XU Biweekly - Issue 10 - 28th June 2021 by XU Magazine

Monday 26 July 2021 | No. 10

XU Biweekly The independent news source for Xero users, by Xero users

Revolut raises $800m series E funding from Softbank Vision Fund 2 and Tiger Global

The investment will enable the company to further its growth plans, in particular its ongoing product innovation aimed at meeting customers’ everyday financial needs and aspirations, from quick and easy global transfers, to managing everything from savings to insurance, to democratising

wealth and trading. It will also support the expansion of Revolut’s offering to US customers and its entry to India and other international markets. Commenting on the fundraise, Nikolay Storonsky, Founder & CEO of Revolut said, “SoftBank and Tiger Global’s investments are an endorsement of our mission to create a global financial superapp that enables customers to manage all their...

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TURNER LEAVING AFTER 12 INCREDIBLE YEARS AT XERO

ODAY I SHARED WITH THE TEAM THE NEWS THAT AFTER 12 INCREDIBLE YEARS, I HAVE DECIDED TO RETIRE FROM OPERATIONAL DUTIES AT XERO. I’M NOT DISAPPEARING COMPLETELY THOUGH. ONCE MY SUCCESSOR IS IN PLACE LATER THIS YEAR, I’LL BE STICKING AROUND IN AN ADVISORY CAPACITY WORKING WITH XERO'S GLOBAL TEAM.

SOLDO HAVE CLOSED $180M TO INVEST IN THEIR PRODUCT AND PEOPLE

W Spendesk raises €100M Series C to bring spend management to every finance team in Europe

OUND LED BY GLOBAL GROWTH EQUITY FIRM GENERAL ATLANTIC TO ACCELERATE PRODUCT INNOVATION AND GROW HEADCOUNT INTERNATIONAL-

As I’ve been reflecting on this decision in recent months it was important to me that the timing had to be right and after a great 12-year run in the hot seat, my season finale had to be a good one. Thankfully and at long last, it seems that we’re now moving towards the pandemic’s endgame and from a business perspective, our...

Spendesk, the leading all-in-one spend management platform for finance teams, has raised EUR 100M in Series C funding led by global growth equity firm General Atlantic. All previous investors, including Index Ventures and Eight Roads Ventures, also participated in this round, bringing Spendesk’s total funding to EUR 160M. With the additional investment, Spendesk will focus on hiring top talent and accelerating product innovation to bring more automation and insights to every aspect of business spending. Spendesk offers an intuitive SaaS spend management solution that provides full visibility and control on all company spending — with every purchase trackable to a person, a project, and a budget. The platform combines payments, processes and data into one source of truth, with virtual and physical cards for employees, expense reimbursements, invoice management, automated spend approvals, and budgets. The solution aims to liberate finance teams from dayto-day admin tasks, freeing them to focus on proactive and strategic value-add.

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ORLD-LEADING INVESTORS BACK SOLDO IN THE BIGGEST ROUND FOR A EUROPEAN SPEND MANAGEMENT COMPANY, WITH $180M INVESTED TO UNDERPIN OUR MISSION: LIBERATING BUSINESSES FROM SPENDING CHAOS. The fundraise was led by Temasek, with the round including new investors Sunley House Capital, Advent International’s crossover fund, Citi Ventures and continued backing from Accel, Battery Ventures, Dawn Capital, and Silicon Valley Bank for debt financing. As the biggest ever Series C funding round in the spend management category, the impact of Soldo is clear. We’re leading a revolu-

Time is valuable, let’s give you some of it back! Monday 26 July 2021

www.payrollbee.co.uk • hello@payrollbee.co.uk

OVER $1BILLION

LY.

By Gary Turner

WHITE LABELLED PAYROLL

XERO CONNECTED APPS RAISE

EVOLUT, THE FINANCIAL SUPERAPP WITH MORE THAN 16 MILLION CUSTOMERS WORLDWIDE, TODAY ANNOUNCED AN $800M SERIES E FUNDING ROUND, VALUING THE BUSINESS AT $33 BILLION. THE NEW FUNDING ROUND BRINGS ONBOARD TWO NEW INVESTORS, SOFTBANK VISION FUND 2[] (“SOFTBANK”), AND TIGER GLOBAL MANAGEMENT.

Need to make payroll profitable?

tion in spending, delivering control, visibility, and efficiency to businesses. Carlo Gualandri, CEO and Founder of Soldo, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome Temasek as the lead investor. With a track record of investing in category-leading fintechs, Temasek’s insights will be valuable to us as we scale our platform and offering. Managing business spend is costly and challenging, yet Soldo continues to demonstrate its value and ease to customers of every size and across every industry. It’s clear this category will see exponential growth as more businesses realise the benefits and Soldo is well placed to support them.’

