November 2007
 A Message from Doug Sleeter  



I hope you enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday.

This is our final newsletter of 2007 and it has been another record year at The Sleeter Group. Our network of Accounting Software and IT Consultants has grown to over 600 members and our annual conference was the largest and best ever, (we said that last year but it is true again this year!).

This December we are rolling out our new Sleeter Group Webinar Series, with seven webinars to help you improve your knowlege and your practice. I will be offering a free webinar on What’s New in QuickBooks 2008. The series also includes webinars from Leslie Shiner and Mario Nowogrodzki, two popular presenters from our conference. And Bonnie Nagayama is presenting three webinars including QuickBooks at Year-End.

In the coming year, you can count on us to keep you ahead of the curve with information about the best of breed software and hardware solutions, and the tricks of the trade for successful consultants.

 Sleeter Group Webinar Series  

We are excited to announce our new Sleeter Group Webinar Series starting in December. This series includes seven information-packed webinars, covering a wide variety of topics aimed towards accountants and QuickBooks consultants. These high quality, consultant-level online seminars are quick, convenient, and most of all affordable!

December 5, 10 -11 AM PST
What’s New in QuickBooks 2008
Doug Sleeter – Free

December 6,  10 AM – 12 PM PST
Networking Best Practices – Configuring Your Network
Mario Nowogrodzki, CPA.CITP- $99

December 11, 10 - 11 AM PST
QuickBooks at Year-End
Bonnie Nagayama, CPA – $49

December 13, 10 AM – 12 PM PST
File Conversion In-Depth
Bonnie Nagayama, CPA - $99

December 18, 10 AM – 12 PM PST
Internal Control and Fraud Reduction
Bonnie Nagayama, CPA - $99

December 19, 11 AM – 12 PM PST
Marketing and Selling Your Services
Leslie Shiner - $49

December 20, 11 AM – 1 PM PST
Become an Expert Construction Consultant
Leslie Shiner – $99

Look at our complete list of webinars on our website.

 Awesome QuickBooks Add-ons for 2008  

Awesome QuickBooks Add-onsAs the marketplace of QuickBooks add-ons continues to grow, the quantity and quality of independent developers is blossoming. Not only do we see new products coming to market each month, but several products are now in their third, fourth or even fifth version.

The success of the QuickBooks “ecosystem” is benefiting everyone from small business owners, to accountants and consultants, to software companies, and Intuit. Each of these stakeholders is benefiting by the increased breadth and depth of the solutions, and by the fact that both risks and profits are shared by millions of companies who participate in the ecosystem. The future looks bright for continued growth even as we see huge technology changes on the horizon. With the explosive growth of the online world, and with the Windows Vista conversion, software companies are racing to both “webify” their applications and upgrade them for Vista compatibility.

At The Sleeter Group, we continually study the marketplace of add-on solutions. And for several years now, we’ve spotlighted those best-of-breed products that we refer to as “awesome add-ons.”

In this issue, I’m proud to announce the 2008 winners of our annual Awesome QuickBooks Add-on Awards.

 2008 Consultant's Reference Guide Now Available!  

2008 Consultant's Reference Guide
The 2008 Consultant’s Reference Guide is now available. This is our earliest release yet of this bestselling guide. Our Consultant Network Members continue to rate it as a key benefit of the Consultants Network.

The Consultant’s Reference Guide is designed for anyone who sets up, troubleshoots, and supports clients who use QuickBooks software. The 2008 edition of this 600+ page book includes detailed information about the new features in QuickBooks 2008, such as:

  • Accountant’s Copy Enhancements,
  • New Customer Credit Card Protection Features,
  • Outlook Integration,
  • Invoice List for Time and Expenses,
  • Merchant Services Enhancements and
  • Much Much More

The Consultant’s Guide is available in downloadable form, printed book, CD-ROM or buy the bundle including the printed 600+ book and the PDF on CD-ROM at a discount price.

