ENTERPRISE EDITION STORE IMPLEMENTATIONS … · authorized Yardi Systems, Inc. dba ... Private...

ENTERPRISE EDITION

STORE IMPLEMENTATIONS AND

CONSIDERATIONS

VERSION 4.0

CENTERSHIFT INC.

DISCLAIMERS & COPYRIGHTS

This document, presentation and/or video (collectively, "document") is protected by copyright, trademark and other intellectual property laws. Use of this document is subject to the terms and conditions of an authorized Yardi Systems, Inc. dba Centershift software license or other agreement including, but not limited to, restrictions on its use, copying, disclosure, distribution and decompilation. No part of this document may be disclosed or reproduced in any form by any means without the prior written authorization of Yardi Systems, Inc. This document contains proprietary information about software and service processes, algorithms, and data models which is confidential and constitutes trade secrets. This document is intended for utilization solely in connection with Yardi dba Centershift software licensees’ use of the Centershift software and for no other purpose.

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© 2014 Yardi Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Store Implementations and Considerations Store Enterprise/Advantage

Centershift Inc. i 7.8.2014

CONTENTS Disclaimers & Copyrights

Introduction 1

Training 3

Org Identification 5

Site Identification 7

Rules 9

User Accounts, Permissions, Groups and Roles 11

Tax Setup 13

Lease Groups 15

Fees and Deposits 17

Letters and Mail Processing 19

Delinquency Setup 21

Revenue Classes 25

Rental Items 27

Retail Items 29

Promotions, Credits and Discounts 31

Financial Integration/General Ledger Mapping 33

Tenant Rental Insurance 35

Services 37

Credit Card/ACH Processing 39

Gate Keypad Zones 41

3rd Party Integration 43

Data Carve 45

Web Services 47

eStore 51

YieldPlan Settings 53

Custom Queries and Reports 55

Index 57


Centershift Inc. 1 7.8.2014

INTRODUCTION

Converting your data from Store 3.1 to Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) requires that you understand the similarities and differences between these two unique applications. For the most part, your Store 3.1 data will be converted straight across into Store; however, there are a number of considerations and requirements that you must evaluate and implement before the conversion process occurs.

Store Enterprise is Centershift's fully functional application designed for medium to large organizations (5 or more sites).

Store Advantage has a slightly more limited set of features and functionalities that is ideally suited for small organizations (1 to 4 sites).

Note. In this document, Store refers to both the Store Enterprise/Advantage applications. If there is a specific feature or functionality that is only available in Store Enterprise, it will be noted as such.

This document provides you with the following information to help you make the conversion to Store as easy as possible.

Each topic of consideration contains the following sections:

OVERVIEW

The Overview section gives a brief explanation of the Store feature or function and its similarities or differences from the Store 3.1 application.

CONSIDERATIONS

The Considerations section details specific topics that must be examined and understood, regarding a feature or function before the conversion process occurs.

REQUIREMENTS AND TIMEFRAME

The Requirements and Timeframe section lists the specific tasks that must be accomplished before or after converting to Store. It may also include the time it takes to accomplish these tasks.

REFERENCE INFORMATION

The Reference Information section directs you to the specific topics in the Store User Guide or other documentation sources that will assist you in accomplishing the specified tasks. It also lists the Centershift employee to contact should you have further questions.

NOTES

The Notes section is provided for you to jot down information or questions regarding the tasks.





TRAINING

OVERVIEW

Centershift is committed to delivering the highest quality training. From instructor-led training to online tutorials, our mission is to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) no matter what type of training option you choose.

CONSIDERATIONS

Public Live Web Training. Get all of the advantages of classroom training--but without the travel! Our Public Live Web Training is instructor-led and covers the entire Store application via live GoToWebinar sessions. There are three sessions offered every week (schedule permitting): QuickStart, Site Manager Training and Setup and Administration. One of our professional Store trainers conducts the training in a live, web-based conference session with onscreen demonstrations and interactive discussion between the trainer and students. During the session, the instructor demonstrates, in real-time, how to complete tasks in Store, including the opportunity for clients to ask questions at the end of each session.

Anytime eLearning. Anytime eLearning offers the convenience of internet-based recorded sessions that are available when you are. All you need is a computer, speakers and a high-speed internet connection. Anytime eLearning is an ideal way to review material, acquaint new hires with basic software skills and train your staff in remote offices.

Private Client Site Training. Private Client Site Training brings the instructor-led training course curriculum and certified instructors to your site--how, where and when you need them. You choose from the existing course material or let us tailor the delivery to fit your organization's processes and people. Private Client Site Training is the best method for Setup and Administration training when all participants can come together at one location. It is also advantageous for conducting hands-on workshops.

Private Live Web Training. Private Live Web Training is a Live Web Training session via GoToMeeting. It can be scheduled exclusively for your organization. Live Web Training within a private group is not only interactive but collaborative. Live discussion, questions and remarks by the instructor and your staff enhance the learning experience for your organization. Web Training is ideally suited for both the Site Manager and Setup and Administration training if participants are unable to meet together at a central location.


Public Live Web Training. No Charge at this time. See our webpage at http://www.centershift.us/content/?page=44 for registration information. (As scheduled by the instructor.)

Anytime eLearning. No charge for this training method. (24/7 365 days a year)

Private Client Site Training. Typically the cost is $100 per hour or $750 for a full day plus travel/facility-related expenses. (Approximately 1.5 days)

Private Live Web Training. Typically the cost is $100 per hour per connection via GoToMeeting. (Varies according to the number of scheduled courses.)


