Register Today for the Spring 2013 VAPUG and NCPUG Meetings!

Join Allegro for the Spring 2013 VAPUG and NCPUG meetings.  We are excited to announce that Gus Bjorklund will be presenting on the new OpenEdge Mobile!  If you were unable to attend the recent Mobility Tour, now is your chance to get a first look at OpenEdge Mobile - the highlight of OpenEdge 11.2.  For more information or to register for these meetings, contact Amy Gray.

VAPUG Meeting

April 9th - THIS IS A CHANGE!

11:30 - 5:00PM

Allegro Offices in Glen Allen, VA

NCPUG Meeting

April 10th - THIS IS A CHANGE!

11:30 - 5:00PM

Keystone Systems Offices in Raleigh, NC

PUG Challenge Americas Preliminary Agenda Announced!

The selection committee has announced the preliminary agenda for PUG Challenge 2013.  Be sure to check out this years' sessions and speakers.  Also, Super Early Bird registration has been extended until March 1st.  Take advantage of up to $150 in savings and register today!

Allegro Releases Attributes v2.0.1 with Bug Fixes

Allegro Consultants has released attributes module v 2.0.1.  This release has merged previous CE versus licensed development efforts into a single release and removed all team references.  Visit SugarForge.org for the download and documentation.

Allegro Releases Attributes v2.0 for SugarCRM

Allegro Consultants has released Attributes Module v 2.0 for SugarCRM.  Attributes is used to group records by shared characteristics, allowing for easy identification of all entries tagged with a specific attribute as well as, making mass emailing easier. Attributes is a hierarchy system with parent/child relationships.  You can download the Attributes module at SugarForge.org.

Allegro Nominated For RichTech's Technology Stars Award

We are pleased to announce that Allegro has been nominated for the RichTech Technology Builder Award for the second year in a row.  The Technology Builder Award is part of RichTech’s annual Technology Star Awards, recognizing excellence in the Richmond industry. The award is given to the local technology company that delivers technology solutions and/or services to external clients that build capacity and increase operational efficiency. RichTech's purpose is to promote Central Virginia’s growing technology community. This will be the 18th year for their Technology Star Awards. To be recognized again as an organization that is helping to advance Central Virginia's technology-based economy is a great honor.  Last year, Allegro was a finalist for the Technology Builder Award and received the People's Choice Award, the overall technology community's choice for Best In Show! Finalists for this years' awards will be announced mid-March 2013.

PUG Challenge Americas 2013

Join worldwide Progress® users at PUG Challenge Americas 2013 June 9-12, 2013 in Westford, MA. The independent face-to-face forum for exchanging ideas, tips and best practices on the Progress suite of technology tools. Workshops begin Sunday June 9, 1:00 p.m. with an evening Welcome Reception. Sessions start early Monday morning and run until Wednesday noon with evening events on Monday and Tuesday nights.

Expert speakers from Progress Software and the community present over 40 technical sessions plus many workshops, info exchanges and commercial sessions, this conference is the destination for guidance on real-world OpenEdge innovations. The conference mixes both the old and the new with practical, technical insight. Browse through last year's sessions, speakers and choices to get a taste for this event!

Save up to $125 by taking advantage of Super Early Bird registration.

Sign Up Now For Fall 2012 VA and NC PUG Meetings

Join Allegro for the Fall 2012 VA and NC PUG meetings.  Enjoy a networking lunch followed by presentations from Roy Ellis of Progress Software. Roy will be speaking on two topics; "Getting to the Cloud" and "Security in the Cloud".  The "Security in the Cloud" talk will include many security items, such as, Client Principal, TDE and multi-tenancy, and pertains to "in-house" security as well.  To sign up for either of these meetings, please contact Amy Gray with your name, company, and email address.

VA PUG Meeting

October 9th

11:30am  -5pm

Allegro Offices

9800 JEB Stuart Pkwy

Glen Allen, VA 23059

NC PUG Meeting

October 10th

11:30am - 5pm

Keystone Systems

8016 Glenwood Avenue

Raleigh, NC 27612

Mike Lonski Will Speak At Winter 2013 MPUG

Allegro President, Mike Lonski, will speak at the Winter 2013 Michigan Progress Users Group Meeting.  He will be giving a remote presentation titled, "Pick an Index, Any Index".  If you are interested in this presentation, you can find it at PugCentral.org.  Be sure to register to access available downloads!

