0107: Contractors Who Babysit Their Bookkeeping Department

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0107 And It Will Be About Contractors Who Babysit Their Bookkeeping Department

Did You Hire A Bookkeeper For Your Construction Company And

Now You Feel Like You Are Running An Adult Day Care Center?

Is efficient bookkeeping difficult to achieve? Is your construction company under utilizing software? Do you have lack of confidence in your QuickBooks financial and Job Costing Reports? 

Are you babysitting a bookkeeping dept that is supposed to be saving you time and money, not causing you to multitask instead of focusing on things that make you money?

Are you a $100 an hour producer being slowed down by a $15 hour bookkeeper who has to be told what to do over, and over and over?

When construction is booming it is hard to find a good bookkeeper who knows what to do and will do it and next to impossible to find someone is skilled in construction accounting because it is 10X harder than regular bookkeeping.

Anyone can be a bookkeeper if QuickBooks setup is done correctly for construction. 95% of regular bookkeeping is simple; only 5% is complex and can cause your bookkeeper to panic.

If a regular bookkeeper did QuickBooks setup, untrained in the nuances of construction accounting. Or if QuickBooks setup was done using templates built into QuickBooks, or put together by a regular bookkeeper doing it the way they were taught in school; then your construction company is doomed to die a slow and painful death because you will never have the Job Costing Reports that can show you exactly where you are making or losing money.

I know those are harsh words and I apologize for them; however, if I can keep one more contractor in business, regardless of whether or not they ever hire our services it will have been worth it.

You could hire a Certified Public Accountant (C.P.A.) to be your in house contractor bookkeeping services provider however that could create more problems than it solves. Some C.P.A. firms make a lot of money turning in contractors to the IRS at this website Tax Whistleblowers.

We may have an answer that could help you:

If you insist on having an in house bookkeeper even if you are the bookkeeper invest some serious time and money acquiring the tools and equipment to do the job right. I have outlined the first two steps to helping you achieve that goal.

These are two of the steps in our extensive bookkeeping services system that we do in our contractors bookkeeping services office here in Lynnwood Washington where we serve the outsourced bookkeeping services needs of many contractors and construction company's just like yours for contractors all across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii.

Step #01 Dr. W. Edward Deming

Read and get a feel for Dr. W. Edward Deming's 14 Points. He was focused mostly on manufacturing however, we have successfully implemented several of his ideas into our own construction companies in the past and we teach proacitive contractors like you how to implement some of them in your contracting company today. 

The 14 points seem at first sight to be a rag-bag of radical ideas, but the key to understanding a number of them lies in Deming's thoughts about variation. Variation was seen by Deming as the disease that threatened US manufacturing. The more variation - in the length of parts supposed to be uniform, in delivery times, in prices, in work practices - the more waste, he reasoned. 

From this premise, he set out his 14 points for management, which is paraphrased here:

01. Create constancy of purpose towards improvement Replace short-term reaction with long-term planning. 

02. Adopt the new philosophy The implication is that management should actually adopt his philosophy, rather than merely expect the workforce to do so. 

03. Cease dependence on inspection If variation is reduced, there is no need to inspect manufactured items for defects, because there won't be any. 

04. Move towards a single supplier for any one item Multiple suppliers mean variation between feed stocks.

05. Improve constantly and forever Constantly strive to reduce variation. 

06. Institute training on the job If people are inadequately trained, they will not all work the same way, and this will introduce variation. 

07. Institute leadership Deming makes a distinction between leadership and mere supervision. The latter is quota- and target-based. 

08. Drive out fear Deming sees management by fear as counter- productive in the long term, because it prevents workers from acting in the organization’s best interests. 

09. Break down barriers between departments Another idea central to TQM is the concept of the 'internal client', that each department serves not the management, but the other departments that use its outputs.

10. Eliminate slogans Another central TQM idea is that it's not people who make most mistakes - it's the process they are working within. Harassing the workforce without improving the processes they use is counter-productive.  

11. Eliminate management by objectives Deming saw production targets as encouraging the delivery of poor-quality goods. 

12. Remove barriers to pride of workmanship Many of the other problems outlined reduce worker satisfaction. 

13. Institute education and self-improvement 

14. The transformation is everyone's job

Step #02 Professional Construction Bookkeepers 

What Is A Professional Construction Bookkeeper?

·Someone who has invested the minimum of 10,000 hours that it takes to master the profession

·They continue practicing, learning and growing their knowledge and skills

·They arrive on time and leave on time

·They greet your customers and clients with a smile

·They understand their job description is serve your customers

·They cares about you as a person

·They care about your company

·They care about your staff

·They care about your suppliers

·They are cheerful, thinking, responsible adult

·They focus on their job while at work

·They leaves home issues at home and work issues at work

·They continually learns new skill sets because they take pride in their work

·They embraces processes and procedures that allow everyone to succeed

·They produce reliable financial and job costing reports that you can use

·They take a lunch break away from the office to recharge their minds and bodies

·They take reasonable breaks during the day to clear their mind

·They are first and foremost team players working to maintain the integrity of your QuickBooks

What Is Required To Find And Keep A Professional Bookkeeper?

·A living wage with benefits

·Air Conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter

·Company paid training to continually update their skill sets

·Do not expect them to ANSWER THE PHONE!

·Good lighting in their office and the building in general

·Kitchenette with free beverages, snacks, frozen foods and a microwave

·Library of online knowledge base available only to qualified Bookkeepers

·Lots of room to spread out paper and assorted files

·Private office with a door so they can work in quiet and think

·Provide them with 24-7 technical English speaking U.S. based phone support

·The latest in computer hardware and software with lots of power

·Two large flat screen dual monitors with DVI inputs and high resolution

·Understand and implement as much as possible the following:

oDeming’s 14 points oCovey’s 7 Habits oGood To Great

Click Here For More Recommended Reading

I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing the bookkeeping”; it is about taking holistic approach to your entire construction company and helping support you as a contractor and as a person.

We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations

We understand the good, bad and the ugly about owning and operating construction companies because we have had several of them and we sincerely care about you and your construction company!

That is all I have for now and if you have listened this far please do me the honor of commenting and rating podcast www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast Tell me what you liked, did not like, tell it as you see it because your feedback is crucial and I thank you in advance.

You Deserve To Be Wealthy, Because You Bring Value To Other People's Lives!

I trust this will be of value to you and your feedback is always welcome at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast

This is one more example of how Fast Easy Accounting is helping construction company owners across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii put more money in the bank to operate and grow your construction company. Construction accounting is not rocket science; it is a lot harder than that and a lot more valuable to construction contractors like you so stop missing out and call Sharie 206-361-3950 or email sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com

Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services?

Click On The Link Below:

www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs

Need Help Now?

Call Sharie 206-361-3950

sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com

In closing, I want to caution you that we may or may not be a good fit for your contracting company. This guide will help you learn what to look for in outsourced construction accounting.

Thank you very much and I hope you understand we really do care about you and all contractors regardless of whether or not you ever hire our services.
Bye for now until our next episode here on the Contractors Success MAP Podcast.

Warm Regards,

Randal DeHart | Contractors Accountant

We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations