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Living through it – from Punch Cards to Mobile Applications!

Posted by Bob Stevenson on June 6, 2016

This posting will unfortunately betray the fact that I may have entered that period of life known as the “senior years”. With that comes a degree of reflection and I was thinking of the technical progress that I have seen in my professional life so far (and hopefully more to come!) This was also prompted by a union calling me and asking if anyone in our company could handle a conversion from a system running on a “mainframe” using COBOL- really. More surprisingly, was that yes, we could actually handle that.

A whole lexicon related to systems from the past came to me- punch cards, IBM 360, mini computers, dumb terminals, Apple 11, floppy disk, Novell, Y2K etc. etc. Amongst this barrage of by- gone systems there was one related, recent fact that impressed me at the end of this stream – after decades of dominance as the principal processing tool by business and individuals the reign of the PC is coming to an end. For the first time since its introduction to the market, sales of PC’s are on the decline as the emphasis on mobile applications and the device platforms they use grows dramatically. I thought about the aforementioned union with their “mainframe/COBL” system and the world they would be moved to by changing to leading edge modern software.

The business of unions cries out for the adoption of mobile systems as much, if not more so, as any corporation and yet I am sure that an analysis of their platforms would show that they are lamentably behind in this respect. Unions have geographically diverse related entities (Internationals, Councils, Chapters, and Locals etc.) as well as a need for staff and members to share data in different locations sometimes while “on the road” or “offsite”.

The adoption of web based mobile systems can dramatically change the way unions do business and drive efficiencies that could not have been imagined just a few years ago. By using mobile devices union staff that work “in the field” such as business agents and stewards can access central database information via their mobile devices and provide answers to employers and members in seconds. Processes such as Dispatch and Hiring Hall as well as Grievance Management can be carried out remotely thereby vastly improving communications and the efficiency of these key operations. In addition when coupled with effective member engagement activities through social media, SMS and e-mail blasts (accessed by members on THEIR mobile devices), key activities such as organizing and voter turnout programs, become transformed creating tremendous possibilities for unions on the political and organizing level. Other key uses we are developing relate to processes like an instant status checks of a member’s “standing” and dues payment history as well as the processing of dues – all done via “remote” mobiles devices.

In summary, the possibilities of “field” uses to strengthen member ties to the union and improve operational efficiencies for the Local are no longer limited by technology but are actually improved by it.

The new customer I mentioned earlier with the “mainframe/COBOL -based system will be moving to our new PRIZM® system which is “mobile ready” and provides all of the functionality that I outlined above. It’s going to be an incredible change but that’s what is needed in many union systems that have become obsolete and inefficient. Check out where your union lies between “punch cards and Mobile Applications” and if you want us to help you move towards the most advanced software that there is give me a call personally and I will be happy to arrange a demonstration of what’s possible at YOUR union.

Robert N Stevenson
Director of Business Development
tel: (203) 831 8655 ext. 113

Tags: Dues, Grievance Management, Labor Unions, Prizm, software

Posted in: Accounting Systems, Dues Software, Labor Unions, Membership Systems

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The World of “Crisis Driven Systems Decisions”

Posted by Bob Stevenson on August 27, 2013

I use this phrase to describe what a great many unions (and other organizations) use as their systems development “strategy”. In this paradigm there is little thought given to pro-active planning of upgrading software or hardware. Staff skills are rarely considered either.

I am reminded of an old “Seinfeld” episode where Jerry is describing the average man’s attitude to buying underwear. “Men will wear their underwear until the last molecule of underwear is gone before even thinking of a replacement.” Maybe a bit extreme but you get the point. Below are some actual examples of this phenomenon in calls we have received.

1. “Our bookkeeper is retiring and we are thinking of a PC based system”. Current system? – “Books.”

2. “Our printer broke and we can’t find another one that prints “green bar” computer stock for our reports.”

3. “Our COBOL programmer just walked out, can you help us?”

4. “Do you have anybody there who can upgrade our Lotus 123 system? We have had it since 1983 and we love it.”

