We're gearing up for our 7th annual Tensoft Fabless Semiconductor Management (FSM) User Conference, which will be held at a new local venue next month.  For those of our Tensoft FSM customers who still need justification to attend, here's my Top Ten List of reasons to attend!

TOP TEN REASONS TO ATTEND MOMENTUM 2012:   

10) Hands-on product training on both days.

9) Learn what's new in Tensoft FSM and related systems, including all the enhancements that have been added as a result of your suggestions during Momentum 2011. 

8) Step back from the daily grind and discover new ways to approach your current processes.

7) Momentum 2012 is where your industry peers will be on May 21-22!

6) Influence the future direction of Tensoft products.  (Hint: So that - next year - you can take credit for those great enhancements at Momentum 2013).

5) Learn tips and tricks from Tensoft product experts - both those who work at Tensoft, and those who use Tensoft FSM every day.

4) Meet the Tensoft support and management teams, and put faces to those names.

3) Special guest appearances by Tensoft FSM's Technical Lead and Tensoft FSM's Vendor Integrations Lead.

2) The best line-up ever of informative, interactive sessions - all based on your suggestions from past conferences.

1) A chance to soak up all of this accelerated learning, get answers to all of your questions, brainstorm new ideas with the user community and Tensoft staff, and network with industry colleagues during breakfast, breaks, lunch and the Monday night reception - what a deal!

 As of today, April 1 2012, Tensoft will no longer be stocking the company's kitchen with beverages and snacks for employees.  Instead, all staff will be encouraged to take regular short breaks to hunt or gather their food and drinks from naturely occurring local resources.

"As a Tensoft employee, I'm not really sure what I can find to eat or drink that's right outside of the office.  We did have a wild turkey in the parking lot a couple of years ago, but no one's seen it since then," said an anonymous source at the company.  "And, besides, how am I supposed to hunt a turkey at the office?  Am I supposed to whack it with my laptop?"

Tensoft management has assured the team that there are plenty of provisions to be had for the enterprising hunter/gatherer in the local area.  We will be following up later this month to see if any of the local tree bark has proven to be edible, as well as to check for any reports of illness or death caused by ingesting poisonous berries or mushrooms. 

In conclusion, in case you hadn't guessed it by now: April Fools!

 If you're interested, please send your resumes and a cover letter to job@tensoft.com.

Apply your knowledge of Microsoft SQL Server services, performance tuning of database objects, and business intelligence, and build your expertise in these key skill areas. Tensoft is currently seeking a System/Data Analyst (SQL). This position is full-time with benefits, and offers excellent growth opportunities. 

Tensoft, Inc. is a San Jose-based software company, recognized for our innovative business management software solutions and our excellent customer service. Founded in 1996, our company is relaxed, fast paced, challenging, and fun. Our people are diverse, intelligent, and engaged.

Position Description:

Candidates applying for the System/Data Analyst (SQL) position must have strong customer-service, analytical, and problem-solving skills. This position requires strong communication skills and ability to work directly with users to gather technical information related to Tier-1 and Tier-2 support issues.  Successful candidates must be self-motivated, with the ability to make solid technical and business decisions with minimal managerial direction. In addition, the System/Data Analyst must have the ability to diagnose system issues and discern between bugs and enhancements. 

This position responds to users* requests for support and then determines the nature and extent of support needed by effectively analyzing data provided by users and obtained from customers using SQL commands. The System/Data Analyst needs to interpret customer support requests and translate them into application and operational requirements to determine the most efficient path to resolution. Using examples, screen shots, and brief explanations for any problems found during analysis, the System/Data Analyst will create documentation. They will recreate the problem in an internal test environment and work with developers to fix application bugs that are causing operational issues. 

Successful candidates for this position will be responsible for defining appropriate test cases to validate that the solution is correct and does not introduce unintended problems in other areas. Once the development team resolves an issue and delivers an updated installation package, the System/Data Analyst will test and validate the new installation package is ready for delivery before scheduling installation of the update for the customer. 

We*re seeking a candidate with the ability to interact professionally with a diverse group, including managers, customers, and other members of the development team. The position will serve as the conduit between customers and the software development team, and will work closely with the Product Manager and Data Architect.

