Company Background Information

The Company

Superior Software, Inc. is a software developer of financial analysis application programs. The company's goal is to create programs that are easy to use, logical, efficient and which prevent users from making errors when inputting information into the programs.

History

Founded in November 1985 by Neal Rimer, an accountant and lawyer, Superior Software introduced its first product for IBM PCS or compatibles, ES: The Estate Plan Analyzer, in December 1986. The second product, CF: Cash Flow Analysis, entered the market in 1987. The company is headquartered in Encino, CA and is currently planning to develop a family of financial analysis programs. The company is privately held and funded by its founder, Neal Rimer.

Markets

The company's product, ES: The Estate Plan Analyzer and CF: Cash Flow Analysis are designed for CPA's, accountants, attorneys, chief financial officers, controllers, financial planners, insurance salesmen, banks and trust companies, as well as businessmen or other so-called "lay" persons.
The total population of the market for ES is estimated to be between 250,000 to 275,000 professionals. While extremely beneficial to individuals who prepare estate plans exclusively, ES is designed for professionals who want to increase their business opportunities and simply add estate planning to the services they offer. Because ES is easy to learn and use, it is extremely time efficient and does not require extensive training or retraining for professionals to quickly learn to use it, non professionals utilize the program even more than the professionals.
ES helps accountants, lawyers and financial planners save their clients money. The typical client that ES can be used for ranges from a married couple in their 50's who are in a position to do some financial planning to a young individual who has a net worth of more than $1.5 million. ES can show ways to save money for a couple with estimated assets of $250,000, and for an estate valued at $1.2 million or greater, ES can show ways to save as much as $400,000.
CF, on the other hand, has hundreds of thousand more available users since individuals as well as businesses can utilize the program to get a better understanding of what the future holds. A businessman, understanding the way his or her business works, without an understanding of cash flow or accounting, can operate the program successfully and obtain a great deal of information that would not otherwise be readily available. When a professional utilizes the program, he or she finally recognizes that this "tool" CF: Cash Flow Analysis, is amazing and should be used by all. The progress toward more sophistication is easy with CF. More sophistication, more information, and more planning all lead to more profit and less problems in running the business. How easy is it for you to assume the acquisition of a building or equipment, along with the long term debt, and see if you are getting a return off that investment?

Distribution Channels

Superior Software distributes its products direct as well as through local area distributors and special order retail. Orders are filled by mail or by calling 800-421-3264 (outside CA) or 818-990-1135. Free demonstration programs are available for downloading.

Warranty

Superior Software offers a unique warranty policy. Our programs are warranted to perform as stated in our literature and our manuals or the program will be replaced, repaired or the full purchase price for the program will be returned.

Support

Superior Software's products are supported by well organized, fully explanatory users manuals, which include tutorials, as well as ongoing after-purchase assistance. An 800 number is available for users outside California during regular working hours. Neal Rimer and his staff are well versed in the complexities of estate plan alternatives and variables as well as cash flow analysis and its nuances and is also available to answer questions and help users operate the programs most effectively.

Products

ES: The Estate Plan Analyzer

A cost effective method of analyzing various estate plan alternatives, ES: The Estate Plan Analyzer's primary purpose is to identify ways to save taxes, outline liquidity requirements and the indicate the percent of an estate that will be transferred to heirs upon an individual's death.

Key Features:

Easy to learn and use.
Even a novice user, operating ES at the "Novice Level" with step-by-step prompting, can begin using ES on the very first day. The program includes on-line help to allow the user to begin to analyze estate plans quickly and efficiently. The easy-to-read operator's manual has a complete tutorial section, discussions on estate planning, an extensive reference section, and a complete table of contents and index. There are separate chapters on each of the three steps for using ES (Information Input, Customized Assumptions, and Calculations). The manual also contains detailed explanations of each screen and report generated by ES.
Performance.
ES lets the user evaluate the affect of disposing of estate assets using different methods of transfer in three easy steps---Information Input, Customization, and Calculations. Information input includes the assets and liabilities of the estate and the manner in which title is held. The user may itemize this data or enter it in summary form. Customization includes the variables which lets the user design scenarios to personalize plans. ES performs up to 500 calculations in less than two seconds on up to seven different estate plans and generates reports on each selected plan. The reports generated are complete and concise and in a form which allows the user to present the information to the client in a readily understandable, organized and attractive format.
Flexibility.
ES allows users to modify and adjust the input and set up various scenarios quickly and efficiently. Because ES performs its calculations so quickly, the user can review as many scenarios as desired and print only those analyses the user chooses.
Guarantee.
ES is guaranteed to perform to the users satisfaction. If users are not completely satisfied within 30 days, they can return the product and the money paid for the program will be refunded.
Price.
ES is priced at $495.00 for an individual, single user, program. The return on investment may be met with the first plan the user prepares. It is estimated the cost of completing these calculations by hand would run between $2,000 to $3,000 as charged to the client. For your client's that are computer oriented, we also produce and sell a client version for $99.00. You can use the client version file and load it into your program and then look at various alternatives.
Liquidity required.
ES calculates the liquidity required upon death. ES is the only estate planning program on the market that provides a summary of the total amount of dollars needed upon death including burial costs, administrative costs and taxes due, allowing the client to plan accordingly.
Net estate transferred to heirs.
ES provides, at the bottom of each detailed analysis, a summary of the federal and states taxes, expenses of administration and debts, total deductions, and the net estate transmitted to heirs both in dollar amount as well as in a percentage of the gross estate, allowing the user and the user's client to easily see the "bottom-line" affect of each plan.
Reports.
ES generates concise, compact, easy to review reports on each plan. The reports consist of a one-page analysis of each plan, a record of the customized assumptions upon which the analysis was based, and (if requested) a summary of assets and liabilities in the estate.

