Your company’s credit department likely uses a variety of different tools and software packages to operate. Unfortunately for building material suppliers, equipment rental companies, and others in the construction industry, these tools do not contemplate some of the industry’s credit and collection nuances. One such nuance is mechanics lien and bond claim rights. Thanks to cloud-based technologies and APIs, however, companies can now seamlessly empower their platforms to do more specific and nuanced functions, such as managing the company’s preliminary notice deliveries and mechanics lien rights across an entire portfolio of projects.
Extend the Functionality of your Accounting, ERP, or Credit System with APIs and Cloud Technology
Construction Executive’s Tech Trends just published this article on the topic of cloud technology and APIs as it relates to accounting platforms: Extend functionality of accounting products with cloud technology and APIs. Here’s a clip to summarize the article’s argument:
Because the cloud has created a “software democracy,” companies can find anything they need – regardless of how nuanced. If the cloud accounting solution doesn’t directly integrate with the solution, it can probably be connected with a type adapter like Zapier, which essentially connects accounting data to absolutely anything else.
Switching to a cloud accounting technology is more than just modernizing accounting software and making it easier and less annoying to use. The switch will open a world of possibilities by enabling companies to leverage APIs to connect their accounting data to anything else they need.
While having a cloud-enabled accounting, ERP, or credit technology is especially convenient, APIs can tie into your old legacy systems as well. In fact, a lot of enterprise companies are using cloud-based products to extend the functionality of their old, clunky, legacy systems – effectively using those systems as databases for the other platforms instead of going through the “heart transplant” of replacing the legacy system all together. Read more about this in the following Wall Street Journal article: Why big companies delay using the cloud for some applications.
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New Tools Available to Construction Credit Departments
It’s typical for building material suppliers and equipment rental company credit departments to bounce between different applications to handle daily tasks. Customer relationship records (including accounting) may be handled by a massive ERP platform like Oracle, SAP, AS400, or something “home grown.” When it comes to tracking and managing the credit review and collections process, however, credit departments may switch to some credit management application like Sunguard’s GETPaid, HighRadius, or Cortera’s eCredit.
All of these applications are great tools, but they are broad tools that perform broad functions. They do not handle a department’s nuanced needs, and since they are marketed and sold to companies that do anything and everything, they especially do not handle the specific needs of those in the building supply and equipment rental industries. If you think about it, though the construction industry has multiple tiers of parties, particular payment and waiver procedures, and specialized lien and security rights, many building suppliers and equipment rental companies use the same tools to manage their credit and collections process as a company selling tennis shoes.
The good news, as highlighted in the Tech Trends article, is that “the cloud has created a ‘software democracy,'” which means that great software products are popping up to solve every nuanced need of organizations. However, it’s worth noting that organizations must be willing to change the way they think about technology.
Empower Your ERP or Credit Tool with Lien Tracking and Notice Management Functionality
levelset is a cloud-based platform that can empower your ERP or credit tool with detailed lien tracking and notice management functionality. Imagine if your credit department never had to think about the notice and lien requirement again, and if your company could be in complete control of its lien and bond claim rights on every single account?
Get a demo and learn more about how levelset can change the way you use your existing tools.