For more information on Store training, contact your Implementation Project Manager.

NOTES





ORG IDENTIFICATION

OVERVIEW

In Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store), all of your organization's logistical information is automatically converted from Store 3.1, including the organization's name, display name, address information, phone information, email address, and even the primary contact information. The OrgID, Org Prefix and Org Status, which are managed by Centershift staff, is also converted.

CONSIDERATIONS

If you have not defined a primary contact for your organization, you can enter this information into Store after the conversion from Store 3.1.


Verify that your Org information is correct once the conversion process has been completed.


For more information on setting up your organization's information, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Information/Org Identification in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





SITE IDENTIFICATION

OVERVIEW

In Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store), all of the individual sites' logistical information is automatically converted from Store 3.1. Site Information contains the features and functionality that lets you edit your sites' logistical information (e.g., name, address, phone number, etc.) and define the site attributes, hours of operation and directions.

You can manage most of your sites' administrative tasks from one, convenient location. Users may perform any task, from creating a site's identity, to specifying addresses and phone numbers, or even adding a link to an online map service that will be displayed on your company website via the eStore product.

CONSIDERATIONS

You can add to your site information after the conversion process if necessary.


Verify that your site information is correct once the conversion process has been completed.

Add any additional information as needed once the conversion process has been completed.


For more information on setting up your site's information, see Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Information in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





RULES

OVERVIEW

Centershift utilized a number of rules in Store 3.1 to allow our customers to configure the system to suit their specific needs. In Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store), the use of rules is continued and has been expanded for even greater flexibility within the general configuration of the system.

CONSIDERATIONS

The majority of the rules in Store 3.1 are the same as in Store. However, there are some rules that have been modified for different functionality. Also, there are a number of new rules in Store that were never considered when designing Store 3.1. Most of the modified and new rules could potentially impact the way your organization operates.

If you want to continue to utilize Store in much the same way you have been using Store 3.1, it is possible, with a few exceptions, especially if you are moving from Store 3.1 to Store Advantage. However, to make use of the additional functionality afforded by the new rules, you should plan time for understanding and deciding how, if at all, your organization can utilize the new rules.

There are several rules that have a parent/child relationship, meaning that setting a parent rule to "True" could potentially activate one or more co-dependent child rules. This requires you to understand the potential outcome of your child rule settings.


Understand your Store 3.1 rules setup for all of your sites. (As Soon As Possible)

Familiarize yourself with the rules set offered in Store. Make sure you involve people representing your entire organization as many rules have functionality that could relate to more than one department. (Ongoing)

Work with Centershift to set up a sandbox test environment so that you can experiment with various rules settings and make sure they have the desired impact.

Determine whether there are any sites within your organization that would potentially utilize a different configuration of rules settings.


For more information on Org and Site rules, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Rules, Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Rules and the Definitions of Org Rules and Definitions of Site Rules from the Appendix in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





USER ACCOUNTS, PERMISSIONS, GROUPS AND

ROLES

OVERVIEW

The conversion process from Store 3.1 to Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) automatically transfers your user accounts. However, the permissions, groups and roles must be defined and created in the Store application.

Everyone in your organization is potentially a Store user, whether he or she is a system administrator, regional manager, site manager or site user. Each of these user types requires a user account to access specific functions and features within the Store application.

The user account identifies an individual when he logs into Store and personalizes the availability of features and access to data according to the user permissions assigned to the user's account. Basically, user permissions govern what the user can see and do within Store.

In Store, you assign permissions to the features and functionalities of the application to your individual users. You can create groups of sites to assign to user. And you can also define a set of permissions as a user role (e.g. Site Admin).

Terminology is as follows:

User. Anyone who has access to the Store application (e.g. site, district and regional managers).

Permissions. A specific task or access a feature or function in Store. These are the individual registry items and do not change.

Groups. A collection of sites bundled under the same name. (For example, the LA, San Diego, Oakland and Fresno sites can be bundled as the California group.)

Roles. A specific set of permissions comprise a role. Permissions associated with a role are managed in a task-based manner and assigned to your users. (For example, move-in, take payments, run reports and add tasks can be bundled as the Site User role.) Roles are assigned to individual users.

CONSIDERATIONS

The transferred user accounts must be assigned permissions to the features and functionality of Store, including access to the individual sites. Your Implementation Project Manager will assist you with this.

Note. All of this can be done prior to the conversion process.


Review and discuss the User Admin features with your Implementation Project Manager

Create user roles (optional).

Create user groups (optional).

Assign permissions (or roles) and sites (or groups) to your user accounts.


For more information on creating and editing user accounts, see Chapter 16. User Admin/Users in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





TAX SETUP

OVERVIEW

Your tax rates in Store 3.1 will be transferred into Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) during the conversion process. Tax setup in Store provides for greater flexibility when taxing goods and services. Tax rates are defined at the Org Admin level and can be customized even further at the Site Admin level. In addition, you can choose to use the 3rd party tax updating service that Store provides.

CONSIDERATIONS

The user interface for taxes is a centralized form that lets you easily manage all tax rates for all of your storage sites. Should you choose, Store now allows you to use a 3rd party service provider to update your tax rates. There is a minimal per-use charge to use this service.

Note. Due to contractual limitations, Centershift is no longer able to provide automatic updates to tax rates as was previously offered in Store 3.1.


