Current eMessage > Product > May 2021

Product Spotlight

Customer Master 21.1 Highlights

by MACC’s Product Team

Last month, we provided a “teaser” of sorts on the new features you’ll find in Customer Master 21.1. With upgrades now underway, we wanted to pass along more of the great new aspects of Customer Master coming your way after your company completes its upgrade. Version 21.1 is packed with new features to explore and use to make Customer Master even more beneficial for your company.

Details are below and we encourage you to take the What’s New Training so you can take full advantage of these new features.

Avalara Tax Software Interface
A new tax solution for the ever-evolving telecom industry is available with this release of Customer Master. MACC has interfaced with Avalara AvaTax to offer our clients a fast, easy, accurate, and automated tax solution. Those companies who wish to use the interface can discover a highly accurate way to increase sales tax compliance and reduce audit risk. This interface requires coordination with your team at MACC to discontinue taxing within Customer Master and to implement Avalara’s tax software.

Locate 811 (Call Before You Dig)
A brand-new module designed to assist in managing call before you dig locates received from state 811 locate providers has been added to Customer Master. The Locate 811 module can be used to store, create, and search for Locate tickets, as well as assign them to technicians. Integrating a timed service and interface with the module provides automation to load 811 Locate tickets into Customer Master, as well as transmit back to Locate providers when Locate tickets have been cleared. Locate ticket work efforts can be tracked with Inbox, and labor entry for Locates can be recorded in the TMS and Time Entry modules. Locate 811 vendors are different for each state, so utilizing automation for the Locate module requires coordination with your team at MACC to set up your state’s Locate vendor.

Scheduler
MACC’s response to your enhancement requests to Scheduler have resulted in dramatic changes to the Scheduler module. These changes provide greater flexibility and convenience for this highly-used module.

• Enterprise Scheduler:
  A new Enterprise Scheduler allows scheduling across multiple applications to create a seamless process when sharing technicians between all Customer Master databases. Those companies utilizing multiple Customer Master databases to keep their companies separate will now have access to one Scheduler for all employees from multiple databases. This enhancement eliminates dual-entry in multiple applications.
• Advanced Scheduler:
  Advanced Scheduler now allows updating of past appointments and deleting future appointments. This enhancement includes the ability to delete appointments from the Appointment Holding Area. These changes to the Scheduler calendar are convenient when the actual completion of work by technicians doesn’t correspond with a scheduled appointment.
• Employees Assigned to Multiple Work Groups:
  Employees can now be assigned to multiple Work Groups when technicians perform work for more than one Work Group.

New Payment Methods
Payment types continue to evolve. Your company may be offering different types of payment methods that fall into the ‘other’ category. To provide a broader range of payment methods for record keeping and reporting, the Payments module can now be expanded to include several more payment types for selection in Customer Master. Activating new payment methods requires coordination with your MACC team.