Sage Accounts and Payroll v11 Lifecycle Policy

As of 1 May 2009 Sage are implementing the 'Accounts and Payroll v11 Lifecycle Policy.'

What does this mean? 

Sage will be withdrawing support, updates and upgrades of v11 software in a phased approach. From April 2010 customers will not be able to directly upgrade v11 to the latest version of software and from April 2011 all support will be withdrawn.

Software included:

Sage Instant Accounts v11
Sage Line 50 Accounts v11
Sage Payroll v11

Offers & Campaigns to support the Lifecycle Policy, the following offers are available until 31 July 2009:

• Instant Accounts - 20% off Upgrade OR SageCover Extra - 12 months for the price of 10· PLUS 12 Weeks free E-learning AND 3 months of Legislation Manager
  
• Line 50 · 20% off Upgrade OR SageCover Extra - 12 months for the price of 10· PLUS 12 Weeks free E-learning OR 3 months of Legislation Manager.
• Payroll · 10% off upgrade OR SageCover Extra - 12 months for the price of 10· PLUS free Payroll Workbook OR 3 months of Legislation Manager.

Important Dates:
01/05/09 · V11 Lifecycle Policy Applies· New SageCover not available
31/07/09 · Offers End
05/04/11 · Payroll v11 Support Ends
30/04/11 · Accounts and Instant Accounts v11Support Ends

In the meantime, if you would like further information, call our office on 08700 434303 or email sales@bond-solutions.com.

Sage CRM and Internet Explorer 8

On Tuesday April 21 2009 Microsoft deployed Internet Explorer 8 via the Microsoft Windows Update service.

Sage CRM only supports the following browsers:

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.x & 7.x.

We would advise customers to use versions 6.x or 7.x only of Internet Explorer however if customers are forced to use Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0 it is highly advisable that they run Internet Explorer in 'Compatibility Mode' to prevent any issues with CRM occurring.

The following Microsoft Knowledge Base article details how to enable compatibility mode within Internet Explorer 8.0:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/956197/en-us 

Sage CRM will support Internet Explorer 8 from version 6.2c onwards.If you have any questions, please contact our support team on 08700 434 303.

Search for the next Bond Girl

A SUNDERLAND software specialist is on the look-out for the next Bond Girl. 

Bond Solutions is appealing to ladies across the region to enter the Miss Sunderland contest, which has returned to the region after several years’ absence. 

Bond will be sponsoring one of the finalists - who will also be given the title of Bond Girl - and backing her throughout the final stages of the competition where she will battle it out to win the title of ‘Miss Sunderland 2009’. 

Bond Solutions managing director Derek Curtis said: “It is great that the Miss Sunderland competition has returned to the region and we thought it would be a great idea to start the search for our very own Bond Girl." 

“As a Sunderland-based company, it’s important that we support local initiatives and all of the money raised on the night will be given to the Sunderland Foundation which is a wonderful cause. Miss Sunderland is open to girls across the country however the girl that we back will be from the region." 

“We will aim to drum up as much support for her as possible, as it would be great if she won the competition and went on to win the Miss England title.” 

Miss Sunderland is currently taking entries. Open auditions will be held on April 19 and the final will take place on May 22 at The Stadium of Light. 

The judges for the event include Emma Beard of Paris Hilton’s British Best Friend, Serenity in the City spa owner Jocelyn Maxfied and an SAFC footballer. 

Miss Sunderland’s event organiser Simon Robertson said: “It is great that we have Bond Solutions on board as a sponsor for the event. 

“Bringing Miss Sunderland back to the region has been a great experience and it is something that we have wanted to do for a long time. It is fantastic that local businesses are rallying round to support the event. 

“In total there will be 24 finalists, so we are urging other companies to follow Bond’s lead and back a girl to win the competition.” 

As well as automatically going through to the final of the Miss England competition, the winner will also win a modelling contract and portfolio with AM Models and car dealer Wearside Audi will give the winner an Audi A3 cabriolet for a week. 

All details for the competition, including how to enter, sponsorship packages and purchasing tickets can be found at www.misssunderland.co.uk.

Withdrawal of Support for ACT v7 and v8

Sage have recently issued a “Withdrawal of Sale/Support Policy for ACT! v7 and v8”.  This withdrawal statement basically outlines their declaration that Sage will no longer provide technical support or additional licences to any ACT! v7 and v8 users as of 31^st August 2009.

Sage are adopting this policy as ACT! v7 and v8 are now 3 and 4 years old respectively and are not maintained or tested on the latest operating systems.

Bond will continue to support our existing ACT! customers with our “In House” support contracts. This may however be limited without second line support from Sage, and as such, we strongly recommend a review of your present system to establish if an upgrade to a new version of ACT! would be beneficial to your company.

Please note that without an upgrade, you will be unable to purchase any additional licences for ACT! v7 and v8 as this facility is also to be withdrawn from Sage, with effect from 31^st August 2009. As a result, Sage are currently offering an extra 20% off the already discounted upgrade price to the latest version of ACT!  Please note that this offer from Sage is only available until 30^th April 2009.

