Notes from the President

05 October 2021 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

October may seem like a strange time to talk about budgeting for your business, but any time of year is a good time to review how your business is tracking against your projections. At Red Wing Software, we’ve already started the planning process for 2022. Whether it’s planning for next year or comparing this year’s results to what you were planning, looking at your actual numbers compared to your business plan for the year should be something that happens regularly.
To illustrate, I’ll use a couple of Red Wing Software examples of why this is important. Each manager of their respective department is responsible for creating their budget for the coming year. Of course, not only are expenses projected, but revenue is also part of the budget. For example, each Sales Representative puts together the sales goals they expect to achieve monthly, and how they expect to achieve those goals. Sales numbers are then measured throughout the year daily, so we are aware of how we are performing compared to our projections. If sales numbers are not what we expected (either lower or higher), it is important to know the reasons and react quickly to any discrepancy. Of course, if sales numbers are higher than we expected, we want to know why and keep making decisions that ensure continued success.
On the expense side, you obviously want to make sure you are not spending money that was not budgeted without a serious look into why these expenses were increased. Also, and this may sound strange at first, you want to make sure you are spending all the budgeted money unless there is a good reason for not spending it. For instance, our Marketing Manager budgets to spend a certain amount on very specific items; whether it’s advertising, trade shows, web presence, travel, or other things, it is important to stick to this plan. If marketing dollars are not spent as planned, the result could very well be a decrease in revenue. It can be a delicate balancing act.
We are fortunate at Red Wing Software to have seasoned, experienced managers and staff who are very good at planning for their respective departments. Our revenue and expense numbers are typically within two percent of their projections. I believe with practice, discipline, and timely analysis, most businesses can be equally accurate in their planning process.

Notes from the President

06 September 2021 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

In observance of the United States national holiday – Labor Day – our offices will be closed on September 6th. Every year when Labor Day comes around, it reminds me of my father’s example regarding work ethics. He worked for John Deere for around 26 years, most of those as a United Auto Workers union member. One of the things that impressed me was his determination to be at work – every day – on time. I remember him leaving early enough for work, that if he had a flat tire on the way, he had time to change it and still punch in before his shift started. This is just one example of many that shaped my siblings and me while growing up. While Labor Day was originally the idea of labor unions in the late 1800s, I believe it applies to all people who work for a living, no matter their choice of profession.
The last paragraph on the United States Department of Labor website about the history of Labor Day says it all: “The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation's strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.”
Have a safe Labor Day weekend.

Notes from the President

06 August 2021 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

Last month, I mentioned that Red Wing Software transitioned to a work-from-home business model when over a year ago, the Minnesota Governor mandated, “If you can work from home, you must work from home.” Our transition was relatively seamless thanks to our experience of already having several team members working from home for several years and Larry, our amazing IT Manager.
We’ve been able to do a pretty good job of maintaining communications, but there still seemed to be something missing. The networking and “water cooler” talk was more difficult to replace with phone calls and electronic chats. For a relatively small company with a family atmosphere, that networking is important.
Connie, our Technical Writer, came up with a great idea to help re-establish some of this more casual networking. We have regularly scheduled internal team meetings each week that a few people normally attend. Now, before some of these meetings, usually three times per week, we have a ten-minute “virtual coffee break,” where anyone can join a video conference and catch up with others on what’s going on outside the office. Then, when the meeting is ready to start, they are welcome to stay on and participate in the meeting or log off and continue their regular duties.
We’ve only been doing this for a few short weeks, but it seems to be accomplishing our goal. It’s great to have staff members proactively come up with ideas to make Red Wing Software a better company.

Notes from the President

05 July 2021 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

Last month I mentioned visiting with a customer looking for functionality that would make CenterPoint® Payroll software work better for their operation. In a meeting following that visit, our internal team that looks at new functionality at a high level discussed what we could do to encourage our customers to use our services to help them better use our products. Also, why are some people reluctant to call and ask questions when looking for functionality or have a question?
We stepped back and looked at customer service from a view outside Red Wing Software and came up with some thoughts and experiences of our own.
One team member commented that it took “forever” to get to a live person when trying to resolve an issue with an insurance company. Unfortunately, this happens so often that people have come to expect a bad customer service experience, and they are reluctant to put themselves through the agony of calling for help. At Red Wing Software, live support team members take more than 95% of all support calls as they come in without a call-back or a long wait time, and 100% of callers have immediate access to a live person during business hours.
Another popular excuse for poor customer service when calling for assistance, especially from large multi-national companies over the last several months, has been the lingering pandemic. I understand this has put a strain on many companies. However, when it comes to customer service provided primarily by phone, if a relatively small business, like Red Wing Software, can seamlessly transition to a work-from-home business model, why can’t a multi-national company with seemingly unlimited resources do the same? To steal a quote from our current president; “C’mon man.”
Please don’t hesitate to contact us for help with our products or suggestions that will make our software better. Of course, if you prefer to not talk to a live person, we’ll still be happy to provide excellent customer service, if you send us an email.
On behalf of Red Wing Software, I hope everyone had/has a safe Canada Day and Independence Day.

Notes from the President

04 June 2021 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

Occasionally, I get the opportunity to visit some of our customers’ locations and discuss how they use our software and what they might like to see in the software to make it a better fit for their operation. Recently, Matt (Red Wing Software Sales Consultant) and I toured Tomatoes of Ruskin in Florida and had the pleasure of meeting with the people that use our software daily.
Tomatoes of Ruskin grows and packages tomatoes for wholesale distribution. They have been using CenterPoint Payroll for about eight years and had not recently had much contact with our support team. When we questioned them about not calling in for help, they enthusiastically indicated that the software was working so well that they didn’t need any help. We asked what we could do to make their payroll process better, and they mentioned an employee copy function that used to work better for them and was changed in an update about two years ago. To make a long story short, we drilled down a little, found that we had changed that functionality in a prior release. So, we came back and entered a new change request in our internal tracking software to reintroduce that functionality so they would have the option to use it like it previously worked.
The only other request they had was to have the ability to reconcile bank accounts within CenterPoint Payroll, and they were unaware that was already available. So, we showed them where they could access that functionality in the software. We like the questions with easy answers.
I mention these requests to bring up another point. Whenever you, our customers, would like to see changes or new functionality in our software, we encourage you to call or send an email with your suggestions. You certainly are not bothering us with your ideas. The best way for us to make our products better is to hear those ideas from you. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your thoughts. While we can’t promise everything, we continually work to make our software better.
I want to thank the folks at Tomatoes of Ruskin for allowing us to interrupt their busy day, give us an excellent tour of their operation, and help us learn more about how people are putting our software to work.
I hope everyone enjoyed the Memorial Day weekend while remembering those who served our country to keep us safe and free.