Software Spotlight Series: SuiteFiles

Here’s the second blog post in our ongoing series, where we take a deep dive into the latest cloud-based software solutions for your business. We’ll be exploring the big players, the up-and-comers and the niche products to help you decide which option is right for your business.

Today, it’s SuiteFiles.

What is it?

SuiteFiles is a comprehensive content management system built on Microsoft Office’s 365 platform. Fully integrating with Xero Practice Manager, it’s a central and secure depository for all client communications, documents and emails. Anyone working with a client can save that content into the relevant client folder for all other approved staff members to access.

Who uses it?

It’s fundamentally a product for accounting firms, but legal firms use it too. Essentially, any service-based business that deals with clients and needs solid record-keeping functionality will find SuiteFiles a powerful addition to their business.

Templates that do all the work for you

Because they interact with Xero Practice Manager client data, you can use a template to quickly build a document, populated with all the relevant fields. For example, you could be sending an email reminding a client that it’s time to prepare the annual tax return. With a few clicks, you can create a letter using client data from Xero Practice Manager and your Word template. It draws down relevant data using conditional formatting. So, for example, perhaps the client doesn’t have a rental property. Then, the paragraph relevant to rental properties isn’t included in the letter.

Using these templates, each client gets a customised letter, and there’s consistency across the business in your client communications. There’s no other tool on the market that can create templates like this at the speed of SuiteFiles. Decades ago, you would’ve had an assistant writing these letters from scratch. Now, you can have them prepared and distributed in a few minutes.

Security in case disaster strikes

It’s much safer to store your client documentation in the cloud than in a server at the back of your office building. If that server dies or is stolen, all your precious, confidential client information is lost and your practice is in a world of pain. SuiteFiles has greatly enhanced backup and recovery capabilities compared with those within Microsoft Office 365. The native backup Microsoft provides lacks the ability to access single files. If you’ve lost a file, you need to restore the entire database just to recover that single file. But with SuiteFiles, you can easily access and restore that single file if your data is lost. Also, the data is located in Australia, which is ideal for most accounting firms dealing with client data.

Why not use a storage system?

Of course, you can always use storage systems like Dropbox, Box or Google Drive. But those tools, while very useful, are fundamentally just document storage solutions. Whereas SuiteFiles is a much more advanced content management system. It empowers users to store information beyond files, in order to better manage client interaction and project work.

Comprehensive content management

These days, most accountants are used to recording every type of client interaction throughout their day. Because SuiteFiles is built on Office 365, it extends the value of that investment for firms. So when an email comes in, you can click and drag it to SuiteFiles and it is automatically added to that client folder. The easier it is for everyone to habitually record client discussions, especially advice and decisions, the better your firm will service clients.

What are the alternatives?

Unfortunately, other content management solutions don’t integrate with Xero Practice Manager, so they’re less efficient. As mentioned, there are always simple storage systems like Box, DropBox or Google Drive. We estimate that around 200 accounting firms around Australia use SuiteFiles and many more are in the process of migrating from legacy solutions such as MYOB, HandiSoft or APS. SuiteFiles is the only cloud solution to provide the functionality that accounting firms will be familiar with.

What should you be aware of?

It’s a great piece of software, but it can’t fix cultural or behavioural attitudes in your firm. If your employees aren’t in the habit of regularly recording time and client interactions, it may be difficult to introduce this new record-as-you-go-along approach. SuiteFiles works best if users make regular updates throughout the working day (no filing everything in a rush on Fridays at 5pm). You need to be confident that your staff will stay on top of internal processes to get the best out of SuiteFiles.

Although documents in SuiteFiles can be accessed directly through documents tabs in Xero Practice Manager, it isn’t the most functional of features. We recommend using SuiteFiles as a standalone application with the integration being XPM feeding client data through to SuiteFiles.

Be clear on your objectives

The most successful implementations of SuiteFiles are underpinned by the clarity of vision, and the problem that is being addressed. By clearly defining your objectives and your success criteria, you’ll be in a better position to make the most of SuiteFiles (or any cloud software solution for that matter). What is your clear business need? SuiteFiles can’t magic away process problems within your practice, so it’s worth getting clear on your expectations at the onset.

Is it expensive? Is it easy to migrate from a legacy system?

SuiteFiles costs A$18 per user per month, so it’s an easily budgeted-for expense that will adjust as the user population expands or contracts. Migrations costs vary according to the legacy system holding the data—but we’ve migrated accounting firms from Windows file systems, through to MYOB and APS SQL-based systems. Typically, firms migrate around 80GB of data, but we’ve undertaken migration ranging from less than 10GB to in excess of 300GB.

It’s important to have a free trial

We like our customers to have a free trial before implementing SuiteFiles across their business which we can arrange on their behalf. A trial ensures that you and your team are comfortable in the SuiteFiles environment and the way it works before making a permanent transition.

APIntel Wrap Up: Gaining Insights from Xero Practice Manager Data

Last month the Business Continuum team participated in APIntel (Accounting Practice Intelligence), a pre-Xerocon event held to demonstrate how accounting practices could achieve better profitability with Xero Practice Manager. Three industry leaders shared insights to help practice owners make the most of data insights to improve workflow, find efficiencies and achieve business growth, including our very own Tim Dowling.

In case you missed it, here’s a summary of the advice from the three speakers at APIntel.

Kit out your practice | Paul Murray, AccountKit

Paul talked about adopting a policy of always seeking better ways of doing things, and using tools that enhance staff visibility of client and practice decisions leads to better productivity, engagement and retention. He also reminded us to ensure integration with cloud-based software solutions to avoid unnecessary double handling of data. He also demonstrated how to use AccountKit to create stunning and precise client entity maps that illustrate complex entities in one impressive image that takes just a few clicks to create.

Print…File…Find | Andrew Sims, SuiteFiles

Andrew discussed the benefits of storing and managing practice files in the cloud, and how this can integrate with Xero Practice Manager to create efficiencies. Andrew emphasised the necessity of simplifying setup and filing of ongoing communications with your client. SuiteFiles is a file management solution that offers email and document templates that can be pre-populated with Xero Practice Manager data. This means your communications are consistent, up-to-date and use the right client information, straight from the source.

Professional client communications can be the difference between an impressed or an unhappy client, so it’s an important process to get right. With the use of multiple cloud-based solutions, Andrew stressed the importance of filing emails and attachments to maintain ‘one source of truth’ from any device. This ensures staff have access to the latest correspondence and files, reducing the risk of errors or miscommunication. Andrew also suggested eliminating outdated versions of documents and email templates (It’s very 2005).

Transform Practice Data Into Relationship Insights | Tim Dowling, Business Continuum

Tim challenged the audience to think about growing profitability even if not actively looking to grow the client base. Growth should not be for growth’s sake, but better profitability is always worth striving towards. With almost endless amounts of data now available to us, it can be difficult to know what to concentrate on. Tim suggested these three areas:

client wealth information
firm service utilisation
client referral and churn

With this data on hand, it can form the basis of open discussions with clients, with the aim of improving your range of services as well as the underlying quality.

Lastly, Tim emphasised that selling is not a dirty word. All successful and evolving practices concentrate on achieving stickier, more engaged and more profitable clients. Focusing on client satisfaction has always been, and will always be, essential for success—we simply have better ways of measuring it with the many cloud-based software solutions on the market.

As the event finished up, it was a great chance for the Business Continuum team to catch everyone for a drink and a chat before Xerocon.