WHITE LABELLED PAYROLL

www.payrollbee.co.uk hello@payrollbee.co.uk

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New Apps & Updates

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Monday 26 July 2021

NEW XERO CONNECTED APPS!

Forecasting the future with Xero Analytics Plus

FIRMTRAK By Anna Curzon

T XERO, WE BELIEVE EVERY SMALL BUSINESS SHOULD HAVE ACCESS TO TRUSTED, INSIGHTFUL DATA THAT HELPS THEM UNDERSTAND WHERE THEY ARE NOW, AND WHERE THEY MIGHT BE IN THE FUTURE. THAT’S WHY I’M THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE’VE DEVELOPED A POWERFUL NEW TOOL CALLED XERO ANALYTICS PLUS, WHICH IS AVAILABLE FROM TODAY.

GL CORPORATE SOLUTIONS, AUSTRALIA'S LEADING SUPPLIER OF SMSF ADMINISTRATION AND ASIC COMPANY COMPLIANCE SOLUTIONS, IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE LAUNCH OF THE BGL SMSF AUDITORS PANEL.

Analytics Plus is the next evolution of our short-term cash flow and business snapshot features, with greater customisation and more accurate projections. We’ve also bundled short-term cash flow and business snapshot into a free tool called Xero...

The BGL SMSF Auditors Panel will feature BGL client firms and specialist SMSF Auditors who either use the BGL API to access Simple Fund 360 data or who log into Simple Fund 360 to complete audits. The BGL Auditors Panel can be found on the BGL website or through links within Simple Fund 360. “We often get requests for recommendations of SMSF Auditors who are integrated with Simple Fund 360. So, we have decided to relaunch and rebrand our Auditors List as the BGL SMSF Auditors Panel.” says...

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XU BIWEEKLY - No. 10 Newsdesk: If you have any news or updates that you would like us to consider for inclusion in the next edition of the XU Biweekly, please email us at: newsdesk@xumagazine.com CEO: David Hassall Managing Editor: Wesley Cornell Director of Strategic Partnerships: Alex Newson Communications Manager: Bethany Fulks Editorial Assistant: Kacey Wright Advertising: advertising@xumagazine.com www.xumagazine.com ‘Xero’ is a trademark of Xero Limited (New Zealand). XU Biweekly and XU Magazine is collaboratively produced by an independent group of Xero users and is not affiliated in any way with Xero. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. © XU Magazine Ltd 2014-2021. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. XU Biweekly is published by XU Magazine Ltd (08811842), registered in England and Wales. Registered office: 12 Jordan Street, Liverpool, L1 0BP, United Kingdom. All information contained in this publication is for information only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of going to press. XU Magazine Ltd cannot accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in such information. If you submit unsolicited material to us, you automatically grant XU Magazine Ltd a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in all/any editions, including in any physical or digital format, throughout the world. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and, although every care is taken, neither XU Magazine Ltd nor its employees, agents or subcontractors shall be liable for loss or damage. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the views of XU Magazine Ltd, its editors or its contributors.

New Product Released: 2-in-1 G-Accon for WorkflowMax/Xero PM!

E ARE EXCITED TO INTRODUCE A BRAND NEW PRODUCT THAT HAS BEEN RELEASED IN THE G-SUITE MARKETPLACE: 2-IN-1 G-ACCON FOR WORKFLOWMAX AND XERO PRACTICE MANAGER! This new tool is a powerful end-to-end job management software that is perfect for small to medium-sized businesses. This product will help you with items such as quotes, jobs, invoices, estimates, time sheets, and anything else that you may require to complete your project management. G-Accon for WFM & XPM is able to connect to Google Sheets and share data bi-directionally. This connection with Google Sheets allows you to upload data in bulk, create custom reports, and export these items directly from Google Sheets. We also offer a set of standard financial reports that include jobs reports, job...

ERE AT RELAY, OUR VISION IS TO INCREASE THE SUCCESS RATE OF SMALL BUSINESS BY FULLY AUTOMATING FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT. TIME AND AGAIN, WE’VE HEARD FROM BUSINESS OWNERS THAT THEIR BANKS DON’T ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING TO ENABLE THEIR BUSINESS. IN FACT, BANKS ARE OFTEN A LIMITER ON BUSINESS GROWTH. We’re

changing

that.

From a product perspective, we’re building deep integrations into the tools business owners rely on, enhanced collaboration with both internal team members and external advisors, and robust banking functionality that takes the admin out of banking, saving teams time and money. And we’re offering this core banking functionality free of the account fees that can be so burdensome for business owners.

