Accounting Firm Streamlines Audit Processes with XML-Enabled Data-Gathering Solution

The Microsoft Office System
Customer Solution Case Study
/ / Accounting Firm Streamlines Audit Processes with XML-enabled Data-gathering Solution
Overview
Country:UnitedStates
Industry:Professionalservices
CustomerProfile
HeadquarteredinPeoria,Illinois,CliftonGundersonisanaccountingandconsultingfirmwithofficesin14statesandWashington,D.C.Thefirmhasmorethan500certifiedpublicaccountantsandmorethan1,500employees.
BusinessSituation
CliftonGundersoncollecteddetailedclientinformationmanuallyandhadnoefficientwayofretainingandusingthatinformationinternally,orelectronicallycollaboratingwiththeclients.Itneededtoautomatethemanagementofcertainauditforms.
Solution
CliftonGundersonusedaMicrosoft®OfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003solutiontoautomatethecollection,use,anddistributionofclientinformationthroughoutthefirm.
Benefits
Automatesbusinessprocesses
Improvesinformationgathering
Improvesinformationsharing
Improvesclientservice
Increasesorganizationalproductivity / “TheMicrosoftOfficeSystemplaysakeyroleinourlong-termvisionofhowtechnologycanenableorganizationalproductivity.”
JeffHapeman,ChiefTechnologyOfficer,CliftonGunderson
Clifton Gunderson is an accounting and consulting firm with offices in 14 states. The firm's audit services require clients to provide business information on complex paper forms, but the firm did not have an efficient method of collecting, storing, accessing, or sharing that data. To better capture in-depth client data, the firm used Microsoft® Office InfoPath® 2003 XML-based forms to connect with a Microsoft SQL ServerTM2000 database so that client data can be rolled-forward, updated, shared, and accessed by employees and clients through other XML-enabled Microsoft Office Professional Enterprise Edition 2003 programs. The InfoPath 2003 forms are expected to reduce the time for clients to update and submit data from several days to a few hours. With improved access to information, Clifton Gunderson employees will be able to make better, more informed audit decisions for their clients.

Situation

CliftonGundersonisthetwelfth-largestcertifiedpublicaccountingandconsultingfirmintheUnitedStates.CliftonGunderson’slocalofficestructureallowsittoworkcloselywitheachclienttodevelopanawarenessoftheclient’sspecificbusinessneeds.

CliftonGundersonoffersafullrangeofassuranceservicesthathelpimproveitsclients’financialaccuracy.Thehighestdollarvolumeinitsassuranceservicescomesfromprovidingfinancialaudits—arigorous,highlyregulatedareaofthefirm’spracticethatisalsothemostdocumentintensive.

“Weneedtoprovidethatserviceaccordingtoprofessionalregulatoryandinternalqualitystandardsasefficientlyaspossibletoensurewearecompetitive,”saysIanThomson,AssistantDirectorofAssuranceServicesatCliftonGunderson.“Todoso,wehavetodecidewhichauditprocedurestoperformtoevaluateourclient’sassertions.Themoreweknowabouteachclient,themoreefficientwecanbeinmakingthosedecisionsanddeliveringhigh-qualityaudits.”

Tocollecttheessentialinformation,CliftonGundersoncollaborateswitheachclient.Ofthemanydocumentsgeneratedduringanaudit,therearefourespeciallyimportantformsthathelpCliftonGundersondocumentadetailedunderstandingofaclientanditsbusiness,accountingpractices,risks,controls,andcomputerenvironments.Theclientfillsoutapproximately75percentofeachform,andtheremainderisfilledoutbyCliftonGundersonauditors.Eachformcanbeupto40pageslong,containmultiplecorrespondingdocuments,andtakeseveraldaysforanewclienttocomplete.Eachyear,thesedocumentsarereviewedandupdated.Externalregulationsandinternalfirmpoliciesrequirethattheseformsremainonfileforvariousnumbersofyearsdependingonthenatureofeachclient.Thefirmincursextradataentryanddocumenthandlingcostsinmeetingtheseretentionrequirements.

Originally,CliftonGundersonused Acrobat PortableDocument Format (PDF) filesthatwereprintedoutandgiventotheclienttocompletebyhand.Fortheannualreview,eachdocumentwasreturnedtotheclientforupdating,andchangesweremadebyhand.Afterseveralyearsofmanualupdates,thedocumentsrequiredincreasingamountsoftimeandefforttokeeptheinformationlegibleandaccurate,bothhistoricallyandcurrently.

Overtime,thefirmtriedtoautomatetheprocessbyusing earlier versionsofMicrosoft®WordandMicrosoftExcel.Thatapproach,however,possessednocollaborativefeaturesanddidnotintegratewithanyothersolutioninthefirm,makingitdifficulttocollaborateinternallyandexternally.CliftonGundersonalsointroducedrudimentarysecurityfeaturesbyprotectingfieldsandsectionsofthedocumentssothatclientscouldnotaltertheformsorseeauditor’scomments.However,thatapproachlimitedtheamountofspaceforansweringquestionsandwascumbersomeforbothstaffandclientstorespond.

