The Tempest Web site has a new Training Services page. You can access this page by hovering your mouse pointer over SERVICES in the menu bar and then clicking TRAINING SERVICES. This page gives you an overview of the excellent training services provided by the Tempest Development Group as well as contact details for training representatives and links to the latest training news.

If you want to receive training news by e-mail, go to the Training Services page, enter your e-mail address in the E-MAIL SUBSCRIPTION box in the sidebar and then click Subscribe. You will receive a verification e-mail at the entered address with a link for activating your subscription. This is a great way to keep up with seasonal training schedules and other important training news.

• Business Licence Renewals – Oct 5, 2010: $400.00
• Dog Licence Renewals - Oct 6, 2010: $400.00
• Understanding Transactions and GL Reporting in Tempest – Nov 23, 2010: $225.00
• Tempest Year End Steps – Nov 24, 2010: $400.00

For more detailed information on these classes, see the 2010 Fall Schedule. If you have questions or want to register for a class, please contact Tempest training at training@tempestdg.com

StarDyne Technologies Inc., has for the 2nd year in a row made PROFIT Magazine’s annual ranking of the PROFIT 100/Next 100. StarDyne has ranked 26th among software companies, 34th among BC-based companies and 187th overall.

Ranking Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies by five-year revenue growth, the PROFIT 100 profiles the country’s most successful growth companies. Published in the June issue of PROFIT and online at PROFIT100.com, the PROFIT 100 is Canada’s largest annual celebration of entrepreneurial achievement. “Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies are the poster children for entrepreneurship, innovation and pure tenacity,” says Ian Portsmouth, editor of PROFIT. “They demonstrate what it takes to succeed in today’s highly competitive, technology-driven global economy.”

From 2004 to 2009 StarDyne’s revenue grew more than 196%. “The increase in revenue is driven by acquisitions and organic growth in both our Government and Education Divisions,” says David Burke, CEO of StarDyne.

“The foundation of our business is our Triple Bottom Line – Employee Satisfaction, Customer Satisfaction and Financial Satisfaction. We continue to achieve high ratings for Employee and Customer satisfaction which in turn provides the strong financial results as evidenced by ranking us among the Fastest Growing Companies in Canada even with the economic challenges faced by many businesses in the last year,” adds Brad Imrich, CFO of StarDyne.

The consistent hard work and dedication of the StarDyne group continues to drive StarDyne forward in new and exciting ways.

About StarDyne Technologies

Stability of a prospective vendor is important. In July of 2005, StarDyne acquired majority interest in Tempest, facilitating a more rapid strategic plan for growth and a focus on operations with the knowledge that financing and capital was secured. The Tempest Development Group is a member of the  Government Solutions Division of StarDyne Technologies.

About PROFIT Magazine

PROFIT: Your Guide to Business Success is Canada’s preeminent publication dedicated to the management issues and opportunities facing small and mid-sized businesses. For 28 years, Canadian entrepreneurs and senior managers across a vast array of economic sectors have remained loyal to PROFIT because it’s a timely and reliable source of actionable information that helps them achieve business success and get the recognition they deserve for generating positive economic and social change. Visit PROFIT online at www.profitmagazine.ca.

May 14th, 2010 Canada, BC, Surrey – The District of Central Saanich has processed their 2010 tax notices using a solution from the Tempest Development Group.

The Tempest Development Group is pleased to announce that the District of Central Saanich, British Columbia has successfully replaced their property taxation software with Tempest’s core Property and Revenue modules.

Central Saanich originally implemented Tempest’s Land system and Building, Planning and Licensing modules in 2008. Subsequent to the initial implementation, staff at Central Saanich chose to implement additional Tempest modules to provide a full suite of Tempest applications at the District that would link all of their property and revenue modules through Tempest’s Land and Cash systems. This latest implementation project included the Property Taxation and Utility Billing modules along with Web-based applications, including Web Inquiry, MyCity and electronic Home Owner Grants to provide 24/7 access to citizens in the community.

“Central Saanich has just finished implementing the last major parts of the Tempest package – Taxes and Utilities – in just two weeks. We started two years ago with Land, Community Development (Prospero), then Business Licences and Dog Licences and now Taxes and Utilities.

We couldn’t have managed the two week implementation without the dedication and knowledge of Chris Grant and Mike Jensen and the patience of trainers Kathy Kennedy and Nicole Stel. Their support and encouragement overcame staff anxiety. The Finance department has been waiting two years for this and we actually celebrated on completion. We’re looking forward to a long and happy partnership with Tempest. Thanks to all of you.”

