PowerChurch Software Newsletter - Fall 2011

It is nearing that time again, where we remind you of all the work that is waiting for you at year-end. We won't go through it all again in detail, since we had an entire newsletter dedicated to that topic last year and various other Knowledge Base articles and forum posts about it. Instead, we will just provide a link to the year end 2010 newsletter: PowerChurch Software Newsletter - Year End 2010.

There! Now we can move on to other new business.

Announcing PowerChurch Plus Version 11.5

You may have already heard that we have recently released Version 11.5 of PowerChurch Plus, continuing the work that Version 11 started, making your data more accessible and easier to interpret with fewer steps required to get it entered in. Below is a short list of some of the new features and updates in Version 11.5:

• Automated backups
• Save/Load e-mail templates
• Redesigned Budget Entry screen
• Import photos from both Olan Mills and LifeTouch

For a full list of features in PowerChurch Plus Version 11.5 (and prior versions as well) visit www.powerchurch.com/update/

Weekly Pledge Calculations in 2012

This article has been moved to Handling Weekly Pledges in Years with 53 Sundays

Changing the Working Month vs. Closing the Month

This article has been moved to Changing the Working Month vs. Closing the Month

Year End Tips from Dynamic Systems

It is time to start thinking about end-of-year tax forms and Dynamic Systems is here to help. They are your source not only for high-security checks, but for all W2 and 1099 tax forms. No matter what your tax form need is, they have the compatible form for you. To help you make your way through end-of-year they would like to share with you this list of helpful hints for a stress-free tax form season:

• Order enough forms. Don't forget to include employees who worked only part of the year such as temps or project help when determining how many forms you require. Also, consider the number of forms you may need for reprints due to employee loss or damage.
• Update your software. W2 and 1099 formats have changed from last year. Therefore, it is necessary to update your software with the correct layouts before printing your 2011 forms.
• Order early. Although it is not always possible to place your order before the end of the year, try to order your forms as soon as you can. W2s and 1099s are dated forms that are produced in limited quantities. Waiting until the end of January to order your forms may cause unwanted delay.
• Confirm your shipment upon arrival. When your tax forms arrive take the time to carefully review what you have received. Finding problems early will allow you the time to get them corrected. Did you receive only half of what you ordered? Consider that with 2 to-a-page formats 50 sheets will yield 100 forms. If you still have questions, contact your forms provider.
• Give yourself sufficient time. Printing your employees' tax forms is only part of the overall process. Depending on the format used, you may also have to detach the forms from one another, collate them, stuff them into envelopes and then put postage on the envelopes. Consider the whole process when determining the amount of time you need to complete the task.

At Dynamic Systems they want to make the task of ordering your end-of-year tax forms as easy as possible. Visit their web site to order your guaranteed compatible forms at competitive prices.

Making a Difference:

Sha-Ron Worthen - Empowering a Community in Michigan

Name: Sha-Ron Worthen
Title: Trustee and Treasurer, Empowering Disciples ministry
Passion: Working behind the scenes so that plans can come to fruition
Why PowerChurch: Our ability to manage all the church business with a single software

Lao Tzu said famously: "The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." Sha-Ron Worthen knows this well. Just over three years ago, their church ministry had no structure to call their own. "We held our services in rented spaces, hotels or conference centers." Sha-Ron said inaugurating their new building felt like they "had finally come out of the wilderness and into the Promised Land!"

With that first hurdle accomplished, they continue to dream big and power forward. As trustee, member of the finance ministry and treasurer of record, Sha-Ron describes herself as a seasoned and contented "behind the scenes person," doing all of the work necessary to see goals accomplished and dreams fulfilled. PowerChurch Online is a big part of that background work.

"Prior to PowerChurch Online, we used a combination of QuickBooks, Membership Plus, and Excel spreadsheets to manage all church financial and membership information and transactions. We then attended a seminar on using PowerChurch and the benefits of managing all church business within one software application, and the advantages were significant.

"It was the work that we did preparing to secure the mortgage for our new church that led us to PowerChurch Online as a better option for church management than what we were using previously. The ability to have an online tool alone was enough to sell us on the product. As a church that operated with no "home base" for three years, it was often challenging having to store information on one computer that was not accessible to all the members of the finance ministry and relying on email to communicate info back and forth and update manual spreadsheets."

With church management tasks centralized and simplified, Empowering Disciples can focus on the work they feel driven to do: creating disciples and leading them - through "raw and real" preaching - to live the lives they've been made for. This work extends to individuals and families, and to the entire community as well. The next step is to reach out to their suburban community with a childhood education center. "Our pastor's teaching style really appeals to the younger generations, and we initially considered a daycare center for members. The more we discussed it however, the more we realized that we wanted to aspire to a higher standard of education than the public schools do." They are currently in the exploratory phase of the project, but fully intend to create a purpose-built place for those seeking a Christian education.

Since moving into their new building, the membership of Empowering Disciples has quadrupled. Clearly, their journey is in the right direction.

You make a difference all over the world. PowerChurch makes it easier. Read previous installments of Making a Difference at www.powerchurch.com/stories/.

Forum Q&A

The Support Forum on our web site is a very active online community of our users and Tech Support staff members. There you can browse through thousands of questions and answers, or post your own. Below are some recent examples:

From Membership:
Q. If a member of a family has a different address, how will it be handled?
A. Currently, they would need to have a separate Family Mailing List record, with their Personal Profile under that record. You could have a Personal Profile record under the family, but if they are living by themselves they are considered a separate household, with their own envelope numbers assigned.

Q. We need to update all our congregation information. What is the best way to do this?
A. We recommend giving each family a printout of the Family Update Form that can be found under the Family Mailing List reports. They can then update that information, and turn it back into the church for entry.

Q. Is there a way to incorporate drop down boxes for input fields, such as city and state/province?
A. PowerChurch Plus Versions 10 and higher have auto-complete on the city, state, and zip fields.