Furthermore,textfieldsandcellsinWordandExcelhavecharacterlimitations,whichdiscouragenarrativeresponses.“Wewantedtomoveawayfromtheoldwayofasking‘yes’or‘no’questions,toencouragelonger,moreinformativeanswers,”saysThomson.“Ifapersonranoutofspace,weputinafunctionthatsaid,‘seeattachedmemo,’andtherespondenthadtotypeupanadditionalmemo.Thatwasaninefficientsolution.”

Thedocumentmanagementissueswereachallengeforafirmwithnearly50officesin14states,whereaccountantscollaboratingonasingleaudithadtorelyonshippeddocuments,phonecalls,e-mail,andfaxes.Inaddition,theemployeesinmanyofthefirm’sotherpracticeareasneededtolookatinformationcontainedinthosedocuments—forexample,taxconsultantsortechnologyconsultants.“Weoutlinedsomebasicrequirementsforanewformssolution,”saysThomson.“IthadtobeWebenabledtofacilitatecollaborationwithclients,andithadtointegratewithapowerful,searchabledatabaseontheback-endtofacilitateinformationsharing,formstructureupdates,anddataroll-forwards.”

Solution

AccordingtoJeffHapeman,ChiefTechnologyOfficeratCliftonGunderson,thefirm’sconceptforanewformssolutionamountedtonothingshortofanewvisionoftechnologyusethatwouldhavelong-termimplicationsfortheproductivityoftheentireorganization.“AtaMicrosoftExecutive BriefingforCliftonGundersonintheMicrosoftChicagoofficeIattendedpresentationsonMicrosoftOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003andoneofitscoreprograms,MicrosoftOfficeInfoPath®2003,”saysHapeman.“Isawhowthatsoftwarecouldintegratewithourdatabaseandline-of-businessapplicationsandIknewwehadfoundoursolution.”

CliftonGundersonisimplementinganOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003solutionthatusestheOfficeInfoPath2003information-gatheringprogramtoautomateandimproveinformationcollectionfromclientsandtoimprovecollaborationbetweenemployeeswithinthefirm.InfoPath2003electronicformssavedatainXMLformatsothatitcanbereusedinanorganization’sback-endsystems,databases,andotherbusinessapplicationsorprocesses.Initially,CliftonGundersonisreplacingthefourauditformsusedtocollectclientinformationwithInfoPath2003formsthataredefinedbythefirmwithintheparametersofregulatoryrequirementsanditsownauditmethodology.CliftonGundersonisalsocreatinga database using MicrosoftSQLServerTM2000 that will enablethefirmtorollclientdataforwardyeartoyear.Currently,thefirmismigratingclientdatatoSQLServer.SQLServerispartofMicrosoftWindowsServerSystemTMintegratedserversoftware.

“AnintuitiveextensionofthefamiliarOfficeinterface,InfoPath2003formsprovideadesktoptoolforcollectingandsubmittingXMLdatatoaSQLServerdatabasesothatwecanstoretheclientdatacentrally,andintroducesecurity,search,andreportingcapabilities,”saysHapeman.

CliftonGundersonhasinstalledMicrosoftOffice2003ServicePack1toallowdeveloperstosavetimebymovingbetweenInfoPath2003andtheMicrosoftVisualStudio®.NET2003developmentsystemusinganewadd-in.

CliftonGundersonisbuildingaWeb-basedinterfaceusingthe Microsoft .NETFrameworktodeliverthedatatoclientsthatdon’thaveOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003installedontheirdesktopcomputers.“Wehavebeguntoredesignthefourformsforstafftouse,andthenwewillbegintousethemwithclientsonceweknowtheyhaveInfoPath2003ontheirmachinesorwehavetheWebportalinplace,”saysHapeman.

Benefits

CliftonGundersonchosetoredevelopthefourauditformsbecausetheywerethemostcomplex,requiredcollaborationandyearlyupdates,andcontainedinformationthatotheremployeesinthefirmneeded.ByreplacingpaperdocumentsandmanualworkprocesseswithelectronicInfoPath2003formsthatautomatebusinessprocesses,thefirmexpectsindividualaccountants’andauditteams’productivitytoimprove,aswellasthefirm’sefficiencyofcomplyingwithrecordretentionrequirements.Andinsteadofworkingwiththreetypesofdocuments(i.e.PDF,Word,andExcel),individualsworkonlywithInfoPath2003forms,whichwillsimplifyinformationgatheringandcontributetobetteranswersthatleadtoadeeperunderstandingofclients.

ImprovingInformationQuality,MakingBetterDecisions

BecauseInfoPath2003formsuseXMLdata,whichcanbereusedbyMicrosoftOfficeWord2003documentsandOfficeExcel2003spreadsheets,thefirmcancombineWord2003andExcel2003documentsintooneInfoPath2003form,sothatauditorsdon’thavetoswitchbetweenthetwotodocalculationsorwritenarrativetext.ClientinformationthatisgatheredthroughtheInfoPath2003formsandthensubmittedtotheSQLServerdatabasewillbereadilyavailableforotherstouseindifferentpracticeareaswiththefirm.AndbecauseWord2003documentsandExcel2003canconsumeXML-taggeddataforconstantupdates,auditorsareassuredofhavingaccesstothelatestclientinformation.

