MYOB launches Australian-first in cloud accounting

Australia’s largest provider of business management solutions, MYOB today announced its much anticipated cloud accounting solution, AccountRight Live, is code-complete and will be available to clients from 8 November.

The launch event in Sydney yesterday featured VIPs including the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy and the Minister for Small Business.

The most widely used accounting solution in the country, MYOB AccountRight has been the gold standard for smaller businesses for two decades. AccountRight Live contains the full set of accounting features and enables SMEs to seamlessly manage their business anywhere, anytime on the desktop and in the cloud as they choose. This online accounting without compromise approach heralds an Australian-first.

In another industry first, as part of its commitment to the “anywhere, anytime” proposition, MYOB has invested heavily in live 24/7 client support across phone, email and online channels. 

CEO Tim Reed says, “AccountRight Live will change the way our clients do business. Now, hundreds of thousands of business owners who use and trust our AccountRight desktop software range can easily experience the benefits of cloud at their own pace. They don’t need to migrate data to a new system or learn a new interface, they simply install our latest release and turn the live features on.”

“It’s online accounting without compromise and it will make business life easier for so many Australians.

“We’ve now brought the cloud to the SME mass market via the country’s most popular accounting solution. They can choose how to do their accounts: online, offline or by alternating between at any time. This seamless switching is an Australian-first. Business owners have a terrific opportunity to increase their productivity, develop smarter connections with networks and free up time for business building or enjoying life outside work.

“The time, effort and cost savings from cloud accounting are a game-changer for businesses. With AccountRight Live you can work on your data with your accountant, book keeper, business advisor and other team members in different locations, at the same time. All changes are saved in the one file in real-time. For additional security, a back-up of your file is copied to your desktop every 20 minutes or whenever you want. This allows business owners to remain in control of their important data. 

“Another stand out feature is the ability for clients to link their bank accounts directly to AccountRight Live. Transactions are automatically and securely imported, reducing manual data entry and improving accuracy. So, clients have more time to do what they love rather than spending unnecessary time on data entry.”

Security a key criterion
In developing the product, one of MYOB’s core criteria was ensuring the security of client data, says Reed.

“We invested heavily in the solution’s security architecture and design, implementing industry best practice by working with specialists on our architecture and testing. This included having our design externally validated by a specialist, third-party security vendor, a full code review performed by a separate A-class vendor and penetration testing of the final system done by another third-party,” he says.

Desktop and cloud workflow further explained
Business owners are no longer constrained by intermittent internet connectivity; they can enjoy uninterrupted workflow by accessing AccountRight Live at any time they choose, with or without the internet. Because a copy of the application is loaded onto their computer, access to their accounting data is available no matter what.

“When online, you use the business logic and data in the cloud while the desktop provides the interface, similar to how a browser operates. If you choose or need to go offline and want to work on your accounts locally, you do so by ‘checking out’ your file, in which case the application works similar to other desktop software. To ensure there are no conflicting versions of your data, when you check out the application intelligently puts your shared version in the cloud in read-only mode. When you reconnect, all changes are seamlessly synced back up to the cloud and the exclusive lock removed,” adds Reed.  

“You can also authorise others to access your data simultaneously from any location. This eliminates the need to deliver data in to your business advisors via CD, USB, email and other less secure means.”

Potential for SMEs to boost financial results
Reed notes the cloud’s flexibility and scalability provides a gateway to boost financial results, saying, “MYOB research found SMEs using the cloud in business were 53% more likely to see a revenue rise last financial year and 55% more likely to have more sales/work than usual in their three-month pipeline. Easy to adopt online solutions such as MYOB Atlas, LiveAccounts and AccountRight Live make the cloud more accessible to SMEs.”

AccountRight Live is available on the MYOB website and via MYOB partners on 8 November, with subscriptions starting at $23 per month. MYOB Cover members receive access at no extra cost. Clients who purchased an AccountRight desktop license from 1 October 2012 will have six months free access. All AccountRight Live clients receive 24/7 live support.

In further detail, AccountRight Live features include:

·         Anywhere access - your accounts, inventory and payroll are available from your internet connected PC, anywhere you want.

·         Save data in the cloud and to your PC - access your accounts in the cloud and make a local backup to your PC to work on whenever you like.

·         Automatically import and match bank transactions -link your bank account to AccountRight Live to import bank transaction records automatically via
BankLink, from over 100 financial institutions, whether you work in the cloud or on the desktop. This feature is currently available in beta.

·         Online collaboration - one set of accounts, yet same-time cloud access for multiple users.

·         Live access for business advisors - provide your business advisor live access whenever you choose and work on the same books at the same time.

·         Business insights dashboard -comprehensivedaily snapshot of your business.

·         Automatic updates - continuous access to software and payroll updates upon release.

·         API (application programming interface) - developer partners can create and integrate applications. This is currently being developed.

·         Windows 8 compatibility - full compatibility with Microsoft’s latest operating system.

·         24/7 service and support - 24/7 live access to MYOB experts via phone, email and online.

AccountRight Live is available for the existing AccountRight Plus, AccountRight Standard and AccountRight Basics software. It will be available for AccountRight Premier next year. Two in three Australian businesses use accounting software and of these, three in every five rely on MYOB accounting software, primarily AccountRight.

Other MYOB Live online solutions are already helping tens of thousands of businesses to get better connected:

Getting businesses online: MYOB Atlas
Many Australian SMEs have built an online presence in the past 18 months through MYOB and Google’s Getting Aussie Business Online initiative. It provides businesses with the MYOB Atlas website builder and other tools needed to easily create a well-designed website in 15 minutes at no cost for the first year.

Easy online accounting: MYOB LiveAccounts
Designed for smaller businesses with simple needs, MYOB LiveAccounts delivers easy online accounting for less than $1 per day. Like other browser-based online accounting systems, LiveAccounts enables businesses multi-user access to their data via a web browser. LiveAccounts also offers automatic links to a business’s bank transactions, eliminating tedious data entry and saving time.

For MYOB product information, research results, business tips, discussions, customer service and more visit http://myob.com.au, http://myob.com.au/blog and www.twitter.com/MYOBteam.

About MYOB
Established in 1991, MYOB is now Australia’s largest business management solutions provider. It simplifies accounting, payroll, CRM, websites, job costing, inventory management and much more for businesses of all ages, types and sizes. Over one million businesses in Australia and New Zealand have used one or more of MYOB’s 50+ products and services. Today, its solutions extend online, delivering innovation through cloud computing and enabling clients to make smarter connections with their business partners and customers. With a network of 20,000+ accountants, book keepers, certified consultants and other professional partners, MYOB provides support and tools that help make business life easier. Visit: http://myob.com.au/smarterconnections.