As the economy improves and as equipment leasing and finance companies prepare for the upcoming lease accounting changes, more are upgrading their technology—front end, back end, and enterprise-wide. The 2013 Software Guide released today by the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association highlights the leading software solutions for the equipment finance industry. The guide outlines five key technology trends for equipment finance companies in the year ahead:

1. With the economy improving, the business case for new software is adding up.
2. Hot new business intelligence tools and customer relationship management solutions are helping equipment finance companies to compete in the marketplace and serve customers.
3. With headcount at some equipment finance companies below pre-recession levels, more companies are looking to their IT systems for help increasing efficiency, reducing costs and doing more with fewer employees.
4. Cloud computing will increasingly be a factor in equipment finance companies’ software upgrades/acquisition, and data protection is paramount.
5. Lease accounting changes expected to take effect in 2017 or later will have an impact on equipment finance companies’ software upgrades/acquisition.

 The 2013 ELFA Software Guide is available on the ELFA website at www.elfaonline.org/Directories/Software/. New this year: Several software companies included a video with their listing so users can see their software in action.
 
Learn more about technology and the equipment finance industry at the 2013 ELFA Operations & Technology Conference, Sept. 9-10 in Austin, Texas. The conference will be held concurrently with the 2013 ELFA Lease and Finance Accountants Conference. Both conferences will share a table top exhibit showcasing technology-related processes and systems. Get details at www.elfaonline.org/Events/