XU Biweekly - Issue 35 - 30 July 2022 by XU Magazine

Saturday 30 July 2022 | No. 35

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

GOCARDLESS INTEGRATES OPEN BANKING PAYMENTS WITH XERO By Linda Yang, GoCardless

Instant Bank Pay to offer accountants, bookkeepers and their small business customers a new alternative to taking one-off payments

OCARDLESS, THE GLOBAL LEADER IN DIRECT BANK PAYMENTS HAS TODAY ANNOUNCED AT XEROCON LONDON IT HAS PARTNERED WITH XERO, THE GLOBAL SMALL BUSINESS PLATFORM, TO PROVIDE ITS INSTANT BANK PAY FEATURE TO XERO’S CUSTOMERS IN THE UK. Instant Bank Pay is a new open banking feature directly integrated into the GoCardless global payment platform. With Instant Bank Pay, Xero users can receive

one-off bank-to-bank payments from new and existing customers while still reaping the benefits of Direct Debit for their recurring payments. Instant Bank Pay supports all businesses, including those with recurring revenue models. According to GoCardless research, 85 per cent of recurring revenue businesses have a need for collecting one-off payments, such as a supplementary fee during tax season. Using Instant Bank Pay, Xero customers can accept...

XEROCON RETURNS, HOTTER THAN EVER! READ ALL ABOUT IT

XERO UNVEILS

XERO GO A NEW APP TO HELP SOLE TRADERS ACCESS ENTRY-LEVEL ACCOUNTING By Anna Curzon, Xero

ERO’S NEW APP WILL HELP THE UK S E L F - E M P LOY E D BUSINESSES AND THEIR ADVISORS DIGITISE FINANCIAL ADMIN AND PREPARE FOR NEW DIGITAL TAX RULES As the benefits of digital transformation are realised by more small businesses, Xero, the global small business platform today announced the early release of Xero Go, anew mobile app designed to serve the increased number of sole traders over the last two decades1that is available for IOS download today. According to HMRC, there are around 2.6 million sole traders in the UK and the freemium app will make it easier to access accounting software for small self-employed business-

es including sole-traders, tradespeople, freelancers and gig workers, expanding Xero’s offering to provide a more cost-effective entry point into cloud accounting and digital record-keeping.“ This is a product that caters to the entry-level accounting needs of the self-employed – a growing area of demand. So we wanted to offer early access to a product that caters to the basic accounting needs of self-employed businesses in the UK, the number of which has increased over the last 20 years, and also those of their advisors,” said Anna Curzon, Chief Product Officer at Xero. “Xero Go helps businesses streamline the manual, time-consuming elements of being self-employed, while also providing accountants with accurate, clean financial data they

need to service these clients.” Xero Go will also support the self-employed to get ready for one of the largest changes to the UK tax system — Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD for ITSA). From April 2024, self-employed individuals earning above £10,000 will be required to keep digital records of income and expenses on MTD-compatible software, and to make more frequent submissions.The app will give those impacted by the government legislation one easy tool to capture and track expenses digitally on-the-go and manage invoices. Expenses are recorded throughout the year and available in one place at tax time, reducing the need to chase up missing information..

Xero Go will enable the self-employed to: • Record expenses on the fly using the Quick scan feature, powered by machine learning. Quick scan extracts expense information from receipts, imports them into Xero Go and auto-suggests tax categories for them, saving time on manual expense record gathering and tax coding around submission dates and supports better accuracy • Create, send and track customisable invoices — including customer reminders for late payments — and add Stripe payments to invoices to streamline invoice management, get paid faster and feel more in control of their finances.

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New Apps & Updates

2 XU Biweekly | No. 35

A trusted partnership that adds value to your business By Anna Curzon, Xero

ND THAT’S A WRAP! WHAT AN INCREDIBLE COUPLE OF DAYS IT’S BEEN AT XEROCON LONDON, KICKING OFF THE PRODUCT UPDATE WITH THE LAUNCH OF OUR EXCITING NEW PRODUCT FOR SOLE TRADERS, AND WATCHING AS OUR TEAMS SHARE THE LATEST TOOLS AND FEATURES IN XERO. It’s been a real privilege to share how we’ve been responding to the changing world of work over the last few years, with products that help you streamline your work, give you flexibility and control in your practice, and build relationships that are both meaningful and profitable. Being together with our community in person is a wonderful reminder of our purpose,

and it’s a privilege to co-design and create the future of our product suite together. If you weren’t able to join us at Xerocon, here are a few of the highlights that we covered across the two-day event.

Introducing Xero Go for sole traders I was thrilled to unveil the early release of Xero Go — the new mobile app we launched in the UK to ease the burden of financial admin for sole traders and their advisors. This is a key part of our commitment to helping employing businesses win the war on talent and give them the best possible chance of success in an ever-changing environment.

