Do you see that? The big plume of smoke rising from the bottom of the canyon, up, up, up. All the way up to our vantage point where it drifts past the jagged boards where the bridge ends. See it curl around the signs painted in red, “DANGER – BRIDGE OUT AHEAD”?

We’d like to prevent your business from being the cause of that plume of smoke because your decades-old accounting software crashed and burned through all the warning signs.

THE PROBLEM

CMS Pro is no longer supported by Cougar Mountain Software.

Progress doesn’t stand still. The fact that the product we introduced over 20 years ago still functions and contributes to so many successful organizations gives us no small amount of satisfaction. But when it’s compared to contemporary industry standards for capability and convenience, CMS Pro is just a fast horse racing against ever-more innovative vehicles.

As of September 1, 2017, CMS Pro reached its end of life. This is a normal and expected phase of any software’s existence. The best parts of the program were carried over into the next generation, contributing to a never-ending cycle of improvement.

TRUST YOUR NEXT STEP

The next incarnation of CMS Pro is Denali. And, to ease any fear of the unknown, let us assure you that Denali has a long, well-vetted track record. It’s been on the market for 12 years and has been carefully refined to its current status as a lightning fast, well-organized accounting powerhouse.

Don’t worry; you’ll know how to operate it intuitively. The system includes a UI option wherein the navigation and layout mirrors the look of CMS Pro.

IF IT’S NOT BROKE DON’T FIX IT. IF IT’S OBSOLETE…

We understand you might be reluctant to abandon an accounting software that’s worked for you all these years. Especially because it is STILL working, and your business is zipping along just fine. The hiccup is, up until this point, you’ve enjoyed a safety net of customer support standing by to help answer your questions.

But now that our support has ended, there’s no longer a safety net when that “Danger” sign comes into view.

Very old cars might still run, but they’re less efficient, not as safe, and don’t have the new features and conveniences of modern technology. The same is true of Cougar Mountain Software’s CMS Pro.

If you are concerned about downtime, remember…You and your employees are used to how CMS Pro is set up for your business. Upgrading to Denali will allow you to keep that same setup; there won’t be much of a learning curve of discovering where to click in every window and how to complete tasks that you’ve been doing automatically for years. It’s stressful to change something that has become the backbone of office life. Let us make this change as easy as possible for you.

SURPRISINGLY FAMILIAR

As mentioned above, Denali can be configured to display in “Classic mode” which changes the interface to look and function exactly like CMS Pro.

Even though it will look almost identical, you’ll have a few new tricks to learn. Cougar Mountain Software offers both online and on-site training for Denali software. We’re happy to guide you through the transition from old to new.

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Many clients find they need less than a weekend to convert from CMS Pro to Denali, and only one day of training before they can hit the ground running. Businesses barely register the interruption, but they do notice the increase in performance and software capabilities.

Or ask an expert to explain the timeline you can expect when switching HERE.

Don’t wake up in the driver’s seat as your software careens over the cliff. Heed the danger signs. Let us help you make the transition from CMS Pro to Denali before it’s too late.

Spring of 2017 brought with it a sterling opportunity to enact one of Cougar Mountain Software’s core values: to be “Accountable to our Communities.” Robert Geier and Dave Parvin, two of the company’s best programmers, offered their time and extensive knowledge to assist aspiring developers on the 4th and 5th of April 2017. In conjunction with Boise CodeWorks, Southern Idaho’s premiere coding bootcamp, Geier and Parvin conducted mock interviews for trainees in the final week of their Boise CodeWorks training. The programming-language school covers HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Twitter, Google, .NET, SQL, and Git. The mock interviews covered all of that, as well as workplace etiquette, resume construction, and the difficult art of self-promotion. The half hour interviews occurred between the hours of 1 and 4 pm and were hosted on-site at the CodeWorks facility.

