intacct and Microsoft Dynamics Business Central are continuously evolving. Sage Intacct receives four upgrades per year, once a quarter. Business Central gets 2 big upgrades a year with smaller updates in between. The best part? All of them happen automatically with no intervention. These features aren’t small bug fixes or minor tweaks… these are often entirely new, futuristic modules that show up ready to be used.

How futuristic? Well…

The Emergence of Artificial Intelligence

AI is booming. Sure, you can make a chatbot write you a children’s book about a sad banana or generate pictures of cats in clown costumes, but you can also use machine learning to improve your accounting workflow. Sage Intacct uses AI to find possible errors before they happen. Say you are entering revenue and you accidentally have the human resources department selected. Sage Intacct, over time, will learn that you never key revenue to the HR department, When accidentally try it will politely ask if you are making a mistake, avoiding the error in real time. Business Central uses subtle AI across systems to help your accounting system talk to Outlook and several other Microsoft apps, keeping you in the loop without the constant switch between programs.

These improvements aren’t happing to your legacy on-premises solution. Being a mature product is great because core, basic accounting functions are well handled. You don’t get the future time savings that AI systems can provide. You get the same thing day in and day out which may be comfortable, but is it really helping your team evolve and move forward?

Building an Ecosystem

Closing out the event was the message of a connected marketplace. Sage Intacct has a huge network of marketplace partners. From AP/AR automation to barcoding and planning there are partners that have built connections to Sage intact to make implementation a breeze and create a fully connected experience. Microsoft also has a market for Business Central that does a lot of the same thing. There is no more need for advanced IT support or development teams to keep your code working. The systems just work. This may sound like a fantasy but I assure you it’s real.

And for solutions that don’t have a native connection, our team of integration experts can leverage the open APIs to build a bridge, allowing the software you rely on to talk with your cloud accounting system. It’s magical, you save time, money, and stress knowing that you have a system that works for you, providing the new features you didn’t know you needed and the connection to make it happen without the need for costly IT support.

If any of this is resonating, you should have heard our Microsoft and Sage Intacct experts Kevin and Dave present it. It was Oscar-worthy stuff. But there are options available to see the future of cloud accounting for yourself and help to guide you on your path forward. You can give us a call at 855.913.3228 or fill out our simple web form and someone will reach out to you within 1 business day. At Alta Vista Technology we take pride in being part of your solution. So reach out today and schedule a free 30-minute discovery call and get started on your journey to the cloud!