Office Manager · Bookkeeper · Construction Hiring · Financial Staff · When to Hire
Office Manager · Bookkeeper · Construction Hiring · Administrative Staff · When to Hire
Hiring an Office Manager
or Bookkeeper.
At some point between $1M and $5M in revenue, most construction subcontractors realize the owner can't keep doing the books. The question isn't whether to add financial support — it's what level of support you actually need, what to look for, what to pay, and how that internal hire works alongside SPM. Here's the framework.
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SPM vs. Other CFO Firms
Most CFO Firms Serving This Trade
- High revenue minimums — most won't serve under $5M
- Advisory only — no bookkeeping, no implementation
- No job costing setup or ControlQore management
- No monthly WIP as standard deliverable
- No pricing published — discovery call required
- No vetted partner network for bonding, lending, or liens
- No prevailing wage specialty
The Construction CFO — SPM
- Serves $1M–$12M — starts at $1,900/month
- Full implementation — bookkeeping, job costing, CFO advisory
- ControlQore setup and managed for you every month
- Monthly WIP standard in Executive tier
- Full pricing published — no discovery call to find out costs
- Vetted partners for bonding, lending, lien services, payroll
- Prevailing wage and Davis-Bacon specialty
What We See in This Business
01
The Owner Is Doing the Books at 10pm
If the business owner is reconciling bank statements, processing invoices, and chasing AR after working hours, the business has outgrown its financial management capacity. That owner time has a cost — every hour spent on bookkeeping is an hour not spent on estimating, GC relationships, or field management. The question is whether internal staff or outsourced financial management is the right answer.
02
You Hired a Bookkeeper Who Doesn't Understand Construction
A general bookkeeper who codes transactions and reconciles bank statements without understanding job costing, pay apps, WIP, or retainage will produce books that are technically reconciled but financially useless for management. Construction bookkeeping requires construction-specific knowledge — not just accounting competency.
03
You're Not Sure What Level of Support You Actually Need
An office manager who handles AP, payroll, and administrative functions is different from a bookkeeper who maintains the books to CPA standards. Both are different from a controller who produces financial statements and manages reporting. Most subcontractors hire one person and expect all three — which creates gaps, turnover, and frustration.
How SPM Fixes It
What Each Role Actually Does
Office manager or administrative coordinator: handles day-to-day AP entry, vendor communications, payroll data collection, permit coordination, and administrative functions. Does not produce financial statements or manage job costing. Bookkeeper: maintains the books — transaction coding, bank reconciliations, financial statement preparation. Should understand construction accounting. SPM works alongside a bookkeeper to handle job costing, WIP, and CFO functions the bookkeeper typically can't provide. Controller: produces financial statements, manages month-end close, oversees bookkeeping, interfaces with CPAs and sureties. Appropriate at higher revenue levels.
The Hybrid Model That Works for $3M–$10M
The most effective structure for $3M–$10M subcontractors is an internal office manager or bookkeeper handling transaction volume — AP entry, vendor payments, payroll data — while SPM handles job costing, WIP, controllership, and CFO advisory. The internal person handles the operational volume. SPM handles the accuracy, oversight, and strategy. You get both without a $200K CFO salary.
What to Pay and What to Look For
Construction bookkeeper with job costing experience: $45,000–$70,000 depending on market. Office manager with AP and administrative experience: $40,000–$60,000. The most important hiring criteria — beyond accounting competency — is construction industry experience. A candidate who has worked at a subcontractor, a GC, or a construction-focused accounting firm will ramp faster and produce better output than a general accounting hire who has to learn construction from scratch.
Service Tiers
Tier 01
Core Financial
Starts at $1,900 / month
- ControlQore setup and management
- Job costing aligned to your estimate structure
- Cost-to-complete tracking — updated monthly
- Full-service bookkeeping — minimum 30 min/week
- Vendor payments via ACH (you approve, we initiate)
- Accounts receivable management
- Bank reconciliations and transaction matching
- Controllership
- 1 monthly CFO meeting
- 60-day onboarding — books migrated to last taxable year
Most Popular
Tier 02
Executive Financial
Starts at $2,900 / month
- Everything in Core Financial
- Monthly WIP schedule — delivered every month, standard
- 13-week cash flow forecasting
- CEO Report — monthly financial dashboard
- 3 CFO advisory meetings per month
- Strategic accountability and actionable to-dos
- Direct access to Josh Luebker
Pricing by Revenue
Revenue Range
(Last 12 Months) |
Core Financial
Monthly |
Executive Financial
Monthly |
| Under $1M | $1,900 | $2,900 |
| $1M – $3M | $2,600 | $3,600 |
| $4M – $6M | $3,800 | $5,500 |
| $7M – $9M | $5,100 | $6,900 |
| $10M – $12M | $6,100 | $8,500 |
| $13M+ | Quoted | Quoted |
Vetted Partner Network
National Lien Services
When AR gets too long, we connect you directly to our lien services partner to protect what you've earned.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Payroll Integration Partners
Prevailing wage and regular payroll software partners integrated directly with ControlQore job costing.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Bonding Partners
Surety relationships and bonding capacity support. We prepare the financials — our partners get you bonded.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Lending Partners
Working capital lines and equipment financing through vetted lenders who understand construction.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Reviewed Financials
CPA-level financial statement reviews for banking, bonding, and large contract requirements.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
CPA Coordination
We work alongside your existing CPA — not replacing them. Clean books and job costing make tax time easier.
Included — no extra cost
Common Questions
Straight answers.
At what revenue level should I consider adding internal financial staff?
Most subcontractors reach the point where internal administrative support makes sense around $3M–$5M in revenue — when transaction volume, vendor relationships, and payroll coordination become time-consuming enough to justify a dedicated person. Below $3M, SPM and a good payroll partner typically handle everything without internal staff. Above $5M–$7M, a hybrid model with internal staff plus SPM becomes the standard approach for clients who want both volume coverage and CFO-level oversight.
Does SPM train internal staff?
Yes — for clients who have internal bookkeepers or office managers, SPM coordinates directly with that person to establish the workflow, coding standards, and ControlQore processes that support clean financial management. We don't compete with internal staff — we work alongside them to handle the functions they can't provide (job costing, WIP, controllership, CFO advisory) while they handle the operational volume that would otherwise fall on the owner.
What's included in Core Financial?
ControlQore setup, job costing aligned to your estimates, cost-to-complete tracking, full bookkeeping (minimum 30 min/week), ACH vendor payments (you approve, we initiate), AR management, bank reconciliations, transaction matching, controllership, and 1 monthly CFO meeting. Starts at $1,900/month.
What does Executive Financial add?
Everything in Core plus monthly WIP schedule, 13-week cash flow forecasting, CEO Report, and 3 CFO advisory meetings per month. Starts at $2,900/month. WIP, cash flow forecasting, and the CEO Report are Executive tier only.
Do you handle payroll?
No. We have vetted payroll software partners — including prevailing wage integrations — that connect directly with ControlQore. Those are separate engagements at additional cost.
How long does onboarding take?
60 days. We migrate your books to the start of your last taxable year, set up ControlQore, and build your job costing structure. Fully operational in two months.
What software do clients use?
ControlQore. All SPM clients run on ControlQore for job costing and WIP. We set it up and manage it — you don't have to learn it. Clients switching from QuickBooks, Sage, or other platforms migrate during onboarding.
Do you work alongside our CPA?
Yes. We work alongside your existing CPA — not replacing them. Clean books and accurate job costing make their job easier at tax time.
What happens when we grow past $12M?
We have a clear graduation path. We prepare your financials, systems, and team for the transition and connect you with the right firm for your next stage of growth.