Position Requirements:
* Undergraduate degree from an accredited four-year college or university.
* 2-5 years experience in a System Analyst (SQL) role similar to description above.
* Ability to perform data analyst responsibilities by writing well-structured, easily-maintained, efficiently written SQL program code.
* Ability to understand application logic by reviewing code files, both SQL and VB.NET.
* Ability to create ERD diagrams and data flow diagrams and technical documentation.
* Experience deploying SQL Reports (SSRS).
* Proven ability to build strong relationships with internal team, and to demonstrate excellent customer service skills, including the ability to work with customers on the phone and web meetings.
* Proven experience in developing test plans and specification to ensure bug fixes and code updates resolve the issue identified and do not introduce other errors.
* Experience with Microsoft SQL Server 2008, 2008 R2, and 2012 server/query/table/index performance tuning.
* Experience publishing SQL reports, Excel, and PowerPivot to Microsoft SharePoint 2010.
* Experience building Analysis Services Cubes and working with Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services.
* Experience with Business Intelligence tools for high-performance reporting on large data sets.
* Experience with tuning SQL Server for high-performance, including Deployment, Monitoring, and Maintenance strategies
* Ability to perform data analyst responsibilities by writing well-structured, easily-maintained, efficiently written SQL program code.
* Ability to understand application logic by reviewing code files, both SQL and VB.NET.
* Ability to create ERD diagrams and data flow diagrams and technical documentation.
* Experience deploying SQL Reports (SSRS).
* Proven ability to build strong relationships with internal team, and to demonstrate excellent customer service skills, including the ability to work with customers on the phone and web meetings.
* Proven experience in developing test plans and specification to ensure bug fixes and code updates resolve the issue identified and do not introduce other errors.
* Knowledge of Microsoft Dynamics GP 10 or 2010,or other financial and ERP systems and data flow is a big plus.
* Knowledge of Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Excel, and other analytics and reporting tools.
* Deliver assignments on-time and on-budget with high level of quality; must be well organized. 
* Positive attitude and ability to maintain balance under stress, and ability to work effectively with all types of people at all levels. 
* Provide accurate status reports, track billable time, and enter timecard information for projects on a timely basis.
* Must have ability to manage multiple tasks under competing deadlines and shifting priorities.
* Must have a strong sense of ownership and accountability for delivering high quality results on time.
* Excellent interpersonal, analytical, business and technical judgment, problem solving, verbal and written communication skills. 
* Occasional evening and weekend work is required.

Tensoft offers a terrific work environment built on teamwork, trust, and open communication. We are seeking candidates with a positive attitude who thrive in a fast-paced, learning environment. You will have the opportunity to learn new skills and extend the depth of skills you already have. Employee benefits include health and dental insurance, 401(k), employee lounge with Wii, and free snacks.

We will only be contacting those applicants we feel are qualified for the position.

 This will be the first in an on-going series on this topic, authored by several of us here at Tensoft.   I’ll start at the beginning of the process – selecting an accounting and/or ERP system. 

The first myth that I’d like to discuss is: “To make a good decision about which ERP system to choose, you’ll need a detailed RFP (Request for Proposal) to send to each vendor that you want to consider.”   Ostensibly, the purpose of an RFP is to gather detailed information about your selection criteria, make an “apples to apples” comparison of the vendors, and evaluate them based on scoring a weighted analysis of their answers.   In reality, RFPs often simply amount to a waste of everyone’s time.   (A significant waste, since completed RFPs can be hundreds of pages.)

Here's why.  Years ago, the RFP process sometimes uncovered glaring deficiencies and red flags.  Today, however, the General Ledger modules of the top ten accounting systems just aren’t functionally that much different from each other.   In many ways, the functionality differences between the most popular systems are insignificant enough that they’ve practically become a commodity.   Because of this, the analysis provided by an RFP process today is more likely to turn up red herrings than anything truly problematic or outstanding.

What’s the alternative?   Instead of creating and evaluating massive RFPs, invest time into drilling into the exact nature of the business problems that you’d like your new system to solve.  For example, many of our customers have very complex revenue, billing and/or contract management scenarios that they previously developed massive spreadsheets to handle, because their system of record’s core functionality didn’t handle their needs efficiently and effectively.   Once you’ve identified the specific areas that are particularly painful  to try to address with your current systems and processes, you can then look for systems –and vendors - that are differentiated by their ability to solve those particular issues.

The result?  A streamlined selection process that skips rather pointless comparisons of ubiquitous features, and dives straight into the issues, allowing you to quickly identify who and what can solve them. 

 Case management functionality is critical to the operation of many of Tensoft’s customers.  Because we’re also in the software industry, case management is also critical to Tensoft’s internal processes for supporting our customers.   For that reason, I thought it might be of interest to describe how we handle case management here at Tensoft, for our customers.  Keep in mind that the two main goals of the case management system are: 1) tracking cases and assigning them to the appropriate resources; and, 2) visibility into the case management process for both Tensoft and our customers.

The process is usually initiated when one of Tensoft’s customers sends an email to support@tensoft.com, or any of our product-specific email addresses.   The first thing that happens is that the email automatically creates a case number in Tensoft’s Microsoft CRM system.   This case number will be used to track and resolve the question or issue that’s been submitted, throughout the time that this takes.  At the same time, an email notification is automatically sent to the email sender, informing them that their information has been received and providing them with the appropriate case number.   

Next, the case is assigned to the appropriate support queue for response and resolution.   Whether the question/issue concerns Microsoft Dynamics, one of Tensoft’s products, or platform services, it will be assigned to a support team member who has training and experience handling that type of concern, and who will follow the case through to resolution.    

