CriticalEdge Group Blog
Microsoft Dynamics GP (Great Plains) ConsultantsHow are you managing workplace stress?
December 5th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
It seems like we are all more stressed now than ever before. To prepare for this article I started with a web search on “managing stress at work” and one search yielded 4,870,000 results. Bing yielded 87,100,000 results for “managing stress in the workplace”. Evidently no one has solved this problem.
We all seem to know the causes but feel somewhat powerless to solve it. Businesses and organizations need to do more with fewer resources. We are all working longer hours and not having very much fun. No one is secure in their jobs or careers any longer. And this is spilling over into our personal lives with unintended negative impacts. So what can we do? Here are some of my thoughts but I am more interested in hearing from you. So please respond to this blog!
Exercise: Even if it means taking a short, 20 minute walk during the day. Find an exercise that you love. When I ride my bicycle it seems that all of my cares dissipate – at least temporarily.
Eat Healthy: Resist the urge to eat unhealthy foods. I know first-hand that it only makes you feel worse.
Do something you love: My passion is quilting. Even 30 minutes at the sewing machine or just ironing fabric for my next project makes me happy.
Connect with people you love: Our lives are so busy that we sometimes do not make time for family and friends. I have been reflecting on Sunday dinners back when we had blue laws. One day a week we visited with family because that was all you could do that day. We need to find a way back to just spending “guilt-free” time with family and friends.
Spend more time organizing, prioritizing and planning your work load: The busier we get at work the more important it is to take a step back to think about our tasks, making lists, figuring out what is more important (remember Steven Covey’s 4 quadrants?) and scheduling when we are going to complete these tasks.
Buy Local and Buy American: This really needs to be a topic for another day but my personal belief is that we cannot continue to be a “Knowledge-based” economy. We all need to pay attention to the origin of the goods and services that we purchase – especially the goods. Here in Connecticut our manufacturing base has eroded over the past 20-30 years to the detriment of our economy. This is not easily accomplished but we have to try.
Let me know what you have found helpful in managing stress and I will post it to our blog.
RSS SubscribeAugust 26, 2011 CT State Tax Update
August 26th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
Microsoft has released Round 7 Payroll Tax Updates for Microsoft Dynamics GP Payroll. This latest update will resolve the issues of additional tax withholding and new hires on or after August 1st. If you are a CriticalEdge Group Dynamics GP Payroll customer, please contact us to schedule your update.
The new code will not resolve issues of employees hired between January and July of 2011. If you have an employee with a 2011 hire date before August 1, 2011 and if the new tax tables are withholding too much money, then take the following steps.
1) Ask the employee to estimate the correct amount of withholding and file a new CT-W4 requesting an estimated withholding amount.
2) Update the employees CT tax status by entering the Estimated Amount. This will override the CT tax tables completely.
3) At year end, secure a new CT-W4 from the employee. (We recommend that you request W4 forms from all employees at year end.)
State of CT Income Tax Withholding for Microsoft Dynamics GP August 19, 2011 Update
August 19th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
We have received word from Microsoft that they are actively making the changes to their code and hope to have a release within the next week or so. Here are the areas that they are going to change:
1. Additional withholding and YTD amounts of additional withholding
-With the new code, we will take additional withholding all the time, which was not done before. So after we calculate what should be withheld, we will take on additional withholding no matter what above and beyond.
-In the new CT rules, they stated when you calculate the YTD withheld for the employee to NOT include an additional amounts that were taken in prior payrolls.
As you know, we lump this together for YTD withheld, so we do not “know” what was additional amounts for prior payrolls. We are going to “back in” to this number by looking at Cards | Payroll | State Tax and the additional amount and take that amount * how many times you have been paid for the year to determine YTD additional withheld.
Example Terry has additional amount of 200.00, if Terry for whatever reason was paid 3X on 3/31, we will take 3 * 200.00 to get 600.00
So we are assuming this amount was the same all year, this is the only way can comply to this rule.
NOTE: It is important for you to review these amounts and make sure they are correct
If employees are hired after 8/1 , they should have a reduce amount taken as they started later in the year and the YTD step in the calculation should be skipped, again, was not in the released calculation rules, which has now since changed.
