2013 Review of GruntWorx Tax Document Automation

GruntWorx also offers users the option to repaginate organized documents. This lets pages be put into the same order as the bookmarks, making the PDF document easier to navigate. Firms with specific placement practices can, however, choose to keep the pages in a PDF document in the same order as they were scanned.

The GruntWorx Populate system initially creates an Excel point sheet with the information it extracts. This spreadsheet also includes diagnostics that identify potential missing data or errors, such as a mismatched SSN. The Populate program can identify and extract data from most standard IRS forms and bank issued documents, and then pushes that data into Drake Tax, GoSystem RS, ProSystem fx Tax and UltraTax CS. Forms that contain data that may be reported in various places in a client return (such as a 1099-MISC), data is only extracted to the Excel point sheet, where the professional can determine the appropriate place on the client return.

From the time the user uploads client documents to GruntWorx, to when the organized PDF workpaper is finished, the turnaround time during last tax season averaged between two to four hours. The user license, however, allows up to a maximum of 24 hours. The system is, therefore, more suited to firms with complex clients, not those with clients who expect to start and finalize their return during a one-hour engagement.

Integration: 4.5 Stars

The core GruntWorx Organize system, which creates an organized and bookmarked PDF from uploaded client source documents, can be used by professionals using any tax system. The Populate system, however, is designed to integrate with Drake Tax, GoSystem Tax RS, ProSystem fx Tax and UltraTax CS. Additionally, GruntWorx Populate has extended integration with GoSystem Tax RS that allows a specific naming system to be assigned to PDFs. This allows GoFileRoom to automatically pull the PDF into the program’s document management system.

GruntWorx also has a partnership with Tic, Tie & Calculate, an Acrobat plug-in designed for accountants that lets users add bookmarks that correspond to the GruntWorx bookmark hierarchy. Other notable features include multi-colored tick marks and a calculator that functions like a 10-key adding machine. Tic, Tie & Calculate is offered at a discount to GruntWorx users.

Help/Support/Training: 4.75 Stars

As an online system, all of the help features in the various GruntWorx systems are also web-based, and the company offers additional resources, including a comprehensive user manual with step-by-step tutorials, FAQs, troubleshooting and whitepapers that cover a variety of topics including scanning, security and Adobe Acrobat tips. Live technical support is included in pricing and offers extended hours during tax season.

Summary & Pricing

GruntWorx Organize, Populate, and Trades are each designed to provide streamlined workflow for tax firms, allowing them to focus on more profitable tax engagements and review processes, not on the often tedious paper-pushing functions of putting together client workpapers. The web-based system provides bookmarked digital workpaper PDFs that can be edited and annotated, and with the GruntWorx Populate system, data can automatically be extracted from source documents and entered into client returns for firms using Drake Tax, GoSystem Tax RS, ProSystem fx Tax or UltraTax CS.

Pricing GruntWorx is on a per-use basis, allowing firms to easily test it or use it on a limited, as-needed basis if they only have a few clients with high complexity. The Organize system costs $5 per use (regardless of the number of source documents). The Populate system costs $30 per use. A high volume discount is available for firms with a commitment of 100 or more uses.

2013 Overall Rating: 4.75 Stars