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ICB awards accreditation to AccountancyManager

19th Feb 2021
Brought to you by
BrightManager logo

Award winning CRM & practice management software

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Have you found this content useful? Use the button above to save it to your profile.

Image showing ICB accreditation stamp

We are proud to announce that AccountancyManager is now fully accredited by the ICB. In its commitment to support members, the ICB recommends trusted software products that meet rigorous criteria - including technical aspects, value for money and customer service. 

The ICB only awards this accreditation to products that are ‘up to standard, robust and useful to ICB members’. (We’ll forgive that this description underplays AccountancyManager somewhat.)

Highlights from the ICB report on AccountancyManager

As part of the accreditation process, an ICB member must evaluate the software and create a report. Putting AM through its paces was Sarah Douglas C.FICB at HouseTree Business Ltd - an accountancy and bookkeeping practice in Glasgow. You’ll soon be able to download Sarah’s full report from ICB’s website, but here are a few of the best bits.

1. Getting started on AccountancyManager

Following the correct steps to set up AccountancyManager will save you lots of time later on. When you sign up to the software, they provide support and videos to instruct you through the process. I find it very intuitive.

“The fewer packages you have to use the better. In my view, the software is a one-stop-shop - which I like.”

Anti-money laundering and risk

Electronic checks are a useful way of finding out more info about an individual. Remember, it is individuals who launder money, they just use companies to do it.

AM will check that the ID, Passport/Driving License numbers are real numbers. AM will also check the address against the electoral roll. AM will also do a PEPs and Sanctions check. Within AM there is a risk section in each client file. This is for you to ask questions about the company as to whether it is more or less likely to be used to launder money.

2. Practice admin - workflow, processes for your practice

AccountancyManager shines in this area and makes life easy for any bookkeeping or accountancy practice to manage their practice better.

Some of Sarah’s favourite parts:

  • Deadline Task dashboard and self-generating Task List - built around the services you provide clients.
  • Client Timeline - sending emails and receiving emails all recorded in a client’s timeline. This element is excellent, especially if a client has a query or forgets correspondence they had.
  • Set Target Dates now as well as (the automated) external deadlines you can set an internal deadline for tasks.

SMS Texts: My favourite feature of AccountancyManager… clients now answer texts faster than emails. It is an undersold feature.”

  • Automated Emails - requesting records and chasing, and remind clients to pay tax
  • Resources Tab - I find the Resources Tab extremely useful, resources can be utilised for many purposes. I put each client’s procedures here and lots of details to help us keep consistency for the clients.
  • Custom Forms - I really like this feature and it gives a professional image of your practice and your clients can complete online.
  • SMS Texts: My favourite feature of AccountancyManager because the world has changed and clients now answer texts faster than emails. It is an undersold feature.

3. Integrations with AccountancyManager

If you choose AccountancyManager, it will become the centre of your practice, and it must integrate with other software. Increasing integrations is always a target for AccountancyManager, therefore I recommend you look out for new announcements.

Xero

  • Sync data from AM to Xero
  • And from Xero to AM
  • Send recurring invoices
  • No more duplicate data entry

QuickBooks

  • Sync data from AM to QuickBooks
  • And from QuickBooks to AM
  • No more duplicate data entry
  • Two-way invoicing expected soon

FreeAgent

  • Sync data from FreeAgent to AM
  • See clients’ tax timeline and profit and loss
  • Client changes in FreeAgent updates AM

4. Time tracking and profitability - invoicing and debtors

It is my view that this is one of the essential areas in AccountancyManager and is a powerful tool. I would encourage practices to use it. No matter what your choice of pricing, it is crucial that you know if a job is profitable, should you be charging more? It is crucial for client relationships that you are getting paid fairly and this part of the software helps you to make decisions.

As an example, add fixed fees for your services and an hourly cost for each staff member. Then track the time your staff spend. At a glance, you can see total revenue, cost of labour, hours, budget profit and actual profit.

5. AccountancyManager looks after bookkeepers

You can customise AccountancyManager to be suitable for a bookkeeping practice. Here is a useful video with instructions.

Switch on the bookkeeper practice type and you will have a dedicated Bookkeeping Details section: Settings > Account Details > Practice Type.

Discounted price for ICB members

Find out how AM could benefit your bookkeeping practice, by taking it for a spin with a free 30-day trial and a discounted price for ICB members. To find out more about the ICB discount, please contact a member of our friendly sales team.

Start my free trial.