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XU BIWEEKLY - No. 35 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 Creative Assistant: Hatty Morton Advertising: advertising@xumagazine.com

Practice Insights by Dext Prepare

HERE'S A LOT TO BE SAID WITH TRUSTING THE NUMBERS, BUT WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THAT DATA ONCE IT'S IN FRONT OF YOU?

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 2014-2022. 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: Office 1, Brunswick House, Brunswick Way, Liverpool, L3 4BN, 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.

Dext has released a 60-second teaser video for their new module in Dext Prepare. Can you spare 60 seconds to find out how you can revolutionise your bookkeeping practice and make it ultra-efficient and profita-

ble? Of course, you can. Whether you’re a partner or manager, find out how Practice Insights can help you deliver more for your clients and give your firm that extra edge.

The launch of Practice Insights is on its way. Find out more in their new teaser video

Saturday 30 July 2022

Introducing an improved Xero status page experience

GL CORPORATE SOLUTIONS, AUSTRALIA'S LEADING PROVIDER OF SMSF, INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO AND COMPANY COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE, IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE IT WILL NOW ACCEPT BITCOIN FOR PAYMENT OF ITS CAS 360, SIMPLE FUND 360 AND SIMPLE INVEST 360 ANNUAL SOFTWARE SUBSCRIPTIONS. “We are very excited to offer our clients the option to pay their annual software subscriptions with Bitcoin'' said Ron Lesh, BGL’s Managing Director. “From today, BGL clients will be able to pay into our Crypto Wallet thanks to our partnership with Australia’s own cryptocurrency exchange, Cointree. Clients will simply click a link on our invoices and complete the transfer”. Cointree provides an outstanding cryptocurrency exchange experience and is a go-to for many Australians buying, selling or trading cryptocurrency - especially firsttime traders. “With cryptocurrency continuing to grow in popularity, our partnership with Cointree provides an easy way for BGL to offer subscription payments in cryptocurrency” added Lesh. Cointree is the first exchange to join the BGL Ecosystem providing Simple Fund 360 and Simple Invest 360 clients an easy way to process cryptocurrency transactions...

WorkGuru Release Notes - July 25 2022

By Nigel Piper, Xero

HEN THE PRODUCTS AND FEATURES YOU USE AREN’T WORKING AS THEY SHOULD, WE KNOW IT’S REALLY IMPORTANT TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT’S HAPPENING AND WHY QUICKLY. WE’VE RECENTLY MADE SOME CHANGES TO THE WAY XERO’S STATUS PAGE WORKS FOR THAT REASON, TO ENSURE THE INFORMATION YOU RECEIVE IS MORE CONSISTENT, ACCURATE AND VALUABLE. From this Sunday 24th July 2022, when you access Xero’s status page, things will look a little different in both how the information is grouped, as well as the content of the update itself. You’ve told us in the past that more meaningful detail in the updates would be really helpful, so we’ve been listening intently and have made changes to address this feedback. We are committed to providing you increased transparency, and these updates have been designed to offer you more clarity and confidence in times where that really matters. Here’s what’s coming.

What you can expect to see from the changes... An improved navigation experience Find out more

HIS RELEASE INCLUDES THE ABILITY FOR CLIENTS, AND INDIVIDUAL STAFF (IF THEY HAVE PERMISSIONS) TO CREATE CUSTOM DASHBOARDS IN WORKGURU. A NEW SET OF WIDGETS IS AVAILABLE FOR DRAGGING AND DROPPING ONTO THE DASHBOARD AND WE'VE PREPARED TWO VIDEOS ON HOW TO SET UP YOUR DASHBOARD.

Reports v2 Nearly all reports have now been migrated to our V2 Pivot Grids. Tonight's update also incudes the ability to export the pivot as a raw CSV.

Line Item Discounting Added All product lines across Quotes, Stock Sales and Projects now have the ability to add a percentage discount to the line item.

GL CORPORATE SOLUTIONS, AUSTRALIA'S LEADING PROVIDER OF SELF-MANAGED SUPERANNUATION FUND (SMSF), INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO AND COMPANY COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE, IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE IT NOW HAS OVER 250,000 FUNDS ADMINISTERED BY OVER 7,550 FIRMS ON ITS SMSF SOFTWARE, SIMPLE FUND 360. “This is a huge milestone for BGL and a direct

Merged PO - Original PO Visibility result of the teams' passion, innovation and perseverance,” said Ron Lesh, BGL’s Managing Director. “We simply could not achieve numbers like this without the hard work of our team and I’m extremely proud of each and every one of them”. BGL now has over 250,000 funds administered on Simple Fund 360, representing 41% of the estimated 605,000 SMSFs in Australia, cementing its position as the most...

Merged Purchase Orders now let you see the original PO's that were merged into the combined Purchase Order from the details page.

Xero Sync - COGS detail available An Update to our accounting integration lets you look at the individual transaction details going into your Xero COGS journal.