Proving the old adage that goodness breeds goodness, the benefits of this exercise were two-fold. Students were questioned, advised, and in some cases championed by Cougar Mountain Software’s veteran programmers, bolstering these new computer linguists, web developers, and analysts entering the local job market. This, in turn, will elevate the performance of the entire area and hopefully foster innovation. The second benefit impacts Cougar Mountain Software clients more directly, in that for each student, mock interview, curriculum question, and out-of-the-box answer that Geier and Parvin were exposed to, their own knowledge was stretched. Their enhanced perspective was taken back to the Cougar Mountain Software Dev department and applied to how their teams think about or will execute future projects. If you ask them, they’ll confess that they only teamed up with Boise CodeWorks to help. Plain and simple. Especially for a profession that is often associated with loners and dark cubicles, Geier and Parvin recognized this as an opportunity to use their experience to engage with the future talent in their field and help the local community.

“We’ve always prided ourselves on being an “old-fashioned” kind of company — culture wise,” said Chuck Gosset, CEO. “We believe in treating our employees with dignity, making sure people go home to their families right at 5 o’clock, and listening — really listening to the folks we hired. A handshake still means something here. Giving back to the community like Robert and Dave have is commendable and somewhat expected. It’s the decent thing to do.”

The two volunteers inspired a lot of talk around the office of other ways the company could give back, with several teams brainstorming and pitching service projects to their department heads in the ensuing month. There is a popular saying (author unknown) that‘s heard with increasing frequency around the office. “Making money just isn’t enough, you know?” It’s said quietly, matter-of-factly, and has become part of the culture.

Geier and Parvin working with Boise CodeWorks invigorated Cougar Mountain Software’s employees. If their efforts have incubated a fraction of that passion and excitement in the CodeWorks graduates, then Boise’s tech future is going to be very bright indeed.

For more information about Boise CodeWorks or the courses they offer visit https://boisecodeworks.com/.

This week, Target announced that its 2013 data breach had been resolved for $18.5 million. That breach involved access to consumer data for over 110 million Target customers. Public service accountants should take notice. Whether you work with a school district, a fire department, police department, or any other public service entity, you will access and be responsible for sensitive data. Cougar Mountain Software’s DENALI allows you to breathe easy because its accounting solution solves common public service accounting security challenges with these five enhanced security features:

Have you ever noticed the eye roll when you ask for a split check at a restaurant? You’re having a great time with your friends and the wait staff is doing a great job, and when you ask to split the check the server’s demeanor instantly goes icy. It’s because split checks are a hassle. But split checks are part of doing business, any business. Beyond the restaurant world, third-party billing and split payments are a headache every accountant faces whether it’s between providers and insurers in the medical profession, or multiple donors in the nonprofit sector. Virtually every business will confront a third-party billing or split payment inquiry at some point. Denali and Denali Fund accounting software make it easy to answer those requests with an enthusiastic “YES!”

Denali offers a one-of-a-kind solution to the third-party billing and payment dilemma that is unmatched by other accounting software providers. In today’s business world, third-party billing and split payment capabilities are non-negotiable items for accountants—they are simply a way of life! Cougar Mountain Software’s Denali allows users to intuitively split billings and payments, and then reconcile them without creating headaches. In fact, third-party billing and split payments in Denali and Denali Fund are as simple as adding a payer and assigning them to the billing item. One of accounting’s perpetual puzzles is easily solved by deploying Denali or Denali Fund within your organization.

According to the National Center for Charitable Statistics, nonprofits account for 5.3% of the GDP. That equals more than 1.5 million organizations accounting for 9.2% of all wages and salaries paid in the United States. That many organizations, all handling money on a daily basis, require a powerful accounting software solution. Denali FUND from Cougar Mountain Software is designed to handle the breadth of these organizations from the smallest to the largest, as well as the complexity of each organization’s individual finances.

Nonprofit accounting requires flexibility and customization. Nothing captures the essentials of nonprofit accounting agility like Cougar Mountain Software’s Denali FUND. Denali FUND offers modular flexibility, breakout budgets, a secure audit trail, individual user tracking, and customized reporting. Putting these essentials to work with Denali FUND will solve your nonprofit accounting challenges in an accessible and tailored format.