Cloud Construction & Accounting Software in a Post-Pandemic World
The past year has proven to be complicated for everyone in the construction industry – disconnected teams, lack of communications, changing customer demands and shortages in labor and materials are just a few of the many challenges the industry faced. In addition, companies experienced a paradigm shift to the remote workforce and are now struggling with a shift back (or forward?) to a new model for the workforce. To address the evolving work landscape, many business leaders are implementing long-term or permanent remote working policies, while others are offering increased assistance for childcare.
As we progress through the coming year, technology will continue to play a pivotal part in business growth. Many companies believe technology will have the single greatest positive impact on their business over the next 12 months. Moving to cloud-based construction software is now a prerequisite for driving profitable growth. By remaining agile and finding new ways to connect with customers, employees and the community, companies not only survived – they have readied themselves to build back stronger than before.
Most legacy construction and accounting software solutions are not true cloud-based models, which means they are not designed for modern firms where field teams use separate apps to track hours worked, materials used, budget spent and change orders submittals. Disjointed systems and processes create a disorganized back office that is out-of-sync with job sites, causing contractors to fall short of their full growth potential.
Legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are becoming increasingly expensive to maintain and upgrade, especially when they have one or more integrations that must also be maintained in synchronization with the latest version of the ERP. In addition, siloed systems are limited, as information must be gathered and analyzed from several sources to make a business decision. These limitations ultimately slow down your business.
Also, many software providers are phasing out their current on-premise software options and slowly moving current users to cloud-based solutions. Companies need to consider the costs of maintaining hardware and internal or external IT support for upgrades when evaluating on-premise cost vs. cloud-based solutions.
A cloud-connected business, however, is a company where all your internal and external stakeholders are brought together to share the same information. A cloud-connected business platform is a united platform where all business functions like financials, CRM, service, manufacturing, warehouse management and e-commerce are all contained in a single system and database. Information needed by each stakeholder is available anytime, anywhere and on any device. A path to complete digital transformation starts with a modern system at the heart of a business.
Cloud software offers functionality that is essential in this new environment, including:
- The use of a single platform to access job costing, project management, contracts and accounting.
- Increased collaboration, connection and communication across teams.
- Elimination of redundant steps and errors with duplicate data entry.
- The ability to manage projects by exception and identify issues before they escalate.
As construction companies position for growth this year, managing that growth will be critical. Cloud software and accounting systems offer the tools and solutions needed to manage and control that growth.
Joe Zagami is a Senior Manager in Moore Colson’s Corporate Accounting Practice. He provides accounting and software consulting services for closely-held construction businesses and their owners.