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NEW XERO CONNECTED APPS! HOUZZ PRO AU, NZ & UK - A do-it-all project management and lead generation software for builders, contractors, remodelers and any other home-building business professional. Every phase of the job is streamlined.

CONNECT4 GLOBAL - Everything an accounting team needs to deliver outstanding client discovery, onboarding and advisory meetings. Run smarter and more actionable meetings that truly count and make your clients happy.

News & Updates

4 XU Biweekly | No. 35

Be A Know-it-all: The solution to the £61 billion late payment problem has launched

By Alex Hoffman

HAVE SOME EXCITING NEWS FOR YOU TODAY. LIVE VIEW REPORTS ARE NOW INTERACTIVE! GAIN DEEPER INSIGHT INTO YOUR PROFIT & LOSS AND BALANCE SHEET ACCOUNTS WITH SYFT'S ALL NEW LIVE VIEW POP-UPS: WHAT WE LIKE TO CALL MAGNIFY.

With Magnify, you can hover your mouse over any row in the Management Accounts report (except formula rows such as Gross Profit or any other custom formula row), to find out more about the underlying data in that row. The components of this view include the following: • The bar graph: gives you an indication of trend with a comparison to the...

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Xero users can launch Chaser directly from Xero By Amaya Woods

ERO AND CHASER USERS, YOU CAN NOW LAUNCH CHASER DIRECTLY FROM YOUR XERO ACCOUNT!

With the new Xero App Launcher, you can launch Chaser or any other app connected to your Xero organization directly from your Xero account. Open Chaser whilst using Xero without interrupting your workflow, without needing to search for Chaser in another tab, or rely on your browser bookmarks. What’s more, you’ll also be logged into Chaser...

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Working From Home Has Killed the Office Credit Card

E'VE GOT THE INSIDE SCOOP ON COMPANY SPENDING PROCESSES FROM OVER 1000+ AUSTRALIAN EMPLOYEES. The full breakdown, as well as insight and analysis on the state of company spending are now available via our report.

What You'll Learn

More about the report

Simply hover over any row in your reports to show a historical trend of that account as well as a top transactions list. Read on to learn more!

All about Magnify

Saturday 30 July 2022

IRST OF ITS KIND CLOUD-BASED PLATFORM STREAMLINES THE APPROACH TO THE CREDIT MANAGEMENT PROCESS, HELPING BUSINESSES MITIGATE CREDIT RISK, REDUCE DEBTOR DAYS AND BOOST CASH FLOW! Know-it, a Scottish fintech start-up, has officially today launched their cloudbased credit management platform. Founded by Lynne Darcey Quigley, the new platform gives businesses the tools and intelligence to automate and simplify the way they manage credit risk and the credit control process, helping save time, reduce late payments and allow them to focus on other aspects of their business. As part of their commercial launch, they will be exhibiting at the sold out Xerocon, at Tobacco Dock, London, on 20th and 21st July in partnership with leading accountancy app Xero. The platform, which is the first of its kind, allows businesses to credit check and monitor, chase for payment, collect overdue unpaid invoices, and more, all from one place. By partnering with some of the UK’s leading accountancy software and credit reference agencies – such as Xero, QuickBooks,Sage, FreeAgent, and Graydon –users can instantly credit check companies, get live data, and real-time updates to monitor customer’s credit behaviour and mitigate potential credit risks. The platform also gives finance teams and business owners a simple way to check their customers’ credit worthiness. It also ensures customers pay on time through scheduled reminders and customisable chaser emails, letters, and SMS, helping reduce debtor days...

Businesses across Australia have typically relied on the shared office card to ensure staff can pay for the supplies they need to keep operations humming. But, what happens when borrowing the card from the boss’s desk isn’t possible in our new world of hybrid working? Just as the pandemic has forced us to change many aspects of how we work, spend management should not be an exception. In this report, we look at spend management from the employee perspective, to understand how finance teams can strike the perfect balance between giving staff...

T WAS GREAT TO CONNECT WITH SO MANY ADVISORS AT XEROCON LONDON TODAY. YOU COULD REALLY FEEL THE EXCITEMENT AND BUZZ IN THE AIR, AND MY TEAM AND I WERE THRILLED TO SHARE THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN XERO. HERE ARE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ANNOUNCEMENTS WE MADE TODAY.

Coming soon: Document packs You know all too well how vital it is to collect approval signatures from clients...

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Changes to Shopify’s team By Tobi Lütke

EAM, I’M SITTING DOWN TO WRITE THIS EMAIL NOT FAR FROM WHERE I ONCE SAT DOWN TO WRITE THE FIRST FEW LINES OF CODE FOR SHOPIFY ITSELF. Those lines of code started a company and sent it on a fascinating journey full of wonder, toil, success, failure, ambition, and above all else comradery. Being on a journey, surrounded by great teammates, doing difficult things is what it's all about. All this makes this email so much harder to write: the next part of the journey will involve fewer teammates than we have picked up along the way. Shopify has to go through a reduction in workforce that will see about 10% leave by the end of the day. Most of the impacted roles are in recruiting, support, and sales, and across the company we’re also...