At Tensoft, each member of the support team receives a daily email with a list of any open cases that have been assigned to them.   In addition, managers are notified of any cases that haven’t been responded to, or that haven’t been resolved.  So it allows us to manage cases by exception.  Customers also receive a weekly email of all support case activity for the prior week, so they can review all open and closed cases, giving them visibility into the process.

By streamlining our case management process using Microsoft CRM, Tensoft is better able to support our customers.  We’ve adapted case creation and management to our required processes, and we use the resulting visibility to supply our team and our customers with the information needed to provide great support.

 From all of us here at Tensoft, to everyone celebrating in India and throughout the Indian diaspora, happy Holi! 

And, yes, that's me above, partially decorated with colors.  This was taken several years ago at a Holi party in India.  The team was taking it easy on me at this point, working up to the buckets of colored water.  As you can see from my green hand and the bag of powdered color that I'm holding, however, I got in my share of the fun as well.   

 It's always great to see local companies celebrate milestones, and even better you have some tie to them.  Campbell-based fabless semiconductor company and Tensoft customer iWatt recently announced shipment of one billion IC units to customers - definitely a huge milestone.  In addition, they also recently christened their new offices in Campbell CA with festivities that included lion dancers, shown in the photo here.  Not saying that there's any cause and effect between the lion dance and shipping a billion units, but what could it hurt?

 I'm pleased to announce that registration is now open for the seventh annual Tensoft FSM International User Conference, Momentum 2012.  This customer-only event will be held on May 21 & 22 this year, in Campbell, CA.   Past conferences have provided a lively forum for worldwide users of Tensoft's Fabless Semiconductor Management (FSM), a leading semiconductor ERP manufacturing and supply chain product, delivered on-premise or as a cloud ERP solution.

This year, attendees will have the opportunity to learn from - and brainstorm with - Tensoft's developers and business analysts, as well as network and share best-practices with their peers from other semiconductor companies.  General sessions include "What's New in FSM?" and a group discussion that will be used to create the product enhancement roadmap for the next year.  For the first time, we will also be offering two "hands-on" training sessions each day, which will run concurrently with the break-out topic sessions. 

Here's what Tensoft President and CEO Bob Scarborough had to say about this year's Momentum: "We look at this annual event as a way to provide value and show appreciation to our Tensoft FSM customers.  We work at keeping the costs low, so more can participate. As a result, we've had the real pleasure of hosting Momentum for many repeat attendees, along with each year's newcomers. The exchange of ideas always seems to propel process and product improvements synergistically, which is great for everyone involved."

Please let me know if you have any questions about this annual event, or would like to sign up.  Hope to see you there!

 Exposed, then re-exposed - when will it end...?!  The joint revenue recognition project for FASB and the IASB will be hitting a significant milestone on 3/13/12 - the deadline for comments.  Coincidentally, Tensoft will be hosting a webcast on this topic that day, early enough for you to still get in your comments on the draft! 

Silicon Valley revenue recognition expert Jeffrey Werner will break down this topic, presenting practical, actionable information for attendees.  You may think that you'll have plenty of time to make the appropriate changes - or you may still think that these changes don't apply to your company.  Just in case, you may want to sit in on this timely and important webcast. 

Here's a quick preview of the agenda:

• Overview
• Scope, Timing and Status
• Five New Principles of Revenue Recognition
• Differences from Current US GAAP
• Implementation Guidance
• Effects of the Changes on Technology Companies 

For more information, and to register, just go to http://bit.ly/yBATpi, or contact me directly to register you.

And, if you're wondering how Tensoft's solution for complex revenue, billing and contract management can help you company make the required changes, please contact me, or Michael Chadwick. 

 If you haven't looked at what's new in revenue recognition software lately, you may be in for a surprise.  Tensoft Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) handles the thorniest complex revenue, contract and/or billing management issues for technology companies with ease – here’s a chance to see if it might be a good fit for your needs!

Just register on our Resource Center for access to this on-demand webinar, “Graduate From Spreadsheets to Tensoft Revenue Cycle Management (RCM),” recorded on 2/15/12. 

Besides an introduction to Tensoft RCM, this webinar addresses some of the key questions that technology companies must ask when they evaluate their needs:

Productivity: Duplicate data entry can introduce errors and sap company resources. How can you find the right systems and processes to help your company speed revenue workflows?

Streamlining Revenue: Auditable and traceable systems enabling consistent revenue recognition. How important is improving the quality and velocity of your revenue while lowering audit costs?

Regulatory Compliance: Revenue and audit regulation complexity adds cost and risk to your organization. How can you consistently support these needs while lowering your risk and cost?

Visibility: Many Financial Executives would like greater insight into revenue data and processes. What could you do with increased visibility into your data?

 If you have any difficulty accessing this, just let me know and I’ll register for you!