Verify that the tax rates are set up properly with the correct rates. This can be done any time prior to your site's going live on Store.

Review the automated tax rate update capabilities and determine whether it meets your organization's needs.


For more information on setting up your taxes, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Tax Setup in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





LEASE GROUPS

OVERVIEW

In Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store), lease groups provide a way to create groups of documents that are assigned to a site's revenue class. For example, leases, welcome letters or rules and regulations documents can be assigned to a Move-In lease group. This way, when a new rental is initiated, the relevant rental documents will be printed for the customer to sign as part of their rental agreement.

At a minimum, a single rental contract can be printed during the rental process, but you can include additional documents to print at this time too. You can also select multiple copies of these documents for printing.

Note. You must create all letters that you want to include in your lease group as Letter Type: Leases in the DocDesigner. (For example, create your Welcome Letter, Addendums and Gate Access Code letters as

leases.) Otherwise, they will not be available to include as one of your lease group letters.)

CONSIDERATIONS

All documents that you want included in a lease group will need to be created as a "Lease" type document. Your Implementation Project Manager will assist you with this.


Create all necessary lease documents. The Centershift Professional Services experts will create your current documents for you at no cost. If there are additional documents that you would like created, there will be a charge based on the number of pages in the document(s).

Create lease groups for your various lease documents.

Assign the lease documents to their appropriate lease groups.

Assign the lease groups to your rental revenue classes as necessary.


For more information on creating lease groups, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Standards/Lease Groups in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





FEES AND DEPOSITS

OVERVIEW

As in Store 3.1, you have the ability in Store Advantage/Enterprise (Store) to create all of the fees that your organization wishes to charge to its customers. Fees are set up at the Org Admin level and used as needed at the Site level. All sites within your organization can utilize and modify their individual site fees from the list of Org fees that you will create and manage at the Org Admin level in Store. Deposits (reservation and security) can be defined at the Site level and assigned to specific revenue classes.

CONSIDERATIONS

The Store 3.1 Master fees will not transfer during the conversion process. These fees will need to be set up again at the Org Admin level in Store prior to your sites' going live in Store. Fees will now be assigned in the delinquency schedule in Store rather than creating them in the delinquency step details as you once did in Store 3.1.


Create all Org fees in the Store application. Your Implementation Manager will assist you with this task.

Define all reservation and security deposit types that will be used by your sites.


For more information on fees and deposits, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Fees and Deposits and Chapter 15. Site Admin/Fees and Services in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





LETTERS AND MAIL PROCESSING

OVERVIEW

Mail and certified mail processing in Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) is very similar to what you were used to in Store 3.1. However, the letter templates used in Store 3.1 need to be converted to the new format used in Store.

CONSIDERATIONS

Generic vs. Custom letters. Centershift will provide both generic and custom letters to the client. Either can be used in Store, regardless of what was used in Store 3.1. If generics are used, the client only needs to review the letter templates and sign off on the verbiage.

If custom letters are desired, they will be created in the new format and approved by the client prior to use. If the client used custom letters in Store 3.1, Centershift will recreate the letters in Store at no additional cost.

Additional Features. There are new letter templates and flex fields that were not previously available in Store 3.1. Your Implementation Project Manager will explain the options during the implementation process.


Work with your Implementation Project Manager during the implementation process to determine how you want your letters and mail processing set up.

Choose the generic letters that you want to use. Generic letters can be set up very quickly after the client gives approval of letter format and verbiage.

Request custom letters from your Implementation Project Manager. Custom letters require the additional step of modifying the letter templates. Under normal conditions this can add approximately 2 weeks to the process.

Set up or modify letter options and template choices anytime after the conversion process.


For more information on setting up your letters and leases, contact your Implementation Project Manager.

NOTES





DELINQUENCY SETUP

OVERVIEW

With the ever-increasing complexity of state lien laws, Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) provides more flexibility in allowing users to define a custom lien process for each organization, state, site, revenue class, customer type or rental item "unit".

CONSIDERATIONS

There are a limitless number of delinquency processing schedules that can be assigned to a site, with a limitless number of processes defined within each schedule. Each process also allows for a limitless number of actions that can be fired once or repeatedly until there is a change in one or more of the specified delinquency statuses. Each process consists of one or more conditions which, when all evaluate to True, will fire off one or more actions.

Definable Conditions include the following: Definable Actions include the following:

Account Class Add Account Note

Current Delinquency Step Add Task Item

Current Overlock Status Alter Gate/Security Access

Day of Calendar Month Assess Fee

Day of Rental Period Expire Discounts

Days Delinquent (past PTD) Generate Letter

Days Since Last Payment Increment Delinquency Step

Days Since Last Step Send eMail

Dimensions Set Delinquency Step

Escrow Balance Set Lien Status

Escrow Balance All Set Overlock Flag

Note. There is one process that is reserved for when a rental is added to an auction. That is the only condition that

needs to be met; however, any number of actions can be assigned to that process.


Familiarize yourself with the new delinquency processing capabilities. The best way is to redefine your current Store 3.1 delinquency schedule in the Store application. This new delinquency schedule in Store can be modified or replaced once you are comfortable with how the new capabilities behave.

Make sure that most or your user definable actions have already been defined when you configured your sites in Store. For example, you should define your late fees and your standard late/lien letters prior to defining your delinquency schedules, and the delinquency schedule actions merely reference the pre-defined fees, letters, etc.