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By Luis Sanchez Castillo, Xero

simPRO Announces Inflationary Pay Raise as Part of “Do the Right Thing’ Benefits Program for Global Workforce

Inflationary pay raise, four-day work week and 24 weeks paid parental leave headline the program that doubles down on investing in employees

IMPRO, THE GLOBAL LEADER IN TRADE BUSINESS MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE, TODAY ANNOUNCED THE DEBUT OF ITS NEW ‘DO THE RIGHT THING’ BENEFITS PROGRAM FOR EMPLOYEES IN THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND THE UNITED KINGDOM. While some companies tighten the purse strings in an economic downturn, simPRO’s program introduces unique, innovative benefits designed for a new era of work– one that is global and distributed in nature....

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Chaser wins Best Use of Technology award at the Credit Awards 2022 By Sonia Dorais By Taryn Champion

W XU Hub

ISENET HAS BEEN SHORTLISTED IN THE 2022 SAAS AWARDS PROGRAM IN THE CATEGORY BEST SAAS PRODUCT FOR LEARNING MANAGEMENT OR TRAINING.

is now live on Apple News!

A New Zealand Xero Awards winner shares why entering is definitely worth it By Sue Pak, Xero

T’S TIME FOR THE 2022 NEW ZEALAND XERO AWARDS, CELEBRATING THE ACCOUNTANTS, BOOKKEEPERS, APP PARTNERS AND INTEGRATORS WHO HELP KIWI SMALL BUSINESSES FLOURISH. If you’ve been thinking of entering, you’ll love reading what Michael Parker, director of Crux Advice & Accounting has to say. Last year the Crux team won the Small Accounting Partner of the Year Award and they were also a finalist for the People’s Choice Award. Today they’re still benefiting from the trust, credibility, brand awareness and client referrals that a Xero Award helps build.

Tell us a bit about Crux and your team Read more

Saturday 30 July 2022

Now in its seventh year of celebrating software innovation, the Software Awards program accepts entries worldwide, including the US, Canada, Australasia, EMEA and UK. Categories for 2022 include Best Enterprise-Level SaaS and Best Data-Driven SaaS, alongside new categories including ‘Most Agile or Responsive SaaS Solution of the Year’. Head of operations for the SaaS Awards, James Williams, said: “Innovative technologies have always driven the industry forward and having disrupted the software business, SaaS continues to mature as a key driver for sustained improvement across manifold verticals. “SaaS technologies are now part of...

E ARE THRILLED TO SHARE THAT CHASER HAS WON BEST USE OF TECHNOLOGY END-TO-END CREDIT SOLUTION AT THE CREDIT AWARDS 2022. THIS AWARD RECOGNISES THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF CHASER'S END-TO-END ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLES AUTOMATION TECHNOLOGY SINCE AUGUST 2021. The awards were judged by a panel of 24 credit industry experts who praised Chaser's end-to-end credit solution for its focus on developing technology that solves end-user needs and for its demonstrable results in helping businesses to reduce late payments, save time on accounts receivables and improve their cash flow. Thrilled to share that Chaser has won Best Use of Technology at the @Credit_ Strategy Credit Awards 2022 for its endto-end accounts receivables automation. The Credit Awards is the flagship awards for the credit and financial services industry and recognises and...

Share your story in this year’s Xero Australia Awards By Joseph Lyons, Xero

RIT AND RESILIENCE HAVE LONG BEEN SYNONYMOUS WITH THE AUSTRALIAN SPIRIT. BUT IF RECENT YEARS HAVE TAUGHT US ANYTHING, IT’S THAT OUR NATION’S ENTREPRENEURS EMBODY THESE TRAITS DAY IN AND DAY OUT. From the local store that’s pivoted online and gone global to the accounting firm that’s embraced flexible working to attract talent, countless success stories have emerged since the pandemic’s arrival. This is why we couldn’t be more excited to invite you – the business community – to share yours in the FY23 Xero Australia Awards.

There’s something for everyone in our FY23 awards

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PayPal Tops List of U.S. Companies Supporting Healthy Families and Communities

Xerocon Sydney by the numbers

Talent shortage in UK impacting mental health of small business employers

JUST CAPITAL TODAY RELEASED A LIST OF THE TOP 100 LARGEST PUBLIC U.S. COMPANIES THAT ARE LEADERS IN SUPPORTING THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF WORKERS, THEIR FAMILIES, AND THEIR COMMUNITIES. The thematic list was originally produced in 2019 and 2021 with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which is focused on building a national Culture of Health where everyone has a fair and just opportunity for health and well-being, and updated by JUST Capital in 2022. Over the past year, the American public has faced unprecedented challenges, from an ongoing pandemic to climate-related disasters, all against the backdrop of rising inflation and declining real wages. These challenges have impacted the physical, financial, and social well-being of Americans. To identify leadership in counteracting these impacts, JUST Capital evaluated corporate performance on 10 key issues from its 2022 Rankings, from providing fair wages and benefits to contributing to local communities’ development, combating climate change and reducing pollution, and...

