Vertex

Vorteile

Vertex does a great job of calculating tax rates for my company's account and implementing tax rules. We are sitting on 100,000+ accounts in our system. Vertex calculates tax rates based on jurisdiction for each one. It means allowing your ERP system to communicate with Vertex, and vice versa. In order to calculate special rates, such as a reduced California rate, you need to enter a tax rule to deduct the specific rate. Each account receives its own rule.

Nachteile

The UI is quite dated in my opinion. It's a straight forward software, meant for business applications. There are other software that present a much more modern look. The dated UI doesn't affect performance though. It would be nice if there was an option to store tax certs in the database as well, like Avalara CertCapture.

Vorteile

I love working the Tax Preparer Team at Vertex. They are the main reason I love Vertex. I also like how easy it is to upload tax data files into Vertex.

Nachteile

I wish that there was a better resource at Vertex for navigating solutions in O'Series, when it comes to resolving issues we discover along the way. Navigating the ticketing system and the various emails back and forth (only to get a mediocre answer) is quite discouraging.

Vorteile

Features are too good and easy to used..

Nachteile

Tax calculation can improve more into the vertex

Vorteile

we using as tax engin for tax calculations, generating tax reports

Nachteile

mapping to SAP and products category is limited

Vorteile

It's a very useful tax calculation tool useful for multiple countries like US, CA etc. with great customer support.

Nachteile

1. L1 support response quality should be little better.
2. Response time should be little lesser than what it is currently.

Vorteile

Simply everything. It's a great tool to calculate tax and its very accurate.

Nachteile

Nothing to be dislike about vertex. All things are pretty good. Only as a scope of improvement is the support response can be more accurate.

Vorteile

sales and procurement tax calculation, accurate tax measurement

Nachteile

customer response should be quicker , reporting can be enhanced

Vorteile

Vertex's interface is very easy to use and follow. It is also very easy to edit user specific custom content.

Nachteile

Food and beverage content is not the strongest.

Vorteile

The best part of the cloud was not having to have a dedicated remote server for all our software. The old Vertex ran but required constant maintenance, monthly updates, SQL knowledge. With the cloud, no longer do you worry about down times, corrupted databases and the like.

The Vertex team is very helpful from the moment you buy the software. Our support rep spent hours with us configuring everyhting out of the box to our exact specifications

Nachteile

The cost of the software is pretty immense since you're pretty much renting a server
Hold times can be a bit long in the customer support queue
SaaS so once you stop paying, you lose access the software and any data if not backed up.

Vorteile

The potential tax savings and benefits it can uncover. As well as the gaps it has helped identify in some of our processes.

Nachteile

The cumbersome cloning and configurations requirements have proved to be especially difficult or time consuming throughout the process.

Vorteile

O Series makes it easy to add new states to the system for collecting sales tax. Most tasks are performed on user-friendly screens and a transaction tester is provided to test updates made to O Series.

Nachteile

Not all of the charges we bill our customers have tax rules set up in O Series so we have to create our own rules for mapping and update the rules as tax laws change.

Vorteile

The system is extremely flexible when it comes to setting up drivers to determine tax ability. A tool is provided to test your calculations without having to post a transaction through your main transactional system. Keeping the system up to date with the latest tax matrices is as easy as it is to upload a picture to social media.

Nachteile

The only minus is that the master data in our ERP system sometimes has to be updated for new tax jurisdictions. We need to look into a background job that touches this master data after Vertex is updated.

Vorteile

The only thing that was good about O series is no manual update required.

Nachteile

Single point of failure. If any part of the connection to Vertex is down the ERP system is unable to complete jobs. There should be some way to cache existing Tax information locally and sync to the live data. This way there is no way a connection can cause down time.

Vorteile

The accuracy of the calculations makes this a terrific tool, especially when preparing for audits. The states are hungry for funds and Vertex helps me send them away with little to no money.

Nachteile

Not being able to use the tab key thru each field makes the program more difficult to use. Also it would help if I was able to add the tax certs when I add the customer.

Vorteile

I like about the updates that go in to every patch monthly which we least bother about the Tax changes across global.
We operate globally and this is the best I feel about.

Nachteile

It is difficult to use and the main is search does not work as intended and backspace.

There are some forms where these two mentioned don't work and highly difficult in terms of usage.

Thanks,
venkat

Vorteile

adaptability, web service ease of use is a great time saver for one off transaction input and testing.

Nachteile

Data update process - significant work needs be done to speed the updates re sql server. the approach used seems inefficient. Error logging levels re address cleansing failures are cryptic at best.

Vorteile

Vertex stays up to date with the code from our ERP system. It is a rarity that the tax table and our code for ERP system is not in sync and issues need to be filed.

Nachteile

Not much I don't like about vertex. The customer support is great and knowledgeable about the software.

Vorteile

Straight forward dropdowns. Easy to find customers

Nachteile

Would like to be able to drill down more

Vorteile

I like the ability to run reports and see all of my data so I can manage it myself, in addition to taking advantage of the reporting functionality. I also like the transaction tester which provides instant sales tax quotes. The customer service people are also exceptionally friendly and the Exchange provides a great opportunity to network with them and fellow colleagues.