Accountants and BAS agents: Xero has created a new tool to help your clients apply for lockdown support By Joseph Lyons

F YOU’RE AN ACCOUNTANT OR BAS AGENT WITH CLIENTS IN NEW SOUTH WALES (NSW), CHANCES ARE, YOU’VE HEARD ABOUT THE NEW SUPPORT PACKAGE FOR BUSINESSES IMPACTED BY THE GREATER SYDNEY LOCKDOWN AND THOSE ON THE NSW BORDER WITH VICTORIA. AS OF TODAY, ELIGIBLE BUSINESS OWNERS CAN APPLY FOR A COVID-19 BUSINESS GRANT OUTLINED HERE. HOWEVER, IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, THEY’RE GO-

ING TO NEED YOUR HELP. At this stage, to apply for a COVID-19 business grant, your clients will need a letter from you (download the Service NSW template here or look to the version provided by your professional body) demonstrating a decline in turnover of at least 30 percent across a minimum fortnightly period of any interval between 26 June to 26 July. This must be compared to the same period in 2019. For businesses on the NSW...

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SHARESIGHT RELEASE NOTES - JUNE 2021 By Scott Ryburn

NCE AGAIN THE PRODUCT TEAM SMASHED IT OUT OF THE PARK IN JUNE, DELIVERING A VERITABLE PLETHORA OF FEATURES AND ENHANCEMENTS TO WARD OFF THE WINTER BLUES. First up, the one you’ve all been waiting for… we now have 15 minute delayed pricing available for NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, BATS and LSE markets! Secondly we launched the long awaited revival of the community forum. Jump on and join in the conversation with your fellow Sharesight fans. Thirdly we launched a new email notifications...

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New tools to manage your client list in Xero HQ By Anesh Budhabhai

E’VE MADE A NUMBER OF UPDATES TO XERO HQ OVER THE PAST 12 MONTHS. IT’S ALL PART OF OUR NEXT GENERATION PRACTICE VISION TO MAKE XERO HQ A PURPOSE-BUILT CLIENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (CRM) SYSTEM FOR YOUR ACCOUNTING OR BOOKKEEPING PRACTICE. However, we know the real power of Xero HQ comes from the seamless connection between your client’s record and their Xero organisation.

Chaser launches Partner Central, a business resource hub to help partners go to market with Chaser and better support clients' credit control By Chris Turner

HE STRENGTH OF PARTNERSHIP HAS BEEN FUNDAMENTAL TO CHASER’S SUCCESS OVER THE PAST YEARS. CHASER PLACES A GREAT DEAL OF IMPORTANCE ON BACKING THEIR PARTNERS AND WE’RE COMMITTED TO PROVIDING SUPPORT TO HELP THEM GROW. Partnerships are built on trust and information, which is...

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GLOBAL - Transform your financial data into timely reports with valuable business insights. These insights help to track profit, cash flow, growth and other key performance indicators (KPIs). Designed to accelerate performance, increase efficiencies and drive profits with less stress and in less time.

BUDGETLY AU - Budgetly's prepaid corporate cards make expense management easy. Get physical and virtual cards with smart spending rules, budget categorisation and Xero sync. Maintain control of expense budgets in real-time, while giving staff the flexibility they need to do their jobs effectively.

MINDBRIDGE AU, CA, NZ, UK & US The world’s leading risk discovery platform for financial integrity helps auditors, accountants, and financial professionals to become more efficient and profitable. Have your financial transactions risk scored to identify anomalous patterns of activities, unintentional or intentional errors like fraud.

AREX UKL - AREX is on a mission to drive interest rates down so SMEs can retain more of their money. It's an invoice financing app; finance any sized invoice at any time, with money in the bank the next day. Unlock cash trapped in your unpaid invoices.

SALESROLLER GLOBAL - Make client information easier to access by connecting SugarCRM and Xero via SalesRoller, giving you one place for all the information you need to have conversations with clients and quick access to it. Eliminate double handling with one central source of truth for both your CRM and accounting data.

WHAT’S NEW IN THE NEW INFOODLE EMAIL DESIGNER?

NFOODLE EMAIL UPGRADE IS HERE!

Did you know that only a small percentage of your audience sees what you post on social media? While social media marketing could be a great tool, it is not always easy to predict the performance of your posts with the ever-changing algorithm. If so, what is the answer? Email marketing! There are significantly

more chances that people will see and open the email in their Inbox than a Facebook or Instagram post. There are also more chances that they will engage with your content, as since they have subscribed to your newsletter in the first place, they are interested to hear from you. That’s why it is critical to not only have an email provider that...

News

XU Biweekly | No. 10

Monday 26 July 2021 3

Xero and ABASA join forces to support and drive growth across the black accounting community

By Jared Baker

T’S NO SECRET THAT FY21 WILL GO DOWN IN THE HISTORY BOOKS AS ONE OF OUR MOST CHALLENGING YEARS YET. FROM EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS TO COVID-19, AUSSIES HAVE HAD IT TOUGH. BUT IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY, WE’VE ALSO WITNESSED INCREDIBLE DISPLAYS OF COURAGE, RESILIENCE AND CREATIVITY. This year, we’re excited to invite you – the business community – to tell your stories (and share all the hard work that’s behind them) for the Xero Australia Awards. From corner stores that pivoted their shopfronts...

