Modern economics and science are developing very fast, and the government is constantly issuing new legislation. Keeping track of all the information can be very difficult, but if you want your business to grow and develop, you need to do this. What to do in such a situation? Numerous courses in management and finance are a dubious way out, since no one guarantees that they are taught by professionals, not amateurs, and it can be difficult to constantly travel around because of study. Therefore, a modern leader simply needs a reliable and efficient source of information.
Information giant
One of the first suppliers of specialized accounting and economic information in Russia was the Aktion Media Group. This name is little known, as the company launches its products under other names corresponding to industries. It is worth mentioning the Glavbukh magazine and the Taxes newspaper - and everyone immediately understands who they are talking about. For many years, this periodical has occupied an honorable place on the tables of accountants, providing not only information about the legislation, but also recommendations for maintaining records and managing the enterprise. But do not think that this article is advertising. There is nothing to be done if Aktion today is indeed a leader in the field of information for business. Although, of course, this media group is not perfect.
New technologies
The Aktion company began with the publication of periodicals for accountants, followed by training programs, tests and seminars. But new times require new technologies, and a few years ago this media group began to release new products - online help systems. Their distinguishing features:
- Work only through the Internet. By purchasing the system, the buyer, in fact, receives only the access code for a certain time.
- The presence of different types of information: laws, instructions, document forms, advice and expert advice.
- The presence of periodicals produced by Aktion.
- Collaboration (assured by Aktion) with the best specialists, including employees of the Ministry of Finance.
At first glance, everything is fine. This is not to say that the system provides something fundamentally new, but it is quite convenient, as it allows you to have access to all information at any time and at any time.
System flaws
There is a phrase explaining the unprofessionalism of power: "People who never worked came to power." This means that often laws and recommendations for managing an enterprise are written by people who have never encountered this in practice. They just study the documents, but it turns out that this is not enough. Therefore, the situation was twofold: the Aktion company assures that the main thing in its help system is consultations and recommendations of specialists, but in practice, these consultations sometimes help a little, or even make mistakes. Most often this concerns complex issues, but in this case, a hotline is provided to users. In addition, accountants note that the system has the following disadvantages:
- With the expiration of the subscription, all information is lost. If you write out magazines, then you can read them even after the subscription has ended. An online system does not.
- There are gaps in the legislative base, and there are not enough documents.
- Incomplete search system. Users have to “adapt”, enter requests in a different form, which leads to a loss of time when searching for the necessary information.
- High price.
- Intrusive sales system.
The target audience
The first help system from "Aktion" was developed for accountants, and in general it turned out to be quite successful, however, due to the above shortcomings, many accountants refuse the BSS "Systems Glavbukh". Practice has shown that the financial service of an enterprise is more often interested in the system. This is understandable: experienced accountants already know where to find all the necessary information, including forms of documents, they communicate with each other and attend seminars from the tax inspectorate, but the financial department needs more diverse data available at any time, even on business trips. Therefore, the FSS "System Financial Director" was created, designed specifically for managers. It was no longer the representatives of the Ministry of Finance who worked on it, but the financial director of large companies, which faced various issues in practice.
What the system includes
The content of the program was supplemented in accordance with the requests of financiers. To date, the financial director reference system includes:
- Actual regulatory framework.
- A database of ready-made instructions and decisions on a variety of issues (assessment of an organization’s activities, accounting, taxation, management, company development, strategy development, etc.).
- Subscription to periodicals of financial subjects.
- Directory of current rates, odds, courses, as well as formulas for the analysis of activities and information on specialized departments.
- Video recordings of training seminars from specialists.
- Additional services that allow you to create reports directly in the system and analyze the state of affairs of the company.
Necessity or whim
It would seem that today the Internet is available to everyone, and here you can find any information of interest. Why then is a separate financial director system needed? The fact is that, unlike accounting, financial management is not regulated by law, that is, you will not find a single law or regulation indicating how to analyze the effectiveness of production activities or how to optimize the costs and cash flows of an enterprise. The financial director can only rely on a variety of articles, textbooks, private tips, but the Internet today does not give any guarantees in the quality of information. The consulting legal system “Financial Director” solves this problem, since “Aktion”, with all its shortcomings, is nevertheless a reliable, proven source.
In addition, financial services need a very wide range of data, and each time it is tedious to look for the tax rate, exchange rate or telephone of the necessary department. Of course, a specialized financial director system is needed only at large enterprises that have several departments or divisions and produce products in large volumes.
Little tricks
As you know, accountants and financiers in Russia are always looking for ways to "work around". Since the financial reference system from Aktion works through the Internet, in the process of negotiations on the acquisition, a potential buyer is given an access demo code so that they can familiarize themselves with the product within two to three days. As soon as the “Glavbukh System” appeared on the market, smart accountants understood how to use it for free. When there is a need for information, they turn to Aktion or its partner with a request for demo access, supposedly to resolve the issue of acquisition. Then they find and download all the necessary information for themselves, not at all thinking about buying a system. This method can also be useful for directors of small companies, for whom the purchase of a permanent code is simply inexpedient, or for students of economic universities who are looking for information for a diploma or coursework.
Other options
If for accountants there are many electronic directories and portals where you can get all the necessary information, then financial information is more complicated. Of course, there are specialized textbooks, websites and publications, but nevertheless, the system of financial director from Aktion is the undisputed leader in this field, which has no analogues. It can be used by both an experienced professional and a novice who has just begun to study the principles of activity analysis and planning. Thus, the system of a financial director can be useful not only to a finance specialist with a special education, but also to any business owner who wants to move forward while developing his company.
Information Technology Development
Whatever the disadvantages and advantages of help systems, I would like to note a positive trend towards the systematization, expansion and growth of information quality. In this regard, Aktion has done a lot for Russian enterprises. Many today's accountants and managers once studied in her journals, but now the information has moved to a new level, more consistent with the modern rhythm of life.