If you're a contractor, there’s one truth you’ve likely experienced: a single job can make or break your year. And yet, so many builders are still flying blind when it comes to their numbers… relying on gut instinct, outdated processes, or the hope that things will “work themselves out.”

In the latest episode of Builders, Budgets & Beers, Reece Barnes sits down with Bill Mills, CPA and partner at Pinion Global, a firm with a national footprint and deep expertise in construction accounting. From his office in Bozeman, Montana, Bill has seen it all—the wins, the mistakes, and the war stories that define what separates thriving builders from those one bad job away from disaster.

‍

What follows is a deep dive into what construction accounting success really looks like and what it costs when you get it wrong.

“If we followed the exact same procedures your company has used for years… we’d fail.”

That’s how Bill summed it up. And he wasn’t exaggerating.

‍

Too often, contractors look to outsource or upgrade their accounting without actually changing how they operate. But as Bill made clear, replacing people or software while keeping the same broken processes just makes your problems more expensive. Outsourcing only works when firms are willing to rethink how their back office operates and adopt tools and systems that drive better outcomes.

‍

At Pinion, they’re selective about who they work with. “There has to be a willingness to change,” Bill says. “We can’t do better or faster work if we’re stuck following the same inefficient steps.”

The Risk of Profit Fade and Why It’s So Dangerous

One of the clearest signs a contractor is headed for trouble? Profit fade.

‍

It starts with early confidence: a job is tracking well, and the team’s optimistic. But by the time it’s 70% complete, the profit margin starts to slip. Costs creep in. Estimates were off. Change orders didn’t get submitted, or they got buried.

‍

Bill described working with a large electrical contractor who kept experiencing this pattern. “All the jobs that were less than 50% complete looked great on paper. But by the end, they consistently missed their target margins.”

‍

The diagnosis? A mix of bad estimates, untimely adjustments, and poor data. Too many builders wait until the job’s over (or until it’s too late) to course-correct. And when a project goes off the rails, the damage doesn’t just show up on the P&L. It eats cash, impacts reputation, and can leave lasting operational wounds.

“They’re making money. But are they making decisions?”

Bill shared a story of driving through the ultra-exclusive Yellowstone Club in Montana, where luxury homes are built by the best of the best. He passed dozens of contractors finishing their day, trucks full of tools and what looked like a day’s worth of earned income.

‍

But as he put it, “I wonder how many of them actually know how much money they’re making.”

‍

Because when the market is hot, it’s easy to feel successful. The danger is that when things slow down, and they always slow down, builders who haven’t been operating with clean data and margin discipline get hit the hardest.

The Builders Who Win

So what separates the companies that grow and scale from the ones that stall? According to Bill, it's not about size. It’s about who works on the business, not just in it.

‍

The most successful builders:

• Take time to reassess their systems and workflows, especially during the offseason
• Invest in tools that improve speed, visibility, and decision-making
• Prioritize weekly transaction tracking and real-time job costing
• Focus on forecasting, not just reconciling the past

Most importantly, they build resilient financial systems that don’t crumble when one thing goes wrong.

‍

“You don’t want to be the builder who finds out you lost $100K six weeks after the job’s done,” Reece adds. “You want to catch that risk while it’s still preventable.”

The Cost of Poor Accounting Isn’t Just Time… It’s Real Money

Reece and Bill touched on a common missed opportunity: tax planning.

‍

Without up-to-date books, many builders scramble in March and April to clean up last year’s mess, long past the point where any strategic moves could have been made.

‍

But with clean financials, contractors can:

• Defer or accelerate income strategically based on tax brackets
• Purchase equipment or hire at the right time
• Reduce their effective tax rate, often by six figures

As Bill put it: “The biggest cost isn’t software. It’s doing nothing. It’s paying people to do average work with outdated systems.”

One Final Piece of Advice

Asked to leave builders with one key takeaway, Bill didn’t hesitate:

“Take some time in Q4 to work on your business. Look at your back office. Ask: are we getting what we need to make confident, tactical decisions? If not, it’s time to change something.”

‍

And if you’re too close to the business to see it clearly? Get outside perspective. “You may have great people in the wrong roles. Or you may need tools that give your team the support they need.”

Want to Avoid Profit Fade and Run a More Reliable Operation?

Bill and the team at Pinion help contractors transform how they handle accounting, tax strategy, and financial planning. You can reach out to them directly at pinionglobal.com.

‍

Or, if you're ready to explore how Adaptive can power your construction accounting with real-time job costing and AI-native workflows, get in touch with us here.

‍