MIP Fund Accounting Reviews

Very nice!

Pros:

We have been using this for accounting for quite awhile and have not have any issues. It has great support and options to be able to work for what our non-profit is always needing.

Cons:

The reporting could be better, more customization would be great. As a non-profit it is always something that we need reporting on and nothing is ever perfect. But that does go for many products too.

Ok for the $, but only if you have it on premises, stay away from their cloud one.

Comments: Loved it when it was on premises, hate their cloud version and the exorbitant prices for services

Pros:

System is great for the $ but ONLY if you have it on premises. Once you move to the cloud they nickel and dime you to death. Any changes you need, they will charge you dearly for it. For example once we moved to the cloud, adding a new segment and changing history >$7K, I used to have a SQL engineer do it for $1K.

Cons:

High costs of their customer support for any change

MIP is a good nonprofit software that is cost affordable

Pros:

MIP has everything you need however there are many different features such as payroll and etc that will cost more to be added on

Cons:

It is not up to update. I love the lay out but I can see a lot of improve that could make the workflow and journal entries easier/faster

Cloud Conversion/ Client Services

Pros:

When the software was hosted on premises, it was almost flawless.

Cons:

It was pushed to move to our account to the cloud and functionality and updates to the on prem software was starting to lag and more bugs were encountered. When our org migrated, the process was cumbersome and we were charged over $550 for a 'modern overview' that I would have waived if the charges were transparent. Client services failed to deliver adequate service and cannot recommend MIP cloud.

Great Platform!

Comments: Overall very happy with MIP and the way it works. It was a good choice for us!

Pros:

MIP is a great fund accounting software. It has been very valuable for our organization and makes it easy to keep everything in order and organized.

Cons:

System is sometimes glitchy and it's hard to find tutorials for learning new things in the software.

Account Software Crisis

Comments: Nightmare

Pros:

Nothing about the software is user friendly and the training process is a nightmare. the company keeps switching trainers who leave the company and leave their clients with no connection to know what is going on

Cons:

The technology feature is very difficult and the modular build up is not effective to pull out reports.

Sturdy and reliable accounting software

Comments: Overall good, reliable and serves our current needs. We'd prefer a system that did not require annual updates performed by our applications team, but it's something we can live with. Customer support is helpful but can be hard to reach at times.

Pros:

It is reliable and doesn't crash. Good suite of features that suit our essential needs, such as payroll, AP, AR, reports, budgets and fund management. Other tools are add ons that we do not currently use but had to contract with a few additional third parties to meet our needs.

Cons:

Annual fee and need for annual updates. Normally these are not too cumbersome but occasionally they are more difficult to implement for our applications team and it takes up a good chunk of their time.

University Fundraising Team

Comments: I personally found the coordinative POSSIBILITIES to be high, however the learning curve made it hard for the average user to become functional.

Pros:

I enjoyed the ability to get an entire University on board and working in the same direction. Additionally, the ability to coordinate accounts is very helpful.

Cons:

The learning curve is hard. It is easy to use poorly, and difficult to use easily. I became an adept user, but the difficulty in getting up to speed typically meant that other colleagues accomplished only the basic tasks, or neglected using it at all.

Great software for mid-market non-profits

Pros:

The Saas version makes it easy to implement and easy on the IT department (they don't have to do anything). It also makes it easy to access from anywhere. We moved from Blackbaud because their system was so clunky and I couldn't get financials out of it easily. With Abila, it's very easy to run a variety of financials that I can tailor to my needs. It's also very easy to drill down (not from the financial reports) to find the detail I'm looking for with links to supporting documents (i.e. invoices). The A/R, fixed asset and other modules let us keep accounting for everything in one place.

Cons:

The financial reports are a bit limited in terms of showing groupings of departments without being able to show the total on the same report. It can't do monthly balance sheets on one report. And you can't enter operational/non-financial data for more comprehensive reporting. The wait time for calling into their help center is still unacceptable (hold times of no less than 30 minutes). They know about this and, instead of fixing it, tell users to use their chat function. While their response time on chat is very fast, I hate having to type out my issues and responses. I just want to talk to a live person.

Workplace utilizes for Electronic Requisition system

Pros:

We were able to move away from wasting so much paper and doing paper purchase orders for everything. MIP allowed for us to move into an easily submittable format.

Cons:

Navigating the software itself can be clunky. I'm not sure if we have an older version or not, but there's some standard keystrokes that are different than intuition would say. The enter key saves and closes something and the tab key functions more as a traditional enter key which really messed with me for awhile.

