WHY FIBER CONTRACTORS LOSE MARGIN WITHOUT KNOWING IT.
Fiber margin is lost to three specific things: the carrier's calendar, the pole owner's price, and the paperwork mile. Fiber subcontractors at $1M to $5M run 18 percent gross and 6 percent net, against CFOS targets at $1M to $5M of 24 percent gross and 10 percent net. All three are measurable, and all three are invisible without job costing that reads against the estimate.
Fiber contractors at $1M to $5M net 6 percent, rising to 8.5 percent by $25M to $50M; the CFOS target at $1M to $5M is 10 percent. The distance between the trade average and the CFOS target isn't a pricing problem in this trade. It sits in the three mechanisms below, each of which moves margin without appearing as a failure on any single job. Unit-price MSAs pay per foot and per splice on the carrier's terms, gated by closeout documentation. Crews get paid Friday; the carrier pays when the audit clears. The gap is where fiber contractors meet factoring salesmen.
THE MATH BEHIND THE MISSING CASH.
The Carrier's Calendar
Unit-price MSAs pay per foot and per splice on the carrier's terms, gated by closeout documentation. Crews get paid Friday; the carrier pays when the audit clears. The gap is where fiber contractors meet factoring salesmen.
The Pole Owner's Price
Make-ready costs are set, scheduled, and invoiced by the utility that owns the pole, and one industry director puts the five-year increase near 300 percent. A pass-through that triples without its own variance report is a margin event nobody has priced.
The Paperwork Mile
As-builts, GIS packages, and compliance documentation gate every dollar of BEAD and carrier money. Production that outruns documentation is unbillable inventory lying in the ground. (cfos-cash-flow-cycle-system) ---
WHAT CHANGES IN THE FIRST 60 DAYS.
| Metric | $1M to $5M | $5M to $10M | $10M to $25M |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross margin, industry average | 22% | 23% | 24% |
| Gross margin, CFOS target | 24% | 23.5% | 24% |
| Net profit, industry average | 7% | 9% | 11% |
| Net profit, CFOS target | 10% | 10.5% | 12% |
| Overhead, industry average | 15% | 14% | 13% |
| Overhead, CFOS target | 14% | 13% | 12% |
Industry figures are Fiber contractors' AVERAGE for each revenue band, not a floor. The CFOS net profit target is set at 10 percent before taxes or 3.5 points better than your trade's average at your revenue, whichever is higher, and the gross margin target is set at whatever gross margin produces that net profit once your overhead is paid, and never below your trade's own average. Gross minus overhead equals net on every column, so the rows tie out.
| Last 12 months revenue | Monthly fee |
|---|---|
| Up to $1M | $1,900 to $2,900 |
| $1M to $3.5M | $2,600 to $3,900 |
| $3.5M to $6.5M | $3,800 to $5,700 |
| $6.5M to $9.5M | $5,100 to $7,100 |
| $9.5M to $12.5M | $6,100 to $8,500 |
| $12.5M to $15.5M | $7,400 to $11,000 |
| $15.5M to $18.5M | $9,400 to $13,500 |
| $18.5M+ | Quoted individually |
Range reflects the three tiers below. Which one you're in depends on how much of the work you want off your desk. No payroll. No hidden line items.
You stop guessing.
You get the CFO work. Job costing built against the way you estimate, a 13 week cash forecast, monthly WIP, and a meeting every month that ends in decisions rather than a report.
Your bookkeeper keeps doing the books.
You stop touching the books.
Everything in Core, and we run the bookkeeping and the controllership as well. Nobody in your office is answering coding questions or chasing a reconciliation at month end.
We do the books. No payroll.
Every job shows its margin while it's still running.
Everything in Executive, plus the job costing and WIP platform set up, loaded with your cost codes, and managed for you every month. You never have to learn it.
We do the job costing.
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