powerpoint presentation€¦ · ken williams cfo @ ruekert & mielke (r/m) 31 years @ r/m •...

AJ-10:Real Life Widget –Success At YourCompany

Ken Williams, Ruekert & Mielke, Inc.

Ken Williams

CFO @ Ruekert & Mielke (R/M)

31 years @ R/M

• R/M is a civil engineering firm - HQ in Waukesha WI

• 100+ employees, 5 offices

CPA for 34 years

Software history:

• 1988 implemented AEPEX from Timberline

• Timberline to Axium to Deltek

• AEPEX to AEasy to AEasy+ to Protrax to Ajera

• Ajera conversion was in 2012

What was the issue?

Long AR Collection periods

• Before Ajera and Widgeting = 46 days

• After widget implementation = 34 days

PM’s responsible to make first attempt(s) to collect

(another client touch)

• Before the widget, process was cumbersome

• PM’s didn’t use “the process” every day – confusing

• Not a pleasant “touch” anyway – many steps

• Avoidance – too time consuming, clunky, provided the excuse

What was our goal?

Shorten AR Collection period

Make it easy to find information

Fewer steps, less time consuming

Accounting involved less (providing info)

Accurate, a place to store responses

Draw attention to old items

For accounting, Team Leaders, PM’s - 3 widgets

Easy updates

Extended use of electronic billing

Billing review stages

RM stages, lead

with #

• Ordered / numbered

• One stroke selection

Collections & Paid

Billing Review History

Designing the Widget (1 of 17)

+ Add tab

Title = AR Collections Insight

+ Add widget

Table

Designing the Widget (2 of 17)

Client Invoice as the “base”

• Where all (or most) of the

data is located• Auto additions created by

Deltek

• How do we know that?• Guess

• Designing knowledge

• Ajera Schema

• SQL Server Mgmt Studio

Designing the Widget (3 of 17)

General Information fields• Select what is needed for the widget

• Later we can:• Rearrange field order

• Sort data

• Hide fields

• Delete fields

• Resize fields

• Retitle fields

• Condition data

• Make our own formulas, if needed

Designing the Widget (4 of 17)

People fields• Select what is needed for the widget

Date fields• Select what is needed for the widget

Designing the Widget (5 of 17)

Dollar fields• Select what is needed for the widget

Designing the Widget (6 of 17)

Action fields• Select what is needed for the widget

• To be able to enter the preview screen

(see the billing review details) for the

invoice, right from our widget

Designing the Widget (7 of 17)

Rearrange fields• Grab

• Move up or down via drag and drop

Designing the Widget (8 of 17)

Upper left section• General design info

• Design title

• Display options (group/sort)

Upper right section• Preview

• Resize columns (grab and drag)

• Blue displays are “linked fields”

Lower left section• Column (field) info

• Icons

• Click on field name to display info for

lower right section

Lower right section• Field details

• Column heading

• Column width

• Grouping / sorting

• Filtering

• Conditional formatting

Designing the Widget (9 of 17)

Filters• Edit columns,

click on field

name

• Pick filter from

drop down list

• Enter value

Designing the Widget (10 of 17)

Results• Only collection invoices

• Only final invoices

• Do we need both?

• Do we need to see these fields at all?

Cleanup• Hide billing review stage

• Delete invoice status

Designing the Widget (11 of 17)

Resize columns• Grab and drag right side of

column in the preview area

• Assign a width size

See all columns in the preview

area (depending on amount of

fields)

Smaller space used on actual

widget on its dashboard

Designing the Widget (12 of 17)

Remove links• Are they needed?

• Confusing to user

• Move to unneeded details

• Security – do you want

someone to be able to move

to other linked views?

• Set all unneeded ones to

value of “none” (on drop

down list)

• We left “preview invoice” –

not a link, it is an “action”

Designing the Widget (13 of 17)

Group• Show client name

once

• Then show all of the

details

• Cleans up how the

design looks, instead

of repeating column

information

Designing the Widget (14 of 17)

Rename columns• Names used at your

company

• Shorten up for display

views

• Ease of understanding info

Designing the Widget (15 of 17)

Conditional formatting - highlight when condition occurs, puts background in red on the “preview invoice”

column when this item is paid. Serves as an alert to accounting to change billing review history stage to paid.

Designing the Widget (16 of 17)

Designing the Widget (17 of 17)

Accounting personnel given security rights

This is the version for the accounting department

Finalized Widget

Original data setup

Run Client AR Aging in client order

Open Project Command Center, invoices tab

Any invoice > 60 days old, preview the invoice

On the bottom new row of the billing review history,

add “collections” as the status (see slide 6)

Check widget totals to the totals of your aging report

for the >60 days columns (61-90, 91-120, 120+)

Depending on your amount of invoices to originally

handle, this takes roughly about an hour of time

Updates of data – daily (if needed)

Accounting enters client receipts (deposits)

Accounting checks widget for any payments (refresh if needed)

Using the widget, on a fully paid invoice (red background,

balance = $0), preview the invoice. On the bottom new row of

the billing review history, add “paid” as the status

Also allows accounting to know to notify the PM if needed on

payment

Depending on your amount of invoices to move to “paid”, this

takes roughly about a minute per invoice

Updates of data – bi-monthly

Run Client AR Aging in client order

Open Project Command Center, invoices tab

Any new invoices > 60 days old, preview the invoice

On the bottom new row of the billing review history, add

“collections” as the status (see slide 6)

Check widget totals to the totals of your aging report for the

>60 days columns (61-90, 91-120, 120+)

Depending on your amount of new invoices to handle, this

takes roughly about 15 minutes of time

Usually due around the 15th, and then with month end work

Customizing the widget for PM’s

Copy the widget tab

Edit the widget to add the Project Manager key

Filter the PM Key to be current user

Security altered to include roles in which PM’s are assigned

PM Widget alteration (1 of 4)

PM Widget alteration (2 of 4)

PM Widget alteration (3 of 4)

PM Widget alteration (4 of 4)

PM’s Could Be

What our PM’s used to do….

1. Go to report, client, invoice aging – we had a view saved to run by PM

2. Run report

3. Search through report for old items – remember what that means for R/M

4. Open PCC

5. Go to project

6. Preview Invoice

7. Save invoice to PDF

8. Email to client

9. Get response and email accounting to keep them informed

What our PM’s do now….

1. Go to widget

2. Preview Invoice

3. Save invoice to PDF

4. Email to client

5. Get response and post, via widget, to the billing review history, keep status as

collections

We really cut out 5 steps, saved the PM time doing overhead type tasks related

to their projects, while adding one (#5) which is fairly easy for them to do…….

Benefits of lower AR Days Outstanding

Money in the bank

Less collection calls made, time spent on the task, overhead (wasted) time

Not into your LOC

Investments in people, equipment, business

Not playing the bank for your client

Run your business, don’t let it run you!

Beer Celebrate!

….. Some clients wait until you ask!

The benefits of valuable widgets!

Questions?