Allegro Consultants Featured in Forbes Magazine

Allegro was recently featured on Forbes.com for the diligent work of Tom Shreve, Controller, in the establishment of a 401K plan that really works for small business.

Time For Workers To Demand The 401(k) Plans They Deserve: Here's A Model

The battle against 401(k) abuses, which began in earnest with multiple legal challenges in 2006, and heated up when the markets collapsed in 2008 halving retirement account balances, quietly rages on. It is now common knowledge that participants in these plans have been getting fleeced by mutual fund companies and other service providers for over three decades, yet there has been no meaningful governmental or regulatory response.

Workers, it seems, have accepted that their 2008 losses were either unavoidable, i.e., due to unforeseen market forces, or unrecoverable (both of which may not be true), and have lowered their expectations regarding the extent to which these flawed plans will provide retirement security. In summary, nobody’s happy but little attention is being paid to the problem at this time.Since 2006, more than two dozen class action lawsuits related to 401(k) excessive plan fees and other forms of mismanagement have been filed against some of the largest companies in the world, including United Technologies, Deere, Honda, Lockheed Martin, International Paper, Boeing, Exelon, Caterpillar, ABB, Wal-Mart, General Dynamics, Kraft, Northrop Grumman, Bechtel, Edison International, and Unisys. (Full disclosure: I have been involved, either as a consulting expert or lawyer, in virtually all of these class actions brought on behalf of plan participants.)

The focus of the lawsuits against employer-plansponsors has been undisclosed or poorly disclosed “revenue sharing” arrangements with plan service providers; conflicts of interest involving employers and service providers; and use of high-cost actively-managed retail mutual funds.

In addition to the lawsuits against plan sponsors, cases have been brought against 401(k) plan service providers, such as Fidelity, Principal Life, John Hancock, Nationwide and ING.

It seems that even the largest companies, armed with legions of expert financial advisers and ERISA lawyers who are paid hefty fees, are both prone to be out-witted by the financial vendors they entrust with plan assets and ill-equipped to identify competitive, conflict-free 401(k) investment solutions. If these mega-sponsors can’t get it right, what company can? Given that over 92% of 401(k) plans have less than $5 million in assets, prospects for improving 401(k)s may look dim.

The good news is, it doesn’t have to be so hard. There is a simple solution for addressing many of the most troubling 401(k) abuses that, I believe, the nation may be ready to embrace.

The nation’s workers deserve a model or prototype 401(k) plan that they can specifically ask their employers to provide and be assured that they are getting low-cost, transparent, conflict-free retirement advice. While a model 401(k) plan will notensure that workers will have adequate retirement savings, it will eliminate skimming by financial vendors and underpeformance due to conflicts of interest that have drained 30% or more from workers’ accounts. Let’s give this new model 401(k) plan a catchy name– say, the American Freedom Retirement Savings Plan– or any other name that workers can easily remember. The American Freedom Retirement Savings Plan could and should be offered to all workers through  their employers—small and large 401(k) plan participants alike. Pulling workers out of costly, corrupted 401(k) investment schemes will, as sure as the sun rises, improve their financial security. But just how easy is this goal to accomplish?

Recently I received an email from Tom Shreve, the controller of a software development company called Allegro Consultants. He was doing market research in connection with a 401(k) plan the company was considering establishing. Allegro was founded in 1994 and has about 15 employees. As its business expanded, the owners had concluded they wanted to offer the best compensation and benefits package they could in hopes of attracting talented employees. Shreve’s search for a superior 401(k) alternative began in 2010.

Since Allegro’s corporate banking relationship is through the local branch of Merrill Lynch, to Shreve it seemed logical for the company to begin its search for a suitable 401(k) plan solution there. However, over the course of extensive discussions, it became increasingly clear that the Merrill Lynch 401(k) product was going to be high cost, consisting primarily of actively managed funds—probably not the most appropriate choice for Allegro plan participants, thought Shreve.  Getting answers to questions about fees and revenue sharing between vendors was problematic. Conflicts of interest involving providers to the plan was also a concern.

