A move from Sage 50 to Sage Intacct helps future-proof operations and growth for Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians.
The Challenge
A user of Sage 50, Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians had completely outgrown the software and was working against them.
The Solution
Sage Intacct is the ideal solution for Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians’ growth and a company that has multiple entities.
Results with Sage Intacct
- Can now generate revenue and expense reports nearly instantly
- IT department gained more time for other initiatives
- Ability to send electronic payments has created a more secure and efficient workflow
- Import utility has reduced data entry adding time to research pricing and optimize spending
- Easier to manage multiple entities saves staff numerous hours
- Dimensions have simplified chart of accounts and provide practitioners with actionable data
About Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians
Providing outstanding and compassionate care of adult and pediatric patients for more than 60 years has been Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians mission. With the help of their medical and surgical specialists Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians has been named the best allergy group in Columbus for 3 years in a row. With multiple locations in Columbus and surrounding areas Ohio ENT has grown its operations and the combination of Sage Intacct and DWD Technology Group play a critical role.
Location: Ohio, USA
Sage Partner: DWD Technology Group
Ohio ENT & Allergy Physicians (OENTA) is the region’s largest private ENT and allergy practice. With eight locations and 260 employees, it is among the top 10 such practices in the nation. Its complex business model has demanding financial and accounting requirements.
To keep the practice healthy, efficient, and scalable, OENTA chose to partner with DWD Technology Group and Sage Intacct.
Growing beyond Sage 50 — the catalyst for change
“We’d been using Sage 50 for years but had completely outgrown it,” recalls Andrea M. Gilsenan, CPA, OENTA’s CFO. “As we grew, we increasingly relied on spreadsheets to get the reports we needed, which was time-consuming and had the potential for error. Plus, the database grew so large that the system would crash periodically.
“We’d been using Sage 50 for years but had completely outgrown it,” recalls Andrea M. Gilsenan, CPA, OENTA’s CFO. “As we grew, we increasingly relied on spreadsheets to get the reports we needed, which was time-consuming and had the potential for error. Plus, the database grew so large that the system would crash periodically.
The final straw, though, was the pandemic. With staff trying to work from home, it really exposed our need for a modern, cloud-based financial management system.”
Andrea says Sage Intacct was on the organization’s shortlist from the start. “It’s ideal for a growing, multi-entity company like ours,” she says. “Sage demonstrated the product, and we were impressed, but it’s important for us to have a local partner who knows us and our business.
When we met the consultants at DWD Technology Group, we knew they were the ones. They have CPAs on staff and work with several other healthcare organizations, so we were confident having them guide our migration from Sage 50 to Sage Intacct.”
Sage Intacct Overview Tour for Organizations Outgrowing Sage 50 (18:53)
Strategic Migration to Sage Intacct
DWD recommended transitioning one entity at a time. This allowed the company to run parallel systems for a short time while they gained familiarity and confidence in Sage Intacct before moving the whole company. “We exported our ledger data out of Sage 50, and they imported it into Sage Intacct.” Once the entire organization was live on Sage Intacct, the impacts of the move quickly materialized.
“One quick win was our ability to generate revenue and expense reports for each of our physicians,” says Andrea. “Previously, this involved hours of manual preparation each month. Now, it’s nearly instant.”
Operational Wins — Freeing Internal Resources
As the CFO of a busy, successful healthcare organization, Andrea’s time is at a premium. “With the switch to Sage Intacct, I’ve gained time in my month — time I can now use to better support the practice’s growth initiatives,” she says. “We’ve automated many manual processes and streamlined others. The changes mean we can close the months and quarters more quickly.
The move to Sage Intacct has freed internal IT resources at OENTA. “Since Sage Intacct is entirely cloud-based, our IT department doesn’t have to maintain and service it the way they did Sage 50,” Andrea says. “It frees their time for other initiatives.”
Leveraging Automation
Processing payables used to be a lengthy, largely manual task for OENTA — one that has been streamlined and automated with the move to Sage Intacct AP Automation. “We’re able to automatically bring payables into Sage Intacct without the need for rekeying,” Andrea says. “And we’re sending secure electronic payments to our vendors rather than printing and mailing paper checks. It’s a much more secure and efficient workflow, which means our finance team has more time to focus on strategic tasks.”
We’re sending secure electronic payments to our vendors rather than printing and mailing paper checks. It’s a much more secure and efficient workflow, which means our finance team has more time to focus on strategic tasks.
The next initiative on OENTA’s list is implementing a payables approval workflow within Sage Intacct. “We have a complex approval process, so we’re working through the details with DWD and are looking forward to streamlining it within Sage Intacct,” says Andrea.
Streamlined Data Exchange
DWD also built an import utility that exchanges procurement data with a medical supply company. “Once we approve a purchase, the data travels directly into Sage Intacct,” explains Andrea. “Before, we manually entered the data into Medline and then entered the same data into Sage 50. We’re using the time we save to research pricing and optimize our spending.”
An additional import utility DWD created brings summarized billing data from the organization’s medical billing application into Sage Intacct. Another import carries payroll into the general ledger.
Simplifying Multi-Entity Accounting
Sage Intacct simplifies the management of a complex business structure with multiple entities. OENTA’s finance team can swiftly and easily switch between entities to record transactions. Reporting across entities is similarly simplified — financial reports can be generated for a single entity or consolidated into a single, cohesive view.
“We can manage the complexities surrounding multiple entities so much easier than with Sage 50,” says Andrea. “It saves our staff a lot of time.”
Empowering Managers with Real-Time, Actionable Data
Sage Intacct dimensions help simplify the complexities of the healthcare enterprise. OENTA uses dimensions to represent physician, specialty, location, division, and provider.
“In our old system, we had to create a segment on our account for each of those, which led to a 30-page chart of accounts. Now, it might fill two pages. It’s a seemingly simple change that makes such a difference throughout the finance department.”
Dimensions also allow OENTA to provide its practitioners with actionable information about their practices. “We can quickly produce profit-and-loss statements for each individual doctor,” explains Andrea.
Employee view-only licenses for Sage Intacct allow the organization to cost-effectively extend access to departmental financial data to individual managers. “It’s an easy, effective way to provide department heads with real-time access to the data they need,” she adds.
A Partner for the Long-Term
“I joke that DWD is our finance team’s security blanket,” says Andrea. “They feel our pain and have our back. We trust them and use them to help brainstorm new ideas and strategies. They’ve helped us gain a lot of value from the software.”
She concludes. “We see Sage Intacct as a solution that will grow with us and continue to provide benefits for years to come. And combined with our partnership with DWD, we have tremendous confidence going forward.”
