Revenue is up. The bank account is not. If you own a general contractor, a specialty trade, a roofing company or a restoration company between $5M and $100M+ in revenue, you have probably felt it: the books are “done”, the tax return gets filed, and still nobody can tell you which jobs made money last month or how much cash the company will have six weeks from now.
Veritas is a Tulsa-based fractional CFO firm. We give Oklahoma contractors the accounting, controller and CFO layer in one team, so the owner sees job margin, WIP and cash by the 10th of every month and makes the next decision on facts.
Book your complimentary Financial X-Ray or call 813-999-6872
The 3 numbers a contractor should see by the 10th
- Margin by job, estimate vs. actual. Not the company gross margin for the year — the margin on each job, split into labor, materials and subs, next to what the estimate said. This is where pricing mistakes show up while you can still fix the next bid.
- Over- and under-billings from a WIP schedule that ties to the ledger. Percent complete drives revenue in construction. If the WIP schedule lives in a spreadsheet nobody reconciles, the P&L swings month to month and your banker and surety read a balance sheet that is not true.
- Unbilled work plus receivables over 60 days. Approved change orders not yet invoiced, retainage you can release, and every invoice past 60 days. It is profit you already earned, sitting in someone else’s account.
The mistakes we see most in contractor books
- Job margin appears only when the job closes. By then the estimate error, the unbilled change order or the labor overrun has already been repeated on the next three jobs.
- Change orders are approved in the field and never invoiced. The crew did the work; the office never heard about it.
- Labor is coded to the wrong job, or to no job. Payroll is the biggest cost line and the one most often booked to “overhead”, which makes every job look better than it was.
- Cash is managed to the bank balance. Payroll, draws, material deposits and debt service land in the same week, and a strong balance on the 1st turns into a scramble by the 15th.
- The bank or surety asks for a package the bookkeeper cannot produce. Credit lines and bonding capacity stall while statements get rebuilt.
A pattern we see often: a contractor that grew fast reports a solid year, but once labor and change orders are pushed down to the job level, a handful of job types turn out to carry the whole company while the fastest-growing type barely breaks even. The fix is rarely more work. It is pricing, estimating and billing discipline on the jobs you already have.
What Veritas produces every month
- P&L and balance sheet, closed and tied — the statements your lender and surety read.
- A WIP schedule tied to the general ledger, with over- and under-billings booked.
- Margin by job and by job type: estimate vs. actual for labor, materials and subs.
- The unbilled list — change orders, retainage, unbilled work — with an owner and a date.
- A 13-week cash forecast including payroll, draws, deposits, retainage release and debt service.
- A lender- and surety-ready package when you need capacity.
Your office staff feeds it; Veritas produces it. The owner gets one page a month with the number and the decision it points to. We work in QuickBooks, Sage, Buildertrend and Odoo.
What a Financial X-Ray shows a contractor
The Financial X-Ray is one hour with a fractional CFO on your last 12 months: P&L, balance sheet, A/R aging and your job list. It is normally $5,000 and complimentary for owners of $5M–$100M+ companies. For a contractor it usually answers three questions:
- Which job types made money last year, and which ones only added revenue.
- How much cash is tied up in unbilled work, retainage and old receivables — and how much of it can come in within 30 days.
- Whether your statements and WIP are ready for a bank or surety conversation, and what to fix first.
You leave with three written moves for the year, whether or not a monthly CFO seat makes sense.
Not ready to book? Get the 3 numbers.
The one-page version of this list: what each number is, why the usual version misleads, and what to do when it moves.
Questions contractors ask
Do you replace my bookkeeper or office manager?
No. Your office keeps entering bills, payroll and invoices. Veritas closes the month, ties the books, keeps the WIP schedule and produces the reports. One team, one result.
What does a fractional CFO cost for a contractor?
It depends on job volume, systems and how much of the close we take on. The Financial X-Ray comes first and is complimentary; if a monthly seat makes sense, you get the scope and price in one page.
Can you work with Buildertrend or Sage?
Yes. We work in QuickBooks, Sage, Buildertrend and Odoo, and tie the job data back to the general ledger.
Do you only work with Tulsa companies?
Veritas is based in Tulsa and works with owners across Oklahoma. The X-Ray can be in person in Tulsa or on a call.
What do I need for the Financial X-Ray?
Your last 12 months P&L and balance sheet, an A/R aging and a job list if you have one. Exports are fine.
See your real job margin in one hour
Complimentary, nothing to buy. One hour on your numbers, three written moves.
Book your complimentary Financial X-Ray
Related reading: Why growing businesses still struggle with cash flow · Why revenue growth doesn’t always increase profit · The 3 numbers every owner should see by the 10th