You Won't Go Wrong, if You Choose MIPS Fund Accounting
Updated January 08, 2018
You Won't Go Wrong, if You Choose MIPS Fund Accounting
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Abila MIP Fund Accounting
We use only the Fund Accounting module of MIPS and it is only used by the five members of the Accounting Department. It has been a very effective tool for accurately stating our organization's financial position at any time. Its Fund capability allows us to track and report on Restricted Funds (i.e. Donations and Grants designated for specific purposes). My staff and I have been using MIPS for 10+ years at my current organization and it has been very reliable and generally required a short learning curve for new staff.
Pros
- Tracking Restricted Funds - It is very easy to see at a glance where we stand with the receipt and use of specific project funding.
- The Ability to Keep Fiscal Years Open - Some program force you to close out your year within a relatively short period of time. MIPS can be kept open for as long as I need to complete my annual Audit preparation. This relieves pressure.
- Allows me to easily review my staff's entries, invoices, etc. before they are posted. This eliminates potential errors and corrections.
Cons
- MIPS needs the ability to drill down. There is currently too much need to write down invoice numbers, JE numbers, etc. in order to cross-reference (view) related documents.
- MIPS needs to expand the availability of certain data fields. I would like to see more fields available under the Contents Tab when designing reports. Too many times, I will be able to choose a certain field under one report but be unable to access the same field in another report. This requires me to design two or more reports to get what I need.
- Improve the Historical Invoices Function. Currently it allows you to print the original invoice. If a correction was made afterwards (using the same invoice number), it creates two entries with identical invoice numbers and if you select and print the wrong one, it will not reflect the change. I realize that the Statement capability can address this, but to me Statements should be used to reflect billing amounts and payments received.
- Though MIPS has not had an easily measurable, tangible impact on our ROI, our ability to satisfy our Funders' reporting requirements has had the intangible benefits of demonstrating Professionalism and Compliance. This makes it easier for us to get renewal funding each year.
- The accuracy and simplicity of tracking our results by fund also makes annual budgeting process much easier.
- Likewise, the ease of use of MIPS allows us to get by with less staff than might have been required with a "harder" software package.
Absolutely!
This may be the single best feature of MIPS. Separating Funds is an absolute requirement for a nonprofit organization that receives Restricted funds from different sources. This process is easy with MIPS.
Once again, MIPS' ability to track different Funds and relatively easy learning curve set it apart from the competition. Plus other products were far more expensive and would have required us to acquire more modules than we needed. MIPS allowed us to only purchase the modules that best fit our needs.
MIP Fund Accounting Feature Ratings
Using Abila MIP Fund Accounting
MIPS does not require any specialized skills beyond the basic accounting skills required of my staff. This ease of use is what makes MIPS so good for new staff. I have about 13 years of experience using the Fund Accounting module of MIPS and have encountered virtually every situation imaginable. So I am the primary support person. When I encounter a situation beyond my experience, the MIPS Support team is always available to help.
- Billing
- General Ledger Reporting
- Accounting for Restricted Funds
- We have set up individuals' Liability accounts to track the client checking accounts we manage for our Residential and Supported Living Clients as their Rep Payees. We chose this approach in lieu of setting up separate funds for each client because it provided simplicity and accuracy, at the same time.
- If we ever choose to utilize additional modules, it will allow us a smooth link.
The five members of my Accounting Staff are the only individuals who utilize MIPS in my organization. This is primarily because we only utilize the Fund Accounting Module of MIPS
Evaluating Abila MIP and Competitors
Yes - Cougar Mountain. Way too complex and difficult to use.
- Price
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Prior Experience with the Product
It had a very useful feature that allowed us to separate Restricted Funds.
I might ask about the product's ability to drill down.
Abila MIP Implementation
- Implemented in-house
- This software was implemented by my predecessor immediately before I arrived 12 years ago.
- I know that there was a lot of upfront planning to determine the desired structure of accounts/reports etc. But I did not here of any significant concerns, because Customer support assisted every step of them way.
- I have had minimal problems with utilizing the software. I believe this is because it was set up properly.
Abila MIP Support
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Immediate help available Support understands my problem Support cares about my success Quick Initial Response | None |
Yes - This is included in our annual license fees and insures that I get the correct response in a timely manner. The customer service people are consistently knowledgeable and courteous and I am consistently satisfied with my interaction with them. The product, itself is easy to work with and rarely creates a problem. That being said, it is a comfort knowing that when there is a problem, it will be resolved quickly and accurately.
Yes - Occasionally I encounter a data integrity issue which typically manifests itself in the form of an unbalance Balance Sheet. This once caused me some issues when I didn't notice it and I submitted the unbalanced Balance Sheet to my Board, who did notice it. Other than that issue, I cannot recall any other "bugs".
Frankly, I cannot recall a time when MIP support did not provide me with exceptional support. They stand 100% behind their product, are very knowledgeable about how their product works and are not afraid to acknowledge known problems or issues with their products. Regardless they always do their best to resolve my problems in a timely and courteous manner.
Using Abila MIP
- All aspects of Accounts Receivable are smooth and intuitive.
- All aspects of Accounts Payable are smooth and intuitive.
- MIP Fund Accounting makes it very easy to analyze historical data for trends and input errors.
- The Bank Reconciliation capabilities make the reconciliation process smooth and accurate for my staff.
- There is no easy "drill down" capability
- Though the "Data Integrity Check" capabilities are excellent at identified problems with the data, you must call Customer Support to resolve the problems.
- The add formula's capability is not always intuitive.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using | None |
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