Used when it was Sage

Comments: When I used this product, I did not work in the accounting department, I worked in the Warranty/Repairs Department of a construction company. However, we used this software to make notes, bill for repairs, find out when a warranty should be issued upon customer being paid in full, and communicate with the accounting department as they were in another building than our department. The invoicing feature was very straight forward and easy to use. Checking if a customer was paid in full was also easy. Making notes was also easy but the categorization of the notes could have been better. It was just a long list with no differentiation or date categorization. You just had to scroll through a giant list of notes to hopefully find what you needed to know, and hopefully someone put a name and a date by the note so you could ask them additional questions if they did not list enough detail. Switching from different screens was a little time consuming. When I used this software, there was no ability to set an action request. I'm sure by now they have changed this and made it possible to set actions or reminders for yourself or others.

Pros:

Multiple users can be on the program at one time. It is relatively user friendly as long as you have basic computer knowledge.

Cons:

The time it took to go from one feature to another was frustrating when you are on the phone with a customer and needed to get to several different places quickly, however, that could have been due to the number of users we had on our server at a given time. If an older person, who has limited computer knowledge were to try and use this program, they may need a training course to become comfortable using it.

Highly functional product for a small, medium, or large non profit organization

Comments: We have used this product for many years for our business and it has served us very well. I would highly recommend it.

Pros:

1. Configuration of chart of account. 2. Account code combinations to allow for control of account code usage. 3. Import/Export of data functions - We are able to import our 30,000+ lines of data for payroll entry each 2 weeks. 4. Accounts Payable EFT notifications - When we pay vendors via ACH, we set up the system so a notification is sent to the vendor each time we make a payment and it includes remittance details. 5. Administrative access controls. - Admins have the ability to control everything a user needs to see. 6. Customer support is always helpful

Cons:

1. Although the import function is a huge plus, sometimes I wish we could speed up a the process for larger entries.

Abila software - Meh

Comments: Overall it's ok, but it could be a little more friendly, especially when it comes to reporting. There aren't many canned reports, and sometimes the reports don't match the actual data.

Pros:

I like that it's tailored to the nonprofit company, so we can allocate expenses and revenues to specific grants.

Cons:

It's rather "picky" and often difficult to use, following the steps takes some time to get used to. Changing which bank to cut checks out of is not easy for a new user to find.

A very valuable asset to our organization

Pros:

This software provides local government accounting functions at a perfect level. I think the best thing about this software is it provides payroll, AP, AR, reports, budgets and fund management. The software does have other features, but buy additionally.

Cons:

I think on the downside, you have to keep paying a fee annually. The software has to be updated annually. Also in Payroll, all State taxes must be downloaded to run reports.

Good product, horrible customer service

Pros:

I think the product is very good for what we need it to do. The best part is the reports feature. Once you learn to build the reports, it becomes an even better tool.

Cons:

IF and when you have to call customer support, be prepared to sit on hold and listen to that music for AT LEAST 45 minutes. It does not matter what day or time I call, they are ALWAYS busy. Our implementation specialist was paid to provide a week of training. However, I had to ask her to complete our training because she rushed through it and did not even show us one of the modules that we had paid for.

MIP

Comments: Don't generally have any issues with the software but it seems to lag at times for no reason. Every environment is different but we've been using it for a long time. Updates don't seem to on a regular basis. On the great side, support seems to know what they're doing when contacted.

Pros:

Citrix integrated, server and client install.

Cons:

Clunky, slow at times. SQL Maintenance need to be WAY on top of it.

Easy to use

Comments: The problem that it has solved is being able to keep track of accounts payable and receivables so easliy.

Pros:

One of the things I love about it is how easy it is to use. I am in accounts payable and I can enter them so fast and easy.

Cons:

One of the things I least like about it is that sometimes when I make a mistake and fix it it won't really correct it.

Comments: MESSIANIC JEWISH BIBLE INSTITUTE (MJBI) is a multi-dimensional evangelistic and educational organization to people of the Jewish heritage. The MJBI's primary activities are to equip leaders who will establish Messianic Jewish congregations and ministries in Jewish communities worldwide, and to equip those leaders in their responsibility to the Jewish people through training, events, and seminars. MJBI also supports Bible schools, congregations, outreach and humanitarian aid works in Brazil, Argentina, Israel, Ethiopia, Russia, Hungary and the Ukraine. In 2006, MJBI smoothly transitioned to Sage MIP Fund Accounting to satisfy its increased activities. Sage MIP is easy to use; offers a flexible method of setting up account structures; and the ability to track the revenue and expenses by department and location. Sage MIP can produce accurate, meaningful and timely customized reports in various formats, which facilitates MJBI management and the board members to make important decisions based on our financial position. Sage MIP enabled us to perform some tasks that were previous done by the outside companies, such as budgeting and forecasting. Also, the remote access offers the convenience to access the accounting information when needed. Another good thing about Sage MIP Accounting is its Maintenance and Support Plan, which includes the online knowledgebase, unlimited e-support and telephone support. The people in its Customer Support department are very knowledgeable and can solve our problems in a professional and timely fashion. Sage MIP Accounting has been performing all financial accounting and record keeping for MJBI. The system is working so well that we have received the good comment from the auditors since we implemented it.

