Starting a new company or division? Build the foundation before growth arrives
Setting up the right system before the volume arrives costs far less than migrating after it. The best time to decide how you’ll track job cost is before the first big contract.
By Rob Griffin, Founder and Principal · Updated
- 1Start with a clean chart of accounts, job cost structure and approval workflows, not QuickBooks you’ll outgrow.
- 2Acumatica for project-based work; Odoo for operations-driven companies that want to own and extend the system.
- 3Clean Energy Services made the move early and now runs with automated approvals and a faster close.
Sound familiar?
What founders and new division leaders ask us.
What to set up on day one
Short answer: It’s not too early if you’re about to take on larger or more complex jobs. Set up the structure once: how jobs, cost codes and approvals work, how billing flows, and what leadership needs to see every week.
- A chart of accounts and job cost structure designed for the company you’ll be in three years.
- AP approval workflows, so spending is approved before it’s committed.
- Reporting leadership can read without asking accounting for a spreadsheet.
- A system that adds users and entities without a re-implementation.
Clean Energy Services moved before QuickBooks broke
As CES took on larger contracts, it needed job-level financial analysis and better approvals. With Acumatica and Dominate Solutions it gained real-time project financials, automated AP approvals and a faster monthly close with Velixo reporting.
“From the very beginning, Dominate Solutions guided us through product selection and implementation.”
Questions we hear from companies in this spot
Is it too early for a new company to buy an ERP?
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Not if you expect larger or more complex work within a year or two. Setting up job cost, approvals and reporting once is cheaper than migrating from QuickBooks later.
Which ERP is best for a new contractor or division?
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Acumatica Construction Edition for project-based work with progress billing and retainage; Odoo for operations-driven companies in field service, distribution or light manufacturing.
Can a new division share an ERP with its parent company?
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Yes. Both Acumatica and Odoo support multiple entities, so a division can have its own books and consolidated reporting on one system.
Start where you are. Six questions, and you’ll know which path fits your business.
Or call (469) 489-1490. You will talk to a senior practitioner, not a sales rep.