“As an accountant, I am sensitive to actual (or apparent) conflicts of interest.  The 401(k) industry is rife with conflicts and often seems deliberately geared against the fiduciary interest that the employer is obligated to defend.  At this point, I realized that the `good deed’ of trying to establish a 401(k) might have a bad outcome if we did not realize that the fiduciary `buck’ always stops with the employer,” said Shreve.

In our initial discussion I learned that Shreve did not feel obligated to use Merrill as a result of the corporate banking relationship. In my professional experience, a lot of time and effort can be saved by immediately establishing whether the employer really wants what’s best for his employees or is willing to compromise the integrity of the retirement plan i.e., throw workers under the bus, in pursuit of other improper (under ERISA) business objectives. I suggested Shreve talk with Verisight, a firm that provides retirement plan services and which discloses all fees associated with its plans. I also suggested he consider low-cost Vanguard index funds.  Shreve “grilled” (his words) Verisight regarding fees, revenue sharing and conflicts of interest that might be harmful to participants. Verisight, as record-keeper and administrator, confirmed that it accepted no revenue sharing from any mutual fund or product. The firm also recommended low-cost passively managed index funds from Vanguard.  Vanguard, as investment manager to the plan’s funds, confirmed that it pays no incentives to anyone to sell its funds.  Shreve concluded that the annual expenses related to the Vanguard funds would be approximately .25%, as opposed to the 1.5% – 2.0 % Merrill would have charged.

I also recommended Shreve talk with Bernie Rice, General Counsel for the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, who is an Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst and chairs the agency’s advisory committee on its 457(b) deferred compensation program. Rice has long advocated for increased transparency and lower costs for participants in governmental defined contribution plans which operate similarly to 401(k)s. She shared her insights regarding undisclosed fees and conflicts and her experience using Vanguard. (The Orange County Sheriff’s Office 457 Deferred Compensation Plan is a client.)

According to Shreve, the Allegro 401(k) plan, utilizing Verisight and Vanguard is off to a great start.  “In summary, Allegro pays the annual administration fee, the annual per participant fee and the trustee fee.  Participants are only responsible for the small annual maintenance fee.  Needless to say – the weekly 3% company contribution has been a huge hit.”

If tiny Allegro can sponsor a top notch 401(k) with only 15 employees, why is it that  many S&P 100 corporations offer their employees high-cost, conflict-of-interest ridden plans? More often than not, the explanation is that the 401(k) investment decision-making process at large companies has been corrupted and, contrary to fiduciary duties, the best interests of employees are not being solely pursued. “The service costs of offering a world-class retirement plan with an impressive array of investment options is minimal—especially when compared against other employee benefits such as health care and paid vacation plans,” says Robert Stebbins, Senior Vice President at Verisight. “Smaller 401(k) plans with straightforward service requirements can be operated with service fees that cost less than $5,000 per year.”

The Allegro 401(k) plan utilizing Verisight as recordkeeper/administrator and Vanguard index funds is, in my opinion, a model for the nation. Again, it is transparent, low cost and should deliver a competitive market rate of return. If all 401(k) plans met that straightforward standard, countless workers’ lives would be improved. Most 401(k)s, including many of the largest, do not. A nationally-offered “model” low-cost, conflict-free 401(k) plan which employees can ask for by name and employers can easily provide is long overdue. It’s not hard to devise retirement plans that are good for workers—provided all parties involved (including employers and vendors) are committed to that goal.

Allegro Wins at RichTech 17th Annual Technology Stars Gala

Four organizations and three individuals recognized during Richmond’s primer technology award show, RichTech’s Seventeenth Annual Technology Stars Gala

RICHMOND, Va. (May 9, 2012) – RichTech held its 17th Annual Technology Stars gala tonight, honoring several local organizations and individuals that are actively helping advance Central Virginia’s technology-based economy.

More than 600 people attended the Technology Stars gala, held at the Richmond Marriott.  The awards are structured in a way that recognizes individual accomplishments, corporate wins, non-profit success stories, innovators in their field, and small businesses.

