HIRING AN OFFICE MANAGER OR BOOKKEEPER.
Most subcontractors need internal administrative support somewhere around $3M to $5M in revenue. Below that, SPM plus a payroll partner typically covers everything without an internal hire. Above $5M to $7M, the standard structure is a hybrid: internal staff carrying the transaction volume, with SPM on job costing, WIP, and CFO oversight.
The reason one hire so often disappoints is that owners hire one person and expect three jobs out of them. An office manager, a bookkeeper, and a controller are three different roles with three different skill sets and three different price tags. Hiring for the cheapest of the three and expecting the output of the most expensive is how good people end up leaving inside a year. Deciding which role you're hiring for, before you write the posting, is most of the work.
WHAT IT MEANS.
An office manager is the person who covers AP entry, vendor communication, payroll data collection, permits, and administration in a construction company, which is a different role from a bookkeeper, who maintains the books themselves through transaction coding, bank reconciliations, and financial statement work.
The most effective structure for a $3M to $10M subcontractor is an internal office manager or bookkeeper carrying transaction volume, AP entry, vendor payments, and payroll data, with SPM carrying job costing, WIP, controllership, and CFO advisory. The internal person carries the volume and SPM carries the accuracy, the oversight, and the strategy. That combination gets you both without a $200K CFO salary.
WHEN THE OWNER IS THE BACK OFFICE.
The owner is doing the books at 10pm
If the owner is reconciling bank statements, processing invoices, and chasing receivables after hours, the business has outrun its financial management capacity. That owner time carries a cost, because every hour spent on bookkeeping is an hour not spent on estimating, on GC relationships, or on the field. It's the most expensive labor in the company doing the cheapest work in the company.
Your bookkeeper doesn't understand construction
A general bookkeeper who codes transactions and reconciles bank statements without understanding job costing, pay apps, WIP, or retainage produces books that are technically reconciled and financially useless for management. Construction bookkeeping requires construction-specific knowledge on top of accounting competence. The books balance and they still can't tell you which job made money.
You aren't sure what level of support you need
An office manager who covers AP, payroll data, and administration is a different role from a bookkeeper who maintains the books to CPA standards. Both are different again from a controller who produces financial statements and manages reporting. Most subcontractors hire one person and expect all three, which produces holes in the coverage, turnover, and frustration on both sides.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN DOLLARS.
A construction bookkeeper with job costing experience runs $45,000 to $70,000 depending on the market. An office manager with AP and administrative experience runs $40,000 to $60,000. The most important hiring criterion beyond accounting competence is construction industry experience, because a bookkeeper who has never seen a pay app or a retainage receivable will learn both on your books.
Internal administrative support usually makes sense around $3M to $5M in revenue, once transaction volume, vendor relationships, and payroll coordination take up enough time to justify a dedicated person. Below $3M, SPM plus a good payroll partner typically covers everything. Above $5M to $7M, the hybrid model with internal staff plus SPM becomes the standard structure.
THE STRUCTURE THAT WORKS AT $3M TO $10M.
An office manager or administrative coordinator covers day to day AP entry, vendor communication, payroll data collection, permit coordination, and administration, and doesn't touch financial statements or job costing. A bookkeeper maintains the books through transaction coding, bank reconciliations, and financial statement work, and should understand construction accounting specifically. A controller produces financial statements, runs the month end close, oversees bookkeeping, and deals with CPAs and sureties.
The most effective structure for a $3M to $10M subcontractor is an internal office manager or bookkeeper carrying transaction volume, AP entry, vendor payments, and payroll data, while SPM carries job costing, WIP, controllership, and CFO advisory. The internal person carries the volume, and SPM carries the accuracy, the oversight, and the strategy. That gets you both without a $200K CFO salary.
A construction bookkeeper with job costing experience runs $45,000 to $70,000 depending on the market, and an office manager with AP and administrative experience runs $40,000 to $60,000. Beyond basic accounting competence, the criterion that predicts success is construction industry experience. Somebody who already knows what a pay app, a lien waiver, and a retainage receivable are will be useful in week one instead of month six.
FLAT MONTHLY FEE. NO SURPRISES.
Three tiers, priced by your trailing twelve month revenue. Which one you're in depends on how much of the work you want off your desk. No hourly billing, no payroll, and no add-ons.
| 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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