-We will look at the hire date and if it is after 8/1 for the employee, then the “special” rules will apply for those employees, noted in the “new calculation rules”
We will contact you after the new code is released and we have tested it in house.
Press Release from the State of Connecticut Department of Revenue Services
August 11th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
Below is the entire press release from the State of Connecticut Department of Revenue Services. The release addresses the issue regarding additional tax withholding but still does not address the issue of overwithholding of taxes from new hires.
State of Connecticut Department of Revenue services Media Release
25 Sigourney Street
Contact: Sarah E. Kaufman
Hartford CT 06106-5032 (860) 297-5610 Sarah.Kaufman@po.state.ct.us
DRS Home Page: http://www.ct.gov/DRS
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Payroll Processing Software Limitations May Impact Income Tax Withholding
DRS Commissioner Outlines Options for Affected Taxpayers
Hartford – The Connecticut Department of Revenue Services (DRS) today announced that it recently became aware of limitations in software used for payroll processing that may impact income tax withholding for certain Connecticut taxpayers. According to Commissioner Kevin B. Sullivan, the problem affects taxpayers who have requested on Form CT-W4 that additional income tax be withheld from their paychecks.
Said Commissioner Sullivan, “We began hearing late last week about problems for employers relying on automated payroll processing software, including the State of Connecticut. It appears that these systems are unable to distinguish additional voluntary withholding amounts from regular withholding when calculating catch-up withholding for the current tax year in accordance with recent legislative changes in the state personal income tax. Consequently, these taxpayers and their employers may be at risk of underwithholding.”
Commissioner Sullivan said, “The income tax changes became effective in early May and the Department promptly provided necessary withholding instructions before the end of the month. This problem only came to our attention after the withholding went into effect this month. We do not want this to affect taxpayers and employers who are making a good faith effort to comply.”
Despite the payroll processing problem, Commissioner Sullivan advised affected taxpayers that they can protect themselves from the risk of underpayment, penalty and interest. Taxpayers may make estimated payments in order to assure that enough tax is paid to meet the “safe harbor” of paying in at least as much as the amount of their last annual Connecticut income tax due. Generally, if taxpayers pay, in withholding or timely estimated tax payments, or both, the lesser of 100% of the income tax shown on their 2010 Connecticut income tax return (provided they filed a 2010 Connecticut income tax return that covered a 12-month period) or 90% of the income tax shown on their 2011 Connecticut income tax return (calculated using the new rates), they will not be subject to interest on the underpaid amount when they file their 2011 Connecticut income tax return.
In order to assist taxpayers who may be dealing with or concerned about this problem, DRS is taking the extraordinary step of making available now the 2011 Estimated Income Tax Worksheet and the updated 2011 Income Tax Calculation Schedule. Taxpayers may use this information to estimate their 2011 income tax and take steps to assure that sufficient tax is withheld or otherwise paid. This information and more will be available online at www.ct.gov/drs.
Said Commissioner Sullivan, “Taxpayers will rightfully ask whether they may be subject to interest and penalty because of underwithholding due to this problem. I want to assure taxpayers who find themselves in this situation that they will not be subject to interest or penalty on such underpaid amounts. Similarly, employers who in good faith and solely due to this problem do not correctly withhold and pay in the taxes due for their employees will not be penalized in the event of audit.”
Microsoft Dynamics GP State of Connecticut Tax Update
August 9th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
In yesterday’s blog, I explained that the State of Connecticut has had some issues with the new tax rules that were effective 8.1.2011. They are issuing a press release next week that will clarify some of the calculation steps for all companies to abide by. Currently, the State of Connecticut has contradictory information on their website among the different published documents.
Here are the current areas of concern we have with the state, but not limited to:
1. Additional withholding , there was nothing specified in the original calculation method around addition amounts and how they should be factored in.
2. If employees are hired after 8/1 , they should have a reduce amount taken as they started later in the year and the YTD step in the calculation should be skipped, again, was not in the released calculation rules
( Microsoft will probably have a new filing status for this type of employee identifying the later start date and it will have the correct calculations steps for them)
After the state issues the updated guidance, Microsoft will give high priority to addressing these State of Connecticut tax code-related issues.