“Tonight the finalists were representative of the growth and strengthen we have seen in Richmond’s technology economy, said Robby Demeria, Executive Director of Richmond.  “As last year, we had several non-traditional IT company finalists; a tribute to Richmond’s growing creative technology community as mobility and social media take root in both the consumer and business markets.  The organizations and individuals that we have recognized this evening each understand the value of technology in our community.”

“One of the highlights of the evening was recognizing the Educator finalist.” said Margaret E. “Lyn” McDermid, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Dominion and RichTech Chair.  “A key part of RichTech’s mission is to promote technology throughout Virginia, and STEM education is critical to that growth.  Our finalists are personally and professionally committed to encouraging and growing young minds who will be our future inventors, entrepreneurs, and corporate leaders.  The winner of the Educator Award has historically been given a monetary gift as part of the award.  This year, in recognition of the personal sacrifices made by all teachers and educators, RichTech is pleased to extend this to all finalists.”

The award name, its description, and the winners are:

The Community Catalyst Award Sponsored by Cisco & SyCom is awarded to the individual or organization that has made significant impact on the growth of technology in the Richmond Region, and/or the advancement of Greater Richmond as a center for technology innovation.

-Phil Conein of, TecHead.  Conein believes that small business can have the largest voice in the future of the Richmond Region. Creating collaboration between creatives, technologists, and business innovators is what will drive that belief forward, and is what Phil works toward daily.

The Educator Award Sponsored by Computer Resource Team is awarded to the educator or school program that provides exceptional technology leadership and encourages students to pursue higher education or training in science, technology, engineering and math.

-Cindy Jones, Clover Hill Elementary.  Jones has a passion for STEM and her philosophy is simple; increase excitement and academic time, increase physical activity time, which strengthens the mind-body connection, and empowers the educational process.  STEM in her class provides awareness and excitement which in return encourages students to pursue the STEM areas.

The Emerging Company Award Sponsored by Cherry, Bekaert & Holland is awarded to the local technology company that has demonstrated recent growth in revenues and/or employees, a company whose recognized accomplishments and prospects demonstrate the ability to achieve commercial success.

-Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc. (HDL, Inc.)  HDL, an accredited leader in health management, offers a comprehensive test menu of risk factors for cardiovascular and related diseases. HDL’s systematic approach identifies factors contributing to disease and provides a basis for effective manage patients.

The Technology Builder Award Sponsored by SLAIT Consulting is awarded to the local technology company delivering technology solutions and/or services to external clients that build capacity and increase operational efficiency.

-Whitlock.  Whitlock is a global AV solutions provider, offering AV Integration, Enterprise Standards, Unified Communications, Videoconferencing, Digital Media, Visualization and Managed Services, including AVNOC remote support, field service/maintenance, on-site staffing, virtual and hosted video services.

The Technology Innovation Deployment Award Sponsored by VACO Technology is awarded to the company or organization whose creative use of existing technology enhances processes, methodologies and/or services for their own or others' benefit.

-The Reginald F. Lewis School of Business at Virginia State University.  VSU is the first School in the country to launch an integrated curriculum in a digital fashion. The RFLSB is committed to partnering with industry in the development of leaders and critical thinkers for the 21st century.

The Technology Innovation Developer Award Sponsored by Comcast Business Class is awarded to the company or organization whose development of new technology applications and/or systems creates new processes, methodologies, and/or services for their own or others' benefit.

-Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (VDHCD).  VDHCD partners with communities throughout the Commonwealth to develop their economic potential, increase their capacity to address community development and housing needs, improve the quality and affordability of housing, regulate Virginia's building codes and provide training and certification.

The People's Choice Award Sponsored by Peak10 is awarded to the Awards Finalist company selected by Gala attendees via real-time mobile app voting as the overall technology community's choice for Best in Show.  Winner announced live at Gala after real-time voting.

-Allegro Consultants - Allegro is a professional services and software development firm providing expertise in many software-related areas, on demand and as needed by customers. We deliver support for users of MFG/PRO, Symix, WDS-II, and other Progress-based packages. Since 1993, Allegro has tailored and integrated Progress solutions for many clients ranging from government agencies to nonprofits. We have established a reputation for excellent customer service and high quality by providing the best advice and technical services to business and government. Allegro is actively involved in our professional community, leading the Progress user groups for several states and sponsoring notable charities. We also participate in the development communities of osCommerce, SugarCRM and Joomla with a growing number of valuable modules donated to their respective user bases.