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Supporting enterprise firms to shake-up the status quo of accounting in South Africa

By Sarah Minns

’VE BEEN WORKING AT XERO FOR OVER 8 YEARS NOW, SUPPORTING LARGE AND COMPLEX ACCOUNTING FIRMS TO GROW AND THRIVE WITH XERO. It’s been amazing to see these firms grow and expand internationally by transforming the way they do business with new digital tools. They have also pivoted to support small businesses during the current Covid crisis.

By Colin Timmis

E ARE THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THAT EMPLOYMENT HERO HAS RAISED $140 MILLION IN A SERIES E FUNDING ROUND, LED BY GLOBAL VENTURE CAPITAL FIRM, INSIGHT

PARTNERS. THIS BRINGS OUR VALUATION TO $800 MILLION. Thank you to our amazing team of Heroes and the incredible work you do. Thank you to our existing

investors, OneVentures, AirTree, SEEK and Salesforce Ventures, as well as our past and current customers, employees and partners. It's all up from here.

TWO SMART AND EASY WAYS TO KEEP YOUR EXPENSES UNDER CONTROL

We’ll be working with ABASA – alongside other industry leaders – to help equip black accountants across South Africa with the right tools, education, and digital skills to thrive now and in the future. We’ve seen the transformational role that technology has had on the accounting industry over the last ten years – helping...

By Masha Komarova

ONTROL OVER EXPENSES IS CRUCIAL FOR ANY TYPE OF ORGANISATION – YOU CAN’T ARGUE WITH THAT. BUT WHEN EXTERNAL CIRCUMSTANCES START PRESSING YOU TO FIND A WAY TO CUT COSTS AND PREVENT UNNECESSARY SPENDING, IT GETS REALLY URGENT. THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED TO MANY BUSINESSES DURING THE PANDEMIC, AND IT TAUGHT US TO BETTER GET PREPARED FOR FUTURE EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL CRISES BY ESTABLISHING PROPER SPEND CONTROL RIGHT NOW. So, how do you keep expenses under control? Well, there are two approaches – complementary rather than mutually exclusive: you’ll need to a) minimise spending and b) establish efficient spend authorisation. Both can be done manually, of course. By

HIS WEEK WE SIGNED A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) WITH THE ASSOCIATION FOR ADVANCEMENT OF BLACK ACCOUNTANTS OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (ABASA). WE’RE JOINING FORCES TO SUPPORT THE GREAT WORK THEY’VE BEEN DOING TO DRIVE THE ADVANCEMENT OF BLACK ACCOUNTANTS AND PRACTICES, AND ENCOURAGE FUTURE PROFESSIONALS INTO THE INDUSTRY.

cutting down on expenses and comparing prices for cheaper offers, businesses can try to minimise their outgoings. Spend authorisation requires an appropriate authorisation policy specifying who approves what as well as a method of handling requests, either paper-based or by email. But going manual usually slows things down and, as time is money, it probably won’t produce the desired result in terms of cost savings. Fortunately, there is process automation.

Complementing Xero with approval automation for a multi-entity company that’s operating on five continents

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By Masha Komarova

OW A MULTINATIONAL COMPANY USES APPROVALMAX TO RUN COMPLEX APPROVAL WORKFLOWS FOR ITS GEOGRAPHICALLY DISTRIBUTED OFFICES.

By Rachael Powell

T’S FAIR TO SAY THAT OVER THE PAST 16 MONTHS OR SO, WE’VE BECOME MORE DIGITALLY-CONNECTED THAN EVER BEFORE. We can’t underestimate the roles that data and digital technologies continue to play in helping small businesses survive during the pandemic. Almost every interaction we all undertake every day produces data...

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EBEXPENSES ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH FULHAM FC. FULHAM FC WAS FOUNDED IN 1879 AND ARE BASED IN FULHAM, LONDON. THEY ARE ENGLAND'S OLDEST PROFESSIONAL PLAYING FOOTBALL CLUB AND CURRENTLY COMPETE IN THE ENGLISH FOOTBALL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP. Webexpenses is a leading global expense management provider with over a billion expenses claimed worldwide and 99% client retention. Fulham FC will use Webexpenses as their expense management software to help save

time, reduce costs and improve visibility of company spend with ease. Webexpenses will receive brand exposure across Fulham FC’s digital platforms and build relationships with prospects and clients using match-day corporate hospitality at Craven Cottage. Webexpenses will also have the opportunity to create case studies about the benefits Fulham FC have received using Webexpenses innovative expense management software. Jon Don-Carolis, Sales Director of Fulham FC, said: “We are delighted to launch...

