By Stephanie Elsen
With all the changes happening in healthcare, such as the 2013 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, your payroll solution must accommodate those changes. What are the steps you have in place to be sure your payroll complies with the mandated changes?
If you are using a reputable payroll software system or payroll service, they should be managing the changes to your software, so that you are aware and able to stay current with those changes. However, if you are using an older system or managing payroll by hand, these changes will be extremely difficult to stay on top of and manage.
CenterPoint Payroll Software stays current with these changes. So do many other payroll software programs and services. As 2013 approaches, be sure you are covered for the upcoming year and the looming changes.
By Stephanie Elsen
If you are currently using an accounting software program and are thinking about moving to Red Wing Software’s CenterPoint Accounting Software, an important consideration is which of your current data can be brought into CenterPoint Accounting Software, and what is the process for transferring that data. This post explains how that works.
What will Transfer
Providing you can pull out the data from your current system in a compatible format, you should be able to bring all master record information into CenterPoint. When importing your master file information, the only required field is the ABBREVIATION. This will be the unique identifier for that customer or vendor, etc. All other fields of information are optional.
| Customer information | Vendor information |
|---|
| Abbreviation |
Abbreviation |
| First Name |
First Name |
| Middle Initial |
Middle Initial |
| Business Name/Last Name |
Business Name/Last Name |
| Address Line 1 |
Address Line 1 |
| Address Line 2 |
Address Line 2 |
| Address Line 3 |
Address Line 3 |
| City |
City |
| State |
State |
| Zip Code |
Zip Code |
| Phone |
Phone |
| Cell Phone |
Cell Phone |
| E-mail |
E-mail |
| Terms |
Terms |
| Default A/R Account |
Default A/P Account |
| Customer Since |
Is a Business |
| Is a Business |
Fax |
| Sales Tax |
Contact Federal Tax ID |
| Shipping Method |
State Tax ID |
| Fax |
Memo |
| Contact |
|
These are the parameters for what can be brought into CenterPoint for Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable. You can also import your master data into the General Ledger, Payroll, Budgets, Inventory Items and more. As for what can be brought in, again all master record file information can be imported into CenterPoint.
How the DataTransfer Process Works
Any importing of data, no matter where it comes from, is done with the help of the Red Wing Software support team. You extract the information you wish to transfer from your system and provide it in Excel (.CSV or .XLS) file format. The Red Wing Software support team takes that information and maps it into the CenterPoint System for you. We can start up a new database for you, but we recommend that you have CenterPoint installed and set up before we transfer your data into the system for you. We find most customers prefer to start the system setup themselves with such basic information as sales taxes, shipping methods, terms and accounts that most businesses would use.
When the data import is complete, Red Wing Software staff will assign your information to the specified destination within CenterPoint, and provide you a completed import file, which you then use to restore your CenterPoint system. Your system will then be populated with your data. Please call Red Software for more details.
The IRS has published information regarding a Medicare tax calculation change that will start January 1, 2013. The change does not take effect until an employee has reached a certain wage limit, and once that limit is reached there is an additional .009 (nine-tenths of one percent) Medicare tax withheld from the employee’s wages. The employer wages are not affected, only the employee. Any type of wages or benefits that presently are subject to Medicare tax will be subject to this additional .9 percent for all wages and benefits that exceed $200,000.
Red Wing Software is currently working to ensure its CenterPoint Payroll and Red Wing Payroll Software programs will accommodate these changes well ahead of January 1st, 2013 when the changes take effect.
How about you? Can your payroll system calculate this additional Medicare tax calculation? If you are interested in upgrading to or purchasing CenterPoint Payroll, please learn more about the product by clicking here: Payroll Software or calling 800-732-9464.
By Stephanie Elsen
Over the years, Red Wing Software has worked hard to create add-on items that our customers have requested and need for their accounting software and payroll software. Whether you are using CenterPoint Accounting for business, agriculture, nonprofit or municipal, or CenterPoint Payroll, what has been your favorite add-on, and why?
Here are some popular add-ons available for CenterPoint:
- Advanced Earnings Matrix
- Check Designer
- General Ledger Journal Import
- Employee Training/Certification Tracking
- Publish Pay Advices
- Ratios
- Time Import
Which of these have you found most useful, and why?
By Stephanie Elsen
Have you ever wondered how you can save yourself some time during payroll processing? Well, if you are currently entering time from time cards by hand, there is surely a better way. Investing the time in setting up parameters and using your payroll software to import that time is definitely worth the effort, and will likely pay itself off the first time you use it! (Please note that importing from a time clock requires the use of an electronic time clock capable of outputting a file compatible with your payroll software.)
Setting up a time clock import in your payroll software basically consists of setting up a routine for the time clock to communicate with the payroll software. This routine you set up is called a time import definition. It tells the time clock (or other time collection device) which fields to import and bring into your payroll software. Once you set up your import definition and get it exactly how you want it to be, you can then import the time seamlessly each time you run payroll.
Red Wing Software offers time import as an add-on purchase for CenterPoint Payroll Software. If you don’t use CenterPoint Payroll, ask your provider if a time import function is available.