Hi Lisa, I'm not sure this is what you need, but the CFMA has an Emerging Leaders program. https://cfma.org/emergingleaders You can also check with your local CFMA chapter. CFMA Philly has a similar program Best wishes, Joe G. ------------------------------ Joseph Gravenstine CPA Chief Financial Officer National Glass and Metal Co., Inc. Milford NJ (215) 888-8884 ------------------------------
Looking to make sense of today's construction technology options? Join our Software Roundtables Powered by BBi & CFMA - a collaborative virtual series designed to help construction financial, technology, and HR professionals evaluate tools with confidence. Each 60-minute session features live demos, expert insights, and open Q&A in a sales-free, learning-first environment - all at no cost , thanks to the support of CFMA & BBi. Discover new ...
A note for CFMA members only . GC who joins LiquidOn through this community earns 5% of our net profit - for the life of the program. Your Subs & Suppliers get paid within 24-48 hours of invoice approval. You pay on schedule @ 0 COST & 0 CHANGES. A better deal - for the people who found us first. DM us or drop a comment below. #CFMA #Construction #SupplyChainFinance #Subcontractors #Suppliers ------------------------------ ...
Greetings Loretta! Thank you so much for your membership and interest in attending CFMA's flagship event-we truly appreciate your support! It's incredibly encouraging to see such strong interest in the education sessions. If a session is currently full, we highly recommend joining the waitlist, as spots often open up. If there's a particular session you're especially interested in, you're also welcome to queue outside the room. Our room ...
Hello Bakul, There are a lot of thoughts out there on this topic. I would create a matrix to help you choose. I also agree with Cheryl, we are on Finvari and it is the best and the users or employees love it. ------------------------------ Monty Anderson Corporate Treasurer Tapani, Inc. Battle Ground WA (360) 907-8645 ------------------------------
Hello Greg, We use FinQuery. I believe we are on year 3. Implementation was a little bit of a struggle, but honestly the system is so easy now. We have over 300 leases and we only book the ROU Asset and Lease Liability at year end. I hope that is helpful! Thanks, ------------------------------ Melissa Chapman Motor City Electric Co. Detroit MI (313) 957-3547 ------------------------------
Please take time to check out Finvari before you decide. It is the best system out there for credit cards in construction. I have successfully implemented it with 2 employers using Viewpoint Vista, but I know that they have a Sage application as well. Cheryl Covington Lead Accountant 5827 W US 90 San Antonio, TX 78227 (210) 736-4251 Ext. 160
HI Diana, We have been on BuildOps and CMiC for 3 years and are currently switching out BuildOps for FieldPoint. Feel free to contact me to discuss the details. ------------------------------ Judy-Lynn Mason Chief Financial Officer ServcoCanada Sunnyside MB (204) 793-7210 ------------------------------
We don't do much for leasing in the company that I work for, but I have heard of some ERP modules of system that are dedicated to lease accounting such as Visual lease, Lease Accelerator and E Lease. Those ERP modules handle the full lifecycle of leases, terms, automatic ROU and liability calculation, journal entries generation, etc. The cost depends on the complexity of the ERP System for a lighter platform EZ Lease could be sufficient. ...
We switched to Ramp last year and have had a really great experience! Some of the highlights for us have been: Their app and website are very user friendly for card holders, reviewers, and our accounting team. It's easy to code transactions and upload receipts, and they have deployed some AI review tools that will help identify transactions that are outside our credit card policy which has worked surprisingly well for us. We've gotten a lot ...
We switched to Brex several years ago and it has been very good. The automation has continued to get better with detailed electronic receipts as well as with AI to help autofill some of the expense coding and details. It has been a big time saver. Have never used Ramp so cannot speak to it. By the way, Tenna is construction tech and not construction but would think our use case is still similar. ------------------------------ Russell Young Tenna ...
We use Ramp and it has worked great for us. The system does a really good job at making sure all receipts are captured as well as making sure the cost is coded to the right place. If the receipt is not attached or the cost has not been coded within 7 days the users card locks and forces them to code there transactions. ------------------------------ Trey Chavis Staff Accoutant Metcon Pembroke NC (910) 852-9436 ------------------------------
Good morning, Diana. We are a specialty subcontractor (MEP), and use BuildOps and Sage Intacct as you describe above. We've been in both since the end of 2023, and BuildOps and Intacct are our primary environments. I'd love to talk and provide my insight into the products and their integrations (especially as the person responsible for setting them up and administering them today) if you would like. Please email me at wcoburn@excelservices.biz ...
