THE NUMBERS TO TRACK EVERY MONTH.
A subcontractor should track eight numbers monthly on a 13 month rolling view: revenue, gross margin, overhead rate, net margin, working capital, current ratio, days sales outstanding, and backlog. SPM The Construction CFO calls this the CEO report. Thirteen months lets you average the last twelve and see whether each number is trending up or down.
The bank balance is the number most owners check, and it's the worst one to manage a business by. It's the result of decisions made months ago, so by the time it moves the cause is cold. The eight numbers on the dashboard move first: margin thins before cash tightens, overhead rises before net profit drops, and days sales outstanding stretches before the line of credit gets drawn. Watching them on a rolling 13 month view lets you compare this month to the same month last year, which is the only way to tell a trend from a season.
Rather talk it through first? Book a 20 minute call. Nothing gets sold on this call.
Want it set up for you? Onboarding only, from $4,500 one time. Books migrated and job costing built, then your own team keeps it up.
WHAT IT MEANS.
A subcontractor's financial dashboard is a rolling 13 month view of eight numbers: revenue, gross margin, overhead rate, net margin, working capital, current ratio, days sales outstanding, and backlog.
A dashboard is only as good as the books underneath it. Double entries, unapproved costs, and a cash position that doesn't reflect reality all distort every number on the page. Closing and reconciling by the tenth of the month is what makes the eight numbers trustworthy enough to act on, which is why the close date is part of the dashboard rather than separate from it.
WHAT BELONGS ON THE DASHBOARD.
Revenue, gross margin, net margin
Revenue is the multiplier and it tells you how fast you grow or fail. Gross margin is the foundation, revenue minus direct cost, the money that covers overhead. Net margin is the only number that says the business works, since it's what's left after every expense. Watch all three as a trend, because rising revenue with a falling margin is a warning and not a win.
Overhead rate
Overhead is the cost to keep the business open divided by revenue, and it moves every month with how busy you are. A slow month spikes the percentage and a busy one drops it. Tracked on a rolling twelve month average, it tells you whether you're getting more efficient or less, and it goes straight into how you price work.
Working capital and current ratio
Working capital is current assets minus current liabilities, the cash you have to operate with after near term obligations, and it sets your bonding capacity. The current ratio is current assets divided by current liabilities, where above 1.3 is healthy and below 1.0 is a liquidity warning. These are the balance sheet numbers lenders read first.
Days sales outstanding and backlog
Days sales outstanding measures how long your money stays as receivables, and rising DSO means collections are getting slower. Backlog is the signed work ahead of you, and its quality, meaning margin and payment terms, counts as much as its size. A big backlog of thin margin work is a problem disguised as good news.
CLOSE BY THE TENTH, REVIEW MONTHLY.
The books close and reconcile by the tenth of the month without exception. A dashboard built on incomplete books is worse than no dashboard, because it produces confident decisions off wrong numbers. The close date is what makes the eight numbers usable, and it's the first thing that gets installed.
Thirteen months lets you average the trailing twelve and compare this month directly against the same month a year ago. That removes the seasonal distortion that makes a single month useless as a signal. A month read in isolation tells you almost nothing about direction.
The CEO report is the dashboard itself: revenue, margins, overhead, working capital, current ratio, DSO, and backlog on a 13 month rolling view. It gets produced every month rather than pulled together when somebody asks for it. An owner who reads it sees trouble building weeks before it reaches the bank account, and sees opportunity early enough to do something about it.
THE OUTPUTS, NAMED.
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. The one-time onboarding fee is right here in the table.
Built for subs doing $1M to $12M. Above $12.5M we quote.
| Last 12 months revenue | Core | Strategic | Platinum | One-time onboarding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $1,900 | $3,100 | $3,300 | $2,500 |
| $1M to $3.5M | $2,600 | $4,100 | $5,300 | $4,500 |
| $3.5M to $6.5M | $3,800 | $5,900 | $8,300 | $6,000 |
| $6.5M to $9.5M | $5,100 | $7,600 | $11,800 | $7,500 |
| $9.5M to $12.5M | $6,100 | $8,900 | $14,900 | $9,000 |
| Above $12.5M | Quoted | Quoted | Quoted | Quoted |
The onboarding fee covers migrating your books back to the start of your last taxable year and getting you fully operational in 60 days. It's billed once, with your first invoice. It's the same for all three tiers, and it moves with your revenue band. Your first month is prorated, and your monthly engagement starts on the first of the first full month.
Just want the setup? Onboarding only is the same onboarding work with no monthly service after it, one time, at the onboarding fee plus $2,000. Start a monthly engagement later and $2,000 counts toward it. It starts at $4,500, and the price for every band is on the pricing page.
The three tier columns are the whole price. Which one fits depends on how much of the work you want off your desk. No payroll. No hidden line items. The onboarding fee is right here in the table.
- Online software only: QuickBooks, Sage, Viewpoint and similar. No VPN or hosted desktop.
- Not in any tier: payroll, pay applications, collections on receivables.
- Pricing valid through 2027.
CFO work. Your own bookkeeper keeps doing the books.
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 and never in a report.
Your bookkeeper still does the books.
Core, plus bookkeeping and bank reconciliations, plus job costing and WIP software set up and managed for you. Use your own online accounting software or we supply it, one price.
Every job shows its margin while it is still open.
Everything in Core, plus the bookkeeping and bank reconciliations done for you, and the job costing and WIP software set up, loaded with your cost codes, and managed every month. Use your own online software, or move to ours and we cover it.
A bookkeeper we choose does the books and reconciliations. No payroll.
Strategic, plus a controller who handles payables and receivables the way an in-house controller would. You approve every payment.
You approve, and the money side gets handled.
Everything in Strategic, plus a controller we choose who handles your bills and receivables for you the way an in-house controller would. They call vendors, pay the bills and keep the accounting current. We plan the cash flow first, and you approve every payment because it is your money.
A controller we choose does the payables and receivables. No payroll, no pay applications, no collections.
FREQUENTLY ASKED.
