Glenn Ebersole once wrote an article entitled “Viewpoint: Construction industry faces financial challenges in 2015.” I’m not sure how many of these challenges were specific to 2015—it seems to me these challenges have been part of the construction industry for a long time—but perhaps it is telling that these challenges remain even today. The challenges he enumerates are:

• Poor cash flow
• Poor planning
• Little or no flexibility
• Poorly planned or mismanaged growth
• Poor capitalization

I get frustrated when I read an article like this because I know that the Spitfire Project Management System could help a company with those challenges, except perhaps with poor capitalization. (Ebersole suggests hiring a business financial services professional for that one.) Let me be more specific:

Poor Cash Flow

The Spitfire Project Management System can integrate with accounting systems and tell authorized parties exactly what the cash situation is at any given moment. Tasks such as pay applications/billing and pay requests/payments are straightforward. Companies can keep notes and other information about vendors (noting if any are higher risk), and block payments if any vendors are out of compliance. The system also has alerts to indicate upcoming payment due dates.

Poor Planning

The Spitfire Project Management System was designed to help with the planning of projects of all sizes. From initial bids to project close-out, the system can keep all team participants in the loop; track all budget, forecast and project analysis data; and provide many different reports for planning purposes. The system provides subcontractors, project managers, and executives with the information they need to make better choices.

Little or No Flexibility

Ebersole says that “flexibility can be gained by continually reviewing the plan versus reality.” The Spitfire Project Management System makes it easy to review the plan as often as necessary. Because change orders are easily handled by the system, there is no reason to fear “losing control” or having things “fall through the cracks” when changes occur. Budgets can be updated automatically and change authorizations are tracked, so information never gets confusing.

Poorly Planned or Mismanaged Growth

The Spitfire Project Management System can help with good strategic thinking if it is used throughout a company. The more people who use the system, the more data that can be shared, creating better communication among everyone. When the people in accounting and the project assistants and the supervisors all know what they need to know in order to do their jobs efficiently, the whole company benefits and can grow.

If you are still facing these financial challenges, ask for your free demo of the Spitfire Project Management System to see if it could help you face your challenges. There is no reason these still need to be challenges in the coming year.