We have been using Brex for a few years now and it has really helped streamline receipt gathering, tracking, and posting. I know we were looking at both Ramp and Brex and I can't remember the deciding factors but I believe Ramp had a cost and Brex didn't, Brex had higher rewards, and the functionality of both were really good and comparable. Don't hold me to these since I don't have my notes anymore but that is what I recall. The only thing I wish ...
Well we don't have experience with either of those two products, I am curious why you are switching from American Express. Our current card holder just switched to American Express so we are also evaluating what platform to use. Any insight would be appreciated. ------------------------------ Amanda Gorsuch WDS Construction Inc. Beaver Dam WI (920) 356-1255 ------------------------------
We have Sage Intacct and are thinking about switching to Brex. We really liked the product and the reporting. We are using Capital One Sparks cards, which are good, but our AP department has a tough time organizing all the cards. ------------------------------ Christopher Stone President Hyde-Stone Mechanical Contractors, Inc. Watertown NY (315) 755-2266 ------------------------------
Hello CFMA- Have a few burning questions and would love real-world feedback from fellow construction finance professionals before spending the money on the AI portion within Intacct software. SAGE AI COPILOT - IS IT WORTH IT? Are you actively using the AI Cipilot and how long have you been on it? Has it helped speed up or simplify your month-end/year-end close process? Are your project accountants finding it useful day-to-day, or ...
Hi Samantha, Sargent is in it's 14th year as an ESOP. Our TPA is Principal and I rely on our CSA extensively - she is knowledgeable and helpful. Principal prepares the annual distribution calculations and then we handle the communications so that we can tailor letters to the participants. For example, in our Plan, terminated participants have different distribution rules than retirees, so it's helpful for the letters to be specific to the participant's ...
Diana: You are welcome to email me about BuildOps; jaime@cvlloyde.com. Please put "BuildOps" in the subject line to avoid going to my junk folder. ------------------------------ Jaime Morris Vice President C.V. Lloyde Audiovisual Champaign IL (217) 352-7031 ------------------------------
Thank you for the information, Chris. We are definitely using this as input and fodder for questions to BuildOps. Making us wary of the large investment of time and money this project would be. ------------------------------ Diana Boulanger Controller Unify Energy Solutions Houston TX (281) 447-0777 ------------------------------
We have not funded/accounted for our repurchase obligations yet, but entering our sixth year since stock purchase and 100% owned, we are probably a bit late in starting. Interesting tidbit I picked up at the last NCEO conference -- make sure your valuation includes the estimated repurchase obligation so you don't get clipped for building up funds and pushing value higher / increasing near term RPOs. Also - we probably won't move funds into the ...
I'm so glad to see multiple ESOP companies here! We did our stock purchase 1/1/2020 but pre-funded for 4 years, so are technically in our first diversification year. Our plan designer and administrator is Menke, but I think Blue Ridge or a couple others look better. There is also PenChecks that will take the finding and tracking terminated participants off your hands. They also create the forced-out rollovers for accounts $7,000 or under. ...
Hi Dawn, Is the reason you don't qualify for level-funding based on the carrier's decision, underwriting risk or something else? I ask because there are level-funding programs that write groups with 5 employees. Your best bet to control costs are to join a program that rents a carrier network instead of being managed and controlled by the carrier. If level funding is truly not an option, there are a few strategies that could work depending on your ...
Rishi, Great reply, thanks! We are doing a phased roll-out: but our benefits open enrollment starts June 8th and we are trying to stand up just enough HRIS to get through that. Our go-live on Sage HCM was yesterday with a note asking for at least a week's grace before reporting data issues -- especially with the last incremental update missing/problematic, PTO is off, and EVERYONE notices that! Imagine! Time collection will be the next phase ...