(Rosalyn Tanner, Finance Director, District of Central Saanich)

Special thanks goes to the Central Saanich Project Team who worked closely with Tempest’s Implementation Specialists to successfully deliver a project quickly and in time for the City’s 2010 tax run.

About the District of Central Saanich

Central Saanich is located on the beautiful Saanich Peninsula on Southern Vancouver Island. It is a district municipality in Greater Victoria and a member municipality of the Capital Regional District. The district began as a farming community, and many hobby farms, along with a handful of small working farms and vineyards, still exist. In recent decades, the area has seen increasing residential, commercial, and industrial development, especially around the neighbourhoods of Brentwood Bay and Saanichton, which are occasionally referred to as separate communities.

The area’s best-known tourist attractions are the Butchart Gardens, located in the Brentwood Bay area and Island View Beach.

Lynden is located in the mild climate of northwest Washington, four miles from the Canadian border and 15 miles north of Bellingham. Located mid-way between the metropolitan cities of Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., Lynden is also in close proximity to Mt. Baker and the San Juan Islands. With a population of approximately 12,000 residents, the city has served as the economic and social hub for north county residents for over 100 years. Its agrarian lifestyle, pastoral setting and mild climate make it a desirable community to visit and call home in Whatcom County.

“With cities/counties/states in the U.S. facing falling revenues, the need has never been greater for tools that help reduce costs, improve services to citizens and provide both the ability and flexibility to respond to future challenges. Tempest products have allowed our city to meet these demands in the past and we look forward to continuing our relationship with their products in the future.” (Teresa Camfield, Director of Finance)

During the period of 1990 – 1998, the City of Lynden experienced rapid growth. This growth, combined with an aging, Windows noncompliant financial software system provided by single vendor, put tremendous strain on an already limited system, impeding any opportunity for further growth. In 1999, the City of Lynden completed an RFP process for new financial software. The City needed a system that would not only meet their immediate requirements but had the potential and flexibility for growth. The City chose an industry leading solution from Agresso, going live with Agresso’s Financial Applications that same year. Since then, the City has experienced significant improvements in efficiency, costs, and software reliability.

Tempest Development was approached in the same year by the City of Lynden and Agresso to integrate Tempest’s Cash Management system with Agresso’s General Ledger solution. The project took two months to complete and resulted in a seamlessly integrated point of sale system for the City.

The superior level of professional support and the stability of the Tempest Cash System were key to the City’s decision to approach Tempest Development in 2006 when they required a Utility Billing system. Tempest seamlessly integrated a complex Utility and Land system into the City’s existing Tempest point of sale and Agresso General Ledger environment.

“The Tempest team has a proven track record of successful planning and implementation services. The planning that took place prior to the implementation phase was very substantial and complete. By involving GIS, Public Works, and Finance Utility Billing personnel in the planning process and working through every detail in regards to needs and expectations up front, the system went live on the date promised with very few unforeseen issues. This implementation had the potential of being very difficult, due to the conversion of non-Windows based information in many different formats. The entire process met and exceeded our expectations.” (Teresa Camfield, Director of Finance)

About City of Lynden

The City of Lynden operates with a Council-Mayor form of government. The City council is responsible for enacting all legislation and making policy decisions governing the city. The Mayor is responsible for the administration of the city and the City Administrator is responsible for the operations of the city and also serves as the City Clerk. Lynden is a full function city, with Finance, Fire, Parks, Planning and Community Development, Police and Public Works Departments. The Public Works Department is responsible for the Water, Sewer and Storm Water utilities, as well as the Street functions. The administrative functions of Technical Support, Human Resources, as well as the City Court office report directly to the City Administrator. The city currently employs approximately 70 full time positions, 4 part time positions, 28 firefighter/EMT volunteers, and 7 seasonal positions. The current annual budget is over $45,000,000.

About StarDyne Technologies

Stability of a prospective vendor is important. In July of 2005, StarDyne acquired majority interest in Tempest, facilitating a more rapid strategic plan for growth and a focus on operations with the knowledge that financing and capital was secured. In 2010, StarDyne ranked 26th among software companies, 34th among BC-based companies and 187th overall in PROFIT Magazine’s annual ranking of the PROFIT 100/Next 100. The Tempest Development Group is a member of the Government Solutions Division of StarDyne Technologies.

The Tempest Development Group is pleased to announce that the City of Richmond, British Columbia, successfully replaced their legacy property taxation software with Tempest’s core Property and Revenue modules.

