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Information Technology Company Doubles Sales Every Three Years Since 1985 Using AccountMate Software
Customer
Cranel Inc.
www.cranel.com
Corporate Headquarters
Columbus, Ohio
Type of Business
Provides data storage, imaging, support products and services
Number of Locations: 4
Number of Employees: 160
Number of AccountMate Users: 100+
Software Installed:
Accounts Payable
Accounts Receivable
Bank Reconciliation
General Ledger
Inventory Control
Manufacturing
Purchase Order
Sales Order
RMA
RTV
"We’ve migrated through many business steps over the last 20 years and have a highly controlled, very effective accounting process using a combination of the system [AccountMate], people and processes. If you ignore the people and processes, then you’ll break.”"
- Michael Tracy,
CFO,
Cranel
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Since 1985, Cranel Inc. has developed Information Technology (IT) solutions and services through
its distribution network of Value Added Resellers (VARs). With its four business units, Adexis,
Cranel Imaging, ISOdx, and Versitec, the company offers a complete suite of expertise, service
and innovative solutions that align IT investments with business goals. From computing and data
storage infrastructure solutions, change isolation software systems and digital document imaging
equipment to software, and support for all product and service offerings, Cranel’s comprehensive
business solutions are unmatched by competitors in the industry.
With more than 150 employees and annual revenues exceeding $120 million, Cranel has doubled
sales every three years since the company was founded. For the past two decades, Cranel has
evolved from a single user PC accounting system to an expansive business generating over
3,200 invoices per month with four locations across the United States and Canada.
Over 20 years ago Cranel realized they needed a comprehensive business management solution
that provided value and performance in sync with its swift growth objectives. At the time, they
selected AccountMate due to its superior scalability, open architecture and full set of functionalities
and capabilities to keep pace with their expansive growth goals right out-of-the-box.
The Challenge
For over 20 years AccountMate software provided the business management feature-set the
company needed. With the company’s growth and extensive business process complexity,
Cranel continually needed more and more from their accounting system. One difficulty that taxed
their resources was the time it took to reconcile their sub-ledgers with their General Ledger at
period-end closing. To handle account discrepancies at critical period-end closing timeframe
required extensive transactional drill-down and reconciliation by employees. This was
compounded when inventory values did not match the inventory General Ledger account
balance and manual adjustments had to be made.
As a result, Cranel did not have effective control and management over these accounting
transactions and employees tended to blame the accounting system for its poor performance.
The Solution
Because of the long-term professional relationship with their AccountMate reseller and the reseller’s
employees, Cranel again looked for consulting input from Tamlin Software Developers, Inc. Cranel
knew they could count on Tamlin, an Elite AccountMate Business Partner with a solution-driven
approach for solving multifaceted business challenges to partner with them to solve the issues. Tamlin
worked with Cranel to discuss their business processes and leveraged its expertise of AccountMate to
work out sound business processes and system changes. By utilizing the AccountMate source code,
Tamlin was able to apply some strict processing controls and to automate several aspects of Cranel’s
transactions.
After an extensive in-house analysis, Cranel management realized
that AccountMate continued to be a powerful, robust business
management system that wasn’t properly being used by its
employees. “When we peeled back the onion and looked at it, we
realized that we were using it [AccountMate] wrong,” explains
Michael Tracy, Cranel CFO. “After we changed our internal company
procedures, we discovered that we had a strong system that just
needed to run right.” As a result in early 2000, Cranel embarked on
an extensive procedural and technological journey to revolutionize
their internal business processes.
The first step of Cranel’s business overhaul involved establishing
company-wide policies and procedures to streamline transactional
processing. Internal procedures were developed where it was
obvious that there was a lack of accounting control and system
processes such as fostering out-of-balance inventory conditions in
AccountMate. Cranel established company-wide standards that
govern how employees use the accounting system at the
transactional level. With clearly defined internal processes and
AccountMate’s award-winning program design, the company has
fewer system adjustments, has improved out-of-balance conditions
and has gained a greater control over their accounting activities.
Another company hurdle had involved the handling of inventory
assets. Previously, inventory was accounted for in the General
Ledger when vendor invoices were received and paid for. This could
take months after the inventory was actually received and caused
significant accounting ramifications. With over 26,000 part numbers
to manage, Cranel needed to account for inventory values when they
were received versus paid for. To solve this business challenge,
Tamlin assisted Cranel with implementing the AccountMate Accrued
Received Goods feature of AccountMate. Tamlin also performed
some modifications to apply stricter business rules to the Accrued
Received Goods reconciliation process. By automating this process
within AccountMate, Cranel is able to report accurate, up-to-date
financials in real-time.
The Results
After working with Tamlin to establish company-wide controls and
procedures in combination with AccountMate’s full suite of awardwinning
features, capabilities and design, Cranel has a comprehensive financial accounting powerhouse at their fingertips.
The company reduced significant year-end audit adjustments to zero
within two years, and has audit-ready, closed books within five days
of each month end. By automating inventory valuation capability,
Cranel improved financial accuracy, eliminated double-paying vendor
invoices and significantly reduced the number of account
reconciliation adjustments to solve out-of-balance transactions.
With the integration of governing company-wide procedures, highlytrained
employees and AccountMate’s financial system, Cranel has a
dynamic business management solution. “We’ve migrated through
many business steps over the last 20 years and have a highly
controlled, very effective accounting process using a combination of
the system, people and processes,” says Tracey. “If you ignore the
people and processes, then you’ll break.”
About AccountMate Software Corporation
Founded in 1984, AccountMate develops and markets fully
modifiable business accounting software. Systems range from single
user versions to those that support over hundreds of users
simultaneously. AccountMate software is distributed exclusively
through a worldwide channel of authorized business partners.
AccountMate can be reached at (415) 883-8873 or at
www.accountmate.com.
About Tamlin Software Developers, Inc.
Tamlin Software Developers, Inc. has provided Enterprise Resource
Planning and Shop Floor Control solutions to small to mid-range
manufacturers and distributors since 1991. An Elite AccountMate
Business Partner and value added reseller, was selected by
Accounting Technology as a Killer VAR in 2007. Tamlin can be
reached at (214) 739-6576 or at www.tamlinsoftware.com.
About Cranel, Inc.
Founded in 1985, Cranel, Inc. develops IT solutions and services
that fit short-term needs and long-term goals. Each Cranel business
unit helps deliver strategic IT solutions that enhance business
performance and improve overall results. Cranel can be reached at
(800) 288-3475 or at www.cranel.com.
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