Management Software announced that it is shipping Release 2.5 of JobOrder Process Management Software, a program that integrates business processes such as estimating, scheduling, assigning, re-scheduling, tracking, reporting, analyzing, purchasing and billing into one comprehensive system. JobOrder increases business productivity and profitability through ease, immediacy, flexibility, and accuracy of access to information.

The most significant new feature since last October's Release 2.0 is an integrated accounting module. "Many companies have asked for JobOrder to include a complete accounting system; the full integration of accounting with all of our other functions enables us to provide several unique and powerful features" says Victor Siegle, President of Management Software.

"JobOrder's fully-integrated accounting system automatically creates true double-entry accounting transactions when a user enters time slips, expense receipts, customer payments, or vendor payments. Without using any accounting jargon and without performing any separate accounting procedures, a user can automatically produce income statements and balance sheets." For companies that already have satisfactory accounting software, integrating JobOrder with outside accounting packages, such as Great Plains Dynamics, is also straightforward.

JobOrder Release 2.5 also includes an enhanced notification system, allowing users to define their own rules for automated warnings of impending deadlines, incomplete time sheet submissions, workflow information, and cost and activity benchmarks. JobOrder users can tailor this system to their needs, setting one notification threshold for the staff involved, a second for the job manager, and an extreme-case threshold for the appropriate Managing Partner or corporate officer.

Integrating all business processes into one package, JobOrder combines unprecedented conceptual and technical power with flexibility, ease of use, and fully customized security control, so that staff can access only the information they require.

Earlier releases of JobOrder have introduced scheduling (and billing) of equipment and facilities; a proposal or quote request and estimating system; a contact management system; notes (text, spreadsheets, and images) that can attach to any record; and a calendar for viewing and rescheduling graphically anything from a single meeting to an entire job.

JobOrder organizes jobs into phases, which in turn are made up of activities and expenses. The JobOrder scheduler tracks all elements of jobs, both scheduled and completed. Complete records of job histories are always available for planning future jobs. Estimates can be started by drawing information from one or more previous jobs. The most typical jobs can be saved as templates for planning and estimating.

In addition to corporate departments, design firms, advertising agencies, consulting firms, and other time-and-expense based service businesses, JobOrder has customized features that address the needs of the pre-press, printing, and job-shop manufacturing industries. JobOrder is fully expandable to meet the needs of any size of organization: JobOrder Solo is optimized for a single workstation. JobOrder for Workgroups operates from 2 to 10 workstations simultaneously. JobOrder Enterprise effectively manages companies or departments with large staffs.

Approaches can be designed for any size of business in one location or networked around the world.

JobOrder is flexible, customizable and responsive, and Management Software constantly refines the program with new ideas generated from the needs of its customers. Pricing begins at $995 for the single workstation version of JobOrder.

Major enhancements are included in regular upgrades to JobOrder, which are free for up to six months after the initial purchase; after that upgrades are available at a modest annual fee. As part of the upgrade contract, on-line support is also free via CompuServe or the Internet.

Built on 4th Dimension (4D), the powerful relational database for the Macintosh and Windows environments, JobOrder 2.5 is available now and is accelerated for Power Macintosh. JobOrder will follow 4D into the Microsoft Windows environment this fall. At that time companies with mixed Mac and PC environments will have complete flexibility to use either platform as a serverand both as clientswithin a single network.