Determine whether there are differences with the lien processes for the various types of rentals your organization offers. With revenue classes, you have the ability to assign a different delinquency schedule to each revenue class. Does an RV customer have different requirements than a storage customer? Typically, cell towers and retail office leases have notably different lien requirements.




For more information on setting up your delinquency schedules, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Delinquency Setup in the Store User Guide.

NOTES







REVENUE CLASSES

OVERVIEW

Your sites are not all the same, nor is every storage unit within each of your sites the same. Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) introduces the concept of revenue classes. Revenue classes allow operators to define an unlimited number of revenue streams. Revenue classes also govern all revenue categories in Store (rent revenue, fee revenue, retail revenue, service revenue, and misc. revenue) and should be carefully thought out prior to the conversion process from Store 3.1.

CONSIDERATIONS

While revenue classes can be rather complex, the concept of revenue classes is relatively simple. Suppose you have a site that has 100 units--50 are storage units and 50 are RV parking units. Store's revenue classes allow you to separate the revenue for the two types of storage into different groups on reports so that you can analyze each group individually. But it doesn't stop there. Revenue classes also afford you the option of funneling revenue, write offs, discounts and etc. into separate GL accounts for each group of rental units.

Additionally, you can set different default settings for each group of rental units. These default settings can include whether rental units are taxed or not taxed; which delinquency schedule should be utilized; which lease documents should be printed when a new rental occurs; which reservation and deposit logic to use and etc.

Finally, each individual unit belonging to a class can have its default values over-ridden so that you potentially have the capability of defining 49 of your RV units one way, and 1 of your RV units a completely different way.

In the case of fees, you may decide you want to categorize your fees into Admin Fees, Late Fees, Convenience Fees and etc. Each individual fee could be assigned to a class that governs the attributes for all similar fees, such as whether fees in that class are taxed and which GL accounts the revenue will be posted into.

You can also categorize retail items and service items (service items are optional "amenities" that can be charged in conjunction with rent, such as 24 hour access, shelving, billing fees and etc.).

Revenue classes are defined at the organization level; however, each site must determine which revenue classes are appropriate for their needs. For example, if a site has no RV parking units, then that site would probably not assign itself the organization's RV Parking revenue class.

There are no limits to the number of ways you can utilize revenue classes. For example, you could categorize your storage units based on climate vs. non-climate, outside vs. inside. Or, you could categorize your retail items by grouping storage/moving related items separately from office supply related items. It is important that your organization determines the revenue class strategy that makes the most sense for the entire organization and the individual sites as well. Defining too many revenue classes could result in too much granularity for the data at your sites, which could render many of your reports ineffective.

During the conversion process from Store 3.1, all rental units are assigned to a single generic revenue class, all fees are assigned to a single generic revenue class, all retail is assigned to a single generic revenue class and etc. Each revenue item can then be assigned to a different revenue class if so desired, regardless of whether the unit is rented or not.


Determine how your organization would ideally like to see revenue broken out in reports and in your GL.



Determine the different types of revenue items your organization has in each of the four revenue categories. (Rent, Retail, Fees and Services). Do you have cell tower units and are they treated differently than normal storage units? Do you have retail office spaces? What about fees that are taxable while others are not taxable? Do some of your rental units require a different lease agreement than other rental units? Etc....

Familiarize yourself with the revenue classes and where each of them should fit into the four revenue categories. Make sure you involve people representing your entire organization as most revenue classes have functionality that could impact more than one department.

Work with Centershift to set up a sandbox or test environment so that you can experiment with revenue classes at both the Org and Site levels.


For more information on assigning revenue classes, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Standards/Org Revenue Classes and Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Standards/Assign a site revenue class in the Store User Guide.

NOTES



RENTAL ITEMS

OVERVIEW

All rental items, or "units" will be automatically transferred during the conversion process from Store 3.1 into Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store). Your customer's account information will be tied to the correct units automatically too.

In Store, you can create a batch of rental items, assign a revenue class to them, and then assign the same Status, Dimensions, Attributes and Rates in one process. You can also create up to 100 rental items at a time. In addition, the Item Settings will be automatically set to the default settings for the Site revenue class that was assigned to the newly created batch of rental items.

Note. When creating large numbers of rental items at the same time, it is wise to complete as much of the Item Info

information as possible. If you do not define these settings during rental creation, then you will have to manually edit them one by one using the Edit Rental Items feature.

CONSIDERATIONS

Rental items (units) in Store provide six customizable fields that can further describe the item. Each field has been designed with a specific intent to most efficiently display the information about the unit throughout the various interfaces of the Store application, including the Item Finder and online your web site.

Since a large part of most storage businesses is through web sites or reservation consolidators, many operators are looking for a way to further differentiate the various characteristics of their rental items when compared to those of a competitor.

For example, which looks like the better deal when comparison shopping on these two web sites?

Option 1

Site A:

10X10 Drive-up $65

Site B:

10X10 Drive-up $71

At first glance, Option 1 looks like the better deal, but what if the comparison looked like this:

Option 2

Site A:

10X10 Drive-up $65

Site B:

10X10 Drive-up Access, Climate controlled, premium location, individually alarmed, high ceiling

$71

Clearly, Option 2 will likely appear to be the better value to all but the most cost conscious consumer. By providing more information to your customer about unit differentiation, you can more easily justify the price difference between you and your competitor(s).

Some fields are designed for internal use only, while others are intended to be displayed on a web site or other customer facing venues.