Thank you for the response Pam. Greatly appreciate it. Even the First Time Attendee Reception is at capacity! ------------------------------ Loretta Hoover Controller Nix Construction Company, Inc. Ridgeland SC ------------------------------
We recently switched to Sage Intact (from Sage 100) and are now looking at switching our Amercian Express credit cards to either Ramp or Brex - anyone have experience with either and thoughts on which one is better - looking for automation and some form of rebate. Thanks in advance Bakul Patel VP of Finance and HR Haggerty Construction Inc. ------------------------------ Bakul Patel VP of Finance and HR Haggerty Construction Stockton ...
Hi Loretta - Welcome to CFMA! Great to hear that you are interested in attending the Annual Conference - you won't regret it! It's understandable that you'd be concerned about accessing your preferred courses - regardless of whether a particular session is shown as "Full" or "Close to Capacity", I'd encourage you to register and attend the conference. I can't say for certain if there will be badge scanning at the entrance to sessions (I believe ...
Good morning, Just joined the CFMA, and would like to attend the annual conference in a few weeks. However, after reviewing the schedule, many of the sessions that I would like to attend are at capacity and cannot be selected to attend. Are only registered attendees permitted in the session by scanning of name badge, etc.? First come/first serve? Any feedback is appreciated. Thank you! ------------------------------ Loretta Hoover ...
This is great, thank you! Samantha Nickerson | Chief Financial Officer Manning Squires Hennig Co., Inc. 8426 Seven Springs Road Batavia, NY 14020 Office: 585-343-5365 Cell: 585-314-4445 samantha@mshco.com | www.mshco.com
Thanks for a great reply! Samantha Nickerson | Chief Financial Officer Manning Squires Hennig Co., Inc. 8426 Seven Springs Road Batavia, NY 14020 Office: 585-343-5365 Cell: 585-314-4445 samantha@mshco.com | www.mshco.com
We are much smaller. We have been on an HRA, we reimburse a moderately high deductible by 2/3 as well as the 20% co-pays after the deductible is met. This year I am looking to move people to an HSA, even funding half of the max for each participant we are way ahead on the dollars. I was totally surprised. Dan Vander Ploeg, CCIFP Treasurer Bouma Betten Construction also dba Associated Painting 269-327-6751 " ...
Thank you, Nick but we have been told we do not qualify for level funded options. ------------------------------ Dawn Marshall Controller Site Specific LLC Providence RI (401) 632-4400 ------------------------------
Thanks Wendy! I'll look into this. ------------------------------ Ruben Cortes Controller MLCO Construction Chicago IL (630) 209-6893 ------------------------------
Hi Dawn, 35 employees is a good size employer and perfect fit for level-funded options. You have enough employees to support a handful of employees with higher healthcare utilization. Small group (less than 50 employees) ACA plans provide no ability to negotiate, rates are burdensome, and you have no control over future renewal pricing. My recommendation is to look for a broker that can help you with a level-funded option. PEO could be ...
Hi @Laurence Scacchi I'd strongly encourage you to consider building this in Microsoft Power Apps. It checks every one of your must-haves natively, and it gives you something most packaged solutions can't: full control and seamless integration with whatever ERP you're running today (and whatever you move to next). Here's why Power Apps is the smarter play: 1. ERP agnostic integration that actually scales. Power Apps connects natively to ...
We've used Lease Guru for the last few years and have been very happy with it. ------------------------------ Jennifer Hayward MBA Director of Finance and Administration Raven Mechanical LP Houston TX (281) 977-6148 ------------------------------
Hey Larry! We use eForms Mobile for Time Keeping. They have an amazing platform that we use for time AND a ton of other things (inspections, reports, messaging, daily tickets, audits, credit card rcpts, AP, etc). Our time imports into our accounting software as well! You can check them out! ------------------------------ Rhiannon Thompson Chief Operating Officer Davidson Excavating Russiaville IN (765) 437-9589 ----------------------- ...
We are registered in around the same number of states. We use CSC for managing our license renewals. It helps so much. They will ask questions but they manage everything including making sure deadlines aren't missed. Here's my rep's info: Mark Hennings Office: 302 232 3693 mark.hennings@cscglobal.com ------------------------------ Wendy Trueheart Controller TCC Multi Family Interiors Houston TX (720) 360-7259 ----------------------- ...
