Windward System Five Reviews

- Extremely customizable. Allows you to customize anything from report, to custom price-labels, to customized POS screen (even changing the size/color/look of virtually every button). If you are a little more adventurous, you can even write code that allows you make your own functions. - Easy to learn. For as advanced as this is, most people can pick up on the majority what thy need in a day. ...

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- Price tag will be your biggest hurdle. And some features will cost you extra. Having to pay extra to have the software integrate with our merchant account is probably the biggest complaint I have with the company. But even this is vastly outweighed by the Pros. If you want the best, it probably isn't going to be the cheapest. - There are occasional errors that pop up and random issues. But 90% of these are self-resolving (very intuitive software). For the other 10%, support is right there to remote in and stay with you until it's resolve.

I give this review after having tried many different software packages over the last 15 years. Some costing x10 the price of Windard, some costing x10 less. What I'm left with over these years is perspective, and that perspective was hard earned. You will not find a more complete point of sale, inventory control, accounting, crm, etc. for this price range. With the ability to fine tune...

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There is no such thing as perfect software. With that being said, there are issues...but then it's technology. You have to considering that it is a highly customizable product that able to serve an amazing range of business types with thousands of options. What Windward has that sets it apart is a fantastic support team with Canadian staff and an out-of-country team that is admittingly fantastic...probably...

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Mark, thank you very much for taking the time to provide your feedback on your experience with Windward System Five. We're thrilled that you are very satisfied with our software! As you identify in your review, Windward Software is committed to continuously improving our business management solutions such that we may continue to offer the most user-friendly, yet comprehensive functionality available.

Windward is easy to navigate and manipulate. Inventory items are easy to add and change. Like the way the payroll system integrates with Windward so no need to journal . Love the support I have received when requiring assistance from the team in the Philippines . They are prompt in getting back to you and try to assist at all times.

When trying to customise the system to suit our requirements alot of manual hours are required to change simple things like updating prices and modifications. When we needed to collect information from the system we required a special programme be written to fulfil government requirements. This additional reporting is cumbersome to produce. There is also alot of double entry when making a payment...

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Thank you, Michelle, for taking the time to provide a review of your experience with Windward System Five. It's nice to hear that you are pleased with the support you have received from our Client Services team. In terms of your concerns, we're confident that there are means to make some of the processes you mention more efficient. At your convenience, please contact your Account Manager at +1 (800)...

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Over the years there have been many areas of the program that we never took advantage of. One of the greatest things is with all the recent available training on and off line it has allowed us to find these nuggets that have helped us tremendously to make processes within our business so much easier. This had to be one of the best implementations that Windward has made, keep the training coming!!

The one thing we dislike about the program are updates. We get very nervous! A few years ago we did an update and it totally messed up the whole program. We had to work offline (paper work) for more than 3 weeks, which was a nightmare after the fact. Though Windward programmers worked for over 6 months to find a fix, they never ever did. So here 5 or 6 years later our Point of Sales Transaction Report figures are still unusable. We recently updated Pervasive and were told it should really speed up the program. Unfortunately it didn't, actually saw absolutely no difference even though it had been several years since we'd done an update, so are looking at other areas now.

that is is absolutely fluent in keeping all of our information organized & keeps me able to do my job as a 1 woman Owner/Operator. without this softwear we would not have been able to stay open for the past 11 years without the ease of Windward System 5, for my retail business.

for us a small retail shop, the maintenance & updating costs are quite high & out of our price range on a year to year basis.

Hi Marie, thank you for taking the time to provide feedback relating to your experience with Windward System Five. We're very happy to see that it's significantly helping the operation of your business! With regard to maintenance & updating, please contact your Account Manager at +1 (800) 663-5750, at your convenience, to discuss options to determine the most cost-effective solution. For example, it may be optimal to transfer to Windward System Five on Cloud, which includes automatic data backups and installation of updates and does not require your business to use a server.

