Article
Costpoint ERP: A game-changer for government contractors
April 28, 2025 · Authored by Kevin Brandt
Government contracting presents unique business challenges that standard enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems struggle to address. From complex regulatory compliance requirements to contract management needs, government contractors face a business environment unique to the sector. Deltek Costpoint has been a leading solution in this sector, as it was purpose-built with these specialized needs in mind. Costpoint provides big advantages to government contractors of all sizes:
Costpoint is...
Purpose-build for government contractors
The regulatory frameworks governing government contractors are extensive and constantly evolving. Costpoint integrates compliance features into its core architecture, ensuring adherence to federal regulations. Key capabilities include a Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA)-compliant timekeeping system for labor tracking, segregation of direct and indirect costs and DCAA-ready reporting templates that minimize manual effort during audits.
Designed to support the full range of contract types
Designed to support the full range of contract types used in government contracting—including fixed-price, time and materials (T&M), cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF), cost-plus-award-fee (CPAF) and hybrid models. It automates billing and revenue recognition for each contract type, helping ensure compliance with FAR and CAS requirements while reducing manual errors in invoicing and financial reporting.
Costpoint also...
Delivers sophisticated contract and project management capability
Costpoint offers robust contract and project management capabilities tailored to the complexity of government contracts. It allows users to model intricate contract structures—including contract line-item numbers (CLINs), subline-item numbers (SLINs) and detailed work breakdown structures—while maintaining control over funding limits, ceilings and periods of performance. Costpoint also supports managing multiple contract types within a single project, a critical need for contractors working on large-scale federal programs with varied funding sources.
Provides real-time visibility into key contract and project metrics, including funding burn rates, estimate-to-complete (ETC) calculations and variance analysis—helping contractors identify and address issues early. Its support for multi-level work breakdown structures (WBS) enables detailed cost tracking at the task level while aggregating data for higher-level program reporting. This structure supports both accurate project accounting and effective program oversight.
As cybersecurity standards tighten across the defense industrial base, the Costpoint provides a secure, compliant environment designed for government contractors handling Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), especially when hosted in the Deltek GovCon Cloud Moderate (GCSM) environment. Built on a FedRAMP Moderate infrastructure, the GovCon Cloud Moderate aligns with U.S. Department of Defense requirements to help contractors meet security mandates with confidence. Costpoint also provides security capabilities that address the full spectrum of government security mandates. These security features are integrated into the core platform, ensuring consistent protection across all system functions.
Costpoint drives operational efficiency by automating workflows and unifying functions across finance, project management, and human resources. Its integrated architecture reduces manual data entry, reduces administrative burden, while improving data accuracy. Automated workflows support core government contracting activities—such as timesheet approvals, expense submissions and procurement requests—by following configurable approval paths aligned with organizational roles, dollar thresholds and contract terms.
For contractors with manufacturing operations, Costpoint connects procurement, production, and delivery through integrated modules, removing the need for separate systems. Its built-in reporting and business intelligence tools provide real-time insights into both operational and financial performance. Pre-configured dashboards highlight government contracting KPIs, helping organizations spot risks early and make timely, better-informed decisions.