CF: Cash Flow Analysis

A cost effective method of analyzing various projected cash flow for businesses or for individuals, CF: Cash Flow Analysis' primary purpose is to identify ways to increase cash flow, identify the need for lines of credit, allow for an understanding of the timing differences on the receipt of income and the payment of expenses, the integration of capital expenditures and long term debt on the day to day operations of the business, as well as following accounts receivable and accounts payable, seeing the various ratios applied to the business that the banks use to identify a companies borrowing capacity, as well as tracking working capital to assure it is adequate.
CF allows the user to customize various assumptions, input data of a general nature or very specific. CF makes calculations based upon input of data and the customized assumptions and presents an analysis of the information in 13 different reports.
The program generates clear and concise reports of the analysis, which can then be used when reviewing the analyses with management, banks, or clients. The entire process can be accomplished in just a few hours with CF, but could take as many as a week or two without CF.

Key Features:

Easy to learn and use.
Even a novice user can operate CF and can begin using CF on the very first day. The program includes on-line help to allow the user to begin to analyze cash flow quickly and efficiently. The easy-to-read user's manual has a complete multi-part tutorial section, discussions on projections, an extensive reference section, and a complete table of contents and index. There are separate chapters on Installation, Introduction on Using CF, Customizing, Main Menu - Reference Section, Reports, Tutorial, and a thorough Table of Contents and complete Index. The manual also contains detailed explanations of each screen and report generated by CF.
Performance.
CF lets the user evaluate the affect of utilizing assumptions on the timing on obtaining income and paying expenses. This is accomplished in three easy steps---Customizing your Assumptions, Data Input, and then having the computer do all the Calculations. Customization includes the variables which lets the user design scenarios to personalize the cash flow projection. Data input includes the basic categories of Total Sales, Other Cash Receipts, Cost of Goods Sold, Inventory Buildup or Reduction, General and Administrative Expenses, Capital Expenditures, Long Term Debt, and Income Tax. The user may create subschedules under each category for individual items, itemize the data for each line on either the category or the subschedules, depending on what the user wants to use, or enter it in summary form in one of the categories. CF performs up to thousands of calculations in seconds and generates 13 separate types of reports to view or print. The reports generated are complete and concise and in a form which allows the user to present the information to a bank, investors, or the client in a readily understandable, organized and attractive format.
Flexibility.
CF allows users to modify and adjust the input and set up various scenarios quickly and efficiently. Because CF performs its calculations so quickly, the user can review as many scenarios as desired and print only those analyses the user chooses. CF has been created to allow for different files to be created and used for different assumptions or to just change some assumptions "in memory" without changing any information in any files and still see the effect of those changes.
Guarantee.
CF is guaranteed to perform to the users satisfaction. If users are not completely satisfied within 30 days, they can return the product and the money paid for the program will be refunded.
Price.
CF is priced at $495.00 for an individual, single user, program. The return on investment may be met with the first plan the user prepares. It is estimated the cost of completing these calculations and delivering the same amount of detail either by hand or by using a spreadsheet would run between $5,000 to $20,000 as charged to the client.
Line of Credit Required.
CF calculates the amount of money that would be borrowed or repaid on a monthly basis for up to the 60 months of the projection period based on the assumptions and the data input. On the line of credit analysis report, the maximum line of credit amount is summarized. This is the only program of its kind and provides so much information, it properly allows the business management or client to plan accordingly.
Net Income - Accrual Based
CF provides, a report to show the accrual based net income. As long as the user is inputting information regarding cash flow and the timing differences on the receipt and the payments that go on in the day to day affairs of the business, CF takes all the information and recompiles it to show the net income on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis.
Year End Balance Sheet
Cf automatically calculates the year end balance sheet. All accruals, additions and adjustments are taken into consideration. The when you look at the next year, the retained earnings of the company is also carried forward. Because of the use of the balance sheet in CF, CF can use that information and compare various balances and income statement figures to produce more ratio analysis for review and evaluation. This gives the user the ability to compare the projected business to other businesses similarly situated.
Reports.
CF generates concise, compact, easy to review reports. The reports consist of a one-page analysis of each plan, in the "standard" printouts, or a two page portrait or single page landscaped printouts, depending on your choice. A report of the data input along with all the assumptions can be printed with just the push of one button. A full audit trail is available to review on the screen or to printout, should there be any question as to how a number was arrived at.

Management

Neal Rimer, President and Founder: A lawyer and accountant since 1976, Mr. Rimer has developed Superior Software's products based on his practical experience in these fields. His professional areas of specialty include estate planning and probate, taxes, business and real estate.
Mr. Rimer's first introduction to computers was in the mid-1960's as a fifth grader when was taught the binary system and how to operate computers. At that time the computers he was working with took up the space of a small warehouse. Rimer became familiar with personal computers shortly after they were introduced. After seeing the possibilities of programs that could be developed in the financial analysis area and the amount of time and money that could be saved by using various programs, Rimer began developing programs that other professionals could use in their accounting, legal and financial planning practices.
A member of the California State Bar since 1976, Mr. Rimer is a member of the Estate Plan, Trust, and Probate Section. He is also a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and a member of the Taxation Committee, Business and Corporation Law Committee and the Probate and Trust Law Committee. Mr. Rimer is also a member of the Beverly Hills Bar Association serving on the Corporate and Commercial Law Committee, the Probate and Trust Committee, the Real Estate Committee and Taxation Committee.
Mr. Rimer holds a Juris Doctor degree from Whittier School of Law and passed the California Certified Public Accountant's Exam in 1976. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from California State University at Northridge.
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