Category Archives: Office Efficiency

5 Reasons to Switch to ClearGov Digital Budget Book (And Make Earning the GFOA Distinguished Budget Award Easier)

By Black Mountain Software | Published December 13, 2022

By Matt Benati, VP Marketing at ClearGov

The GFOA Distinguished Budget Award is one of the most coveted accolades in local government – and for good reason.

The award can mean a number of things to a local government, but for many, it is twofold. First, having a transparent budget for residents is ethical, strengthens community relationships, and makes responding to inquiries simpler and faster. Second, local government employees take a great deal of pride in their work. Providing the community you love with excellence in budgeting is rewarding on its own, but the acknowledgment that you’re an asset to your community, is a fulfilling and well-deserved badge of honor. Read more >

Posted in BMS Partners, City Clerk Cafe, Office Efficiency, Small Cities, Technology | Comments Off on 5 Reasons to Switch to ClearGov Digital Budget Book (And Make Earning the GFOA Distinguished Budget Award Easier)

Privacy Risks and Your In-Home Devices

By Jake Holley | Published September 19, 2022

Smart devices can send us reminders, check the weather, make a grocery list, regulate the heat in our house, and…make us prone to security breaches???

We are more connected to our devices than ever before. They do everything for us. But a new worry about these interactions has surfaced: do they protect our privacy and information enough?

When everyday devices connect to the Internet to send and receive information, this information is called the Internet of Things (ioT). It is predicted that by the end of 2022, the IoT will account for 13 billion connected devices, which means 13 billion chances for privacy to be breached or hacked over these devices’ lifetime. Read more >

Posted in Best Practices, BMS Tech Tips, City Clerk Cafe, Office Efficiency, Technology | Comments Off on Privacy Risks and Your In-Home Devices

How to Make a Big Software Switch Less Intimidating

By Jake Holley | Published June 21, 2022

Oh no you’ve really done it this time!

You’ve met with the vendor. You’ve made the decision. You’ve cut the purchase order. And now? Now you have to go through with it!

A major software change is incredibly intimidating for many agencies seeking an update to their systems. It means dealing with a lot of information, learning new processes, integrating the system, taking the network off-line, and training employees. As a software provider for local governments, schools and utilities, we are no strangers to the intimidation factor. That’s why we’ve pledged a great deal of our efforts towards making the process as pain-free as possible. Read more >

Posted in Best Practices, BMS Products, BMS Tech Tips, City Clerk Cafe, Office Efficiency | Comments Off on How to Make a Big Software Switch Less Intimidating

Schedule, Manage, and Track Better Than Ever

By Jake Holley | Published March 1, 2021

Issuing and tracking permits, as well as scheduling inspections, are integral parts of a city’s ability to enforce municipal codes and ensure construction is completed according to current safety standards. Without these regulations, our cities would be a mess, which is why we offer a robust and fully integrated permitting application to assist in performing this vital process.

Black Mountain Software’s Permitting is a standalone application that makes it easy to maintain detailed property information. Once a property is added, permits can be issued according to local zoning ordinances, which includes automated fee calculation to save your entity and employees valuable time. Read more >

Posted in BMS Products, City Clerk Cafe, Office Efficiency, Small Cities | Comments Off on Schedule, Manage, and Track Better Than Ever

Make Ordering Forms Less Taxing with RMPS

By Jake Holley | Published December 15, 2020

Forms are the norm with 1099s, W2s, 1095s, and utility bills to boot! But now, you can get them all from one reliable, trusted supplier.

Our partners over at Rocky Mountain Print Solutions (RMPS) produce and deliver BMS-formatted forms that integrate perfectly with Black Mountain Software. This partnership ensures your form printing is accurate and improves your mailing success. RMPS also allows you to consolidate your form and printer supply needs to a single vendor with convenient online ordering, great prices, and fast delivery.

Rocky Mountain Print Solutions for BMS clients are great because:

  • BMS integrated pre-formatted forms cut down on time
  • Pricing is very competitive
  • The product is high-quality
  • Ordering is done online
  • Form accuracy is guaranteed
  • Shipping is fast and free on orders over $100
  • Forms and cards are formatted to efficiently and seamlessly work with the Black Mountain Software interface

To further maximize your efficiency, RMPS can also meet your Utility Billing needs – either for standard letter or post card bills – at incredibly reasonable prices. Read more >

Posted in Best Practices, BMS Partners, BMS Products, Office Efficiency, School Software, Small Cities, Utility Billing | Comments Off on Make Ordering Forms Less Taxing with RMPS

Common Mistakes to Avoid with Year-End Financial Statements

By Jake Holley | Published November 12, 2020

Anyone that has ever worked with year-end financial statements knows that a thorough review to ensure accuracy and accountability is vital. With so many items and numbers to scour, it’s a daunting and overwhelming task. But, to help with the year-end financial report blues, we’ve compiled a list of the most common mistakes found on financial statements so you can know what to look for ahead of time.

