Does this sound like you? Maybe you started your company with a few friends and relatives as your earliest clients, and you thought your overhead expenses would be low since you worked out of your home. You made a decent living for yourself, hired a few sub-contractors per project, paid your suppliers, and earned a profit—at least that is what your tax preparer said. 

 

Things begin to change, and the reality of the construction industry begins to dawn on you. Those early customers who were your friends because you could get faucets, fixtures, and materials at wholesale prices now tell you they were happy with your work. They want your construction company to do all their future work (and refer you to their closest neighborhood friends) as long as your price is lower than the other bids they are getting.

 

Yes, this kind of business builds your integrity, but at the same time, you are dirt-poor. Why? Because as a construction company owner, you now have overhead no matter what business entity you operate. It's not just office overhead; you have field overhead, too. 

 

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Topics: Outsourced Accounting For Contractors, Construction Accounting, MAP vs. PAM, Contractor Marketing, Outsourced Bookkeeping Services, Outsourced Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips, sole proprietor

Fraud can be a significant threat to businesses of all sizes in any industry. Construction companies are not spared and are even more vulnerable to various fraudulent activities, from bid rigging and inflated costs to payroll fraud and misuse of funds. 

 

Many small business owners have become increasingly concerned about fraud after the pandemic. According to SAP Concur (An expense management solutions company), a staggering 85% of businesses surveyed expect the risk of fraud to continue. Making matters worse, many fraudulent acts originate from within businesses themselves. 

 

What can you do as a construction business owner with three or more employees? You can start with essential internal controls that you can implement to safeguard your business:

 

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Topics: Outsourced Bookkeeping Services Red Flags, Outsourced Accounting For Contractors, Outsourced Bookkeeping Services For Plumbing Contr, Construction Accounting, Outsourced Bookkeeping Services, Outsourced Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips

Your to-do list is often long and constantly growing longer when you're an entrepreneur. There are a lot of things you need to do, and it can feel like they're all urgent. In such cases, it's easy to push essential tasks to the side and focus on less vital activities, but that often means you miss deadlines, make mistakes, or always feel like you're trying to catch up.

 

Here are some ways to determine the most productive order to complete your tasks.

 

1. Know all of your tasks

 

It isn't enough to have a running list of tasks in your head; you need to write them out so you can see them at a glance. Take the time to list all your tasks, and break down large tasks into smaller steps.

 

Write a list of the activities you must do for the week—or even the next two weeks—on Monday morning. Include information such as how urgent they are, how long they'll take to complete, and their deadlines.

 

Now you know what you'll need to complete and when.

 

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Topics: Construction Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips, Construction Productivity, crisis

Communication is crucial in the construction industry, and active listening plays a significant role in fostering successful communication. In the bustling environment of a contracting business, the ability to actively listen can make a substantial difference in understanding client needs, ensuring project requirements are met, and ultimately delivering top-quality results.

 

Active listening involves more than just hearing the words; it encompasses fully concentrating, understanding, responding, and remembering what is being said. For construction professionals, this skill can improve client relationships, make fewer errors, enhance teamwork, and ultimately increase project success.

 

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Topics: Construction Accountant Who Listens, Problem Construction Worker Tips, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips, Construction Productivity, Production, Active Listening

There was a time when a contractor put a simple ad in the paper or a line listing in the Yellow Pages, and they would have more leads than they could handle. It was the only way to go, and the contractors who insist on that and "Word of Mouth" do not survive.

 

Could those contractors have avoided failure?

 

I believe they could have. This article explores the top reasons construction businesses fail and the three key questions that every contractor like you needs to ask to prevent failure. It would be best to answer these questions to provide a clear path to your continued and future growth and success. 

 

Contractors who did not move from simple ads that had always worked, and evolved a Marketing Plan made the same mistake other failed companies and brands made. They were unable to Innovate, Reinvent, and Evolve by having a deep understanding of what business they were in, who and what they were competing with, and by challenging themselves to understand their actual expertise.

