Notes from the President

07 August 2019 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

As I write this article, my wife, Pam, and I are halfway through a road trip. We haven’t been on a long road trip for some time, and now I remember why, but that’s a story for another time. We decided to drive to a meeting of the Farm Financial Standards Council in Durham, NC so we could stop near Dayton, OH to visit some customers, and tour the Airforce Museum, and then circle back through Michigan’s upper peninsula and stop by to see some relatives near Detroit.
We have several customers in the Dayton area, and because of time constraints, we were only able to visit two. Our first stop was Bowman and Landes Turkeys. I had earlier contacted long-time customer Stan Landes to see if we could get a quick tour of the operation. He was out of town during our visit and had arranged for Drew Bowman to show us around. While we expected a quick tour, Drew spent about two and a half hours with us, showing us the entire impressive operation. They raise turkeys from two days old and are vertically integrated all the way to selling whole turkeys and numerous deli products in their on-farm retail store. Bowman and Landes Turkeys is a real success story now, having their fourth generation of family involved in the business. If you live in the area or just passing through, you need to stop and get some of their awesome products.
Our second visit was with Lavy Enterprises. They started using our software in 1982, one of our first customers ever. They have used many products before the release of CenterPoint and have used CenterPoint Accounting for Agriculture for their crop operation and sod farm, CenterPoint Accounting for their equipment repair business, and CenterPoint Fund Accounting to keep track of financial records for their church. Ivan showed us around their operation, Lisa explained how they use CenterPoint in their business (and had a couple suggestions on how we could improve their user experience, which we always welcome), and Gary showed us the small but high-tech and very capable airplane they use to travel the country. We were honored to share dinner with the Lavys at a popular small-town eatery and enjoyed time reminiscing about all the changes we have been through over the years.
One thing that we noticed about both operations, and we believe all successful long-term businesses, is the great people that own, manage, and work at these companies. At Red Wing Software, we too take pride in hiring the best people, and are proud to be known as “the friendliest software company on the planet”.

Notes from the President

02 July 2019 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

As I write this, we are approaching a very important date in the history of the United States. This may sound a little strange at first, but I choose not to celebrate the Fourth of July. Don’t get me wrong, our offices will be closed and I will be taking the day off. However, I will be celebrating Independence Day; it happens to be on July 4th.
I feel we have developed a tendency to recognize, observe, and celebrate dates rather than the events that made the dates important to us. So, while I think it is important to remember the special events that happened on a date, it is even more important to recognize why that date matters.
These thoughts can carry into your business management as well. Every day, week, month, and year we run a variety of financial reports to track how our business is operating. We look at a Balance Sheet and get a snapshot of the financial health of our business, but do we dig into it and determine what actually caused the changes on this report? We run an Income Statement, P&L, Statement of Farming Activities, or Statement of Revenue and Expenditures (depending on your type of organization), but, do we take the time to drill down and determine why the business is heading in the direction it is?
Every country and business has events and reports that they recognize and review at certain times of the year. Let’s make it a point to remember the reason we are running these reports, and especially the reason we are celebrating these dates.

Notes from the President

10 June 2019 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

This year the employees at Red Wing Software are celebrating forty years of providing software and related services to our customers. There have been an amazing number of changes over the years, and a few of the people that make Red Wing Software what it is, have seen virtually all of these changes. While we constantly look for new, talented people to join our team, we have been fortunate to have retained many of the people that had the vision to start this journey and help get our company off the ground forty years ago.
Throughout the year we will be organizing events that our employees, customers, and local community will have an opportunity to get involved in. One thing you may notice is a change in our logo for this year. You will see it on our website, advertising, and other places we use the logo. We have also asked our employees and customers to relate stories of how things have changed over the last forty years. We will share stories in our newsletters throughout the year.
We consider all of our customers and employees (past and present) a part of the history and success of Red Wing Software and wish to thank every one of you for the many years of support and service that you have given us.

Notes from the President

06 May 2019 khilton Notes from the President

Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

As I pointed out in last month’s newsletter, when you have team members who have been with the company for many years, they eventually get to the point of a well-deserved retirement. At the end of May, we have two additional team members that have reached that milestone. Dick and Marlene Moore have decided to embark on a new phase in their lives.
Having worked with the two of them since the early 1980s, I could fill all the space on the internet with stories and lessons I’ve learned from them, but I will try to keep it relatively short for this newsletter.
In 1979, Dick founded Farm Management, Inc. that eventually became one of the companies that merged to form Red Wing Software in 2003. Over the last 40 years, Dick has led the development effort for many software projects, and his influence will last far into the future. Not only has his talent shaped the software you use today, through his participation in outside organizations, he has had a lasting impact on the financial standards of an entire industry. Don’t be surprised to see his continued influence even after retirement. Rest assured that Dick has done an excellent job of transferring knowledge to the rest of the development team and has mentored Aaron in his new role as Development Manager.
Marlene has touched the lives of virtually every user of our software. Most of you have had the opportunity to work with Marlene as you put your financial records in order. Marlene has served in several roles in the organization: accountant, support technician, classroom instructor, and most recently defining and recording educational videos for our products. She has been a mentor to many new team members as they get up-to-speed on our software and the industries we serve. Marlene’s influence on our software, team members, and customers will last for years.
I anticipate Dick and Marlene will spend much of their new free time on their passion of keeping up with activities of their many grandchildren. In addition, I’m sure you will find Dick enjoying his other passion in his new woodworking shop. (Come to think of it, I could use some new kitchen cabinets.)
Please join me in wishing them the best in their new phase in life. They will be truly missed.

Notes from the President

10 April 2019 khilton Notes from the President


Ken Hilton - President Red Wing Software

One of the many things that makes Red Wing Software a great company is the average length of time employees stay with the organization. Unfortunately, on occasion, one of those long-time staffers decides they have reached the point they think they are ready to retire.
Janet Polski has been in charge of helping customers renew their Customer Care Membership for over 15 years. When Janet indicated a few months ago she was thinking of retiring at the end of April, we knew we had big shoes to fill. My opinion is, nobody should retire until they have at least 30 years of service in. As usual, my opinion didn’t carry much weight in her decision-making process.
Janet has been instrumental in creating and streamlining our current Customer Care Membership renewal process. I’m sure many of you have had the opportunity to work with Janet over the years, and know how good she is at making the process quick and easy. We certainly appreciate her role in helping maintain our excellent rate of customer retention.
Rest assured the renewal process will continue as it has with Janet’s protégé, Katrina. Like Janet, you have probably talked to Katrina over the last few years as she, among other things, answered the phones for Red Wing Software. Katrina has been working under Janet’s tutelage for a few months now, and as of April 1st assumes the position full-time while Janet transitions to retirement on April 30th.
We certainly wish Janet the best in retirement as she takes care of her horses and various other animals on her “ranch” with her husband, Tom. Tom is also the Fixed Base Operator at the Red Wing Regional Airport, so I hope to run into Janet occasionally at the airport as I’m sure he will talk her into helping out.
While we never like to lose great team members, we certainly appreciate all the hard work and dedication they have provided over the years, and Janet has been one of the best.