ERO REVEALS TRUE SCALE OF TALENT SHORTAGES AND INCREASING WAGE DEMANDS ON SMALL FIRMS

By Natalie Amor, Xero

E’RE NUMBERS PEOPLE HERE AT XERO. AND WE KNOW YOU – OUR PARTNER COMMUNITY – ARE TOO. SO TO CELEBRATE THE RETURN OF XEROCON SYDNEY THIS SEPTEMBER, WE’VE GONE AND ROUNDED UP SOME STATS TO GIVE YOU A TASTE OF WHAT TO EXPECT. BECAUSE IF OUR CALCULATIONS ARE CORRECT, THERE ARE 1,161 REASONS (AND COUNTING) TO GET EXCITED ABOUT THIS UNMISSABLE EVENT FOR CLOUD ACCOUNTING LEADERS.

12 keynote sessions Across two days and 12 keynote sessions, you’ll hear and learn from all kinds of...

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

Managing a workforce in the current environment is taking its toll on small business employers, with half (49%) admitting it's negatively impacting their mental health. The new findings in the Changing world of work report from Xero, the global small business platform, shine a light on work force challenges and how technology is playing an important role in supporting employers...

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Events

8 XU Biweekly | No. 35

Share your story in this year’s Xero Australia Awards

XEROCON RETURNS, HOTTER THAN EVER! G I

Saturday 30 July 2022

UPCOMING EVENTS MEET XU AT EVERY XEROCON THIS YEAR! LOOK OUT FOR THE GUYS IN PINK

By Joseph Lyons, Xero

CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S BEEN OVER A WEEK SINCE XEROCON LONDON. BOY DID IT COME BACK WITH A BANG AND A MUCH NEEDED BOOST FOR XERO USERS. TO SAY THIS IS THE HOTTEST XEROCON EVER WOULD BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT, IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE.

Xero put together one of the best speaker line-ups we have ever seen. From stars such as Sue Perkins and Deborah Meaden, to our favourite Xero stars including Steve Vamos, Rachel Power, Anna Curzons and Alex von Schirmeister, plus so many more. They really did deliver and gave us the wow factor over the two days. We kick started Xerocon with the amazing precon party taking place on the rooftop bar at the Tobacco Dock. It was seriously the best way to start! A massive thank you to everyone who turned up and our fellow sponsors - Ignition, AdvanceTrack, AutoEntry, Futrli and iwoca. Day 1 was full of amazing announcements. A highlight being the news of Xero Go, the open banking payments integration with GoCardless, and how they are adding more value to their practice tools in the UK, including: document packs (coming soon), a new-look Job Manager in Xero Practice Manager, and so much more. There is so much exciting news coming out of Xero at the moment. The day ended with an epic Xero party, plenty of food trucks to feed anyone's appetite and floors full of amazing entertainment to make your head turn. From the live band to dance your night away, strong men, fire and ribbon dancers that just made you look in awe. You could find most of the XU team dancing their night away downstairs to all the old-school music. We also spent too much time in the video booth. This party will be talked about for years to come. Xero and their accounting partners really do know how to party. Day 2 had a buzz with everyone talking about the epic party from the night before. We managed to actually check out all the amazing extras that Xero had put together. From the doughnut and ice cream trucks to getting your hair cut or nails done, the chance to win an amazing Xero football, grab yourself endless Xero swag or a taste of the amazing food. Xero really had thought of everything. As always it was fantastic to catch up with so many of our app partner friends. The exhibitor floor was buzzing with so many cool stands and swag to be seen. There were so many great apps under one roof. Special mention to ApprovalMax, Chaser, MayDay, Spotlight, Fathom, Syft, Satago, GoPropsoal, AccountanyManager, Know-It, CitrusHR MarketFinance and so many more for making it such an amazing experience. The XU Team had so much fun handing out our £500 giveaway. Big shout out to Sam from Wood and Disney. We honestly can’t wait for Xerocon New Orleans and Sydney. If London is anything to go by we are in for an amazing time.

