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BUSINESS APPS
Accountancy
Most business owners would quite happily spend far less
time on their accounts – and there’s a host of incredibly
clever, mobile-friendly book-keeping applications to take
away the pain. “In my experience of working with SMEs,
almost all of them will benefit from working with accounting
software,” adds CEMET’s Smith. “A lot of our clients use
Xero, but most of the larger ones use Quickbooks.”
“We use Xero ourselves for online accounting,” says
Marshall. “We use it ourselves, and use a plug-in called
Receipt Bank – rather than an in-house accountant, we just
email it to scan and send it on.”
Apps like Expensify, which like many mobile apps work
alongside desktop equivalents, also eliminate dog-eared
receipts and photocopies from the expenses process, using
a smart scan process with a smart phone’s camera.
“There are lots of apps out there that use data and automation
to enhance the day-to-day job of an accountant,
whether they’re self-employed or working for a large firm,”
says Kirstin Gillon, technical manager at the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
“As different apps focus on different aspects of the job – be
it data analysis or reporting – users who do due diligence
and consider their individual business needs will be in a
much stronger position.
“It’s also important to consider the app’s wider ecosystem,
and the other apps or add-ons that plug into it, as this
could open it up to all kinds of other functionality that
would improve the app’s usefulness and value for money.
However, despite the obvious perks of using accounting
software, cloud-based apps do come with certain risks.
Security is one of those, so businesses should think about
checking the cyber practices and security credentials of
prospective vendors.”
While accountancy apps are certainly helpful, rumours
of the accountant’s demise have been greatly exaggerated,
and they still provide a vital service. “The important role of
the chartered accountant should also not be underestimated,”
says Gillon. “Technology may streamline tasks like
book-keeping, but you will always need skilled people to
make decisions and provide valuable insights.”
Security and practicality
Whenever a transfer of data takes place, it means that you’re
potentially opening up your business to hackers’ or other
security breaches. Damon Rand, founder and chief executive
of Newport-based cyber security company Wolfberry,
reckons that when it comes to business applications, Apple
has the upper hand over equivalent Android devices. “From
a safety point of view, Apple have it down pat. There are
very few issues on IoS. You can’t get on the App Store without
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure, used for
secure internet connections). It’s a hermetically sealed
environment. It gets a lot more difficult on Android – it’s a
bit hippy-ish and open source,” he says.
There are checks to make before adopting apps for business
use. “Check your apps have two-factor authentication,”
advises Everon’s Marshall. “Apps can create an open
door to all data. Look for single sign-on – Office 365 logins,
for example, which have all the security factors of Office
365 are applied, which has two-factor authentication by
default. And if the app does store data, check the servers
need to be EU-based.”
If you are allowing staff to utilise business apps on their
personal phones, you need to have some agreements in
place first. You also need to make sure that the apps are
remotely wipeable if the phones or tablets that are being
used go missing. “With staff roll-out and adoption, you
Printweek April & May 2020
FIVE APPS TO TRY TODAY
1 Trello
Get your team on the same page with
this project management and productivity
app which is free, but also has a
paid-for Gold and Business Class variants
with extra functionality. Trello
allows you to look at workloads and project
statuses, improving accountability
and productivity across teams.
Alternatives: Asana, Basecamp,
Microsoft Teams
2 RescueTime
This time-tracker, which comes in a free
version, works across desktop and
mobile to find out what you spend your
time doing and how you can use it more
effectively. Premium versions will allow
access to features like team-level productivity
need to have a good ‘bring your own device’ policy – staff
tend to have a personal device, which has company data on
it. It needs to be managed and secure to have work data and
apps on it,” says Marshall. “If someone loses their phone –
like leaving it on a train or it get stolen on a night out –
you’re responsible for the data.”
Technology may streamline tasks like
book-keeping, but you will always need
skilled people to make decisions and provide
valuable insights” Kirstin Gillon ICAEW
There are also other practical steps you should take to
ensure that your business apps aren’t an open door to cyber
criminals. “With accounting or banking software – or
indeed anything – never use public wi-fi, as you never know
who else is watching,” advises Wolfberry’s Rand. “You
should always keep your device up to date, and never defer
updates,” he adds.
Switching off
Apps are there to make life easier and when used correctly,
they can help you achieve a better work-life balance. But
there’s a flip-side to having work plugged into your phone
or tablet – it can easily make you too available.
Simon Biltcliffe, founder and chief executive of Bicesterbased
Webmart, is an avid app user, using applications to
send voice and video messages to the team, read emails,
engage with customers and much more. However, he’s also
wary of the way they can seep into your personal time and
has found a very simple answer to the problem. “I have digital
detox on a Friday,” he says. “I have a Nokia, which is the
only phone I have – I use my iPhone for data only. On a
Friday, I leave it and I just use the Nokia. If anyone needs
me they can use that. In the pub you don’t have to look at it,
you’re not always ‘on’. It’s the antimatter to the app culture
we live in. It has a four or five-day charge without having to
worry about your battery. To me, that helps keeps sanity –
the always-on mentality is a bit of a concern.”
trends.
Alternative: Microsoft MyAnalytics
3 Slack
Slack is fast eliminating long email
chains – it’s a messaging service which is
fast, easy to use and intuitive. It can also
be integrated with common business
applications such as Google Drive, Office
365 and much more. You can try it for
free, but there are also various other
tiered pricing options which give you
functionality like group voice and video
calls and enterprise-grade security.
Alternatives: Skype for Business, Stride
Shortcuts (App store only)
4 Shortcuts
If you find yourself spending a lot of time
doing repetitive tasks on your phone,
Shortcuts can slash time by allowing you
to simply build macros for frequent
activities at the touch of a button.
Alternative: Omniswipe
5 Quickbooks
Aimed squarely at the small to medium
sized business market, Quickbooks
funnels time-consuming activities like
payroll, invoices and expenses into one
easy-to-use platform that works on
mobile and desktop, from £5 a month.
It’s also HMRC recognised and has integration
with over 700 different add-ons.
Alternatives: Xero, Sage One