InfoPath2003formsalsofeatureinfinitelyexpandablefields,whichencourageclientstosupplycomprehensiveanswers.Theformsalsocontaindrop-downmenus,checklists,anddatavalidation,whichhelpensurethatclientsfillintheformscorrectlyandefficiently.“Peopledon’tliketofilloutpaperquestionnaires,buttheyareusedtoWeb-basedforms,”saysThomson.“Insteadofwaitingseveraldaysforclientstocompletea40-pagepaperdocument,weexpectthatournewclientswillfilloutanInfoPath2003forminafewhoursanddeliverthedataviatheWebportal.Andwhenwehaveelectronic,Web-basedformswewillbeabletocollaborateefficientlywithclientsonline,reducingmailing,shipping,andeventravelcostsrelatedtoobtainingthisinformation.”

CliftonGundersonwillalsobenefitfromtheimprovedqualityofinformationgatheredusingtheOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003solution.“UsingInfoPath2003forms,ourclientswillsupplyuswithbetterinformationthatwecanimmediatelyputtouseindocumentingourunderstandingofourclients’businesses,”saysThomson.“Notonlywillwebeinabetterpositiontocomplywithexternalregulationsandinternalstandards,butwewillalsobeabletomakebetterdecisionsaboutwhichauditprocedureswouldprovidethebestvalueforeachclient.Inthelongrun,providingmoreaccurate,efficientservicescanhelpimproveourcompetitivestandinginthemarketplace.”Byimprovingthisprocessofcontinuouslearning,CliftonGundersonismaintainingitsleadershippositioninitsfield.

IncreasingProductivityThroughBetterInformationSharing

Today,CliftonGundersonisre-creatingfourexistingformsinInfoPath2003;however,thesolutionistheharbingerofgreaterchangesacrosstheenterprise.“TheMicrosoftOfficeSystemplaysakeyroleinourlong-termvisionofhowtechnologycanenableorganizationalproductivity,”saysHapeman.“Onthebackend,wearemigratingalldatabase-drivenapplicationstoSQLServer—forexample,ourpracticemanagementsystemandportionsofourconflictresolutionsoftware.BecauseMicrosoftOfficeSystemprogramsareXMLenabled,wecanusethosefamiliarinterfacestoaccess,share,andreusedataacrossthefirmandamongdifferentsystems.Nowwecanstartlinkingaclient’sinformationinourtimeandbillingsystemtoourclientrelationshipmanagementsolutionorourauditforms.Insteadofhousingthesamedatainisolatedsystems,wecanstoreitallcentrally.Withthe MicrosoftOfficeSystemprograms,employeescanaccessandsharethedataandworkmoreproductivelywithouthavingtojumpbackandforthbetweenapplications.WearealsomigratingtoMicrosoftExchangeServer2003,andusingMicrosoftOfficeOutlook®

2003asthefrontend,”Hapemanexplains.“WeseealotofpotentialintheabilityofOutlook2003toreadandconsumeXML-taggeddata,aswellasinintegratingformstrackingandformsusagetoExchangeServerandOutlook2003sowecantieworkflowinanefficientmanner.”

CliftonGundersonplanstointegrateitsin-houseapplicationswithsomeoff-the-shelfsolutionstofurtherpromoteinformationsharingthroughoutthefirm,andbelieves the MicrosoftOfficeSystemprogramswillhelpthemreachthatgoal.Thefirmislookingatanewversionofpaperlessauditsoftware,whichisdesignedtointegrateseamlesslywiththeMicrosoftOfficeSystem.Ifthefirmimplementsthatsoftware,thefirm’sExcel2003spreadsheetscouldbetiedtoeverythingelsedonewithOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003.Thesame compatibility wouldapplytoanewsystemthefirmispilotingfortaxworkflowmanagement.TheconceptistocollectdatainWord2003,Excel2003,orInfoPath2003asappropriateandtobeabletomovefreelybetweendifferentOfficeProfessionalEnterpriseEdition2003programsdependingonthecircumstances.Forexample,thefirmwillnotuseInfoPath2003toputtogetheraclient’sfinancialstatements,yettheauditorsmightneedtoreaddatafromExcel2003intoanInfoPath2003formforreviewpurposes.Word2003isnotsuitableforcollectinglengthynarrativeorcomputeddatainaform,butthefirmwillneedtoaccessthedatafromanInfoPath2003formoranExcel2003spreadsheettopresentitinareadableformatforaclient.

“MicrosoftOfficeSystemprogramsworkingtogetherarefarmorepowerfulthananyworkingalone,”concludesHapeman.“Similarly,employeesusingtheMicrosoftOfficeSystemtocollaboratewithoneanotheraremoreproductivethanthosewhoworkalone.”

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