Beginning in July of 2009, the implementation involved an aggressive goal to complete the project in time for the 2010 tax year. Also included in the upgrade, was a selection of other Tempest applications including, Utility Billing, Local Improvements, and Web based applications to improve the city’s service levels and accessibility for its citizens.

Special thanks goes to the Richmond Project Team who worked closely with Tempest’s Implementation Specialists to successfully deliver a complex project in time for the City’s 2010 tax run.

Richmond is a culturally diverse and geographically unique community centrally located on Canada’s West Coast, in Metro Vancouver, 20 minutes from Downtown Vancouver, and 25 minutes from the US border. Richmond has been experiencing growth and change with remarkable speed, transforming from a rural, local community to an international city with a balance of urban, sub-urban family, and rural areas. The continuing development of the City’s downtown core, and the recently completed construction of the Canada Line rapid transit system and the Richmond Olympic Oval for the 2010 Winter Games, ensures that Richmond’s transformation is ongoing. With a population of nearly 190,000 people, it is British Columbia’s fourth largest municipality and Tempest’s third largest client.

The economic environment that developed in late 2008 and remained for much of 2009 resulted in a mix of opportunity and hardship for the industry’s leading firms.* This environment has led to the majority of companies either moving down the Branham list or maintaining their standing from 2009.

The foundation supporting StarDyne’s success is its Triple Bottom Line philosophy – employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction which drive financial satisfaction. StarDyne is showing a year over year improvement in the Triple Bottom Line!

StarDyne would like to thank all of our employees throughout our Group Companies as well as our thousands of customers supporting us and helping us achieve this level of success. Thank you!

About StarDyne Technologies

Stability of a prospective vendor is important. In July of 2005, StarDyne acquired majority interest in Tempest, facilitating a more rapid strategic plan for growth and a focus on operations with the knowledge that financing and capital was secured. In 2010, StarDyne ranked 26th among software companies, 34th among BC-based companies and 187th overall in PROFIT Magazine’s annual ranking of the PROFIT 100/Next 100. The Tempest Development Group is a member of the Government Solutions Division of StarDyne Technologies.

* 2010 Branham300: A Year of Opportunity and Hardship

Delta Slopeside Pool: Sun Peaks, BC

Tempest will be attending the GFOABC Conference in Sun Peaks BC, May 26-28, 2010.  GFOABC’s mission is “to promote excellence in local government through the support and development of finance professionals.” This year’s conference features many great speakers and sessions to “fulfill your professional development needs and provide networking opportunities. The Professional Development Day on Wednesday will feature a series of concurrent sessions that delegates can choose from on Asset Management, HST Implementation, Performance Based Budgeting, Construction Insurance, Working with your Public Works Department and Responding to Lobby Groups” (2010 Conference Brochure).

If you are attending the conference,  drop by Tempest’s booth and say hello. We will be showing off our new querying application (IntelliSearch) as well as our virtual city hall applications, such as MyCity.

You can register for the conference on the CivicInfoBC Web site. For more information on the conference, download the 2010 conference brochure 2010 conference brochure.

2010 LGMA Conference

Tempest will be attending the LGMA Conference in Whistler BC, May 18-20, 2010.  The theme of this year’s conference is:  Moving to Higher Ground: Challenges and Opportunities.  As LGMA president, Tim Wood, explains, “the challenges we face, whether externally or internally driven, provide opportunities to build and strengthen relationships. Our loyalty and commitment to community, profession, colleagues and most importantly to ourselves positions us well as we move to higher ground. ” (Tim Wood,  2010 Conference Brochure). The conference will include 4 pre-conference workshops, 2 keynote speakers, eighteen different education sessions, and plenty of opportunity for networking. If you are attending, be sure to visit Tempest’s booth at the trade show. We will be showing off our new querying application (IntelliSearch) as well as our virtual city hall applications, such as MyCity.

You can register for the conference on the CivicInfoBC Web site. For more information on the conference, download the 2010 conference brochure from the LGMA Web site.

Tempest has launched a new corporate Web site to help serve current and prospective clients better. We have totally redesigned the look and feel and have added new content. The Products area of our site has seen the most construction, with a complete rewrite of our product information. The secured, client area has even seen some minor “cosmetic enhancements” but maintains the same functionality and navigation elements you’re used to.

There are still some loose ends to tie up, but feel free to poke around and let us know what you think. By the way, you can do that right here by adding a comment to this post. Enjoy!