The Industrious Software Solutions
Accounting Story
 Stephen
Ryza, the founder of Industrious Software Solutions,
was just trying to help out with his sister's business.
In 1982, her wholesale gift business was growing beyond
her means to manage it. What she needed was someone
or something to administer the day-to-day operation,
while she concentrated on supervision and sales.
Of course, in 1982, the only solution was to hire more
people to do the paperwork... an expensive proposition
for a business still in its infancy. There was no PC
software at the time to help small wholesalers manage
their operations. That's when Stephen set about the
task of developing a computer program to provide vital
support for a small, but burgeoning business.
He began by following his sister with a stopwatch during
her daily activities. He then evaluated each function
she performed. His goal was to assess the benefit to
be derived from automating any given process.
 When
he was finished, he had developed a software program
that brought advanced automation to the routine, clerical
tasks of a wholesaler. Even the earliest version of
the program allowed a wholesaler to input orders, print
packing lists, prepare and print invoices, print shipping
labels, and manage inventory.
Stephen's sister soon began to use the program to enter
orders at trade shows. To her surprise, the software
gained the attention of other exhibitors. Many of them
wanted the same program to manage their own business.
Stephen then expanded the software into a system that
would computerize all wholesalers, manufacturers, and
importers in the gift and craft industries. He called
the program the "Maker's Automated Clerk"...
better known over the years as the " M.A.C."
 But
there was still plenty left to do. Why stop at just
the basic functions? What about forecasting, report
generation, and profit-tracking? And what might still
be overlooked?
Stephen sought to expand his horizons beyond his sister's
business. This meant spending weeks observing the operation
of numerous wholesalers...consulting with each one to
assess, first hand, their individual needs. He also
went to trade shows to talk with various exhibitors
about their specialized operations.
The outcome was a software package driven by the input
of business owners, not programmers. Now, there was
finally a comprehensive program on the market that was
able to meet the specific and unique requirements of
wholesalers, manufacturers, and importers.
After a while, I.S.S. added a staff of programmers,
sales representatives, and customer service people to
help expand his business. Within a couple of years,
the Maker's Automated Clerk was the dominant software
player in the gift and craft industries. The product
was also significant in apparel, sporting goods, specialty
food, hobby, and other industries.
By 1992, over 2,000 companies were using the Maker's
Automated Clerk as their major business tool. By that
time, over 150 options were added to the software. This
came about as a result of the numerous requests for
additional features that were communicated to Stephen
by his customers.
By 1993, I.S.S. made a decision to develop a new system
to replace the Maker's Automated Clerk. They recognized
that, in a highly competitive market, businesses needed
to be more flexible and responsive. Therefore, the software
needed to be sufficiently flexible to allow a user to
quickly make changes to the program without paying a
programmer.
It was a major effort to develop the new software system.
It took over eighty man-years to complete. The new program
was called "Oak Street". It was not a generic
package that required a business to change to meet the
requirements of the software. Instead, Oak Street was
so flexible that users could modify the system as their
companies changed.
Because Oak Street is so powerful, it required a special
process to implement it. The implementation process
was given the name TCM because it focuses on Time, Customers,
and Money...the three fundamentals of business.
TCM is a methodology that includes personal consultations,
software customization, training, and technical support.
The initial step is to analyze a company's needs. Solutions
are then identified and implemented in a professional
and cost-effective manner.
The 2000 Accounting division of I.S.S. was launched
in 1998 as a software design and marketing company to
better deal with the issues confronting our customers
in the next century. These issues included Year 2000
compatibility, Internationalization, and the ability
to run on different platforms. The first result of 2000
Accounting's efforts was the release of the fully Year
2000 compatible, version 2.0 of Oak Street in April
of 1998.
Through personal involvement with the client, along
with the extensive knowledge obtained by working with
thousands of wholesalers over the past 18 years, Industrious
Software Solutions has continued to help wholesalers
expand their businesses. The coming years will also
bring continued investment of significant resources
to assist companies improve their utilization of time,
provide better service to their customers, and preserve
their money.
Contact Info:
Phone: (800) 351-4225 or (310) 672-8700
Fax: (310) 419-6000
E-Mail: info@issweb.com
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