Linda - that "beast" line is the most honest description of an HCM/payroll implementation I've seen on the forum in months, and it's worth pausing on, because the cause of the pain is rarely the software itself. We've hit this exact pattern in a bunch of podcast conversations, and the shape is always the same when you stack a new HCM next to an ERP migration. Two episodes that go directly at what you're describing: Kevin Jacobs (CCIFP, Horn LLP) ...
I want to hear how your company records the individual assets of your ASC 842 compliance, including leased office and warehouse, leased vehicles, etc. How do you track and calculate the ROU asset and Lease Liability value using a SaaS or other software tool. Currently, we manage all this in Excel, but it is very cumbersome. ------------------------------ Greg Boden CFO Midwest D-Vision Solutions Salt Lake City UT (801) 505-4291 -------------- ...
We use ClockShark for our install crews and it works great. ------------------------------ Greg Boden CFO Midwest D-Vision Solutions Salt Lake City UT (801) 505-4291 ------------------------------
Hi CFMA members, We are renewing our healthcare plans on July 1 and are finding that moving from a large group to a small group is incredibly expensive. The two quotes we received are 60% to 77% more than last year's rates. We don't qualify for level funded plans. I would be interested in knowing what small companies (around 35 employees) are doing to keep costs down, especially those in the Northeast. Thank you, ------------------------------ ...
Hey Everyone, Anyone use a service that helps track multi state licensing or is it done internally? We are licensed in 26 states and are trying to keep track of every states' renewal requirements can get be a time suck. We currently are using Harbor compliance but feel we are doing the majority of the leg work and aren't finding any value in it. Thanks! ------------------------------ Ruben Cortes Controller MLCO Construction Chicago IL (630) ...
Hi Samantha - I'm with Cerity Partners , and our legacy firm was actually an ESOP before a 2023 merger, so we understand the full life cycle, including the value and challenges that they bring. We work with a number of construction firms on how the ESOP fits within the overall benefits structure. Attaching details on how we support with comprehensive ESOP services. Happy to be a resource and chat through our experience working through the ...
Rachel, Hah, I just posted about Criterion -- we purchased it before it got purchased by Sage, to integrate with IFS, which we are also implementing at the same time. We've had some difficulties with our implementation team, responsiveness, and knowledge. Not to say that's normal, just our current experience. It may be our particular implementation lead, or we hit them while they are distracted integrating into Sage. The demoes looked ...
Hello! We are converting our time collection, HRIS, benefits administration, and payroll to Criterion, which was just recently bought by Sage. Curious if there are other Criterion users here, and what your thoughts are. Implementation so far has been a beast! ------------------------------ Linda Webb CFO Basden Steel Corp Burleson TX (817) 710-2812 ------------------------------
Hello all! I am with a structural steel fabricator and erector company, and we are interested in getting more federal work. However, to do so, we have to certify as being CMMC Level 1 compliant. We already have an excellent vendor helping us through the process that I met at a CFMA conference. What I would love, though, is to talk to a firm that has implemented CMMC Level 1 and can share practical, on the ground experience. Our IT Director ...
Paul, Do you have a project-specific SDI program or a program that covers all subs on all jobs? There is a difference on how long the risk of paying the high deductible lasts and the accounting treatment as a result. ------------------------------ Michael Grant CPA Chief Financial Officer Cahill Contractors San Francisco CA (916) 628-4663 ------------------------------
Diana, your setup - BuildOps as the operating layer for projects/service and Sage Intacct as the accounting system of record - is actually a really common and well-architected pattern for a mid-size specialty subcontractor. The ROI question usually hinges less on the tools themselves and more on what you do in the integration seam between them, so a few honest things to test before signing. Before anything else - map the workflow on paper first. ...
Samantha, My thoughts are in alignment with Rachelle's. We are a 'mature ESOP', 20+ years. What you want to tackle vs. have a 3rd party/TPA handle can be pretty tailored, but if you are planning on owning some of it, I'd recommend making sure you are fairly well educated in your plan, how it is intended to function, etc. as well as the legal compliance side of things. We switched to Principal as our TPA in the last 2 years, and they have been ...