I often think if the same attitude was adopted towards systems as we take towards automobiles, we would probably see this disappear. If you did drive a 30 year- old car you would probably be envied as the owner of a “collectible”. Try finding buyers for a 30 year – old computer system. No “classics” there!

Here’s what’s REALLY bad about this state of affairs. If this is how your union is operating, things are going to get much worse! We now operate in a world where major software companies “manufacture” these crises by continual “upgrades.” (That’s the one where they move things around the screen and tell you it’s a new version.) More drastically, these major software developers will “kill” development platforms to continually promote the sales of newer products.

Some of this is pure marketing, but much of it is genuinely driven by the pace of technology change. Gone are the days of developing software and installing it on a particular operating system / hardware configuration and then letting it chug away for 15-20 or even 30 years! The longevity of ANY systems in terms of supportability is now much less than that and demands almost constant review and pro-active action. Failure to stay on top of the latest in software development invites continual crises in your union.

If you have such a “crisis” – give us a call. BETTER STILL – contact us to avoid a crisis.

Posted in: Accounting Systems, Dues Software, Membership Systems

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Embezzlement – It Involves the Nicest People

Posted by Bob Stevenson on May 1, 2013

They were the last people you would ever imagine would steal $____________ (fill in the dollars).

My professional background was originally in accounting. I held various positions ranging from a NATO budget analyst to the Financial Controllership of a major corporation.

In the course of this wide-ranging career it was my dubious privilege to become acquainted with various individuals who had committed fraud. Recently I was once again confronted by the news that a past customer of ours had committed embezzlement and was now facing jail time. This was the second time in the last year that I had heard this kind of news about people I knew. My reaction has always been the same. It’s the one that is classically recorded in the media to these events……. “I can’t believe it; he/she seemed like the last person who would do that!” After a 40 year professional career nothing has changed in this respect. I remember having dinner with a customer many years ago and in the course of that evening I mentioned the sophisticated auditing capabilities that were in our software (which he was using) but which were hidden from the user.

Almost immediately large beads of perspiration broke out on my customers face accompanied by the words “WHAT!!! YOU DIDN’T TELL ME THAT!” You can guess the rest. The amount stolen was in the millions. The message here of course is that we MUST implement best practices in our accounting processes and software when it comes to discouraging embezzlement and trust NOT in our judgment of somebody’s “niceness.”

It is actually almost impossible to completely eliminate the possibility of fraud when it comes to a determined embezzler. Embezzlers I have spoken with have in many cases started out with the promise (to themselves), that they were “borrowing” the money and would put it back when in a position to do so. When they subsequently were unable to pay it back, there then was a rationalization process whereby they convinced themselves that they somehow had “earned” it on just this occasion, so no problem. Needless to say, that rationalization progresses to the point where it becomes a “right” to steal on a frequent basis.

Good prevention practices are a combination of processes like division of responsibilities so that no one person controls the finances, and taking advantage of security features found in your Accounting software. Some software packages are of course much more capable in this area than others, and by and large you get what you pay for.

To learn more about the security features of our software and fraud prevention please contact us or our accounting software partners CriticalEdge Group.

Tags: Accounting Systems, Fraud

Posted in: Accounting Systems, General

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Is your Organization Vulnerable to Back Office Attacks? – Get EXPERT Help!

Posted by Bob Stevenson on February 28, 2013

It’s no secret that these days unions are under attack at many levels from their political and ideological foes. Some of the more recent tactics are directly aimed at disrupting or crippling a union by using indirect methods, such as attacking their administrative functions. A prime example of this is the threatened removal of “dues check off”; the procedure whereby a union organized employer deducts dues amounts from the union employees’ payroll check and remits the amounts directly to the union in question. Members’ dues of course are the life blood of unions. Disrupting the dues check off or other collection procedures in such a fashion as to force the union to collect individual dues from every member, can seriously threaten a union’s existence. As another example, think of how the Bush-era changes in the LM-2 regulations forced you to spend time and money re-working your bookkeeping and accounting. Or, think about how changes in the right-to-work laws are profoundly affecting organized labor.