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Company profile A multinational software services and cloud hosting company that’s operating across five continents and numerous countries including Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada.

Moving the internal accounting function to Xero and the urgent need for proper approvals Having migrated from an ERP system to Xero in all the different countries this...

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Features

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Monday 26 July 2021

Using the right technology to scale up your bookkeeping business By Aaron Wittman

HERE’S NO DENYING ANY BUSINESS LOOKING TO SUCCESSFULLY SCALE AND GROW IN 2021 AND BEYOND MUST IMPLEMENT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS. BUT WHY, WHAT AND HOW? AARON FROM XBERT SHARES HIS EXPERTISE WITH US. Much like the rest of the world, the bookkeeping industry is almost unrecognisable from 5 years ago. It’s not just about how you work; it’s about what you do and how your services evolve. It’s about ensuring you’re using best practice. And it’s about continually adding meaningful value to your clients – all while (hopefully) maintaining that coveted work/life balance many start their own business for. Like it or not – in today’s world, embracing technology is the key to mastering all those things. That is the reason technology exists: to provide the users with a fundamental change of how they approach their

world, before they used the technology. And as Artificial Intelligence shapes the future-path of the industry, it’s clear to see the most efficient way to scale up your business successfully and sustainably in 2021 and beyond, is understanding and implementing it.

Tech is the best business partner The sheer volume of technology solutions available on the market should be an indicator of it’s importance for future-focused business leaders. When it comes to the accounting and bookkeeping industries, the repetitive manual tasks of the work are ideal for Artificial Intelligence solutions to be implemented. We know that excellent bookkeepers have a deep understanding of their clients. Every client can be different, not only on their line of business, but how they approach the management of their books. And so, any technology that will assist also needs to understand how to approach these differences. Using Artificial intelligence that is trained to

act like a bookkeeper and knows each individual business, provides a new way for professional bookkeepers to support and streamline their services. Looking to practice processes – traditionally, they have been complex, arduous and manual-work heavy. Technology, like we have built with XBert, changes the paradigm on the ‘do once, check, and lock’ approach, enabling you to smooth out your workflows. Consider, as your business scales and you're onboarding new staff - what does that look...

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One simple platform. Hundreds of business solutions. Real-time Xero access with Formitize.

By Matt Burge

ICK OF JUMPING FROM ONE APP TO ANOTHER TO RUN YOUR BUSINESS? IMAGINE HAVING EVERYTHING IN ONE PLACE AND UNLEASHING THE INFORMATION IN XERO TO RUN YOUR BUSINESS SMARTER. As we all know, a whole range of great niche software solutions have been developed over the years that solve specific business tasks such as online proposals, sales pipeline management, document management and job scheduling. Initially this was really exciting for small businesses owners; the whole app world exploded and the capabilities of these apps were impressive, especially compared to the previous manual processes or old-school awkward software packages they had been using. Naturally, the next step in the process was to try to get all of these different apps to talk to each other. Lots of API (Application Programming Interfaces) were developed to try and

SPOTTED ON TWITTER...

help the different software packages communicate with each other, and bridging solutions such as Zapier provided a no-code ability to also help with the sharing of information between different solutions. Some API connections work really well while others remain very limited in their sharing capabilities, leaving users with a number of real-life challenges such as: • Still being required to log in and out of lots of different applications in order to run their business • Limitations on which program information is shared, and which isn’t • Data being visible to everyone in the business (when you may need to restrict sensitive data to specific users) Formitize believes the next phase is what it calls “Software Consolidation”. Matt Burge, Formitize CEO explains further, “We witnessed first-hand the evolution of the software process and based on our users’ feedback, we believe clients are now ready for

XERO SPONSORS

THE VOID ON

software consolidation combining as many of these different apps as possible into one simple-to-use platform. “In our research, we found that there were very good job management solutions out there and very good CRM solutions available but very few that did both really well at a reasonable price point, or that weren’t overly complicated for a typical small business to set up and manage themselves. The challenge then remained: What about the other modules required to run a business such as Document Management, As-

set Management, Health & Safety, Smart Forms, Online Agreements?” he says. So Formitize created its smart business platform, bringing everything together in one place. The organisation believes that Xero is a great accounting software for most small- to medium-businesses, so it remains the central “Source of Truth” for the financial recording and Balance Sheet management. The Formitize platform steps in and uses the Xero information where relevant across all of the different modules.

HR Software for Small & Medium Businesses Streamline your HR processes and free up your time

TV HAS LAUNCHED A BRAND NEW, HIGH OCTANE, SATURDAY NIGHT GAME SHOW - THE VOID - WHICH WILL AIR AT 8PM ON ITV, AND XERO ARE SPONSORING IT!