Overlooked Expense Line Items

Sometimes, even large expenditures can be overlooked. These expenses can include everything from salaries and benefits, costs to provide services, to office supplies and other operating expenses. A quick once-over and comparison to estimated expenses on the budget can help guarantee that an expense has not been miscategorized. Read more >

Posted in Accounting Basics, Best Practices, BMS Products, City Clerk Cafe, Government Accounting Standards, Office Efficiency, Small Cities | Comments Off on Common Mistakes to Avoid with Year-End Financial Statements

The Purpose of Governmental Budgeting

By Jake Holley | Published June 30, 2020

The budget preparation process is an opportunity for an agency to collaboratively set and meet financial goals. So what may seem like a bunch of never-ending numbers on a spreadsheet is actually much more: a plan of action for the future of both the agency and the community it serves.

Since many of our clients are actively participating in preliminary budget preparation right now, we thought this would be the perfect time to discuss the four goals of the budget process to highlight why it is so important.

The Four Goals of the Budget Preparation Process

1. Establish Goals to Guide Future Decision Making

The first step of budget preparation is to create a set of budgetary goals. Read more >

Posted in Best Practices, City Clerk Cafe, Office Efficiency | Comments Off on The Purpose of Governmental Budgeting

Don’t Let Credit Cards Manage You

By Jake Holley | Published March 24, 2020

According to Fundera, 70 percent of consumers prefer card payments, and credit cards account for a third of all card purchases. Unsurprisingly, the amount of daily credit card purchases is expected to continue increasing over time. While government employees only account for a fraction of all credit card purchases, as the amount of credit card purchases increase, local agencies will have a ton of credit card purchase information to monitor. Luckily, Black Mountain Software offers a convenient way to document, track and report employee credit card activity with ease and efficiency: Credit Card Manager.

Credit Card Manager is an add-on module available for Accounting that keeps all credit card information in one secure place so transaction information can be viewed on the fly. Read more >

Posted in Accounting Basics, BMS Products, Office Efficiency, School Software | Comments Off on Don’t Let Credit Cards Manage You

Why We Use Amazon Web Services for the BMS Cloud

By Jake Holley | Published January 14, 2020

The BMS Cloud allows our clients to simplify data management, automate updates and nightly backups, strengthen security, and improve their overall software experience. We offer a smooth transition to the BMS Cloud using in-house migration and installation services, as well by partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS), one of the most secure, reliable and responsive providers in the industry.

Three Benefits of AWS for the BMS Cloud

Security

Security is of the highest priority for Amazon Web Services. As a customer, BMS benefits from the same security infrastructure built for larger industries, which includes multiple secure data centers, encrypted data transit, network firewalls, multi-factor authentication, and frequent vulnerability testing to ensure data is stored and transmitted safely. Read more >

Posted in BMS Partners, Cloud Computing, Office Efficiency, School Software, Small Cities, Technology, Utility Billing | Comments Off on Why We Use Amazon Web Services for the BMS Cloud

No power? No Problem!

By Black Mountain Software | Published October 24, 2019

BMS was literally left in the dark with two consecutive, midweek power outages. The most recent lasted only a few minutes and served as a minor but exciting inconvenience, whereas the previous outage lasted quite a few hours after a frog tripped a breaker and shut down the entire county in a single leap. Absurd? Absolutely. Catastrophic? Not at all, but it easily could’ve been.

Fortunately, our office and network infrastructure are equipped for dealing with emergencies. Yet the event served as a teaching moment, a testament to precisely why planning for the worst is the best way to confront the unexpected when it rears its ugly head. Read more >

Posted in Best Practices, BMS Tech Tips, Cloud Computing, Office Efficiency, Technology | Comments Off on No power? No Problem!

Stay Connected with Black Mountain Software

If you sign up for Black Mountain Software emails, about 4 times per year you will receive a special email designed for organizations like yours that are not already Black Mountain customers. We won’t clutter your inbox, and we will provide information relevant and helpful to you. And don’t worry, your email address is never sold or given out to third parties.

Select the Email Updates You'd Like to Receive:

Other Ways to Stay Connected:

Subscribe to the Blog Subscribe to City Clerk Cafe Connect with LinkedIn
Follow on Facebook Follow on Twitter Connect on YouTube