The six rental item attribute fields in Store are as follows:

Attribute 1 (e.g., Storage or Parking)

Note. The Store 3.1 attribute value will be automatically converted to the Attribute 1 field in Store Enterprise/Advantage. All other attribute fields will be left blank.

Attribute 2 (e.g., Premium or Standard )

Climate Type (e.g., AC/Heat, Climate, Non Climate )

Door Type (e.g., Swing, Overhead, Roll-Up )

Access Type (e.g., Inside, Outside)

Features (e.g., Shelving, Internet Ready)

All attribute values are customizable and must be defined by your organization.


If you would like to add additional attributes to your rental items, this can be done post-conversion. Your Implementation Project Manager will assist you with this.


For more information on creating and editing rental items, see Chapter 15. Site Admin/Rental Items in the Store User Guide.

NOTES



RETAIL ITEMS

OVERVIEW

In Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store), Org Retail contains the features for creating and maintaining retail vendors, creating retail items, creating retail bundles, setting up bulk pricing and setting up retail site sharing.

Like many other aspects in Store, retail items are typically set up at the Org Admin level and subsequently assigned to some or all sites. This allows for price changes or other modifications to be made centrally with those changes being immediately reflected at all participating sites. Additionally, each site can override many of the Org Retail settings inherited from the organization to suit its particular needs.

CONSIDERATIONS

Your current retail items, with prices and quantities, will be automatically transferred during the conversion process.


All retail merchandise detail will be converted automatically at time of conversion. There is no need to manually input into the system.


For more information on retail item setup, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Retail and Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Retail in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





PROMOTIONS, CREDITS AND DISCOUNTS

OVERVIEW

The promotions, credits and discounts (PCD) will be automatically transferred during the conversion process from Store 3.1 into Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store). However, they will be renamed into one of four default types. You can modify, rename or create new PCDs in Store Enterprise/Advantage at a later time. The active PCDs for your rentals in Store 3.1 will continue to be in force after the conversion to Store Enterprise/Advantage.

Your customer's account information will be tied to the correct units automatically too. Store Enterprise/Advantage allows for greater flexibility in defining, granting and applying promotions, credits and discounts (PCDs). While your organization will probably lean toward replicating its existing PCDs from Store 3.1, you should investigate the additional features and capabilities that PCDs offer you in Store.

CONSIDERATIONS

Promotion. A pre-defined concession against rental charges, typically used as an incentive for attracting new customers.

The only difference between a promotion and a discount is that a promotion can be displayed automatically from the Item Finder, based upon your organization's pre-set priority. Promotions can be assigned a priority value that will determine which promotion will be presented to the user when a new rental (move-in) is initiated. However, both promotions and discounts can be granted to customers at any time, not just at move-in.

Discount. A pre-defined concession against rental charges that is granted to a customer, typically as part of a discount program or standard incentive.

Credit. A complimentary concession that a manager grants to a current tenant which can be applied against any outstanding charge (rent, fee, retail, etc.), either now or in the future, typically as compensation for a customer satisfaction issue.

New PCD features and capabilities include the ability to;

Grant a discount for a future rental period that does not require immediate payment.

Define multiple period discounts.

Carry over unused pro-rated discount amounts to a subsequent rental period.

Require a user-defined entered reason or reason code when granting any or all credits and discounts.

Improved defining of when and how a discount can be granted using governors and restrictions.

Improved tracking of when discounts are applied, occurring and recognized by the system.

Set which discounts can be granted by which users for greater control.

Review rental discount history and remove granted, but non-utilized, discounts from a rental.

Recognize a discount expense under the revenue class to which the rental item belongs.



Note. Credits are no longer applied automatically during nightly processing as they were in Store 3.1. In order to be

utilized, cash and manager credits must be manually applied to an outstanding charge (e.g. rent, fee, retail, etc.) by a Store user.


Determine which PCDs your organization will continue to utilize. All PCDs are created and maintained by your Org admin via the PCD Setup form.

Review new functionality and determine whether you want to incorporate new PCDs, including restrictions or user permissions.

For example, manager credits can be set up with varying limit thresholds ($0-$2, $0-$20, $0-$2000, etc.). These limit thresholds are granted to user roles based upon job requirements, giving every user the tools needed to do the job without relinquishing management oversight. This allows a site manager the ability to grant a credit to a rental but not in excess of the pre-defined limit.

Define any new discounts or any new governors that your organization would like to utilize.


For more information on setting up PCDs, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/PCD Setup in the Store User Guide.

NOTES



FINANCIAL INTEGRATION/GENERAL LEDGER

MAPPING

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) functions much in the same way as in Store 3.1, in regards to financial integration and GL mapping. However, the Financial Integration Utility (FIU) is no longer a separate application. It has been integrated into the Store application. The FIU now allows for export/import of tenant refund data. So, there are several new GL accounts that will need to be mapped to your accounting system's GL accounts.

CONSIDERATIONS

The FIU is part of the Store application; however, access is limited to only those users that have been assigned the permission to use it. The FIU functions much in the same was as before--General Ledger Journal Entries (GLJE) are selected for one or more sites for a day or date range. These can be previewed, and then saved into a text file format to be imported into your accounting system (QuickBooks, MAS, Great Plains, etc.). In addition, tenant refund data can be imported into your company's accounting system for checks to be generated and mailed, if you so desire. This is a separate import process but occurs in the same manner as the GLJE's.