In comparison to previous software used, the finalization of the inventory process within Windward is rather straight-forward. The ability to print count sheets with only product in stock - no part numbers with a "zero" quantity, is great and saves paper. However, products often randomly shift into categories like 'financial' which causes the item to remain on the inventory count. I have had to request help from support on this multiple times.

I have used Windward software all day, every week day, for two years now and I consistently encounter issues in day to day operations. I have had problems with the cash out feature not allowing me to finalize the file and close the day; I am constantly getting error messages, or "unplanned shutdown" messages when an unplanned shutdown has not occurred; there are processing issues with rental invoices that cause the invoice totals to change, after the invoice has been finalized and submitted. This specifically has created MAJOR discrepancies on our invoices that has resulted in us to losing money, and having to issue apologies to many of our major accounts. One of these incidents has caused irreparable harm to our business relationship with our (previously) largest customer.

the software is easy to use and customizable. we have found a it works well and have not had too many problems. there are a lot of options in the setup and we are able to change if it does not work. the implementation staff was great and the support is great. when ever I have contacted support they responded very quickly and the webinars have helped make the software better

it takes a long time to get a feature added and a lot of pestering, there are a few things in the software that does not make sense with the labels

Hi Ketan -- thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback. Great to hear that you're pleased with Windward System Five, our Implementation Team, and weekly webinars. In terms of custom feature development, we record all requests and work diligently to include this functionality (when possible) in subsequent product releases. To learn more about upcoming System Five features, please contact your Account Manager at +1 (800) 663-5750.

The ability to expand on transactions no matter which module you are in is a nice feature. The GST function is also very good.

With every update, there is a new set of problems. In addition, you can not add additional data bases, terminals nor change your company information such as address, phone etc. Windward's main goal seems to be collecting licence renewal fees and support fees at higher than market rates. They control the number of users - unlike Simply Accounting who allows up to 10 users for a basic license. Windward also charges a licence fee PER DATA BASE. This is bogus! Overall, I am disenchanted with Windward and moving away from the product after over a decade of use.

Back office accounting is saving us money by tracking inventory vs sales, as well as less cost with accounting fees by running an all inclusive bookkeeping/accounting program.

The occasional glitches, after each windows update, with form display screens freezing up the software.

Thank you, Ed, for taking the time to provide us with your feedback and for your positive comments: much appreciated! We are committed to ensuring that Windward System Five is 100% seamless in operation with all future Windows releases. That said, if you experience any issues please contact our Customer Support Team at any time for assistance: +1 (800) 663-5750.

POS screen is very easy for staff to learn. Transactions easy to process. Lots of reports available

Update to windows 10 a costly extra. Payroll function lacking. Designing forms takes a lot of work,

Hi Ken -- thank you for providing your feedback relating to your experience with Windward System Five. We're happy to hear that you are pleased with System Five's level of functionality. In terms of the Payroll module, we encourage you to contact your Account Manager at +1 (800) 663-5750 to become registered for The Windward Learning Academy. This easy-to-use, yet comprehensive online training resource will provide everything you need to know about efficiently using our Payroll module, designing forms, and other system functions.

Very thorough software with lots of room/areas to store Information and very easy to use. The point and click ability of the software makes it easier to train new staff. Can access the software from anywhere in the world using remote desktop connection.

The updates do not seem to go very smoothly. And update me fix one problem but two new problems arise that were not problems before. We have actually stopped getting updates and have continued to use our current version for years. We have developed our own internal ways to use the software to its fullest potential without getting updates. Software support is readily available however very expensive...

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I like the ability to generate custom sales reports so I can see who my top dealer accounts are, and which accounts I need to incentivize. I need to quickly check stock of products in all four of our warehouse locations, and when a product is out of stock, I need to be able to quickly see what's been ordered and when we are expecting it to arrive at our warehouses. In a "just in time delivery" business...

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Like any feature packed program, intuitive menus are critical to accessing all the nuances of the software. Most of power software programs leave something to be desired in the area of intuitive interfaces. Windward is no exception to this. Thus, task specific training modules and quick customer support is of utmost importance to users being able to shorten the learning curve when expanding their knowledge of Windward.