Nachteile

I think that the software could be a little easier to use and some of the tax rules, tax assist rules, and logic behind tax decisions could be made easier.

Vorteile

The compact structure.It should become the go to for all customers.

Nachteile

The complex design.Not as user friendly as the Vertex Cloud version.

Vorteile

Simple to use; we upload our activity and returns are created quickly and accurately. It appears to be perfectly suited for a small company who processes invoices through the system as they occur.

Nachteile

Searching capability is limited within the products and exempt customer lists. Once you have entered a product or customer as exempt it is very difficult to undo it for that period. The reporting can be difficult to understand as well.

Vorteile

It is very flexible and I can generate many different types of reports with it. It keeps up with all of the law and rate changes so I don't have to, yet still offers me the ability to make changes to the rules if necessary. It keeps track of all the exemption certificates we receive. It is reliable, I haven't had many issues in the last 7 years of using it.

Nachteile

The reports do have a limit to their use. I often have to use multiple reports to get all the numbers I need, instead of being able to access them in one report.

Vorteile

The software is all online which makes use easy.

Nachteile

Customer service is all by e-mail and it's poor.

Vorteile

Tax reports are good once the data is set up.
Exports to Excel if you want to create external reports

Nachteile

Vertex running updates WITHOUT notice or testing causing our ERP to be down for DAYS!
Reporting is weak
Some Tax report forms do not match State online forms
Some limits on taxability at local levels

Vorteile

I recently went through two state tax audits with the period audited included data from Vertex and transaction tax data from our historical systems..the variance for a quarter for a significant sales volume between the vertex data and the auditor's evaluation was amazing.

Nachteile

Honestly nothing but I've never interacted with Vertex customer service as we have a dedicated financial tech team.

Vorteile

The tax engine is mostly accurate and Vertex is responsive in resolving issues

Nachteile

The interface is not intuitive or user friendly.

Vorteile

How easy it is to run reports by state/county

Nachteile

I can't really think of any cons to vertex as it does what's required.

Vorteile

The tax rate calculations, able to test transactions.

Nachteile

The import/export reports are not friendly. Setting up rules not easy.

Vorteile

We're using Vertex for Financial planning and tax management.

Nachteile

Not really anything that we don't like Vertex.

Vorteile

The customer support and ease of use has been fantastic. I have had to call Vertex for support, for recommendations on doing things and for knowledge on the product. Every single person I have spoke to has been knowledgeable, friendly and quick in getting me answers. It is truly a pleasure to call support.
The system is fairly user friendly and even when I forget how to do something, it is like riding a bike, it just comes back to you naturally as you navigate through the menus. The system is set up so that you can do most things without looking through documentation. And the things I couldn't figure out? Vertex client support was right there to lend a hand when I needed it. We also did a migration from Vertex Q to Vertex O about a year and a half ago and the process was so easy. I wish all product upgrades/migrations were that simple. Very stress-free. So far, I've seen the same type of satisfaction from O that I saw with Q, which was a very positive experience.

Nachteile

There honestly is not much that I have found that I have not liked. There are sometimes outages, since we are using a cloud based product, and those do cause some orders to go through without the correct taxes being charged. If we could have less outages, or perhaps more notice when there is going to be an outage, then the product really would be perfection. It has gotten better since we first went live and they are less frequent and we do receive more notice when they know there is a repair/update needed. However, that being said, we have never had any issues when they have done upgrades, no problems noticed at all. Possibly, the outages could be more system update or hardware related.

Vorteile

Great piece of tax software for SAP users
Very seamlessly use across the board
Updated are great
Saves tons of time and money on audit and overall efficiencies

Nachteile

More global support
Support for all types of taxes across the globe so large enterprises have on tax solution

Vorteile

We are able to test various scenarios as we expand our product lines and add states. Designing a report that meets your exact needs is helpful when completing returns and the exemption records are neatly stored and easily accessed.

Nachteile

Adding customers and their certificates can be time consuming since the advanced selection tool now pulls up everything then lets you request a specific account to add to. There is also a lot of date sensitivity that blocks things versus 6.0 which just let it go. Updates to the software are making both of these issues more pronounced.

Vorteile

Vertex is always willing to help out, whether's it a simple question on software functionality or a more indepth question on TaxAreaIDs - they're always quick w/ a response.

Nachteile

Vertex could do a better job of communicating their road map for the On-Demand instance as well as the upgrade schedules.

Vorteile

Smooth integration with SAP (however, not clear on which fields are exchanged), correct rate calculation.

Nachteile

Logs are as good as unusable when you have large transaction volumes, so figuring out why something happens is a nightmare. Continued issues with invalid TAID (jurisdiction codes in SAP), we update as soon as files come out and still have many customers that requires manual updates. We have been working with support for a long time and still not a good solution. Very frustrating. Configuration in the config files on the server is not userfriendly at all. Very hard to figure out what all we have set up. Would be much better if it could sit in the Vertex O webtool. Better visibility of exemption certificates in the ERP system would be a big plus for a direct marketing company like ours.

Vorteile

Reliability of the software, I can count on the fact that its right.