With the introduction of revenue classes in Store, there are several new GL accounts that are utilized to allow you more flexibility in breaking out your revenue and contra revenue. The more revenue classes you define and assign to your sites, the more GL accounts that will be automatically created. These accounts can be mapped into a single GL in your accounting system or can be broken out separately.

For more information on revenue classes, see Revenue Classes on page 22. (Multiple revenue classes are only available in Store Enterprise, or you can upgrade your Store Advantage to include additional revenue classes.)

Also, there are several other new GL accounts that require GL mapping.


Research Org and Site revenue classes. You can then determine how to best employ them for your organization.

Create GL mappings. These vary by site, depending on the number GL accounts that are created for the site.

Note. Because there is not a 1:1 relationship between Store 3.1 and Store, GL mapping does not convert

automatically during data conversion. There are ways to minimize GL mapping, especially if your sites all share a common GL format. Centershift can assist your organization with this.

Test GL imports. You will need to test your GL imports prior to conversion to ensure that everything is set up properly.

Train on FIU. Your organization's accountants will need to be trained on how to utilize FIU.


For more information on the Financial Integration Utility (FIU), see the Financial Integration Utility Guide.

For more information on GL mappings, see Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Standards/Define GL interface mapping and the Appendix/GL Mapping Equivalents in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





TENANT RENTAL INSURANCE

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) continues to support any and all tenant rental insurance providers that you currently maintain in Store 3.1. Insurance coverage at the tenant level is automatically mapped and assigned at the time of data conversion. Centershift maintains all existing relationships with insurance providers for automatic data feeds of insurance information. However, there are additional capabilities that your organization will want to consider.

CONSIDERATIONS

In Store, your insurance providers/carriers (e.g. Bader, Deans & Homer, etc.) require a one-time setup process at the Org Admin level. Additionally, for each provider, you can set up multiple coverage groups.

A coverage group is a set of policy offerings that can be offered at one or more of your sites. For instance, you may define a standard coverage group to be used at some of your sites and a high risk coverage group to be used at the sites that are in extreme weather zones. Each policy offering within each coverage group can be defined with a specific price and expiration threshold.

Once provider and coverage groups are defined, you can then assign them to individual sites. You can assign multiple coverage groups to each site even if they are not associated with the same provider.

In Store, insurance is treated as a pass-thru, non-revenue item. All payments received for insurance are considered to be a payable liability. These amounts can, of course, be mapped in the GL interface to a revenue account; however, most Store reports will not consider these amounts as revenue.

Finally, the capability to track individual policy numbers is now available should you decide it necessary. (Store Enterprise only)


Review new tenant rental insurance capabilities that are of interest to your organization.

Define your insurance providers and coverage groups and assign them to your sites prior to conversion.


For more information on setting up tenant rental insurance, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Insurance and Chapter 15. Site Admin/Site Insurance in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





SERVICES

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) includes a new feature that lets you create and assign recurring monthly services which can be applied to a rental. Services were not available in Store 3.1 so you can define and setup your services in the Store application prior to the conversion process.

CONSIDERATIONS

Unlike fees, services are recurring every month. You can create a service for 24 hour access, mail invoicing or electricity usage. For example, you can have a service called 24 Hr. Access that charges an additional $10 a month when applied to a rental for customers who want unlimited access privileges.

Site services are amenities that can be added to a rental for an additional fee (e.g., billing statements or 24 hour access to rentals). Services are associated with a rental item. In Store, there are four service types that you can create and edit.

Mail Invoicing. This service lets you charge a fee for automatically sending out billing or invoicing notices to customers. If the customer has multiple rentals with the same paid thru date, then only one billing service fee will be charged for each notice.

24 Hour Access. This service lets you charge additional monies for unlimited access to a rental item. This service communicates with your gate security to allow the customer entrance into your storage site.

Other Service/Amenity. This service lets you create any number of service charges including dumpster access.

eMail Invoicing. This service lets you provide free or reduced charge email invoices to your eco-friendly customers.


Review and discuss the Services feature with your Implementation Project Manager.

Create the services for each site. (Services are not created at the Org level.)


For more information on setting up services, see Chapter 15. Site Admin/Fees and Services/Create a site service in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





CREDIT CARD/ACH PROCESSING

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) utilizes the same Internet processing gateways to process credit card/ACH (Automated Clearing House) payments much like the Store 3.1 application does. During the conversion process, all merchant IDs, passwords and tokens that enable the gateway to function are automatically converted for you. All AutoPay information will be converted automatically as well.

CONSIDERATIONS

Since all credit card/ACH and AutoPay data is converted automatically, you will simply need to verify the setup to ensure that transactions are working properly as soon as possible after conversion. The hardware utilized is the same hardware supported in Store 3.1.


Complete AutoPay Tenant Agreement form. (45 minutes)

Validate that the processing gateway is properly set up and that all transactions are flowing through the gateway and being properly deposited into your bank after the conversion process has been completed.

Notify credit card/ACH gateway providers of your switch to Store.


For more information on setting up credit card/ACH processing, see Chapter 14. Org Admin/Org Standards/Partner Authentication in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





GATE KEYPAD ZONES

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) is integrated with your gate controller similarly to how it was integrated in Store 3.1 with many of the same security software providers.

CONSIDERATIONS

Store is integrated with the following gate systems:

PTI Easylink

PTI Non-Easylink w/ alarms

Winsen Sentinel

Digigate


On the day of conversion, the gate controller will be set at the facility. The Centershift Implementation Project Manager will work with the site manager to set the controller on the machine at the facility. Once the controller is set, the gate software will be automatically updated by Centershift.



