New accounting system for small businesses from HansaWorld
AN international technology company that specialises in business management software, HansaWorld Zimbabwe is offering small and medium enterprises a free accounting system that will help bridge the technological gap and assist entrepreneurs in managing their businesses.
The company consultant, Mr Jabulani Nyoni, said they will offer the basic accounting functionalities freely as Zimbabwe was a virgin market in terms of systems hence the importance of letting people familiarise with the technology before they choose to upgrade with time.
He said the accounting system can be used by lodges, boutiques, flea market owners and restaurants among other businesses.
“This system is already being used in other African countries like South Africa and Kenya as well as other countries in Europe.
“The good thing about this system is that basic operations like nominal ledger, VAT and basic accounts are for free but then as you are growing with new requirements, that is when you can pay a nominal fee.
“Installations and trainings are also done for free because we know that few people have the knowledge to operate the system,” said Mr Nyoni.
Speaking on the benefits of the system to businesses, Mr Nyoni said it eliminates costs on businesses because it calculates things like tax in real time as purchases are made and do bookkeeping and invoicing, a duty usually done by accountants.
He said the system is also easy to manage as one can operate it from any device like a mobile phone, iPad or laptop.
“People here usually pay accountants to manage their books but with this system, it makes all calculations for you in real time.
“The nature of business nowadays is that people are usually very mobile and spend a lot of time on their phones. With this system, one can manage their business from anywhere outside their premises,” he said.
In general, according to HansaWorld, the accounting system tracks the status of a company’s payables and enables one to make payments, creates invoices and records receipts as well as tracking the status of one’s receivables and balances due. The system also records business transactions, balance sheet, profit and loss and tax reports.
On why the basic functionalities are free, Mr Nyoni said HansaWorld already has a Standard ERP product that is being used by large businesses hence the introduction of a system that can also cater for small businesses.
“This system can also be used by the SMEs Ministry as it can help them track the performance of businesses that they give loans to so as to see how they are functioning and how the funds are being utilised, to keep track of the loans and evaluate if the funding is yielding any fruits or whether their initiatives are profitable,” said Mr Nyoni.
He said the accounting system was not limited to small businesses but can also be used by NonGovernmental Organisations for monitoring and evaluation purposes of projects.