Welcome to the Mclowd Newsletter, our monthly communication to Trustee Users, Marketplace Professionals and Partners.
Introduction
One of the earliest Projects posted in the Mclowd Marketplace was for a (relatively complex) personal tax return.
The work was previously undertaken by an accounting firm in Melbourne at a cost of $1,200.
Moving the same piece of work to a suitably qualified tax agent operating through the Mclowd Marketplace cut the cost to less than $400 – a saving of more than 65%.
Savings of this magnitude are typical when work is moved ‘into the Crowd’, because much of the cost of a particular task relates to its organisational and physical context – a context that in many instances is no longer required.
Delivering outcomes such as this is why Mclowd recently closed a $300K capital raising, at the same time as another Australian crowdsourcing company – Freelancer – attracted a $400 million valuation.
Both transactions reflect the tectonic shifts now taking place in the way work is performed and organisations configured.
Platform Update
General ledger rollover / rollback is now live, and will make a big difference to Users who are managing data across multiple financial years.
September has also seen the release of the following new functions:
- Additional Member accounts have been added to the Chart of Accounts to support the creation of the upcoming Member Statement Report
- Expenses can now be recorded at the Fund level for segregated accounts
As always full release notes can be accessed via the website.
With medium-term funding now in place we will also be publishing an FY14 roadmap for the Platform, providing longer-term visibility for Users and prospective channel partners, and expect to have replicated most of the intellectual property in the SMSF accounting space within the next 12 months.
The Marketplace
In the last few weeks we have seen Projects posted across various categories, including SMSF Audit, Accounting and Administration.
But as my initial example illustrated, the Marketplace is not just for Trustees who have migrated to the Platform – anyone looking to engage a qualified accounting or tax resource can now post a Project and trigger similar savings. (Interestingly we have also seen prospective channel partners using the Marketplace to drive down their internal costs).
User Forum
The User Forum will be live this week and as previously advised will be moderated by Trustee User Mark Reynolds.
We will also use the content as an additional means of gathering feedback in relation to the Platform and Marketplace.
Platform Branding
The Team are keen to give the accounting software a funkier name than ‘Platform’.
Like everything else at Mclowd, when we have a problem that needs solving we reach out to the Crowd, so are asking Members of the Community to suggest names. Your ideas can be sent to:info@mclowd.com
We will include a survey link in the next Newsletter to decide the successful candidate.
Thanks again for your continued support of our efforts to drive down the costs of investment administration.
Kind Regards
Ashley Porter
Managing Director
Mclowd Pty Ltd