Short, practical notes on the accounting mechanics behind construction, trade, and project-based businesses — written by Padma and the Books & Profits team.
Change orders that live in email do not appear on the WIP schedule. The coding decision at capture is what determines whether the ledger tells the truth six months later.
WIP is a management tool first and a reporting tool second. Reviewed weekly, it flags the projects that are drifting before the drift becomes a loss.
Reconciling clearing, merchant, and payroll accounts on a daily rhythm turns the monthly close into a review — not an investigation.
Charts of accounts grow by accretion. Every unused account is a chance for a coding mistake. A quarterly review keeps the file legible.
Held retainage sits on the balance sheet and distorts working-capital ratios if it lives inside standard AR. A separate register is the fix.
A one-page workflow map — capture, code, reconcile, report, review — survives staff turnover and quiets recurring errors.
The insights library is being built in the field. If you'd like a specific topic covered — retainage, WIP mechanics, QuickBooks structure for trades — let Padma know and it will move up the schedule.
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