This exciting new 7 x 60 minute primetime series will see contestants put themselves to the test to take on a wide range of demanding mental and physical challenges - all whilst navigating the terrifying prospect of falling into ‘The Void’. The Void – a daunting and unforgiving chasm of 520,000 litres of water stretching across the arena floor - is one of the biggest bespoke water tanks ever constructed for a game show.

If you catch Xero sponsoring The Void make sure to share it with us on any of our social platforms!

Start a free trial now to get

Loved by thousands of companies worldwide

50%

for 6 months

6 XU Biweekly | No. 10

Features

Monday 26 July 2021

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS: PROJECTWORKS + XERO

Can technology actually make us more human? By James Byrne

AMES BYRNE, ACC O U N TA N C Y M A N AGER’S CEO, IS A BIG FAN OF BOTH TECH AND HUMANS. HE IS A FORMER ACCOUNTANT AND NOW HEADS UP A SOFTWARE COMPANY, SO HAS INSIGHT FROM BOTH WORLDS. You might be surprised to hear that accountancy and bookkeeping are well ahead of many other industries in terms of technology adoption. So, as a pioneer of the digital age (yes, you), you’re among the first to experience the benefits - and the barriers - of things like automation. One of the biggest concerns, of course, is technology replacing the personal touch. In his late teens, James, AccountancyManager CEO, joined his father’s accounting firm. Once he’d taken on a number of his own clients, James became increasingly frustrated with inefficiencies across the business. James recruited the help

of developer, Alex Hawke. “Alex actually sat inside the practice with me. As problems arose, he’d build a solution. It’s probably why we’ve had the success that we’ve had, because AccountancyManager very much works in the way that an accountant would expect it to.”

Out with jargon. In with informality Far from creating Ac-

ISSUE 27 OUT NOW!

countancyManager to replace conversations, James is all for having a chat with clients - especially if jargon is left at the door. “The accountant/client relationship is very different now in comparison with say, the 60s. Gone are the days when clients would put a suit on to go and see their accountant and we no...

XU magazine

Projectworks brings deep integration with Xero to Professional Services firms By Madeline Bakewell

N THIS ARTICLE THE AUTHOR DIVES INTO HOW PROJECTWORKS HAVE GONE ALL IN WITH THEIR XERO INTEGRATION. There’s a reason that Xero is one of the most popular accounting software systems on the market for professional services companies. Few accounting systems can match Xero’s ease of use, which allows companies to invoice, purchase orders, reconcile statements, and more from one intuitive, cloudbased system. Where SMBs can really leverage Xero’s full power, though, is when the software is used thoughtfully alongside other common SMB business management tools. Integrated with the right project management tool, for example, and Xero can help professional services firms boost efficiency, scale operations faster and free up time for high-value activities. This brings us to our very own project management tool, Projectworks. We developed Projectworks from the ground up as an all-in-one business management solution for services companies. We knew that if we were going to succeed as a project management solution for professional service firms, we would have to integrate with the accounting tool those firms use almost more than any other. Since Xero is where professional service firms keep track of their numbers, we set out to build an integration that could harness the power of both softwares to give users complete visibility of their business. There’s a lot that goes on under the hood to get two powerful, cloud-based softwares

to talk to each other, but for users on the front end, it’s surprisingly simple: the integration focuses on exporting Invoices (and associated data) from Projectworks through to Xero. Invoice payment data is pushed from Xero to Projectworks to allow the issued invoices in Projectworks to be reconciled with Xero. So in real terms, what does that mean for users? It means that Projectworks and Xero combine to give a holistic view of your business - starting from pre-project resourcing right through to invoicing and payments - essentially task management, planning, scheduling, time tracking, invoicing, and collaboration all rolled into one. It means that you can sync your items, accounts, and tax codes for fast invoice creation, and that all of the invoices you create in Projectworks are pushed to Xero and that any payments made in Xero are reflected in Projectworks automatically. And finally, it means you get twice the power: Projectworks’ tools for managing projects, people, and finance combined with Xero’s features to manage your numbers. We put a lot of work into our project management system’s seamless integration with Xero, and we’re proud to say that our friends at Xero have recognized our effort. At the 2020 APAC Xero Awards, we won Emerging App Partner of the Year - a wonderful honor for us and validation for professional services firms looking to match their best-in-class Xero accounting systems with best-in-class business management tools.