There’s something for everyone in our FY23 awards

Back for another year, the Xero Awards are all about recognising and celebrating the achievements of small businesses, advisors and our app partners. Just like last year, we have 13 major categories – all of which focus on the efforts and performance of a business rather than an individual. For advisors, these include: • Accounting Partner of the Year • Bookkeeping Partner of the Year • Enterprise Partner of the Year • Cloud Champion of the Year • Innovative Partner of the Year • Community Partner of the Year

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It’s big, it’s beautiful and it’s back – Xerocon London 2022 By Steve Vamos, Xero

T Xerocon London 2022

Chaser's highlights from the event By Inga Schibsted, Chaser

AST WEEK, XEROCON, THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF XERO, TOOK PLACE IN LONDON. THIS WAS THE FIRST XEROCON SINCE THE PANDEMIC HIT IN 2020, AND IT WAS CERTAINLY WORTH THE WAIT! Xerocon is unlike any other conference, and is by many called the "Glastonbury for accountants'. This two-day event took place at the Tobacco Dock in London on the 20th and 21st of July with over 2000 accountants and bookkeepers attending. Over 50 global brands, including Chaser, exhibited at the event and there were several keynote speakers such as Deborah Meaden from Dragons Den and former football player Fara Williams. Xerocon is known for striking the perfect balance between party and work event, with endless networking opportunities, presentations, fun, games, and immersive experiences. We have already started counting down the days until Xerocon New Orleans and Xerocon Sydney which takes place later this year, but in the meantime, here are some of the highlights from Xerocon London:

Chaser beach balls and eye masks If you’ve met us at previous trade shows or events in the...

ODAY, WE KICKED OFF XEROCON LONDON 2022 AND IT WAS CLEAR FROM THE EXCITEMENT AND BUZZ AT THE EVENT THAT OUR ACCOUNTANTS AND BOOKKEEPERS, APP PARTNERS AND EXHIBITORS WERE AS HAPPY AS WE WERE TO COME TOGETHER AGAIN AS A COMMUNITY. Thank you to the more than 2,000 delegates and app partners who joined us today. I opened the event outlining our vision and the steps we are taking to become the most trusted and insightful small business platform. Rachael Powell, Chief Customer Officer, introduced our new UK & EMEA MD Alex von Schirmeister, and Anna Curzon, our Chief Product Officer, led the discussion on new product enhancements and announcements. She was joined on stage by Christian Brondum, CEO of Planday and Mark Rees, our Chief Technology Officer.

It’s been great to see everyone in person again – to have the opportunity to come together to learn, to be inspired and to have some fun. And importantly, to remind ourselves of the important purpose we share of making life better for people in small business, their advisors and communities around the world. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the highlights from day one of Xerocon London 2022.

Tackling the cash flow crunch First, we talked about the challenging environment in which accountants and small businesses are working through in our Xero Small Business Insights special report Crunch: Cash flow challenges facing small businesses. Launched today, the report found that the average UK small business faces cash flow crunches – where monthly expenses exceed revenues – for...

Features

10 XU Biweekly | No. 34

EMBRACE THE FUTURE BY ADDING APPROVAL AUTOMATION TO YOUR ACCOUNTING APP STACK WITH APPROVALMAX

Saturday 16 July 2022

The independent magazine for Xero users, by Xero users

In March, Xero's 'State of the Industry' report released a series of figures supporting the move to digital accounting tools. In fact, 94% of study respondents reported that the adoption of digital tools to augment their tech stack has resulted in notable benefits, such as

time-saving and efficiency improvements and better client relationships. And within tech adoption, it’s no secret that cloudbased accounting software has quickly become the gold standard for financial professionals. You’re probably well on your way to curating a carefully thought-out tech stack that complements your business and helps your finance team move ahead. So how far ahead of the curve are you? And what could you be implementing next to supercharge your tech stack?

The answer? Approval automation. At ApprovalMax, we specialise in automating approval processes for your accounts payable and accounts receivable. If you’re looking for a simple solution to streamline processes for your financial documents, tighten up on your spend control, and accelerate your automation journey, then ApprovalMax could be for you.

What is ApprovalMax, and how can automated approvals benefit your finance

5 WAYS TO MAKE PERFORMANCE REVIEWS EASY AND EFFECTIVE By Sarah Brandenburg

O-ONE LOOKS FORWARD TO PERFORMANCE REVIEWS BUT THIS APPROACH CHANGES EVERYTHING

With a smart process and a progressive, goal-based approach, performance reviews can become the performance ‘unlocker’ they were always supposed to be. Although many of us dread the upcoming performance review, studies repeatedly show that both employees and managers want regular performance reviews (and that not having them is actually worse!). From our work with thousands of small and medium businesses, our team kept hearing that managers wanted a way to do high-impact performance reviews, but in a way that was fast and easy. These are the principles that we built into our system, and that we suggest all businesses use when it’s time for performance reviews…

1) Use (and Re-Use) Performance Review Templates!

BEFORE the Review Every business has their own process when providing feedback on employees’ performance, but we’ve found that the Performance Review meeting is more effective when the employee has already been asked to provide their own input. Using a templated form, have the staff member complete their input, answer questions, self-reflect on their quality of work and their own development and goals before the review itself. This will help lead the discussion and pave the way for more meaningful feedback. This approach is very effective as it changes the discussion from ‘what you’ve done wrong and where you need to improve’ to something like ‘how can I help you achieve your goals’. Even less-experienced managers will find that the focus shifts to be more positive and constructive.