Nachteile

Trying to find things but luckily I can call and they will either send it to me or point me in the direction.

Vorteile

The ability to make specific tax rules that apply to my company's specific industry or transactional situation. Also the ability to not have to worry about tax application in state's with a stratified tax rate being incorrect because of the automation of the Vertex tax engine.

Nachteile

The fact that the tax categories are not as nuanced as they could be, with options for different transactional scenarios that may affect taxability. Also the fact that one or two types is missing, such as the Service Contractor tax in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Vorteile

We are using Vertex O series 6.0 & 7.0 version and its simply to use and all the materials are self explanatory.
Monthly updates are on time and easy to upload them to application.
Haven't see any bug with these updates.
All the updates are very well tested, so we don;'t see much issues while supporting this application.
UI is getting better and better.

Nachteile

I pretty much liked the software, I didnt find any cons, let you know if i find any.
Customer support is not proactive and they are not responding on time for SEV 1 issues, Customer care response time should be looked upon.

Vorteile

The value for the money spent makes this solution a wise investment. There is no server maintenance or monthly tax rate update files to be applied. The application can accommodate customer and product level taxability decisions.

Nachteile

The features and functionality of the cloud product vs. O-series are very different. There are very few customizations/configuration changes that can be done following implementation that do not involve additional developer cost. The processing time to save a customer exemption certificate is excessive. Heavy users of this application will find this very frustrating. Customer support is also very different from O-series in that the communication is via e-mail and the response time is often much slower with support reps being less knowledgeable about the application and its functionality.

Vorteile

The ability to consistently handle taxability of a large volume of transactions. Reviewing transactions for taxability is much faster.

Nachteile

The software is too generic (high level) and does not handle the intricate nature of our business or industry.

Vorteile

Vertex's customer support is amazing! Our adjustments and returns are due in by the 10th. It was late on the night before they were due and I noticed that a return appeared wrong. I was very nervous that it was too late to do anything about it but I emailed support anyways. Within minutes I had a response and the person communicated back and forth with me to answer all my questions and help me straighten things out.

Nachteile

The upload process for adjustments is clunky. I would rather see a better interface that allows me to add transactions with a fill in the blank instead of an uploading process,

Vorteile

I have used Vertex for 10+ years. Whenever I have an issue all I have to do is call and customer service is always there to help fix my issue. The representatives are always kind and helpful. They follow through to make sure I am happy with the product and my issues are resolved.

Nachteile

Sometimes the critical changes come out after I finish filing my returns resulting in a possible problem with the return. Not so happy when that happens.

Vorteile

The application is highly customizable using user-defined tax rules in combination with the out of the box rates and tax driver matrixes.

Nachteile

The support is sometimes slow to respond and does not always find a solution to the problems that you may encounter leaving some of the troubleshooting to your internal IT department.

Vorteile

Tax calculations are so accurate item level.

Nachteile

Version updates is a bit complex process.

Vorteile

From the IT perspective: Long history of integration between Vertex and J.D. Edwards EnterpriseOne. Despite requiring some item data and order line type setup (including business process changes), we were able to implement in nine months (following system selection effort).

From the business perspective: Having up-to-date and more detailed tax rates being calculated provides a much higher degree of confidence in reporting.

Nachteile

Setup of the integration with the O Series product required more custom code (UBE) development than expected. The Address Book cleanse process and outside web service (WIO) connections both presented challenges early on in the Project. Additionally, the logic to exclude transactions by listed Order Types required more customization than expected for a product generally understood to be off-the-shelf and having a long history with J.D. Edwards EnterpriseOne.

Vorteile

I like the ease of using the transaction tester (as long as you remember all the flex field needs). The rate lookups and exemption certificate handlings are very easy to use.

Nachteile

What I like least is trying to identify tax mappings (currently 6.0), but I see 8.0 will be easier?
I do not like that it sometimes has a short span before timing out. We are usually in it all day, but not continuously, so we get timed-out a lot.

Vorteile

The exemption certificate manager is a handy tool and allows us to quickly retrieve certificates by state.

Nachteile

On Demand keeps having unanticipated breaks in service. I don't understand why a secure server keeps going down. It is a major customer red flag that the server is off line for unexplained reasons

Vorteile

easy to get tax jurisdiction information, tax rates, validate exemption certificates, data retrieval, set up taxability mapping

Nachteile

creating rules; obtaining data extracts without getting extraneous data, setting up customized taxability categories; reviewing tax mapping to categories and products

Vorteile

The number of countries supported by the software.

Nachteile

Support case response time is very horrible. Typically, it takes 3 weeks of ping support to get any sort of real answers. API response times not the best.

Vorteile

I like most about the software is the easy access to updates.

Nachteile

I liked least about the software is the infrequent emails that we use to receive.

Vorteile

The Tax reports/Returns are mostly spot on.
I work on 220 returns which Vertex tracks, once I understood the States layouts and how well Vertex matches each, filing has become very easy

Nachteile

Credits are always hard to track. Sometimes Vertex applies a credit and the State does not handle the credit the same way.
Manual adjustment to the tax records which the tax returns calculate from are confusing
Being able to "void" test data would be a plus.