Forum just for accountants

On the face of it I really like this idea but in reality would it mean us accountants simply posting between ourselves constantly to the detriment of the overall community and as a result the end client?

I'd say the current format is restrictive in that it does perhaps stop us asking some questions in public for fear of them being viewed but perhaps that's the lesser of two evils.

In my opinion, if anything I think AWEB should be private but I can't see Sift ever going down that road unfortunately.

Hi Graeme - I understand completely the worry that we (partners) could be seen as wanting to create some sort of ivory tower "we know best" discussion group and if you knew me or had seen my postings on Accountinweb, you'd know that I've battled for decades against that sort of view given by the accounting profession.

My concern is more about keeping the Community as uncluttered and relevant as possible. Regardless of the merits of the software itself a vibrant and effective user community is, to my mind, a must as it benefits both the provider and user however as has been found in both say the Iris & Xero forums/community websites, if not managed correctly, they can become cluttered and unwieldy and people are dissuaded from participating.

At the end of the day, it would be up to the partner posting the original topic to decide whether they posted it for the community as a whole or say for a partner section and there could be no law to stop anyone choosing to reply in the same manner or differently but, as I say, even if a few general users were interested in say whether there should be a dedicated code for deferred tax and a related code type for provisions, on the balance sheet, i'd fear putting off a significant number of users who wouldn't give a monkeys.

I would have thought you could leave that up to the CB user Paul, rather than assume Accountants know best (no offence!)

G

Hi Graeme - without my CB hat on:

I agree that there would be some discussions, within a partner forum that would be of benefit to the general population of users. For example, in consideration of an idea over a potential new feature, it might be sensible initially for the discussion to take place between accountants and bookkeepers, who have the technical knowledge of the issue, before then being exposed to general users for their opinions.

In other circumstances I can imagine topics that might be best left as partners-only, say if they involved how partner subscriptions worked or to do with "Pro" options.

Thinking of Accountingweb, It does also occur to me that much that accountants & bookkeepers discuss among themselves might just be too boring (or embarrassing) to let out of the bag? ;-).

Its a good idea provided it can be accessed by all users.

G

Hi Ros - It's Scholsey, sorely missed in Brazil I think?

This is a great idea and, as it happens, one that has been mentioned internally a couple of times.

I'll bring the idea up myself again to see what technical issues there are and report back.

Whilst on the subject of sharing, there are the regular "Tick & Bash" events (where I first met Andy) are a great place to mix with other accountant/bookkeepers to swap ideas and horror stories but they have tended to be in London and in the evening and so wouldn't suit everyone. You may also have received an invite to comment from Aaran last week on a planned CB Exhibition next February where there will be a chance to mix with both other accountants & users and I know other events, for "partners" are being looked at.

All the best

Hi Ros,

That sounds like a good idea. It would be great to hear opinions from other accountants about this. In terms of implementation, as with feature requests it will rely on the popularity of the idea (based on the likes and comments).