NOTES





3RD PARTY INTEGRATION

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) provides a wide spectrum of integration capabilities with call centers, kiosks, reservation services and other 3rd party service providers. Store offers several options to further enhance the capabilities of Store. Centershift assumes that the specific 3rd party has already integrated with our Store Web Services (SWS).

These options include the following:

Kiosk. Allows customers to make payments, reservations, rent units and purchase merchandise from a standalone kiosk.

Call Center. Allows a 3rd party call center to take and enter reservations for rental items into Store.

Reservation Services. Allows 3rd party reservation service providers to pull and push pertinent site data to/from their websites including the ability to take reservations.

Your Centershift account manager can provide further details concerning these options.

CONSIDERATIONS

On the initial conversion(s) in a rollout, the 3rd party organization needs to be issued a user ID and password (which can be at the Org or Site level). If the user ID and password are at the Org level, then subsequent sites converted to Store need to have user permission to utilize our Store Web Services (SWS).

If the user ID and password are at the Site level, then subsequent sites converted to Store need to be given a user ID and password for the site, and then grant user permission to utilize our Store Web Services (SWS).

Special Considerations. You must notify your 3rd party providers that they will need to switch the web services being used (DOD to SWS) to allow them to point to the right site and start utilizing the Store Web Services.


Create a "Services Only" user in the Store application to gain access to eStore.

Note. The "Services Only" user must be created by Centershift.


For more information on creating 3rd party integration users, see Chapter 16. User Admin/Users and Permissions in the Store User Guide.

NOTES





DATA CARVE

OVERVIEW

Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) continues to provide daily exports of new or modified database records through the Data Carve application; however, there are significant differences between the Store and Store 3.1 database schemas.

CONSIDERATIONS

The delivery method for the Data Carve in Store will be much the same as it is in Store 3.1. The Data Carve application will run once per day and export new or modified database records to a series of delimited files which are compressed into a single .zip file and made available through secure file transfer protocol (SFTP). The Store data carve will also include definition files which describe the structure and data-types within each delimited data file.

Note. The data structures used in the Store application are significantly different from what is used in the Store 3.1 application. Some of the tables are very similar to the Store 3.1 equivalents with only different table or column

names, or a few additional or missing columns.

Other tables, however, will have very little in common with their Store 3.1 counterparts, having completely different columns and meanings or being further normalized into multiple tables. Some tables are completely new or are now deprecated and no longer exist.

The SWH_* tables in Store are very similar to the Store 3.1 table structure. However, Store has a few extra columns and child tables to support additional data. The necessary documentation for the database schemas can be provided by Centershift.

The Store data carve also allows the list of tables which will be produced for each organization to be customized, as well as making modifications to items such as the date/time format which is used for temporal data types.


Review the tables available in the Store data carve and determine which tables would be beneficial to consume. Your organization will need to design and create tables to match the data which will be delivered from the Store data carve. Also, a process to import the delivered data will need to be created and implemented.

The timeframe for completing the implementation of a system to import the carve data into an organization’s local database systems will be dependent upon the organization’s development resources. This may also be affected by the organization’s own priorities and relative importance placed upon usage of the carve data.

Since the Data Carve application is an optional service, primary usage of the Store application is not dependent upon complete implementation of the data carve.



NOTES





WEB SERVICES

OVERVIEW

The new Store Web Services (SWS) consumed by Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) provides more flexibility than the Store 3.1 DOD services that you have been accustomed to. Except for the majority of the Org and Site administration features, SWS allows you to do everything that the Store application provides. This allows for greater flexibility and customization because the individual methods consumed by SWS are created at a more granular level, based on the specific features within the application (e.g. AddDeposit, ApplyPCDs and AssessFee).

CONSIDERATIONS

The XML structures of both the request and response in SWS are completely different from Store 3.1. Another difference is that Store 3.1 consumed multiple services whereas all SWS methods are consolidated into a single service. SWS also has a couple of different endpoints to consider, WCF or ASMX. The difference in these endpoints is the way that the XML is formed and how it’s serialized.

Either option is available at the following endpoints:

ASMX. https://slc.centershift.com/sandbox40/sws.asmx

WCF. https://slc.centershift.com/sandbox40/sws.svc

There‘s an additional SWS consumed by Store which is similar to the data loader in Store 3.1. This SWS is called Bulk Data. The entire structure of this service is also completely different from Store 3.1.

To hit this SWS, go to the following:

Bulk Data. https://slc.centershift.com/sandbox40/bulkdata.asmx


Sign contracts to gain access to eStore and for custom integration.

Create a "Services Only" user in the Store application to gain access to eStore.

Obtain a new URL link from Centershift to embed into your site's code (minor coding required). The Store 3.1 link will NOT work with Store.

Note. If you are considering a custom integration, a complete rewrite is required. The URL, SWS methods and

username have all changed. There is a mapping document to assist you, but it is not a one-to-one change ratio and significant work will be required in the update.


An extremely helpful reference source is found at https://slc.centershift.com/sandbox40/sws.asmx. This web page lists all of the available SWS methods.

The following links can be useful:

Overview. A mapping of Store 3.1 methods compared to SWS methods.

.Net. Information on how to code to SWS using the .NET framework.

Java. Information on consuming the web service using JAX-WS.

Soap Interface. Explanation of every SOAP call and the XML that is going in and coming out.

