How Contractors Upgrade from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase

Overview

With hundreds of years of combined construction accounting experience, Deltek + ComputerEase has successfully upgraded thousands of contractors from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase.

While each upgrade from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase has its unique needs, most of these upgrades can be done in 60 days. The Deltek + ComputerEase Implementation Process for QuickBooks® users has been built over approximately 15 years of helping contractors upgrade their business processes and software to meet the needs of growth and construction requirements. Read on to learn about the implementation process, the importance of a contractor's Why, and how to take the first step.

How Contractors Get from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase

Project Kickoff

This is a critical meeting to ensure everyone is on the same page with a common goal and go-live date to work towards together. The meeting is held amongst the contractor’s key stakeholders and the Deltek + ComputerEase Training and Implementation consultant to establish the upgrade process, key milestones, expectations, and more. 

Data Migration

The data migration step includes transitioning and formatting the chart of accounts, customer list, and vendor list from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase. For each set of data, an expert consultant joins the contractor to log into QuickBooks®, export the required data, make modifications to the data formats, and import the data into Deltek + ComputerEase. Every experience has its unique challenges, but the Deltek + ComputerEase expert consulting team has encountered and accommodated all of them with their many years of experience.

Company Set Up

With the imported chart of accounts, the consultant can now set up the contractor’s company (to include payroll) within Deltek + ComputerEase. Once set up, the consultant walks through and reviews the company with the contractor to verify that it meets their needs.

Training

Once the company is properly set up within Deltek + ComputerEase, the consultant begins training on the software and procedures. The beginning of training always starts with job costing. The consultant identifies the contractor's comfort level with job costing, walks the contractor through how to job cost in Deltek + ComputerEase, and provides the contractor a practice company with real data that is used to progress through the subsequent training sessions. After the contractor is comfortable with job costing, the consultant continues training in dedicated sessions to cover topics such as accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and the general ledger. Additional training may be required if other modules have been included in the system such as mobile field apps, equipment costing, subcontractor management, service management, and more.

Importing and Verifying Balances

After the completion of training, the next step is to import and verify balances between QuickBooks® and Deltek + ComputerEase. First, the consultant starts by verifying that the loading balances for payroll match between Deltek + ComputerEase and QuickBooks®. Once verified, the consultant facilitates the same process for accounts receivable, accounts payable, general ledger trial balances, and job costing balances.

Go-Live

Now that the contractor’s QuickBooks® data has been transitioned and formatted into Deltek + ComputerEase, the company is set up, the contractor’s team has been trained, and balances have been imported and verified, it is time to go-live with the system. The official go-live includes an overlap of using both QuickBooks® and Deltek + ComputerEase for a short period of time to verify throughout that everything has been accounted for and that the contractor's team is comfortable with the transition to a new system and procedures. Once everything checks out, the contractor officially transitions running their business out of Deltek + ComputerEase on the go-live date that is established during the Project Kickoff.

Transition

For 30 days following a successful go-live, the consultant guides the contractor through bank reconciliation, balancing, closing a period, and retrains on any sections of the software that need to be revisited by individuals or the team overall. While this concludes the process of upgrading a contractor from QuickBooks® to Deltek + ComputerEase, additional training and modules of the software can be added over time given the business’ needs. Deltek + ComputerEase customers also have access to comprehensive training videos, user manuals, monthly Advanced Training webinars, and twice-a-week Meet the Expert support sessions.

Committing to Your Why

While the need to upgrade to a purpose-built solution like Deltek + ComputerEase may be obvious to a particular contractor, each contractor is faced with assessing whether their team is ready for a new process and software to manage their business. The determination and commitment to this is critical to the success of the business’ ability to transform and fully leverage the power of a solution like Deltek + ComputerEase.

Contractors that are currently using QuickBooks® and that are considering an upgrade to a solution like Deltek + ComputerEase need to ask themselves a fundamental question: “Why?” Is it because your business has new requirements to manage? Is it because you are trying to get a better handle on your job profits and cash flow?

Whatever your Why is, it’s important to keep that Why in mind throughout the first year of adopting a new process and software amongst your team. If the Why is always front-and-center, it keeps the team aligned and motivated towards a common goal. The ability for the construction business to adapt internally to new processes and software tools is as important as the software tools themselves.

How to Take the First Step

Assess Where You Are Today and Where You Want to Be

Prioritize areas in your business you would like to improve. Maybe you haven’t been tracking committed costs or maybe you would like to meet more frequently as a team to review WIP. There’s no need to change everything at once. Plan for a phased approach, start small and then scale to success. Most importantly, determine metrics for process improvement that can be measured. These may change over time, but it’s important to establish your Why and how success is measured initially so that everyone is focused on a common goal.

Identify a Software That Will Support Your Goals

Do you have the software tools for the job? Maybe you have the right software for the job today, but what about six months from now or next year? Based on what you would like to accomplish, do you have the software tools that will support your efforts? If you aren’t sure, put together a team with the task to research and explore options as a part of your overall plans. It is important that you include key stakeholders and leaders of certain functions outside of accounting (e.g., project management). Make sure that the software partner you consider has proven success meeting the unique needs of contractors and understands your specific business. This enables smoother communication and ensures that your specific accounting needs will be addressed.

Fail Fast and Pivot for Long-Term Success

When you try something completely new, it’s not going to be a perfect experience the first time. At first, focus less on generating perfect outcomes and focus more on progressing your processes. Meet frequently with key team members to identify what is working and, most important, what is not working. Adjust from these learnings, and set new goals for your next meeting. Transforming your construction accounting and operations will come with its share of failures, but don’t lose sight of your long-term goal and focus. Pivoting from lessons learned and patience will be the key to your success.