By Stephanie Elsen

Red Wing Software’s Web site has a new look! A new design for the site www.redwingsoftware.com has gone live. Web site visitors should now find what they are looking for more easily with streamlined navigation and a new look.

Notable changes:

Downloads

You will find access to the download button at the top of the page on its own! Once you choose downloads, you can select your product and be directed right to the download page for that product.

Training

Training options will be listed in the top navigation, so you can easily find the training option you need for your product and desired level of learning.

Support

Also in the top navigation will be support, where you can view information about Customer Care Plans, go directly to product How2 documentation, or learn more about personalized services.

Products

At the top also, you can find the product information you are looking for with just a few clicks.

Customer sign-in and My Red Wing Software remain in the same location at the upper right, with a brand new look. Company and contact information will be found at the bottom of the page. We believe the new design and navigational changes will help site users find what they are looking for much more quickly and easily!

Questions or comments about the new site design can be directed to: marketing@redwingsoftware.com.

Check out these Red Wing Software customers who made the news!

Accounting and Payroll customer Brandon Schafer, of Schafer Farms, represented the Minnesota Pork Producers Association as a delegate to the National Pork Producers Council Annual Meeting earlier this month in Orlando, Florida. Schafer was among 130 U.S. farmers from 44 states who elected four pork producers to the NPPC Board of Directors.

Red Wing Software customer Fairmont Farm, Inc. was featured in the February 10, 2013 issue of Hoard’s Dairyman in the article, “High Forage is Their Dietary Strategy”.

CenterPoint Accounting and Payroll customer, Fiedler Finishing, Crystal Lean and Country Pork was featured in the February 2013 issue of The Farmer. Stephanie and Paul Fiedler were chosen by MN Pork as top environmental stewards. The Fiedlers built their pork operation from scratch, allowing them to implement progressive management practices.

We would love to share your company’s news! Has your company won an award, received a great review, or some other accomplishment? Submit your news to Stephanie at: stephaniee@redwingsoftware.com with a subject line of: My Company News.

Here are the results of a survey conducted by Aatrix, the company that handles eFiling for Red Wing Software payroll systems.

Cindy Bauer is the Marketing Manager at Red Wing Software. In the past several years, Cindy’s four wonderful children have grown up, moved out, graduated college, and several have gotten married. I caught up with Cindy to ask her about the transition and how it has been for all four children to leave home and move on with their bright futures.

• The last couple of years have been a whirlwind with all the changes in your household! Please tell us about your kids and what they’ve done since leaving home.

  We have two girls and two boys. Our daughter Jordan is the oldest and she and her husband, Mike, had a baby boy, Patrick, in September. Josh and Andrew are our middle children and are identical twins. Josh is in pilot training in the Air Force and will be marrying Kaitlin in December. Andrew is a financial analyst and just got married to Megan last month in Texas. Our baby of the family, Elizabeth, just graduated from college in December and is transitioning from student to full time career mode.

• What are some tips on how to stay sane with all the planning that goes into multiple graduations, weddings, etc.?

  My husband, Dave, and I have been married for almost thirty years and have been so lucky to have four children that certainly kept us busy and on our toes. Between years spent in hockey arenas, baseball fields, and other activities, it seemed like we were always running to the car for some event. We also owned our own business and there never seemed to be enough hours in the day and sleep was minimal! To keep everything and everyone organized, I was, and still am a planner. When the kids were in school, we had a big, white board calendar on the wall and it was rare that there weren’t three or four events scheduled on each day. I am also a huge fan of sticky notes! Now with lists for wedding invitations and budget items, etc., I have advanced to spreadsheets and reminder notes on my iphone…although I still always have a pad of sticky notes nearby.

• What are some of the things you enjoy and look forward to now?

  When Elizabeth left for college and there truly was an empty nest it was really hard to get used to life not on a roller coaster. But over time, you really do find other activities that take up your time. Dave and I are fortunate that three of our four kids live within an hour of us, so we get to see them regularly. Some of my favorite things to do are going to workout classes, reading, golfing, watching sports, and volunteering. Of course since our grandbaby, Patrick, was born, all of our worlds revolve around him and watching him grow. I think probably the best thing of all is we have four children that have met wonderful people that joined our family and now they are all our best friends and we really enjoy spending time with them.

By Stephanie Elsen

Budgeting is an estimation of the revenue and expenses for your company over a specified future period of time. In order for your budget to benefit you, it needs to be monitored on a regular basis.

Budgeting lets you look at “what-if” scenarios. What if you purchased a new asset? What would be the change to your cash flow? This enables you to make smarter buying decisions.

So yes, a budget can definitely help you! All CenterPoint Accounting Software products contain budgeting capabilities. If you are interested in getting help setting up and using budgets in CenterPoint, call your Customer Care support number, and the support experts will be happy to help you!