The potential for these “indirect” attacks should make every union examine their “back office” procedures (accounting, membership administration, benefits administration etc.) and think proactively about how to be prepared.

Here are three pieces of advice that we could give unions in this direction:

Focus on what the prime mission of any union is – organizing and mobilizing your members
Get expert assistance in the areas in which you are not an “expert.” This usually means your “back office.” Whether you have a full time, paid back office staff, or are a smaller organization with volunteers performing these tasks, make sure you have the best tools in place.
These attacks are not going away. Plan for the future and avoid short term thinking. Maybe your opponents didn’t win this time around, but they will try again.

To achieve these objectives means investment and thinking about your union for the long term. It cannot be done “on the cheap.” Getting expert assistance does not mean your brother in law who took a week long course on programming or the guy next door who “keeps books”. It means delegating your back office functionality as much as you can to experts in the following areas:

Accounting and Financial Control
Membership and Dues Administration
Benefits Administration
Information Technology

Getting real experts in these areas will pay off hugely in the long term. This fight is going to be waged in the long term.

If you want expert advice on any of the areas above contact us for a free conversation and evaluation.

Tags: Accounting Systems, Back Office Attacks, Dues Check Off, LM-2

Posted in: Accounting Systems, Dues Software, Labor Unions, Membership Systems

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Back Office Systems – “If It Ain’t Broke….Maybe You Should Replace It?”

Posted by Bob Stevenson on February 13, 2013

As specialists in union back office systems we often hear the old saying (upon which I’ve based my title above) “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” This is often used when talking about software which could be referred to as “past its sell by date”, “vintage” or well….. Just plain old.

There is some truth to this adage when discussing perhaps a kitchen blender or a staging of a Shakespeare play, but when it comes to software it can be false economy in the extreme. Two areas in which we specialize are membership systems and accounting systems. In each of these areas, the changes that have come along in the last few years are of great significance. In some cases we are not even talking about improved functionality and additional features, but changes which have totally revolutionized the entire functionality of the product in question. Take for instance the impact of the Internet on the present possibilities of union membership and dues software. Here are some extraordinary capabilities which depending upon the size and type of union would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

a) Maintaining and reporting on your member data from anywhere in the world.
b) Self service areas where members can (within allowed parameters) see data relevant to their own membership and dues history.
c) Pay union dues and other charges online using credit cards and / or ACH charges.
d) Instant communications en masse with membership through e-mails and social media.
e) Internationals’ systems can consolidate and analyze data in real time from hundreds of locals, with everybody viewing the same data at the same time.
f) Employer payroll data (e.g. dues deductions) being sent digitally and processed faster as a result.
g) Filing official forms and reports (Department of Labor LM-2, LM-3 etc.) online.
h) “Cloud” based systems where even small locals can access powerful systems on an “as required basis” and reduce the reliance on internal software, operating systems, networks and costly “IT support”. Cloud systems can even greatly reduce any “up front” capital expenditure.

All of the above examples have come into being relatively recently and are offered by our company. Yet time and again we see unions of all sizes still using systems which were designed and implemented years before any of this was possible.

These changes don’t just represent technical advances; they come with sometimes vast savings in efficiency and cost. The impacts upon system design, operation, and deployment have been dramatic and every union should be considering how they might benefit from adoption of a system based on the latest technology, even if their existing system “ain’t broke”. It’s a bit like sticking with a horse and buggy when you can fly. The horse and buggy “ain’t broke” but it’s time has passed, and so has its efficiency and cost effectiveness. If you have a system which has been developed before words like “eBay”, “blog” , “Google” or even “web” were around you seriously need to look at today’s alternatives. Bear in mind that at the rate modern technology advances it is far easier to make changes incrementally on a planned basis than to try and suddenly overhaul a system whose pedigree goes back to the days when disco was new.

If you would like a no obligation appraisal of your current systems, and want to find out more about how recent developments in technology can help your union, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help.

Tags: Back Office Systems, Cloud, Dues Software, LM-2, LM-3, Union Dues, Union Membership

Posted in: Accounting Systems, Dues Software, Labor Unions, LM-2, Membership Systems

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