3) Include Peer Input

When you design your Performance Management program, look for opportunities to create standard, reusable templates wherever possible. This can be by using the same Form, the same documentation, the same questionnaire… or a combination of these. Creating a simple template form that you use again and again across many different reviews will make your life much easier. It will also achieve the always-sought consistency across different reviews. When you take a moment to make something into a template, you create a process which means that reviews for each employee are managed more consistently and are also more easily comparable.

360-Degree Feedback Reviews have received a lot of attention in recent years. By asking for feedback from the employee’s peers and direct reports, you can often get a much more complete view of their contribution and areas for growth. When we built our own new performance management system, we wanted to allow complete control over who is asked for input, and what the input questions are. For example, you might just include colleagues, or just direct reports, or some combination. You can also ask open-ended questions for the deepest insights, or keep the requirements super-quick with a scale-based answer approach (we love using the Likert scale for this!). You can also choose for the employee to have access to the feedback...

2) Gather Your Employee’s Input

Find out more

magazine

By Konstantin Bredyuk T’S NEVER BEEN EASIER TO ADOPT NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND ADAPT YOUR PROCESSES – AUTOMATED APPROVAL PROCESSES COULD BE YOUR SECRET WEAPON...

ISSUE

team or clients? So you’ve adopted Xero, and you’re nearly ready to start using approval automation – the benefits of time-saving, traceability, ease of use, and one universal approval system that’s easy to understand sound so appealing! Chasing approvals has to be one of the most time-consuming, frustrating tasks for finance professionals, so how do you revamp your approval process, and where should you start?

COVER STORY

Don’t get left behind Supercharge your Xero tech stack with approval automation PLUS LOA DS MORE FRO M

ISSN 2054-7226

Xero

Connected Apps

9 772054 722009

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Issue 31 / 1

TUTORIALS CASE STUDIES INTERVIEWS NEW APPS NEW RELEASES

The future's bright, the future's bookkeeping By Rosalia Munro, Institute for Certified Bookkeepers

HOUGHT LEADERS COME TOGETHER TO DISCUSS “WHY BOOKKEEPERS ARE THE FUTURE OF ACCOUNTING” AT A PANEL AT THIS YEAR’S ACCOUNTEX. The last few years have seen a seismic shift in the business landscape, whether it be the boom in small business creation seen by the pandemic, technological disruption seeming to democratise the financial management of companies or changes to the legislative landscape. But what does this mean for the bookkeeping profession? Speaking at Accountex, the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers’ (ICB) panel of experts took out their crystal balls and discussed the future of bookkeeping.

Technology and automation Automation has presented a challenge to many industries, and bookkeeping is no exception. A 2020 survey conducted by Sage demonstrates that entrepreneurs increasingly want to take control of their business’ finances and feel empowered to do so using digital accounting software. This trend surely suggests that the role of the bookkeeper is at risk of becoming obsolete, but is this the case? Rasa D’Alton FICB PM.Dip, ICB member and owner of Cloudit Bookkeeping Ltd, remains confident that business owners will not turn their back on vital bookkeeping support from qualified professionals. Similarly, Dayle Rodriguez, Kreston Reeves’ Systems Advi-

sory Manager questioned the threat that accounting software poses to accountancy professionals. “AI is not as smart as people think,” he said “accounts need the oversight of a skilled accountancy professional for them to make sense to businesses.” It is not enough to simply file accounts electronically without guidance, and entrepreneurs are demanding the level of insight, engagement and knowledge of their business’ figures which bookkeepers are uniquely placed to provide. This sentiment is illustrated in the exponential growth of the sector, with a fifty-fold increase in its turnover and number of bookkeepers since 2003.

XU Biweekly | No. 34

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Saturday 16 July 2022 11

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THE ROLE WE HAVE TO PLAY IN GETTING MORE WOMEN INTO ACCOUNTING By Francesca Deery, Ignition

WHAT ARE OUTSOURCED ACCOUNTING SERVICES?

By Simon Smallwood, World First

UTSOURCED ACCOUNTING SERVICES CAN BE THE BEST SOLUTION FOR E-COMMERCE SELLERS TO MEET THEIR FINANCIAL REGULATORY OBLIGATIONS. THIS WORLDFIRST OVERVIEW WILL OUTLINE THE BENEFITS OF SEEKING OUTSIDE HELP WITH ACCOUNTING IN E-COMMERCE. Think of accountancy as the backbone of any company. Your company needs reliable accounts data to make informed financial decisions to stay in operation. Outsourced accounting services frees up e-commerce sellers’ time and insulates them from unnecessary risk (such as accidentally filing an incorrect tax return). Outside help with your accounting can also reveal opportunities to increase business profits — opportunities you may not

have noticed if you’re busy doing every other task to keep your company afloat. Small business e-commerce sellers can access a wide range of accounting technologies to make the bookkeeping process easier. This article outlines how outsourced accounting services and technologies can replicate the benefits of hiring an in-house accounts team for less cost.