The RichTech Chairman's Award Sponsored by Altria Client Services Presented annually to an individual or organization that has made a significant impact on the growth of technology in the Richmond Region, and/or the advancement of Greater Richmond as a center for technology innovation.

-Karen Booth Adams, Hot Technologies Holding

Using EventBoard Makes Managing Your Conference Easier!

PUG Challenge has announced that they will be using EventBoard to help conference attendees manage their schedules better.  EventBoard is a free app that allows you to view and search for conference sessions by name, speaker, track, and time slot. Once a conference catalog is downloaded, the information is stored locally on your device, making it accessible even if you’re not. You can also plan sessions, rate sessions and mark favorite sessions.For more information on PUGChallenge's use of this app, visit PUGChallenge.org.

Spring 2012 PUG Presentations Now Available!

A big thank you to Progress Software for hosting the Spring 2012 VA and NC PUG meetings.  In case you missed it, this was a great opportunity to hear from Progress itself regarding all of the great new offerings in OpenEdge 11.  Progress presented on topics such as Progress Developer Studio, Developing Business Process Applications, Multi-Tenancy, and Cloud Security.  All of the presentations are available for download at PUGCentral.org.  To access these and other helpful documents, you will need to register first.  Go to "downloads" and select "presentations".  Visit PUGCentral.org today!

Date Change for the Spring 2012 NC PUG Meeting

Please note that the date for the Spring 2012 NC PUG meeting has changed.  The meeting, which will be part of the OpenEdge Release Tour, will be held on Tuesday, April 17th.  The location will be the Keystone Systems offices as usual.

Visit Allegro At Business After Hours!

On February 16th, Allegro will be exhibiting at one of Richmond's Premier Networking events; Business After Hours.  From 5:30 to 7:30pm you can enjoy refreshments and door prizes with your fellow Richmond businesses at the Torque Club!

Allegro will be on hand to show you how SugarCRM can make keeping in touch with your clients a breeze!  Also, if you are ready to expand your business and want to sell your products online, we can share  our expertise with Magento - a flexible yet, robust ecommerce solution.

We can't wait to meet you!

Upcoming conferences

Allegro Hopes to See You Soon!

There are many opportunities to explore the world of opensource and osCommerce this year.  Below are some great conferences aimed at helping you learn how to gain a web presence and start selling online!  Allegro can help you expand your business to the web!  Already have a website and ready to start selling your products online?  Contact Allegro today!

imagine eCommerce

April 23-25, 2012
Las Vegas, NV
Imagine is where merchants, partners, developers and Magento enthusiasts from around the world come together for three days in an engaging and exciting environment for collaboration, learning, networking, inspiration… and of course – Imagination!

DrupalCon

March 19-23, 2012
Denver, CO

DrupalCon Denver is the official conference of the Drupal community. DrupalCon is a biannual event presented to an ever-expanding international audience since Drupal became an open-source project in 2001. It's put on by a fabulous group of volunteers and organizers from across the globe.
The Colorado Convention Center will accommodate the largest and most active gathering of Drupal developers and users in the heart of downtown Denver, Colorado.
DrupalCon is a world-class conference with a world-wide audience. If you or your organization actively use Drupal, or even if you never have but want to learn, DrupalCon is your chance to engage the community, learn from others, and share your experiences. Training sessions will be available before the conference on March 19th and a code and contribution sprint on March 23rd (view full program).

DrupalCon Denver's theme, "Collaborative Publishing for Every Device," is a study on the shift of web access from traditional desktops to mobile devices, phones or tablets, and with it the greater combination of platforms Drupal leverages and integrates. The overall conference theme will be integrated into eight different categories: check out the Session Tracks page to read more about the subjects that will be covered at DrupalCon Denver or dive into the ~100 sessions on the schedule thus far!

Joomla! World Conference

November 16-18, 2012
San Jose, CA
The Joomla! Project is pleased to announce that the first Joomla World Conference will occur in November 2012 in San Jose, CA.  More details are to come, save the date!