For more information about the bestselling Consultant’s Reference Guide, please view a PDF of the Table of Contents and visit our product page.

 The Sleeter Group's Consultants Network  

The Sleeter Group’s Consultants Network is the nation’s premier accounting software consultant’s network. With over 600 members located throughout the US and Canada, our members serve over 150,000 small businesses. We provide expert QuickBooks consulting, add-on integration services, business process workflow consulting, outsourced bookkeeping services, and financial statement preparation.

In addition to client consulting, many of our consultants provide consulting services to software developers who seek advice on the best practices for integrating their applications with QuickBooks and other accounting software products. To locate one of our certified consultants visit our Find a Consultant page. To learn more about becoming a consultant visit our Become a Consultant page or call our office at 888-484-5484. Members of the network receive a substantial discount on products and our annual conference.

 QuickBooks Point of Sale - Best Practices for Success Version 7 Now Available  

Newly updated for QuickBooks POS Version 7! This book, authored by Leslie Capachietti, teaches implementation, daily transactions and financial exchange with QuickBooks Financial Software. An invaluable resource whether you are new to Point of Sale or an experienced QuickBooks Point of Sale consultant. Filled with step-by-step instruction and easy-to-read graphics, QuickBooks POS Best Practices for Success covers behind the scenes accounting information so there are no surprises when integrating with QuickBooks.

Visit the Sleeter Group product store to view the Table Of Contents as well as a sample chapter -  and to order the POS Version 7 book

QuickBooks Point of Sale software was a 2007 Sleeter Group QuickBooks Awesome Add on award winner. You can read more about the Awesome Add ons Awards here 

 Tricks of the Trade  

Every day, members of The Sleeter Group’s Consultants Network tackle the day-to-day problems of their clients in the real world. In November, there was a great deal of discussion about fraud and fraud prevention on the "Sleeter Group’s Consultants Network Yahoo Group." Members shared stories of uncovering fraud that ranged from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars. The following are some of the suggested internal controls that surfaced in that discussion.

Randy Huizenga says, “There are several fraud schemes that come to mind… All of them can be mitigated by the use of strict user passwords and log-in procedures coupled with regular review of the audit trail reports, close management and/or owner review, external CPA involvement, regular review of balance sheets, supporting schedules, timely thorough cash and other account reconciliations, budgetary controls and separation of duties.”

Bob Crook suggested, “It is amazing how creative people can be. Reading these stories and fraud scenarios has been very interesting. I have to wonder how many business owners are being ripped off big time simply because their QuickBooks is not used correctly. I have two suggestions to minimize employee risk amongst business owners that use QuickBooks.

  1. The ‘regular’ bookkeeper should never be the one to open the sealed bank or credit card statements.
  2. Another fraud prevention strategy is to get a Sleeter Certified or top notch QuickBooks Pro-Advisor to regularly review their QuickBooks at least quarterly and give the owner a full written report. It is a deterrent if a thief knows that a QuickBooks Master Technician is regularly reviewing the books."

Leslie Shiner added, “I appreciate all the comments on potential fraud schemes. I actually uncovered a scheme that lasted 3 years with the bookkeeper stealing $550,000! In fact, I just published an article in the October issue of the JLC Magazine about this very topic.”

Diane Gilson contributed, “I ‘embed’ various anti-fraud steps in the month-end accounting procedures that I incorporate into my implementations and training. They include segregation of duties steps that should be performed by the owner in a small company that only has one bookkeeper (such as having all bank, credit card and loan statements sent to the owner’s home, keeping checks under control and handing off limited numbers to the bookkeeper, initialing check signing logs, actually mailing the checks that they sign rather than handing signed checks back to the bookkeeper, etc.). "

To learn more about Internal Controls and Fraud Reduction, attend Bonnie Nagayama’s webinar on December 18. Leslie Shiner will also be conducting webinars on Marketing and Selling Your Services and Become an Expert Construction Consultant in December.