Manager

Comments: I would recommend this product to any nonprofit. It has what you need for sure.

Pros:

General Ledger chart of accounts setup is second to none. With the segment driven chart versus the linear style chart of accounts found in competitor products, the reporting is hands down the best I've ever seen in the industry. It also has strong audit controls for maintaining integrity within your software.

Cons:

Hard to find anything I don't like about this product. I am eagerly waiting for them to bring more features to the cloud offering.

Excellent for non-profits, but it could be even better

Pros:

The best thing is the multi-dimentional logic built into the product, which enables it to track almost any measure (P&L, Balance Sheet) across various dimensions (company, department, program, grant, restriction type, etc.) This gives you almost total flexibility to manage your organization's finances in any way you want.

Cons:

My only pet peeves - none of which are deal-breakers - are: - Lack of drill-down capabilities straight from the reports. Say you run a P&L report and want to know the details behind a certain expense figure. In QuickBooks, you can just double-click on the figure and get a detailed report of the details behind it. In MIP you are forced to run a separate Transactions report. The information can still be obtained; it just takes longer. - No "Balance Sheet by Month" report. This is another basic report that even Quickbooks has. It's very important when you're analyzing your historical results. - The documentation is horrible. There are no examples whatsoever. You need to know the system already in order to understand what the manuals mean to say. - Certain reports should give you the codes along with their names. For example, a Distribution Codes report tells you that code 1125 splits costs 40% to Program 254 and 60% to Program 350. But the report doesn't tell you that code 1125 is for employee "John Do", Program 254 is "Advocacy," and Program 350 is "Shelter". You need to run a separate Chart of Accounts report and then do vlookups. This should be a really easy thing to code into the package.

HR Specialist

Pros:

I use the payroll module to process bi-weekly payroll. It is a great program as it flows into the MIP Fund Accounting software making it a breeze to reconcile accounts. The vendor is readily available to answer questions and is knowledgeable. No run around trying to find the answer or "fix".

Cons:

The payroll module does not update some balances automatically. For instance, when PTO hours are entered on the timesheet, you still have to go to another tab to indicate Leave taken for the leave balance to be reduced. Also there are no restrictions on earning codes: someone could have a have several levels of PTO (due to increasing earning eligibility with tenure) and the system will recognize all. It would be beneficial if more than one rate of pay was also available. It is not in the payroll module, you must add the HR module.

Abila MIP Fund Accounting

Comments: Throughout my whole professional career, I have utilized Abila MIP Fund Accounting. Once mastered, it is a great software to use.

Pros:

The software has many great features that make completing tasks more efficient.

Cons:

It takes a while for a new user to become familiar with all the functions and features.

Abila Fund Accounting Use and Customization

Comments: The system itself has been around for a good while. For that reason, they have built a strong product if you are in the non-profit sector looking for some flexibility. Be warned that it is not an inexpensive system although the ongoing cost of maintenance and support is not too bad. Implementation and initial licensing are where they get you. Most use the product out of the box and even then require a good amount of training since it had too many features. I would try to stay away from customizations that touch the database directly because support will have a much more difficult time supporting you. Support is ok, however during an audit and UDS season you should expect to be on the phone on hold for 30+ min.

Pros:

Once set up, you will enjoy the power of flexibility and customization.

Cons:

Too many options that can easily use you. You need to be trained. Support wait times can be high. High initial implements ton cost.

MIP for YOUR non-profit

Comments: I would recommend this to any non-profit to account for financials in any industry.

Pros:

MIP has one of the best non-profit accounting solutions out there, with its robust reporting, multiple segmentation of accounts, and ease of reviewing history in the database.

Cons:

The built in custom reporting could be a little better - but there are certainly third party softwares out there that fix this problem - for a cost.

Abila Fund Accounting

Comments: We are very satisfied with the quality and support of this software.

Pros:

This is a solid software program with options to add modules for organization needs. We have several departments that are monitored through this program.

Cons:

Reporting could be re-stuctured for ease of use for new users. Future Training would be nice to have in the pacific northwest. Ease of travel