 

 

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Topics: Builders Bookkeeping Services, Accountant, Bookkeeping Services, Construction Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips

Construction business owners already have a time-consuming and challenging job running their business. If their business is open five days a week, they usually need the weekend to catch up on paperwork, pay bills and manage any tasks they didn't get to during the week. 

 

For those with a seven-day-a-week business, there's even less time off. They often feel the need to be onsite whenever the company is open to deal with unanticipated issues, help the staff out, and ensure all tasks are completed. 

 

Being onsite seven days a week isn't healthy or productive, however. It can cause burnout and result in errors being made. It affects the construction owner's personal life and quality of life, not to mention their overall well-being. 

 

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Topics: Systems And Processes, Construction Project Managment, Project Management, Contractor Operating Tips, accountability, Construction Accountability

You’ve probably heard the maxim that it’s better to work smarter than harder. Working smarter means allocating your time, energy, and money so vital tasks get done more efficiently, freeing up your time.

 

Too many construction business owners think they must keep working harder—taking on more responsibilities and working longer hours to succeed. It makes sense because you’re responsible for your business, but that route leads to work overload and burnout. Ultimately, your business will be unsustainable if you keep pushing yourself to work harder.

 

It doesn't matter how many times you are knocked down; it only matters that you learn your lessons, get up, and go again. Some lessons we already took note of years ago, having owned and operated our construction company. By building a system and gaining insight from us, you can pick up from our mistakes which you don't have to go through and can start avoiding before it comes crashing down. 

 

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Topics: Systems And Processes, Construction Project Managment, Project Management, Contractor Operating Tips, accountability, Construction Accountability

I will start by quoting a short sentence found in the all-time best-seller "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth" That is an acronym; take the first letter of each word and put it together to form a different word. "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.." there is more to that, and the point is that concept applies to accounting.

 

How many times have you hired someone with the expectation they knew how construction works, and then you found out they did not have a clue about it or your particular type of construction? It happens all the time, and the first thing that crosses your mind cannot be posted on this blog. We know how much you would like to take action and fix it immediately. But before you do all that, let's go back to understanding roles to know which one you need.

 

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Topics: Builders Bookkeeping Services, Accountant, Bookkeeping Services, Construction Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips

As much as we plan, it would be best if you were flexible, adaptable, and reliant. Things happen that are beyond your immediate control. Those of you who want a predictable environment are employees working for a large employer where schedules are fixed and doing the same things every day.   

 

It was a different mindset when you became a Construction Business owner. You wanted to be independent, and part of being independent is that there is no one telling you what to do or when to do it. Your suppliers and government agencies direct you and impose fines and penalties when you get off track.

 

Proactive versus reactive are the two methods of getting something done. I find everyone works in a combination of both, I included. Proactive is scheduling and doing everything ahead of time. Nothing is ever waiting until the last minute. Reactive is more emergency-driven and are things that need to be done now.

 

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Topics: Systems And Processes, Construction Project Managment, Project Management, Contractor Operating Tips, accountability, Construction Accountability

Contractors, by nature, are tenacious, resilient, and have a tremendous amount of "Grit And Determination To Succeed," which means they are not easily disturbed or prone to react hastily or rashly at the first sign of trouble. This is just one of the many qualities I sincerely admire about these remarkable men and women.

 

Like you, we have callouses on our hands, having owned and operated construction companies, and some of us have served an apprenticeship in one of the construction trades. In other words, when it comes to owning, managing, and making a substantial amount of money with construction and contractor service companies, we know what we are talking about.

 

Incompetent bookkeepers can destroy your construction company and your finances. Unfortunately, until a contractor has gotten to know us, they tend to think of us as just another contractor's bookkeeping service. This means some contractors think we are crazy to suggest that any trusted employee, especially an in-house bookkeeper, would steal money from their company, so they ignore us until it is too late.

 

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Topics: Builders Bookkeeping Services, Accountant, Bookkeeping Services, Construction Accounting, Contractor, Contractor Tips, Contractor Operating Tips