Why do many online sellers personally handle their accounts admin? When you are just starting as an e-commerce seller, you may juggle another job, raise a family, or have other things you like to do alongside your ‘side hustle’ business.

Keep reading

CCOUNTING FIRMS NEED A DEDICATED FOCUS ON INCLUSIVITY TO MAKE AN IMPACT Women want to get into the industry - with Ignition’s Women in Accounting Awards seeing a 27% YoY increase in submissions. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is one of the most talked about issues across all sectors and industries. It’s no shock that diversity of thought is a crucial factor for growing the business. It’s also proven to be an important part of attracting talent, with 76% of job seekers considering it a top factor when evaluating job offers. Thinking about DEI across the accounting sector is no different. It has long been a male game, but with more accounting firms tak-

ing a DEI-focused approach to hiring and culture, the accounting profession has become more accessible for women. In fact, Accountancy Age’s “Top 50+50” survey demonstrates this, finding that, at the time of the research’s launch in 2020, nearly half of all qualified accountants were female (45%) - however, only onefifth of senior roles within the sector were occupied by women. Barriers to equality still exist. This is why the accounting industry needs to better engage its people to make sure they are putting the onus on themselves to ensure the sector adapts to reflect our diverse society. At Ignition, this is something we strongly believe in - and we’re making sure we don’t just talk the talk. In fact, we recently announced the winners of our

2021 Top 50 Women in Accounting Awards. We are keen drivers of the annual awards programme because we understand the need to recognise outstanding women who are driving meaningful change and leading the way for the next generation in the accounting and bookkeeping industry - for example, Michelle Kvello at Lantern Partners, who said she’s “grateful for the opportunity that [she now has] to be able to use the [Award] to further drive the support and recognition for other women in accounting and finance, and more broadly to promote diversity within the industry which will in turn lift us all.” Now in its fifth year running, the awards programme received almost one thousand nominations...

Find out more

FinTech News

12 XU Biweekly | No. 35

Starling withdraws Ireland banking licence application

TARLING BANK IS TODAY WITHDRAWING ITS APPLICATION FOR A BANKING LICENCE IN THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND TO FOCUS ON OTHER EXPANSION PROJECTS INSTEAD. Opening a retail bank in the Republic of Ireland and passporting into other European Union countries have long been a goal of the UK challenger bank. The project was temporarily put on hold during the pandemic and later revived with plans that also included a Banking as a Service proposition for EU customers. The bank had successfully completed the initial phase of applying to the Central Bank of Ireland for an Irish banking licence and had been invited to submit its full application. However, Starling has now concluded that market conditions and the bank’s own expansion plans mean that securing an Irish banking licence is no longer a top priority. It has therefore decided not to proceed with the final stage. Anne Boden, founder and CEO of Starling, said: “This was a really tough call to make, particularly as we have had Ireland in our sights for so long. Sometimes changing course is the right option. My job as CEO is to constantly test our thinking against evolving circumstances and to make sure that we are delivering value and maximising potential for growth. Ultimately, we felt that an Irish subsidiary would not deliver the added value we are seeking.” “I would like to thank our amazing Irish team, who have worked so hard on this.” Starling will be focusing on taking its software to banks around the globe through its Software as a Service subsidiary, Engine, and by expanding its lending across a range...

Keep reading

Stripe adds multi-currency customers in Stripe Invoicing

WE'VE ADDDED SUPPORT FOR MULTI-CURRENCY CUSTOMERS IN STRIPE INVOICING.

For one-off invoices, you can now change the billable currency for any customer with the API. We're working on subscription and Dashboard support soon.

Learn more

Saturday 30 July 2022

Airwallex launches Online Payments App on Shopify By Liz Yiang, Airwallex

IRWALLEX, A LEADING GLOBAL FINTECH PLATFORM, ANNOUNCED THE LAUNCH OF ITS AIRWALLEX ONLINE PAYMENTS APP ON SHOPIFY. The Airwallex Online Payments App is a payment gateway plugin that merchants can integrate on their online store to accept payments from their global customers.

This new app is offered through Airwallex’s payment acceptance solution that covers a wide range of payment methods. These payment methods include Visa, MasterCard and UnionPay bank cards, and 30+ other local payment methods across the Asia-Pacific and Europe, such as GrabPay in Southeast Asia, WeChat Pay in APAC, and Bancontact and Sofort in Europe. “We are excited that our

online payment acceptance solution will now be available on Shopify, helping merchants create a seamless payment journey on their online store,” said Ravi Adusumilli, SVP of Partnerships at Airwallex. “Our app is one of many offerings we have built to help merchants accept cross-border payments. In this case, by using an...

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