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Features

8 XU Biweekly | No. 10

Monday 26 July 2021

MANAGING UNCERTAINTY Three steps that every business owner can take to prepare for uncertainty with Emersion

By Paul Dundas

020 WAS A WILD RIDE, AND YOU’D BE FORGIVEN FOR FEELING UNCERTAIN ABOUT WHAT THE FUTURE HAS IN STORE FOR US. EMERSION CEO PAUL DUNDAS SHARES THREE STEPS THAT EVERY BUSINESS OWNER CAN TAKE TO PREPARE FOR UNCERTAINTY, AND ENTER THE NEW FINANCIAL YEAR IN A POSITION TO GROW. The last year has been a wild ride for all of us. In Australia, while we sheltered from many of the problems of the wider world, we still found ourselves navigating all manner of lockdowns, restrictions, new rules and procedures, brought in with little notice and few precedents. Many businesses (and financial markets) are well on the way to recovering to a pre-COVID state, with some even improving upon their early-2020 positions. But as the new financial year rolls around, you’d be forgiven for feeling a little anxious about the future. While we are living in uncer-

tain times, there are steps that every business can take to minimise their risk, maximise flexibility and enter the 2022 financial year in a stronger position than ever. As the old saying goes, “no plan is a plan to fail”. Focusing on the actions that are in your control will put your business in a position to overcome any hurdles that are thrown at you. Here are three steps that every business owner should be taking to prepare for uncertain times.

1) Invest in Automation According to research from McKinsey, “45% of the activities that individuals are paid to perform can be automated by adapting currently demonstrated technologies”. That was back in 2015 when automation platforms were far inferior to their current counterparts. The truth is that the time you will save from business automation is increasing every day - especially in areas relating to finance and accounts receivable. Emersion can automate end-to-end processes in-

cluding subscription billing, payment processing, service management and order management. This saves time, streamlines processes and ultimately leads to a better and more consistent experience for your customers. If your company isn’t already investing heavily in automation, then you are going to get left behind.

2) Eliminate Waste Most businesses waste money and time. In some cases, this is in the form of direct costs such as fees or software licences, or indirect costs, such as staff time. Minimising these costs will mean that you’ll have more money available to endure tough times, and time to capitalise on opportunities as they present themselves. Emersion can help you to find ways to minimise your direct and indirect waste, without compromising your customer’s experience. We often find areas where companies can improve, for example: • Switching to lower-fee payment merchants and...

4 ways modern software can grow your business By Karen Parker

EE HOW QICWORKS FILLS THE MARKET VOID BY PROVIDING A SIMPLE, FLEXIBLE ERP SOLUTION FOR ENGINEERING, CONSTRUCTION AND SITE INSTALLATION BUSINESSES. Every financial administrator knows that managing company finances is imperative to business sustainability. Having a digital solution that offers the right flexibility to fit your business model is vital in providing operational insights, efficiencies and engagement. This has never been more apparent than now as businesses move from survive to strive mode – post pandemic. Being able to offer engineering, building, construction or site installation businesses a simple, robust solution that has been built and tested with industry experience, ensures QicWorks innovation and usability can deliver sustained growth.

1) Finding the right solution QicWorks transforms businesses by removing the need for multiple applications, spreadsheets or work arounds required to calculate profitability. We take the frustration out of complex rate structures caused by transient workers, or individual billing rates based on customer, site or project, not to mention allow our users to share their resources across their trading entities, all from

the one account. From the start QicWorks has been created to do what other job management applications cannot. QicWorks has been designed from the bottom up to ensure that more real time meaningful data is captured from the field. We use the latest in digital technologies to deliver large-scale ERP functionality, at a fraction of the cost.

2) Everyone Connected Integrating QicWorks with Xero not only saves you time but removes data duplication and errors. With the click of a button your existing accounting data can be synced between both applications. QicWorks will not only push business documents and their attachments, but also sync payroll and leave data for reconciliation.

3) Utilise more components as you grow As global economies start to bounce back, many businesses are looking to scale their operations. As part of this growth, they are looking for digital solutions that can also grow in line with their needs. QicWorks is flexible in its delivery. Simply enter only the data you need or take advantage of all our features for complete...

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Starling named ‘Best British Bank’ for fourth year running

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TARLING HAS BEEN NAMED ‘BEST BRITISH BANK’ FOR THE FOURTH YEAR RUNNING AT THE BRITISH BANK AWARDS.

PARTNERSHIP

NSTAVOLT, A LEADING RAPID ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGER NETWORK, HAS TODAY ANNOUNCED A NEW PARTNERSHIP WITH STARLING, THE LEADING DIGITAL BANK WHICH WILL UTILISE ITS RAPID CHARGING NETWORK AS A FULL SERVICE ADVERTISING CHANNEL FROM 5TH JULY. The branded wrap of 100 of InstaVolt’s nationwide changepoints, on-screen advertising and incorporation within the digital app will be a first of its kind partnership, enabling Starling Bank to break into the emerging market of EV drivers. The relationship demonstrates Starling Bank’s commitment to further reducing its car-

