Accounting Software for Field Services Companies

Accounting software is typically a company’s first big investment in their digital strategy. And, field service providers are no exception. Because, well, there are no exceptions.

It doesn’t matter what you sell, who you sell to, or how, exactly, you generate value, everything links back to the bottom line. It only follows that building your FSM stack starts with the core financials.

While good accounting software is universal, field service companies can’t win with one-size-fits-all solutions. Nor can they compete with single function platforms.

This means that when we talk about “accounting software,” we’re really talking about ERP platforms that cover all the “basic financial bases” and support field ops, sales, and everything else.

Here, we’ll break down the benefits of investing in such a solution, as well as highlight a few key things field orgs should look for.

Unify Accounting, Field Ops, & the Rest of the Business

One of our favorite themes is the critical importance of a unified platform that spans the entire business. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about project management, customer engagement, or ransomware strategies, orgs need real-time visibility and a single source of truth to achieve their goals.

Accounting teams need to know what services have been delivered, what’s on the books, and where things stand re: long-term projects, pending contracts, and recurring service subscriptions.

Keeping accounting pros in the loop allows you to make plans for the future — i.e.: scheduling payments, adjusting budgets, or reallocating resources based on factors like sales performance, financial forecasts, or technician availability.

It also allows them to work more effectively. For example, accounting teams can quickly calculate sales commissions and process timesheets & expense reports. This, in turn, speeds up the payroll process and enables the accounting team to work on high-value tasks that actively generate value for the company.

Or — when maintenance contracts are up for renewal, accountants can coordinate invoicing with sales to reflect any updates, upgrades, or cancellations associated with customer records.

They can also look for opportunities to automate recurring payments or invoice immediately after completing each service. That way, more customers pay faster and the company can establish a more reliable cash flow.

That said, unity always starts with the core financials. So, what you’ll want to do first is look for an ERP that aligns with your financial needs, rather than single-function accounting tools like QuickBooks.

While ERPs typically center on finance and accounting functions, they also include inventory management, CRM, project management, and sales capabilities.

Keep in mind, most ERP systems don’t offer FSM capabilities — at least not out-of-the-box. Meaning, you’ll need to look for an ERP that both meets your financial requirements AND integrates seamlessly with a field service platform that covers all the right bases.

Usually, that means looking for a composable platform like Dynamics 365. Users subscribe to a core ERP, then add on modules or integrations to support business-critical functions — like field service operations, sales, or project management.

All D365 modules are compatible with other Microsoft apps like the Power Platform, Teams, Outlook, and Excel, as well as a number of 3rd-party integrations and partner solutions.

That means, you can build an ecosystem that allows financial data to flow between all business-critical apps.

Achieve Org-Wide Efficiencies with Accounting Software for Field Services Companies

Once you’ve consolidated all data, systems, and processes in one system, you can then start unlocking operational efficiencies at every level. But — even if you focus on accounting and finance processes alone, there’s huge potential for serious business transformation.

We’ve talked about this before, from an HVAC-centric perspective, but something as simple as getting both your accounting and field teams to perform basic tasks in your ERP system makes a difference. For example, accounting needs to know what services have been delivered — be it routine maintenance, new installations, or freshly-inked subscription deals.

Because accounting staff have access to real-time data from sales, field service, and customer support, they’ll instantly be able to see what jobs are pending and what’s already been completed — and, from there, bill clients accordingly.

Field techs using all-in-one solutions like D365 can submit timesheets and service reports directly from the mobile app, thus allowing accounting to invoice and bill customers faster. In turn, field orgs are more likely to achieve a steady cash flow.

Accounting teams can also track things like new contracts and sales commissions, allowing them to calculate how much each sales rep is owed for each pay period. There’s no longer this need to comb through multiple systems, compile analog spreadsheets, or deal with constant back-and-forths with sales reps, field techs, or their respective managers.

That means, accountants can get through payroll faster — without increasing the likelihood of human error — and everyone gets paid on time. It also means that orgs can get a better sense of what’s coming in and going out.

And — it means that accounting teams can flag issues early-on — before they create bottlenecks in the billing cycle. For example, if sales signs a new service contract, accounting can act fast if there’s something fishy about the terms — ensuring that the issue can be corrected before it blows up into something bigger and more expensive later on.

Now, there are efficiency gains that happen by virtue of digitizing and unifying field service operations (like the ones we just mentioned). And, there are more impressive efficiency gains that happen over time, as your digital strategy matures.

For example, D365 users can use automation to capture customer details, update records, and create guided workflows to help techs move through inspections or repairs faster. But — getting to the point where you have enough data to know what drives those specific outcomes takes time.

Automated scheduling can maximize billable hours, by making real-time adjustments that help orgs avoid delays and serve more customers.

But — again, you’re starting from a place where maybe you’re letting customers book their own appointments or techs now have the ability to edit customer records or submit reports. It takes time to get to the point where you can train your algorithms to work with this information and drive improvements on its own.

Accounting Software for Field Services Companies Helps Control the Bottom Line

The right accounting solution allows field service providers to get the most from their existing resources by giving them greater visibility and complete control. Whether that means operating with a leaner, less-experienced workforce, accelerating the quote-to-cash cycle, or optimizing billable hours.

In this context, it’s really important that you look for a field service management platform that extends the out-of-the-box capabilities of your ERP.

So, if you’re using D365 Finance & Operations, the D365 Field Service module connects directly to that core platform. That means, you’ll gain access to FS-specific finance and accounting tools that can be used alongside traditional ones like AR, AP, and the general ledger.

Basically, you’ll want to look for a solution that allows you to do things like manage contracts, create invoices based on different delivery models, and evaluate the impact of new service offerings or pricing models. If your core business comes from large scale projects, then you’ll want to consider adding in project-specific accounting tools, too.

D365 includes a number of dashboards and canned reports that provide visibility into “standard” finance and operational functions. But, you’ll want to spend some time customizing these reports to better reflect the KPIs most important to your business. And, you’ll want to bring in additional data sources and more robust analytics tools.

That way, finance and accounting can analyze and manipulate data in novel ways to uncover new opportunities for service innovation, take corrective action before problems impact customers, and improve existing processes.

For example, forecasting future resource availability can help you adapt as you move toward subscription-based models and proactive maintenance.

Final Thoughts

“Good accounting software” is actually an entire digital platform that connects your core financials to the departments and functions that, together, determine the fate of your bottom line.

That means, field ops, customer service, sales, marketing, HR, and the C-suite all need access to the same foundational insights your accounting and finance teams rely on to pay vendors, cut costs, and make strategic decisions.

At Velosio, much of our practice focuses on helping clients find and implement an ERP that supports the whole business. But — it’s important to understand that this process always starts with accounting.