Mike Lonski Attends Business Briefing in Washington D.C.

Mike Lonski, President of Allegro, was one of 25 people from the Richmond business community to travel to Washington D.C. to be part of a business leader briefing session at the White House.  The group met with Obama administration officials on Thursday, November 17th to discuss a variety of topics that affect business owners including; economic growth and health care reform.  The meetings are an effort to bring business leaders into the policy making process.

Tom Bascom to Speak at the VA and NC PUG Meetings

Tom Bascom, of White Star Software, is well-known in the Progress Community for his consulting expertise and experience with OpenEdge. He is a frequent speaker at Progress Exchange and Progress User Groups. His widely acclaimed and freely downloadable Progress tool set is used by Progress DBA's around the world.

Tom's Talk Overview:

Database Management Worst Practices

========================

Calling widespread bad habits in database administration "Worst Practices" may seem extreme. However, when you consider the critical nature of
most data, and just how damaging data loss or corruption can be - it seems pretty dead-on.

Although these behaviors are distressingly common among DBAs, they are curable with some shrewd management intervention. What follows is a
guide to the habits we consider to be the worst along with some ideas on how to successfully eliminate them.


Using the Progress Profiler

================

The most confounding performance problems are often application coding issues. These problems can be far more difficult (and expensive) to
diagnose and cure than hardware or database & operating system tuning problems. A very powerful, yet little known tool that helps you take the
guesswork out of the equation in order to target real problems rather than chasing phantoms and produce dependable results is the Profiler. The
Profiler can be used in all versions and on all platforms of Progress from v8.2 forward.

This talk will cover practical usage of the profiler and includes demo code that you can put to work immediately.

Both meetings will be held from 1-5pm with a networking lunch from 12- 1pm.  Please contact Amy at (804) 553-1130 or email agray@allegroconsultants.com by 10/7 if you would like to register for the upcoming meeting.

Virginia PUG Meeting:

Tuesday, October 11th
Allegro’s Office
9800 J.E.B. Stuart Parkway, Suite 106
Glen Allen, VA 23059
(804) 553-1130
Directions: http://www.allegroconsultants.com/allegro-consultants-office-directions

North Carolina PUG Meeting:

Wednesday, October 12th
Keystone Systems
8016 Glenwood Avenue
Suite 200
Raleigh, NC 27612
(919) 782-1143
You can use MapQuest or Google Maps. To see it on GoogleMaps: http://tinyurl.com/3chuzu

Fall 2011 PUG Meetings Announced

Mark your calendars now to attend the next PUG meetings.  Allegro was unable to hold the Spring series and now there is so much to catch up on! We will hold the VAPUG meeting on Tuesday, October 11th in the Allegro offices in Glen Allen.  The NCPUG meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 12th at the Keystone offices, as usual.  Both meetings are scheduled 12PM - 5PM.  Enjoy networking with fellow Progress users and partners while learning about the latest Progress technologies. Catch up with your peers during our free catered lunch at noon! The presentations will begin around 1 p.m. and end around 5 p.m. The meetings are free of charge!

Please contact me, Amy Gray at (804) 553-1130 or agray@allegroconsultants.com to confirm your attendance and update your contact information. This will ensure you are notified of the final meeting details and future events. I also need to know if you will be joining us for lunch so that I can include you in the meal planning.

Speakers and topics will be posted shortly. We look forward to seeing all of you soon!

• Explore SugarCRM in Role-based Demos, 30-Day Trial, and Whitepapers
• New Features, Improved Navigation in SugarCRM 6
• Learn about OpenEdge DB Internals and OpenEdge Architect in PUG Presentations
• Explore Open-Source Applications with Trials by Allegro
• Home Financing Company Needed Reliable SugarCRM Support for Heavily-Customized Application
• Virginia Air, HVAC Distributor, Saves Space and Support Costs with Virtualization
• Allegro Sponsored Cyclist in MS Bike Ride Fundraiser, June 6 and 7
• Sugar Express Released on On-Demand Platform
• Allegro Builds Easy-to-Update, osCommerce Site for LaDifference
• Allegro Relocates to Better Educate Businesses about Benefits of Open-source Software