2. Intranet Solutions for Finance and Accounting
Overview
Finance and Accounting staffs have various responsibilities for coordinating and supplying financial
information to other departments including the following:
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Preparation of financial statements
•
Tracking fixed asset cost and disposition
•
Coordination of audits
•
Managing the budgeting process
•
Controlling money transfers (A/R, A/P, Loans, etc.)
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Performing projection analysis
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Conforming to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
With these responsibilities, significant challenges exist for compiling, managing, and disseminating this
information across the enterprise.
Challenges
In most instances the accumulation of information and the required interaction between people extends far
beyond the finance and accounting staff. Collaboration with other internal functional areas of the business as
well as externally with vendors, customers, and auditors pose challenges related to having the right information
available at the right time.
Much of the information is paper based with volumes of supporting information stored in filing cabinets.
Diverse systems and tools are commonly used such as budgeting software, excel spreadsheets, and transactional
systems. Collecting data and extracting information for analysis and timely decision making can be difficult
and time consuming.
An Intranet solution can streamline, secure, organize, and consolidate information to assist the finance and
accounting department in presenting and communicating this important information.
The Intranet Solution
An Intranet provides a secure, central point for collecting and publishing financial information. It also provides
a vehicle for online transaction processing, ensuring rapid updating of information and availability of accurate
and timely information. As a result, an Intranet enables managers across the company to track financial
performance and maintain effective control. Intranets also permit external business partners, shareholders and
analysts to have limited access to financial data to build tighter relationships with these constituencies and
provide them with timely, accurate information.
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3. Finance and Accounting Uses
Financial Reports
Publish financial data on a secure, controlled
internally accessible web site.
Policies and Procedures
A central location for corporate policies and
procedures related to finance and accounting.
Budgeting
Publish historical and planning budgeting data,
including projected and actual spending.
Asset Management
Place complete inventory of current assets online
for review and update, allowing managers to
assess the current distribution of assets.
Expense Reports
Allow employees to submit expense reports via
email or electronic forms on secure web sites.
Unit Reporting and Forecasting
Allow operating units or channel partners to
report financial information and forecasts online
in a secure manner.
Accounts Payable/Receivable Support
Allow customers and vendors to access payment
history and status information.
Payroll
Allow employees and managers to submit
payroll information online, including withholding
changes, automatic deposits and time sheets.
Benefits from Intranet Deployment
• Makes valuable information available throughout the
enterprise while providing security for sensitive or
confidential information.
• Eliminates the cost of printing and distributing
information.
• Updates and distribution are faster because the
information is centralized.
• Accelerate and improve process for development of
new budgets.
• Managers can make informed decisions on asset
redeployment, addition and retirement.
• Reduces paperwork and costs associated with
reimbursing expenses.
• Validates input to reduce errors.
• Makes available up-to-date financial information for
better-informed decision making.
• Leads to faster collection of receivables.
• Leads to a higher level of customer satisfaction.
• Assists in promoting closer relationships with vendors.
• Provides a higher level of efficiency in submitting
information.
• Easier and faster for employees and managers to
make changes when status changes.
• Up-to-date payroll information is available for payroll
processing, minimizing errors due to out-of-date
information.
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4. Weidenhammer Intranet Solutions
In today’s world of instant access to information, Weidenhammer provides services and solutions
that improve organizational communication, collaboration, and workforce productivity through the
establishment of web-based gateways. Through a combination of industry and technical expertise,
and leveraging “best of breed technology” from partners such as Microsoft and IBM, Weidenhammer has assisted hundreds of clients in delivering improved business performance and functionality
in the areas of Portals and Intranets. Weidenhammer provides solutions that help connect people,
processes, and information, ensuring that information reaches recipients quickly, through the most
appropriate medium.
Microsoft Office SharePoint Technologies
Microsoft Office SharePoint Technologies provides a single, integrated location where employees
can efficiently collaborate with team members, find organizational resources, search for experts
and corporate information, manage content and workflow, and leverage business insight to make
better-informed decisions.
SharePoint Technologies provide services that enhance:
• Collaboration - Allow teams to work together effectively, collaborate on and publish
documents, maintain task lists, implement workflows, and share information.
• Search - Quickly and easily find people, expertise, and content.
• Document management – Including integrated records management, version control,
and Web content management.
• Workflows and electronic forms - to automate and streamline your business processes.
• Information worker access - to critical business information, data analysis and review,
reports to make more informed decisions.
> For more information, visit our website at www.hammer.net.
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