The first quarter of the year is drawing to a close. And the start of the year could hardly have been more turbulent. Alongside a number of other pressing issues, the topic of property tax reform is right at the top of the agenda. Accordingly, there is some exciting news regarding Opti.Tax. But that wasn’t the only topic discussed on „hsp live at 11“. The „How-2-click!“ workshop series has kicked off. Some of the feedback is already being turned into updates. Our trainee Jan also tells us a bit about his specialised training programme.

Jan is currently undertaking a ‘trial’ degree programme at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (BHH). It’s called a ‘trial’ because it combines a dual vocational training programme with a bachelor’s degree. He is completing the vocational training part of the programme in the marketing and PR department at hsp. But more on that later.

Several hundred law firms are now using Opti.Tax Land Tax underway. Based on the feedback received, a number of improvements have already been developed and are now available as an update. The hsp has also received a great deal of feedback on the new „How-2-click!“ workshops. The new series format combines a theoretical section, practical implementation in Opti.Tax, and a live discussion with a question-and-answer session to clarify individual issues. This feedback is also being diligently analysed.

Faster workflow

The patch log containing the fixes has already been published on the hsp.community. Paul would like to start by discussing the item „Client number from the law firm software as an additional column in the client overview“. This idea was suggested by a user. To demonstrate, Paul opens the software, creates a client, retrieves the master data and assigns a client number. You can then click on the column icon in the top right-hand corner of the overview, where the ‘Client number’ option now appears. This option is enabled by default. The column can be moved horizontally as required. The search function can now be used to search for the client number, making it easy to find individual clients quickly.

The following feature helps to improve organisation: if you create a folder by right-clicking, you can assign roles to the users in that folder. This allows each profile to be granted individual access to view or edit content, and team leaders can also be designated.

Next point: All users who access the software via a proxy can now create support tickets. This was not possible before. Paul would like to ask everyone who creates a ticket to leave a telephone number. This will enable the support team to ring them back quickly and easily to provide assistance.

Integration of DocEstate

Next up is property tax. New functions have been integrated here, such as the option to flag clients for property tax processing. To this end, a note field named „Property Tax Flag“ has been created in the settings under „External Data Sources → DATEVconnect → DNS Filing Guidelines“. Descriptions stored in the client’s profile can be entered there. This means that when an engagement is issued, a flag can be set here if work on the matter is to begin at a later date. When the time comes, the practice can automatically create records for all clients flagged in this way.

Another feature: in future, it will be possible to request and access information from public authorities via DocEstate. This feature can be accessed via the „Request information from public authorities“ button. Important: you must be registered with DocEstate to use this feature. Billing is handled directly by DocEstate.

What does hsp have planned for the new month? Firstly, the projections will be finalised. Secondly, the forms will be finalised and sent to clients for approval. And thirdly, the interface with DATEV Basisdaten will be made available online. In addition, the interfaces to Wolters Kluwer’s solutions will be activated, and the much-requested interface to Simba will also be integrated.

Trial programme at the BHH

Let’s now return to Jan. How did he come across the unique type of apprenticeship offered by BHH? Jan explains that he initially ended up at BHH. There, he discovered the apprenticeship scheme and found it interesting straight away. He then looked into the companies that the BHH works with and, based on his personal preferences, chose hsp.

BHH offers several different training programmes. Through a three-year degree programme, students can obtain a vocational qualification, a bachelor’s degree and practical experience in just four years. This is a unique concept that is currently being trialled with a pilot cohort. We will continue to monitor Jan and the concept and report back.