We could not run our business without the information and order that the system provides! 1. Ease of use- Everything is in one program 2. Total integration- We don't need to transfer data to another program like QuickBooks 3. Strong Accounting, Control, and reports- Ability to customize GL and P&L format and multiple years. 4. Hundreds of pre-built Reports- We rarely do custom 5. Ability to create...

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Probably not really a con But there are so many features available, it take some time to learn and put them into daily practice. The rest are just enhancements we'd like to see !! First, We would like to see the RMA system simplified. Second, we would like to see the E-commerce platform developed more. We are using it now for our website, but we would like to see more features and search options. Third, we would like to see the Timecard function developed and enhanced. Fourth, we would like to see the offering of more credit card processing options. Fifth, we would like the ability to attach PDF's to items, instead of JPG. But all in all, the system works really well!

I like the auto data up loads for inventory. I like the adjustability of all the categories of forms and labels, such as invoices, purchase orders, packing slips, inventory tags, delivery tickets, etc. we can utilize and customize to suite all kinds needs for many different aspects, and situations. Being able to use the tag-a-long kits for suggestive selling, helps out the sales staff considerably,...

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I think the data up loads can function easier, be less complicated. We don't use the accounting part of the program. We use QB for our payroll and it will integrate with System 5 so that is good. There are more aspects of the program I like to be using and I wish the learn curves would be easier. We have an extra large amount of inventory and data stored in the system, since we have been using it since 2008. When generating reports or gathering information, the delays to the system or the machine's think processes, are way too long for me, before the abort button shows up, if it shows up at all or the option to quit the process and try another way. Again think of what I like least is difficult to do because we always find a work around to fulfill our needs.

Excellent customer support 24/7. A product that is scalable to your business. One of the few softwares that have a stand-a-lone ability that allow sales and lookup when the main server is offline or unavailable. Inventory orders in cases or singles by multiple suppliers with multiple part numbers and UPC codes for a single item. Capable of printing price tags on the fly when receiving. Easy lookup...

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Back office reporting is probably the weekest area. However, custom reports are available and creatable. If you are looking into any software you should have a list of what you need to know daily, weekly and monthly and have it demonstrated to you. Another area is handling price protection from manufacturers. It is not easy to drop cost on items that receive price protection. It can be done but is time consuming.

Knowing that you can pretty much always get a hold of someone in support- My all time favorite support person really knows what she is doing and is a very pleasant wonderful personality! It is nice that there are a variety of reports for each department

The bookkeeping part of Windward - everything is journal entry based and not check book based - The payroll system is Canadian based and is not United States friendly on the forms that need to be done at year end for payroll and the government. Some of the reports don't print dates and other pertinent information on them and if they do you have to click on everthing to just read the notes. Also an awful lot of "errors" that occur and some that never get fixed- it tends to be frustrating! Also having to wait for someone to call you back when there is a urgent issue that needs addressing asap can get frustrating, although you do always get a call back

Hi, Michelle -- thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback relating to your experience with Windward System Five. We're pleased to hear that you are satisfied with our Customer Support team; we ensure that all of our clients are answered by a real person at any time, day or night. In terms of your concerns, we are confident there are in fact methods to overcome your stated issues. We encourage you to please contact your Account Manager at +1 (800) 663-5750 in order to gain access to The Windward Learning Academy. This comprehensive online training resource is easy-to-use and will answer questions related to any type of System Five functionality, including Payroll.

What I mean by the switches. This program allows you to set up the program the way you want it. It does have a default setting, but I have found that each company is different and require certain information. When sitting up the program go somewhere quiet with no distractions. Also if the program does what you want it to you do not have to upgrade.

If you don't upgrade then it is very hard for the company or technical support to help because they are running on another version.

Easy to use for the basic functions of our business such as reserving, renting and returning product. Integrated POS.

Limited as far as scheduling for logistical planning, very basic and a lot of potential for mistakes, too manual in some respects. Rental reports need to be simplified the variety of reports needs to be expanded. Generally there needs to be more reports that are specific to the rental side designed by Windward that help to identify business opportunities as well as areas the business could improve in.

