Utility construction contractor streamlines procurement and reporting processes

Client background

Iconic Power Systems, a prominent utility construction contractor confronted significant challenges as they expanded. Operating across various regions with a complex portfolio, including electrical substation construction and civil earthworks, their growth was hindered by an outdated financial system. Sage 50, initially adequate for a smaller scale operation, struggled with the increased complexity and size of their rapidly growing business, particularly in inventory management, job costing and financial reporting. Recognizing these bottlenecks, leadership sought a transformative solution to streamline their operations and support their ambitious growth trajectory.

The business challenge

Expansion exposed system limitations. Iconic faced significant operational challenges with their previous accounting software, Sage 50. As the company expanded its operations, the limitations of Sage 50 became increasingly evident and detrimental to their business processes.

Iconic faced issues with inefficient processes, lack of real-time data and difficulty in managing job costs and financial reporting.

Key challenges with Sage 50

• Lack of comprehensive functionality: Iconic’s use of Sage 50 was primarily for financial management, but the system lacked critical features necessary for a company of their size and scope. There was no integrated inventory management system and no real construction job costing software in place, leading to inefficiencies and gaps in their operational capabilities.
• Inadequate for large-scale operations: Sage 50 was not designed to handle the complexity and volume of a growing business. This mismatch in software capability and business size created significant challenges, highlighting the need for a more robust and integrated system that could accommodate their growing needs.

These challenges underscored the necessity for Iconic to transition to a more sophisticated and scalable system that could support their expanding business while maintaining ease of use and intuitive interaction for the users. The inadequacy of Sage 50 in handling the scale and complexity of the Iconic’s operations was a critical factor leading to their decision to upgrade.

The solution

Iconic made the decision to transition to Sage Intacct Construction. This solution offered an intuitive, user-friendly interface, ensuring smooth adoption and enhanced operational efficiency.

How Sage Intacct Construction streamlined processes

Iconic's business transformation through Sage Intacct Construction, supported by Baker Tilly, manifested in several significant benefits:

• Scalability and expansion: The financial leader noted the ease of scaling the system with the business growth. Sage Intacct Construction’s flexibility was instrumental in supporting the company’s expansion from and in establishing new business entities, adapting seamlessly to their evolving needs.
• Streamlined procurement and accounts payable: The upgrade to Sage Intacct Construction revolutionized the company’s purchase order and AP processes. It eliminated duplicate entries and significantly streamlined their procurement system, starting a new era of financial transaction efficiency.
• User-friendly interface: The intuitive interface of Sage Intacct Construction was a gamechanger. Its simplicity and straightforwardness made the system easy to learn and use, ensuring a smooth transition and high user adoption rates.
• Enhanced financial reporting and job costing: With Sage Intacct Construction, Iconic saw a significant improvement in financial reporting and job costing. Automated and efficient processes replaced manual, time-consuming tasks, enhancing accuracy and productivity.
• Improved invoice processing and controls: The implementation improved the controls and tracking of AP invoices. Integration with systems like Stampli further simplified the invoice management process, reflecting a substantial improvement in internal controls.
• Efficient financial statement reporting: Sage Intacct Construction’s impact extended to the efficiency of financial statement reporting. Standardized and automated reports replaced manual spreadsheet work, marking a big improvement in financial administration.

These advancements collectively elevated the company’s operational efficiency and financial management, marking a successful transition to a more capable and scalable system.

The outcome

Making the switch to Sage Intacct Construction not only addressed the limitations faced with their previous system but also propelled them towards greater operational efficiency and scalability. This transition was a strategic move that significantly contributed to Iconic’s ability to manage growth and complexity with ease. It led to streamlined processes, enhanced control, improved reporting efficiency and a system that scaled with the company’s growth, greatly benefiting their operations and financial management.