The complexity of project-based accounting is only exacerbated by the need for accuracy, relevance, and currency. Technology helps to bridge the gap, but not every solution provides the real-world functionality companies require to make accounting into an asset.
Evaluating the depth and breadth of features a solution provides is essential due diligence. To ensure that any solution you’re considering is well suited to project-based accounting, look for these strengths:
- Flexible Accounting Architecture – Any solution should flexibly adapt to your existing accounting architecture. Rather than forcing you to adopt new workflows or implement customized code, the solution organically accommodates your present and future accounting needs.
- Simplified Time and Expense Management – When it’s simple to track time and expenses it’s easier to manage their effect on revenue. Plus, understanding where, when, and how resources are being used in a very precise way leads naturally to improvements.
- Accurate Project Costing – A system that accurately breaks down project costing in-depth makes it easier to forecast budgets and spot emerging trends. Greater visibility also leads to improved project pricing and creates bargaining power with vendors.
- Automated Project Billing – Meeting exacting billing requirements takes enormous amounts of human input and is highly-vulnerable to errors and mistakes. Automated project billing solves both problems and enables accountants to spend less time on data entry and more time on high-value projects.
- Streamlined Consolidations – Companies undergoing growth must quickly but carefully add accounting entities. An accounting solution should make that as easy as possible and automatically consolidate new data with existing data.
- Intelligent Profitability Forecasts – The success of a project-based business depends on strategically selecting projects. Tools that provide real-time business insights reveal what project/clients/markets are most profitable. Decision makers are able to act boldly but confidently in order to drive revenue.
- Modern Cloud Orientation – A cloud-based accounting solution provides greater flexibility, productivity, and accessibility while also being cheaper and less complex. Every one of the initiatives above is enhanced when the cloud is helping to do the heavy lifting.
None of these capabilities is more imperative than the others. More importantly, without any one of these features, a project-based accounting solution is likely to fall short. If the goal is to make accounting both better and easier, a solution must check every one of the boxes above.
This free whitepaper outlines exactly what kinds of tools and techniques to look for in your next accounting solution. To explore what they would look like in your company as well, contact InCloud360.