Monday 26 July 2021

bon footprint, as well as the growing popularity of electric vehicles, rapid charging and the value they now hold as an advertising channel. As an added layer to the partnership, every time an InstaVolt customer pays with a Starling personal or business card in the InstaVolt app – whether that's through a prepayment or credit account – Starling will plant a tree through Trillion Trees. InstaVolt’s Chief Executive Officer Adrian Keen said: “We’re delighted to announce this new collaboration with Starling – a bank that is challenging traditional practice and has committed itself to becoming fully net-zero. We’re proud to support them on this jour-

ney and will be proactive in our efforts towards helping them reach a new breed of consumer. “The partnership demonstrates the potential that EVs and charging network points offer UK businesses as we head toward net zero targets, and is indicative of growing consumer appetite for hybrid and EV options as the climate change issue becomes more urgent.” Anne Boden, founder and CEO of Starling Bank said: “We know that many of our customers care deeply about the environment. InstaVolt is a driving force in electric vehicle charging and our partnership fits perfectly with that.”

The leading digital bank scooped up three other awards, winning ‘Best Business Banking Provider’ and ‘Best Current Account Provider’ for the third consecutive year, as well as winning the ‘Best Banking App’ trophy for the first time. Anne Boden, CEO and founder of Starling Bank, said: “It has been an extraordinary year for our customers and we have spent a lot of time listening to what they have to say via our 24/7 customer service channels. From responding to their needs by quickly introducing product innovations, such as cheque imaging and our Connected card - a second debit card for those self isolating to lending to SMEs via the government loan schemes, I believe the key to our success is listening to our customers. And long may it continue.” With more than two million current accounts, including 380,000 small business accounts, Starling offers personal, business, joint, euro and dollar current accounts alongside a debit card for children.

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Wise Q1 FY22 Trading Update

£150 billion in hidden fees every year Y

EN YEARS AGO WE STARTED WISE. WE WERE BOTH SICK OF LOSING MONEY TO OUR BANKS WHEN MAKING CROSS CURRENCY PAYMENTS. WE WANTED TO END THAT. That’s a story that, by this time, you might know well. But today we can share something new. And that’s the sheer size of the problem we’re solving. According to new, independent research,the world still pays £150 billion in hidden fees to the banks every year… Amid the excitement of our listing today, it’s worth reminding ourselves that that’s the number that matters most. That’s money unknowingly spent by people and businesses on foreign currency. Over the last ten years, we’ve grown from a simple money transfer service into an international account. We’re helping a community of over 10 million people and businesses manage their money across the world. We’ve expanded to new countries, launched new features, and are still fighting as hard as ever against hidden fees. Today we save Wise customers £1 billion a year. But the clock is ticking and every day people are paying money they don’t need to in hidden fees. It still leaves us with another £149 billion every year to tackle, before this mission is complete.

So what’s next for Wise?

Today, we will complete the first direct listing on the London Stock Exchange. We’re taking this as an opportunity to work even more closely with our customers through the launch of OwnWise, which has now had over 125,000 pre-applications. Customers who take part will share in our journey, not just through lower fees, but as owners of the business. The closer we can involve the people who use our service in our work, the more likely we are to create products and services that make moving money easier for them. We’re still in the early stages of making our mission a reality, but we know what we need to do, and we have an amazing team of over 2,400 dedicated people working to make it happen. We have every faith that we’ll continue to make serious changes to the way the industry makes payments across currencies over the course of the next ten years, to achieve money without borders for everyone. So - thank you to everyone who has got us this far. I hope you’re as excited as we are for solving the next £149 billion. Onwards! Kristo & Taavet

WELCOME TO OUR FIRST QUARTERLY TRADING UPDATE BLOG POST WHERE WE WILL BE GOING THROUGH OUR MISSION AND FINANCIALS HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE LAST THREE MONTHS, APRIL TO JUNE. Kristo Käärmann, our CEO and co-founder, said: “Wise’s mission is to make moving and managing money across borders faster, easier, cheaper and more transparent for everyone, everywhere. In the first quarter of this financial year we continued to take important steps forwards towards this goal while also successfully listing Wise on the London Stock Exchange. *“We were pleased that in the first quarter of this financial year we were able to reduce pricing by 2bps to 0.67%, dropping prices for 19 currencies while also delivering 38% of all transfers instantly. Our financials in that period were in line with our expectations with revenues of £123.5m, representing a growth of 43% YoY compared to Q1 FY2021.

“As we enter the next phase of our growth to tackle the problem of the £150 billion the world continues to pay in hidden fees each year, we’re focused on doing so reliably and sustainably, so our customers know they can count on us for the long term.”

Mission Highlights Money without borders; enabling everyone to move their money across the world - instantly, transparently, conveniently and eventually for free. We continue to be driven by our mission and were pleased that in the first quarter of this year we were able to reduce our average fees by 2bps to 0.67% after dropping prices for customers on 19 currencies, while also delivering 38% of all transfers instantly. Our coverage took an important step forward as we launched in India, allowing Indian residents to send money to 40+ countries at the real exchange rate, with lower and more...

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