Should I buy construction specific software?
It's a question that every owner of a construction company faces at one time or another...
"Should I buy construction specific software or is QuickBooks good enough?".
Some owners will try to make this decision based solely on the cost of the software. After all, accounting software is accounting software - right? Why not buy the cheapest one? Others will make their decision based on bells and whistles - the features of the software. This is particularly true if they have a salesperson helping them. Sales people want to highlight what makes their product better and different than the competition. So, they focus on the latest bells and whistles.
If you are evaluating construction management software, what you should focus on is speed. Not how fast the software runs. But how the software increases (or decreases) the speed at which you can operate your business. Operating speed increases by delivering the right information, to the right people, at the right time. This helps your people make sound, informed business decisions. In other words, you need software that provides real time data.
When you have a construction management system that provides real time data:
You can access all your data in one place - you don't have to login to multiple systems or wait until you get back to the office.
Your data is accurate - minimizing re-work and allowing you to be confident in your decision making.
Your data is up to date - decisions aren't slowed down so you can double check the numbers.
Your data is consistent across all modules of the system - accounting, scheduling, estimating, project management, job costing, and service management all work together.
What does any of this have to do with speed? Here are just a few examples:
Every day, you make multiple decisions about a project. More often than not, you take the job costs into account when making those decisions. How often to you have to stop and make sure the job costs are up to date before making your decision? Even if it only takes 15 minutes to update the info and you are managing 4 jobs, that's an extra hour of work. Wouldn't you rather go home an hour early?
While the buck stops with you, there are many decision makers on a construction project. Those decision makers need access to data to make informed decisions. It's also important that each person's data "tells the same story". Have you ever been stuck in a meeting, trying to figure out whose spreadsheet is right? How much faster would your business be if you could eliminate this wasted time?
Estimating software helps you put bids together significantly faster. It also helps you spot mistakes, make revisions quickly, and test "what if" scenarios. When your estimating system is connected to your accounting system, you also benefit by learning from your experience. This allows you to not only speed up the bidding process, but also helps you win more profitable jobs.
Naturally, the less time your staff has to spend correcting mistakes, the faster your business operates. Mistakes like typos or forgetting to enter a change order, are bound to happen. Systems that provide real time data reduce the time between data entry and reporting. So, when mistakes are made they are found and corrected more quickly.
Those are just a few examples of how selecting the right management system for your construction business can make your life as an owner easier.
Takeaway
When evaluating accounting and management software for your construction business, don't just look at the bells and whistles. Consider how the software solution will impact the speed at which you can do business. Will it help you do business faster? Or will you and your staff end up spending time "managing the system"?
Sage 100 Contractor and Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate are two solutions that provide real time data to help your make better decision faster. Contact us for a demo if you'd like to see them in action.