Please contact us on 08700 434303 or sales@bond-solutions.com for further information.

My Working Week

Derek Curtis, pictured, is the managing director of Sunderland-based management software company Bond, which specialises in technology-based Customer Relationship Management. He lives in Co Durham with wife Julie and Dalmatian Cubby.

Monday
I return home after a weekend in Monaco with Sage. Bond recently won a Circle of Excellence Award and Sage took us away to congratulate us and catch up on work, of course. I head straight to the office to begin working through my emails and then head out for a new business meeting with an engineering firm.

Tuesday
After picking up a nice strong coffee, I check my emails before heading into our weekly internal product meeting. Most of the rest of the day is filled with meetings. The first is a Scottish-based printing company who are interested in one of our new products. I then head off to my final meeting of the day which is with an existing client. I like to keep in regular contact with clients and the meeting today is regarding customer service, which the client advises has been excellent. I then drop my staff an email before heading home to walk my Dalmatian Cubby.

Wednesday
I head straight to a new business meeting with an offshore oil supporting company and then head to the office. After checking my emails I embark on finding the next Bond Girl. Miss Sunderland 2009 has returned to the region after several years’ absence and I am going to be sponsoring a finalist this year so I fill in the sponsorship form and send it across to the event organisers. I then have a meeting with Sage, our key partner, where we discuss our sales pipeline and any customer issues which have recently arisen.

Thursday
Early morning I am in an internal meeting where we are discussing the development of new products, something which I am always keen to push. The meeting proves very helpful and I leave with lots of exciting ideas. I then head across to Newcastle for a meeting with my PR company to discuss marketing my new products and creative ways of finding my Bond Girl. I then head back to the office for a training session on leadership management with the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM). Our key members of staff are all involved and they all seem to have enjoyed the session.

Friday
I host a meeting with the support team about any outstanding or recurring issues and we develop a way forward by discussing all possible resolutions. I then walk Cubby - we have a pact in the office about losing weight so I take him out on my lunch to give him - and I – some exercise. I then head back to the office and catch up on my accounts and other various tasks before heading home to relax.

Bond bucks the recruitment trend

Business solutions specialist Bond has bucked the recruitment trend by adding a new member to its growing workforce.

Contrary to recent reports of staff cuts and increasing unemployment in the region, the firm, which helps other organisations grow through implementing business management software, has just welcomed a new software consultant to its Sunderland-based office.

Nick Bevan, who joins the Sage-accredited software solutions company with a strong background in software consultancy and sales in the technology sector, has been working in the industry for over eight years.

Nick, who commutes from his home in Great Lumley, County Durham, said: “I wanted to work somewhere exciting and interesting, with a wide range of large clients and this led me to Bond.

“Even though my background is mainly in consultancy, over the past three years I’ve developed skills in software sales. Also, as I’ve got a wide knowledge of third-party products that work best alongside Sage, hopefully this combined experience will benefit our customers and Bond alike.

“It’s been great so far, and the team here are fantastic. I’ve even managed to work with some major clients already and hope this will continue to grow. When I looked into business solutions companies in the area, Bond always came out on top for not only client care, but staff wellbeing too."

Bond managing director Derek Curtis said: “Nick is an excellent addition to our growing team. With his extensive knowledge of our products, as well as an understanding of how to communicate with our customers, he adds huge value to our existing customers.”

LUCKY NUMBER THREE FOR BOND

Bond MD Derek Curtis and Paul Stobart, MD of Sage UK

Experts at North East business solutions specialist Bond are celebrating being honoured for the third time in four years at the Sage Circle of Excellence awards ceremony.

As well as being the only North East-based firm to be honoured, they even succeeded in being placed an overall second in the UK-wide awards.

Sage introduced the concept of a Circle of Excellence four years ago in order to recognise and reward the Business Partners who provide outstanding customer service and whose customers are the most likely to recommend them to friends and colleagues.

Since the first ceremony in 2005, Sunderland-based Bond has succeeded in receiving the accolade nearly every year, narrowly missing out on the 2007 awards, and managing director Derek Curtis is proud of his team North East business solutions expert Bond, specialises in technology based CRM and finance, as well as solutions and support services for SMEs.

Derek said: “It’s such a great achievement for Bond and I’m thrilled that we’ve been honoured again. To come second in the entire country is fantastic. It’s a testament to the great service our team give to our customers; this award is an important recognition of that hard work.

“We’re always intent on delivering high levels of customer service and given that we specialise in customer relations management it’s fantastic to be acknowledged for our effort. Of course, with three wins now, it’s really raised the bar for next year!”

On presenting the award to Bond, Paul Stobart, CEO of Sage (UK) Limited, said, “I’m delighted to present this award to Bond. Today’s competitive climate means that it is more important than ever for UK Businesses to stay close to their customers and deliver an outstanding service, so my congratulations go to all involved."

The award is based on independent research into the extent that customers would be prepared to recommend Bond and is judged using independent research conducted with a representative sample of Bond’s customers.