Hi Dwayne, thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback. In terms of your experience with the System Five Rentals Module, may we please suggest speaking to your Account Manager at +1 (800) 663-5750 to become registered for The Windward Learning Academy. This comprehensive online resource will provide you with user-friendly tutorials to craft advanced reports as well as to gain access to more detailed Rentals functionality. In addition, please stay tuned for Windward Intelligence, an upcoming System Five enhancement that provides integration with Microsoft Power BI, which will enable our users to run custom reports.

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Windward System 5 is well organized and intuitive for knowledgeable users. It is an extensive system doing just about anything you could want in a business management/accounting system. Reports are extensive and well laid out, and allow you to drill through to the details in most cases.

It seems plagued with system errors. Not sure if this is just our platform, or if this happens to most users, but we get system errors on a very frequent basis (more than daily). Most are nothing and the system corrects them on its own, but some require more effort, and frequent assistance from Windward Support. Most of the support personnel are very helpful and knowledgeable, so your problems get fixed fairly quickly but they are still a nuisance.

Hi Ronald. Thank you for your positive review of System Five: we're pleased to hear that you find it to be well organized and user friendly. In terms of the system errors that you mention: this could indeed be related to your hardware setup. Please contact your Account Manager at your earliest convenience and discuss whether you have the minimum hardware requirements in place. In addition, if there is a recurring error that is causing you problems, please do let us know what it is and we will investigate to determine if it something we can permanently resolve.

Have been a user/admin since 2009, and have been through many upgrades and improvements. It's easy to set up routines to track all incoming and outgoing merchandise and expenses. It seems to integrate well with accounting. You can extensively customize reports and you can easily export files from any report. Software is durable and forgiving; almost never freezes despite robust use from our end.

Emailing invoices has been problematical over the years. Windward hasn't integrated well with third-party email management software like Outlook and Thunderbird, although this situation may have improved since last I checked (this function is only sporadically my responsibility in the business). Some of our seats/terminals work, some do not. Customer service was baffled. Also, customizing forms can be a little tricky, but we have managed that.

Customer service was excellent, the people at the help desk were patient, kind and skilled in training me on the system and in accounting. It is excellent for tracking inventory, clients and suppliers. The reports are helpful, too.

Creating forms is difficult as well as some of the terminology. I have difficulty using the help menu because what I look up what I think something is called.

HI Patti, Thank you very much for taking the time to provide your review of Windward System Five. We're happy to hear that you are pleased with our Customer Service and product functionality. If you have any questions about any type of product functionality and/or need to acquire additional training, please contact your Account Manager and ask them about gaining access to The Windward Learning Academy, our online source of product tutorials, which is free for customers. In addition, we offer complimentary weekly live webinars on a variety of product features; please also ask your Account Manager for more information: +1 (800) 663-5750. All of us at Windward Software look forward to continuing to serve you for many years to come!

Have put this system in 2 businesses have had no real issues to date that have not been easy to fix. POS is pretty flawless and easy to use. You can report on just about anything. Support staff are fantastic, and implementation was easy. Windward are with you the whole way making sure everything works.

To date have non, anything that I have ever had an issue with usually stems from user error. There are some processes that I would like to have, and they can absolutely be custom programed, like seeing what items on the invoice are have customer contract pricing, but this does not affect most sales and can be checked other ways. So not really a con just something that my end would be great, more than likely there is a way to do this. I am always learning new things to stream line the process.

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I like being able to customize buttons at the cash registers and change them seasonally as we are a garden center and our products do change drastically with the seasons. Customer support is always very helpful and has fixed most issues that I have had in the past. We make our nursery signs, labels, and a variety of different types of price tags within System Five. No need for another program as we did need one in the past. I have not used them yet but having webinars and a learning area available to us is an excellent way to get more out of our software.

Customer tech support is very good, however I think that it is a bit expensive annually. The label and form designers work but do not seem to be what you see is what you get. It takes a little finessing to create a label that fits your media properly.