State of Connecticut Tax Withholding
August 8th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
As everyone who runs payroll already knows, there are some substantial problems with the tax calculations that the State of Connecticut provided to the payroll software providers. The state is in the process of issuing additional guidance. We have identified two situations that will empact employers.
The first situation is where the employee has requested additional withholding. The initial guidance did not address this and Microsoft Dynamics GP’s payroll calculations do not differentiate between regular, required withholding and additional, elective withholding. The result is that employees with additional withholding will see their net pay increase instead of decrease.
The second issue is in regards to mid-year new hires. The GP code annualizes the new pay amounts and over-withholds – sometimes a very significant amount.
As soon as the state provides new guidance for managing these and other identified challenges we will update this blog. In the meantime don’t hesitate to contact us for assistance.
Beware extracting closing entries via Smartlist
July 27th, 2011 by Stuart Gamm
In the last few months I’ve had the occasion to help multiple clients extract full years’ activity from the account transaction folder in Smartlist. In all cases, covering 2 clients and 4 databases, closing entries were not balanced. They were OK in the database, of course, but something about Smartlist returned unbalanced entries for closing entries (BBF) only. All other entries were OK. So be aware of that, and don’t assume that if you extract large chunks of data via Smartlist that debits equal credits!
GP 12 Web Client
June 16th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
By now you will have heard that the next version of GP, code named GP12, will have a web client option. According to a Microsoft Partner Technical Consultant, the plan is to allow the existing ISV Dexterity applications to automatically convert to the web client application. Templates will be available for us to make the widnows look exactly the way we want – or better. However, we are going to have to wait until at least the end of 2011 to test this out as nothing will release until then.
The advice is to ramp up on Silverlight and the controls that it offers in the meantime.
Update on Connecticut income tax withholding
June 16th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
Whether or not you use Microsoft’s Dynamic GP for payroll, if you operate or even just work in Connecticut, we want you to be aware of the upcoming change in the State’s withholding rules. Recently enacted legislation makes state income tax changes retroactive to January 1, 2011. The tables that have been released take this into account and act as a “Catch Up” withholding for the remainder of the year. Be advised that these new withholding tables become effective on August 1, 2011. We are happy to provide this link to the State of CT web site with the new 2011 Withholding Tables. http://www.ct.gov/drs/lib/drs/forms/2011withholding/2011withholdingcombinedcatchupwithholdingtaxtables.pdf
Reaping the benefits of blogs
June 16th, 2011 by Sandra Glick
Blogs are an increasingly excellent resource for ideas about how to do things differently (i.e. better and more efficiently, which, of course, = more cost effective) in your business. For example, we’ve all run into unfamiliar technical challenges, but instead of digging through our manuals as we might have in the past, now we can utilize the blogosphere. This is where the ripe fruit of information is just waiting to be picked – where you can find the resources and solutions to your problems, straight from the keyboards of those who have solved them.
This incredible sharing of valuable information may inspire you to consider new ways of utilizing your Great Plains software. In fact, your existing GP software has many potential uses to improve your business function and processes. As always, CriticalEdge is here for you and your business – we want to see you succeed! Give us a call today at 203.281.0006 to find out more information about the tools available to you, or to discuss your ideas for additional efficiencies that GP can provide your business. In the meantime, we’ve included some of our favorite blogs below, with a bit of detail on each. Put them on your reading list!
http://msdynamicsgp.blogspot.com/
Mark Polino maintains a very rich blog spot that he updates constantly with news, tips and other GP-relevant information. A reliable source for research and problem solving.
https://community.dynamics.com/usergroup/gpug/b/default.aspx
This blog is maintained by GPUG (GP User Group) and includes a variety of tips and tricks on using GP.
https://community.dynamics.com/usergroup/gpug/b/gpugmembertidbits/default.aspx)
A “sub-blog” of the one above. This has a few GP partners who contribute additional tips, including CriticalEdge staff.
Dynamics World provides some useful GP news. There are marketing “articles” from third party vendors featured on the site, however.
http://blog.criticaledgegroup.com/
Our very own blog! CriticalEdge is committed to adding to this blog as we experience issues and questions in our everyday discussions with our clients. Stuart is a frequent contributor to our blog.
GPWindow is Everything Dynamics GP useful for IT Professionals and Users specific to Dynamics GP.
The official Microsoft blog. Need we say more?!
Loading ...