B2PCommerce ‘ NonprofitBooks Office

The data-entry screens are similar
in style to those provided in QuickBooks.
Screens are designed to simulate
their real-world counterparts, such
as checks, invoices and so forth.
Similar to ‘splits’
in QuickBooks, NonprofitBooks has
a spreadsheet detail entry area
where specific accounts, donors,
grants, and functional revenue or
expense categories can be selected.
Screens are well-designed and easy
to use.

MODULES/SCALABILITY – 4 Stars

NonprofitBooks Office comprises
three distinct modules: Nonprofit
Accounting, Donor Management and
Impact Measurement. For organizations
that do not need Donor Management
or Impact Measurement, NonprofitBooks
provides only the Accounting module
at a reduced price. NonprofitBooks
Office is reviewed here.

QuickBooks 2003 or 2004 Pro or Premier
is required to run either NonprofitBooks
or NonprofitBooks Office. This is
a separate purchase and installation
that is done prior to installing
NonprofitBooks. Existing QuickBooks
companies can be converted to NonprofitBooks-compatible
companies, but should preferably
already be using a chart of accounts
that is based on the Unified Chart
of Accounts for nonprofit organizations.
For new company setups, NonprofitBooks
comes with 11 different charts of
accounts that are all based on the
industry-standard chart. These templates
include charts for arts, culture,
humanities, community foundation,
educational, environmental, faith-based,
health, human services, private
foundation, CAN/NCCS, other, and
simple. These charts of accounts
are designed to optimize the capture,
tracking and reporting of financial
transactions, and to translate this
information into categories required
by the IRS on Form 990.

FEATURES/FUNCTIONALITY – 4 Stars
To assist in setting up the initial
chart of accounts and other information,
NonprofitBooks provides a setup
wizard that guides you through entering
opening account balances; adding
programs, donors and grants; and
setting up allocations and Form
990 mappings. It is helpful to have
a good grasp on the way QuickBooks
operates, because much of the information
entered through the wizard is simultaneously
being used to add customers, vendors,
classes and sub-classes directly
into the QuickBooks data files.
Once these steps are completed,
you’re ready to begin entering
information through input screens
within NonprofitBooks that are similar
to those used within QuickBooks.
A pictorial navigator-style screen
has icons that take you to the appropriate
input screens for entering bills,
writing checks, cash receipts, allocation
distribution, allocation history
and journal entries.

Donor Management allows you to maintain
detailed donor profiles and history;
produce donor reports and perform
queries on the criteria you define;
and generate acknowledgement letters,
labels and receipts. Data within
this module is also based off data
entered through the accounting system.
Donations can also be entered, which
are then posted directly to the
NonprofitBooks Accounting system.

Impact Measurement helps the organization
measure effectiveness by tracking
key programmatic, management and
financial performance indicators.
Data is entered through the Impact
Data window, which uses a tree structure
to organize all the different programs
(services), outcomes (benefits),
measures (benchmarks), and results
(actual compared to benchmarks)
into a collapsible outline format.
On the right side of this screen,
detail is entered regarding each
item. Numerous reports allow you
to view data based on service delivery,
management effectiveness and fundraising.

REPORTING – 4 Stars

The specialized reports are created
by exporting data from QuickBooks
and then running the Reports function
within NonprofitBooks. The reports
provided include three Functional
Expenses reports, Unclassified Expenses,
Allocation History, Statement of
Activities, Statement of Financial
Position, Statement of Cash Flow,
Pre-990, and two Budget Detail reports.
Any other standard QuickBooks report
can still be run just like usual
from within QuickBooks itself.

SUPPORT/HELP – 4 Stars
The program includes online context-sensitive
help. The user manual is also available
in electronic format for searching
and easy reference from the desktop,
as well as an Internet-based FAQs
area. All registered users are eligible
to receive free telephone support
when installing NonprofitBooks for
the first time. For ongoing support,
annual Premier Support Plan agreements
are available from the company,
which provides unlimited toll-free
phone support.

RELATIVE VALUE – 4 Stars

NonprofitBooks Office is an interesting
application that brings some nice
and welcome enhancements for QuickBooks
users in a nonprofit environment.
By the time you consider the initial
purchase price of QuickBooks, plus
the NonprofitBooks modules, you
will find yourself in the same price
range as some of the other fully
integrated packages reviewed. However,
if the organization is already using
QuickBooks, this product may be
just what you need to enhance that
functionality into a full-blown
fund accounting solution. NonprofitBooks
Office retails for $1,299 for a
three-user license, and $199 for
each additional user. Premier support
and software upgrades are available
for $299 per year.

2004 OVERALL RATING: 4 Stars

To provide consistency, each review
takes into consideration six specific
areas that we believe are important
when considering an accounting package
for your nonprofit or governmental
organization. Most of the criteria
are self-explanatory. Ease of Use/Flexibility looks at the overall user

experience, and any special features that contribute
to a quick learning curve, modern
user interface and other setup features.
Modules/Scalability is generally a checklist of the modules that the

company offers, as well as a short summary of the underlying database technology, which

affects scalability or ability to serve a broad range of users.

Features/Functionality provides additional detail about the standard,

special or unusual capabilities offered by the package. The Reporting

section discusses the product’s built-in reporting capabilities, as well as any special

report writing tools available. Support/Help looks at the online help and

printed or electronic manuals available, as well as a summary of the company’s live

telephone support options. Relative Value is a category that takes all the

preceding categories and considers the overall pricing of the product relative to the

features it provides and audience it serves.

A number of the vendors offer very
informative materials to guide you
in your selection of an appropriate
not-for-profit accounting and reporting
solution. Take the time to look
carefully at the product’s
features, as well as request a demo
or even a reference for another
organization that may be similar
to yours.