101 Questions to Ask When Buying Construction Management Software     
        
PROJECT / COMPANY SET UP     
1 Does the system or product interface with your current accounting system?     
2 Will it interface with other (future) accounting systems?     
3 Can you use it as a land management or development tool?     
4 Does it support internal and external users (trades, homebuyers, brokers)?     
5 Can you manage unlimited users, plans, options, lots, customers, & trades?     
6 Can you use the system as a financial modeling tool for your project/community?     
        
CONSTRUCTION     
7 Are there bidding and contracting functions?     
8 Can you leverage the internet for easy bid comparisons across vendors?     
9 Can you manage plans, options, edits, changes, & histories?     
10 Is there a centralized contract and document management function?     
11 Does it include several dozen standard construction reports?     
12 Does it have an easy to use custom individual report writer for every user?     
13 Does it support purchase orders, and purchase order management, with rules?     
14 Does the PO system support multi-line purchase orders and progress billing?     
15 Does it support job cost/budget management?     
16 Does it save the original budget to compare against?     
17 Can you compare bids and contracts against budgets?     
18 Does it have a comprehensive scheduling tool, allowing bumps, or edits across units?     
19 Does the scheduling system tie in to payment approvals, or partial payments?     
20 Does the scheduling system have multiple views, across timeframes, trades, or activities?     
21 Does it automatically tie in to other departments, users, and changes?     
22 Is the scheduling by project, community, and/or unit?     
23 Can you access the scheduling with a hand held PDA (i.e. Palm, Blackberry)?     
24 Does the system do some communicating for you, automatically?     
25 Can trade partners access your schedule in real time, on their own?     
26 Can trade partners be notified of activities and changes automatically?     
27 Is there an integrated payment approval process for internal and external users?     
        
SALES AND MARKETING     
28 Does the system have true full customer relationship management (CRM) functionality?     
29 Does the customer record have everything you need in it?     
30 Does lead, prospect, or customer data have to be entered more than once, to use in other parts of the system?     
31 Does the system support email marketing, including HTML emails with graphics?     
32 Can you change emails, campaigns, unit prices, plans, and options, all without expense?     
33 Does the system function with your own email client, such as MS Outlook?     
34 Is there a real time data exchange from your web site in to the product or system?     
35 Can you publish data, specifications or images on your website, without management, duplicate effort, or additional expense?     
36 Does the system allow any sales person to sell any plan on any lot, with any option?     
37 Can you define options per plan, per project?     
38 Does the sales portion have standard and on-demand accurate, real time, reports which can be generated in seconds?     
39 Can the system generate contracts without duplicate typing, writing or data entry?     
40 Can the system support, track and manage addendums, exhibits and contingencies?     
41 Can you use the system for options by both the sales person and design center staff?     
42 Can you use the system to outsource sales, or involve brokers?     
43 Can the system track incentives, differentials, offers, or other one off issues?     
44 Does the system manage non standard options, special requests, or change orders?     
45 Does the system support option lock out dates if you choose?     
46 Does the system track notes, tasks, deposits, co-buyers?     
47 Can you manage multiple offers on a single unit until one is accepted?     
48 Does the system provide the Sales Manager follow up tools to manage sales staff?     
49 Can you upload any type of documents to the client's record (signed contract, images)     
50 Will your sales people actually use the system?     
51 Do you believe the system can be shown to be the sales person's "friend"?     
52 Can the system be used to track, or even help track, commissions?     
53 Does a bust out put the unit back in inventory, but not delete the prospect?     
54 Is it a web-based system useable anywhere, so you are not limited in time or location?     
55 Will it help you sell more homes faster, or separate you from your competition?     
56 Will it help reduce mistakes (tear-outs, missing change orders, selling wrong option)?     
        
WARRANTY     
57 Is warranty information available to internal users, trades and the homebuyer?     
58 Can service requests be submitted online?     
59 Can trades see the customer's information (contracts, options, dates, contact info)?     
60 Does it support pre and post settlement checklists?     
61 Can you have an unlimited number of service request items?     
62 Is there a full spectrum of both standard and custom on demand user reports?     
63 Does the customer information flow from sales to eliminate redundant data entry?     
64 Can trade partners see the service orders online, real time, or immediately?     
65 Does the system support defect and root cause analysis, tracking and reporting?     
        
CORE BUSINESS MANAGEMENT ISSUES     
66 Does the system allow you to use various user roles, rights, permissions, etc.?     
67 Will it provide every user accurate real time reports?     
68 Does it provide a centralized document management system for every user in every function and department?     
69 Is it flexible enough to support every work flow solution for your entire company?     
70 Does it release you of the burden of having to tie many systems together?     
71 Is it a hosted environment so you have virtually no IT costs?     
72 Does it support forms, processes, rules & best practices across your entire company?     
73 Does the software company provide access to team members with intellectual capital?     
74 Are there professional services from setup through go live     
75 Is live customer support available even after implementation?     
76 Are you charged extra for it every time you use it?     
77 Are the customer support staff direct employees who speak fluent English?     
78 Is there complimentary online training?     
79 Are there live instructor led courses?     
80 Are there on-demand recorded classes to accommodate your schedule?     
81 Are you part of a user group, encouraged to suggest, instead of just a customer?     
82 Will you always have access to an entire team of people?     
83 Can you qualify what the system will cost you, ongoing?     
84 Are there extra charges you don't know about?     
85 Might you incur charges for something you can not predict?     
86 Does it provide real time Builder/Trade collaboration tools?     
87 Does the system require Trades to pay for it, or you to pay for them?     
88 Is the system an industry specific system?     
89 Will the system require you to manipulate it for your industry?     
90 Does the system have a continual product development plan?     
91 Do you have to pay extra for that?     
92 Is there a person you can meet and count on locally?     
93 Did the company providing the product and/or service make you feel important?     
94 Has the company been around for a few years?     
95 Can Administrators see what is going on across entire system, all users, any time?     
96 Is your data safe, built on industry best of breed technology?     
97 Is your data yours, always, accessible any time and fully backed up?     
98 Does the company provide a comprehensive training environment?     
99 Can you qualify the cost of the product/service as an expense reduction tool?     
100 Can you qualify the cost of the product/service as a revenue generator?     
101 Will you ever outgrow the system?     

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Erik Cofield, CGA has leveraged technology and provided business management consulting for all sizes and types of builders, developers and Remodelers since 2000, including volume, multi-family and custom, to help them improve their business. He is the National Accounts Manager with BuildTopia (www.buildtopia.com), a widely used international construction management software company.  He can be reached via ecofield@buildtopia.com.