Soap WSDL. The actual WSDL that defines the web service.

Contact Centershift. How to best contact Centershift at certain times of the day.



General Information. An overview of general guidelines and helpful tips.

Lookup User Request. Detail on the credentials needed to call each SWS method.

4.0 Methods. This gives more detail about each individual SWS method (i.e. Description, Inputs, Outputs, etc).

Another great utility is found at http://centershiftdevx.com/. This site is dedicated for blogging and discussing items relative to SOA development and integration.

NOTES







ESTORE

OVERVIEW

Centershift allows you to integrate your website with our eStore™functionality to facilitate online payments and reservations. This will be very similar to the way it was done in Store 3.1.

Centershift's eStore solution provides your customers with the convenience and security of online storage rental and account management. In the fast-paced world of electronic commerce today, if you're not taking advantage of the Internet to increase your business then you are quickly falling behind. eStore lets your customers reserve a storage rental, create an account and make payments including automatic payments from the convenience of home. With the added security of 128 bit SSL encryption, your customers can rest assured that their personal information is protected.

CONSIDERATIONS

It will be necessary to involve someone from your web development staff that has full access to your website code to make necessary changes.

Note. Your customers will be required to re-activate their online account once the conversion takes place.

Account IDs and passwords must be supplied to your customers in order to set up a new account on your website. Your Centershift Implementation Project Manager will assist you with getting a list of account IDs.


Acquire new URL links from your Implementation Project Manager. Those links will need to be implemented into your website prior to going live on Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store). The change on your website is a simple one. It is a matter of replacing the old links with the new ones. How quickly this gets done depends on your website developers. It is safe to allow 1 week for them to make necessary changes to your website.


Contact your Centershift Account Manager or Implementation Project Manager for more information.

NOTES





YIELDPLAN SETTINGS

OVERVIEW

The Rent and Yield Manager module of Store 3.1 has been updated and enhanced in Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store). The first change to note is the name which is now YieldPlan. Clients currently using Rent and Yield Manager in Store 3.1 will want to import the agents into Store's YieldPlan. YieldPlan is only available in the Store Enterprise application.

CONSIDERATIONS

YieldPlan offers more features and capabilities than were available in the Rent and Yield Manager. Centershift recommends that clients converting from Store 3.1 to Store take the first step of converting their existing agents to YieldPlan without initially adding to the complexity of the auto pricing agents. After familiarity has been gained in the new product, the client can begin utilizing the enhanced features in Store YieldPlan. The capabilities of YieldPlan may enable the user to achieve the same results as they did in Rent and Yield Manager with far fewer agents in place.


Consult with your Implementation Project Manager to gain an understanding of their use of Rent and Yield Manager in Store 3.1.

Determine with your Implementation Project Manager the best path for conversion of the Rent and Yield Manager agents into YieldPlan.

There are two approaches for conversion:

1. Use of an automated utility that can quickly convert the agents. The automated method could be as quick as a few minutes, with several hours dedicated to verification.

2. A manual conversion. Manual conversion could take up to 5 days for research, conversion and verification.

Depending on the use and complexity of the agents in place, Your Implementation Project Manager will determine the most effective and accurate method of conversion. Your organization will play a role in the conversion by participating in the initial consultation and also in the verification stage of the agent conversion.


For more information on setting up YieldPlan in Store, contact your Implementation Project Manager.

NOTES





CUSTOM QUERIES AND REPORTS

OVERVIEW

Custom queries and reports that were used in Store 3.1 will need to be rewritten for Store Enterprise/Advantage (Store) if you want to continue using them.

CONSIDERATIONS

Store uses a different data structure and, in some cases, different logic than what was used in Store 3.1. Therefore, all custom-built reports and queries will have to be rewritten, tested and deployed before your conversion from Store 3.1 to Store. Centershift will not recharge you for recreating your custom reports/queries in Store that you had previously paid Centershift to develop for you in Store 3.1.


Work with your Centershift Account Manager during pre-implementation to determine your requirements. The timeframe will vary depending on the quantity and complexity of the custom reports being duplicated.


For more information on integrating your custom queries and reports with Store, contact your Centershift Account Manager.

NOTES



INDEX

3

3RD PARTY INTEGRATION • 22

C

CREDIT CARD/ACH PROCESSING • 21

CUSTOM QUERIES AND REPORTS • 27

D

DATA CARVE • 23

DELINQUENCY SETUP • 12

DISCLAIMERS & COPYRIGHTS • 1

E

ESTORE • 25

F

FEES AND DEPOSITS • 10

FINANCIAL INTEGRATION/GENERAL LEDGER

MAPPING • 18

G

GATE KEYPAD ZONES • 21

I

INTRODUCTION • 3

L

LEASE GROUPS • 9

LETTERS AND MAIL PROCESSING • 11

O

ORG IDENTIFICATION • 5

P

PROMOTIONS, CREDITS AND DISCOUNTS • 16

R

RENTAL ITEMS • 14

RETAIL ITEMS • 16

REVENUE CLASSES • 13, 18

RULES • 6

S

SERVICES • 20

SITE IDENTIFICATION • 5

T

TAX SETUP • 8

TENANT RENTAL INSURANCE • 19

TRAINING • 4

U

USER ACCOUNTS, PERMISSIONS, GROUPS AND

ROLES • 7

W

WEB SERVICES • 24

Y

YIELDPLAN SETTINGS • 26

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