Mary Girsch-Bock is a graduate of the University of Illinois-Chicago. She began her career as accountant and later made the switch to writing full time, concentrating on business and technology, with a focus on small business. A former QuickBooks beta tester, Mary has been a featured regular contributor to CPA Practice Advisor since 2002, and she has also been published in The Motley Fool, The Blueprint, and Property Manager.com. She currently writes a monthly accounting and technology-related blog for PLANERGY, and ghostwrites several blogs for various software companies.
September 5, 2014
It’s no secret that the retail industry has struggled in this difficult economy. Yet Advance Monthly Sales for Retail and Food Services, as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau, show an increase in total sales in May 2011, up 7.7% from May 2010. While numbers were down from the previous month (April 2011), indicating that...…
September 5, 2014
800-726-6278 www.sagemasterbuilder.com Sage Master Builder is a comprehensive financial product designed specifically for mid-sized construction and contracting businesses. Sage Master Builder contains an easily navigated user interface and the job cost functionality that construction-related businesses need. The latest version of Master Builder is due out in July 2011. BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS Sage Master Builder...…
September 5, 2014
800-272-9908 www.cucsoft.com Initially developed over 30 years ago, Contractor Essentials from CUC Software has provided construction and contracting businesses with an industry-specific product that was designed by a contracting firm. A laundry list of industry-specific modules within Contractor Essentials makes this product an excellent choice for contracting businesses of any size. BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS Contractor...…
September 5, 2014
877-683-3280 http://quickbooks.intuit.com The Choose an Edition option utilized by QuickBooks has gained popularity in recent years. Choosing an edition when installing QuickBooks provides users with the required chart of accounts necessary to properly run their business type. QuickBooks also continues to add new features to each annual release, keeping QuickBooks fresh. While not suitable for...…
September 5, 2014
800-628-6583 www.sagecre.com 2011 Overall Rating 5 Best Fit Sage Timberline Office is designed to meet the needs of mid-sized to large contractors and construction-related businesses. Strengths Extensive list of add-on modules Integrates with the Sage CRM product Provides 250 user-defined data fields for more comprehensive data tracking Comprehensive selection of estimating modules...…
September 5, 2014
800-735-6176 www.iss-software.com 2011 Overall Rating 4.25 Best Fit Well-suited for small to mid-sized construction companies, Construction Manager contains solid financial capability along with an excellent array of job management features. Strengths Cost Management module maintains job leads, tracks all types of client contact & maintains detailed history on all clients Historical estimating option...…
September 5, 2014
800-292-2962 www.cyma.com 2011 Overall Rating 4.5 Best Fit Well-suited for mid-sized general construction companies who require solid job cost functionality and tracking without specialized contractor features like equipment management or dispatch. Strengths Scalable, modular design Customizable eDesk interface for central navigation Strong job cost functionality System automated billings Allows any document to be...…
September 5, 2014
800-388-4697 www.Peachtree.com 2011 Overall Rating 4.5 Best Fit Peachtree continues to add product features and enhancements that make this popular product a terrific fit for the small construction company or contractor looking for a solid entry-level product that contains job-specific functionality. Strengths My Dashboard includes 11 new module options Remote access available Easily...…
September 5, 2014
800-838-6427 www.bissoftware.com 2011 Overall Rating 4.75 Best Fit: All editions offer construction and contracting businesses a fully integrated modular system that is suitable for businesses small and large. Strengths: Scalable with four editions Remote access capability a plus for Enterprise edition My Jobs dashboard provides excellent recap of all system jobs Handles multiple...…
September 5, 2014
800-365-6790 www.a-systems.net 2011 Overall Rating 4.75 Best Fit: JobView is ideal for small to mid-sized construction and contractor businesses, but available in three versions that can take a small construction company through any growth transitions. Strengths: Scalable with three editions Overview & summary screens offer solid financial information for each company or project...…
September 5, 2014
eTEK International Inc. — eTEK for Microsoft Office 2010 800-888-6894 www.etek.net From the July 2011 Review Construction and Contractor Accounting Systems Best Fit: eTEK is scalable and an excellent choice for smaller construction companies in need of good job cost functionality that need to upgrade from entry-level products. eTEK for Microsoft Office is a...…
September 5, 2014
800-246-0800 www.foundationsoft.com 2011 Overall Rating 5 Best Fit: Foundation contains a laundry list of features well suited for construction businesses of varying sizes and trades, particularly those a step up from small mom and pop contractors with 1-10 employees and less than a million in annual revenues. Anything above that would benefit from...…
