What Does Implementing FOUNDATION® Look Like? What to Expect With Training

Download PDF

As most contractors will tell you, in order to build something that will last, you have to take your time with the details. Implementing FOUNDATION is no different. We’re invested in your success, and we’ve found that the more attention we give together to your building a database and learning the system, the more likely you’ll enjoy that success for years to come.

We want to make sure your system is set up with your preferences and your business needs in mind. So we’ve designed our training program to allow you to customize the building blocks of your system over 8-16 weeks, with a dedicated trainer to guide you through the whole process.

Phase 1: Planning

Following installation, we schedule a planning session for you to meet your trainer and for your trainer to meet your business. Your trainer will also take you through an overview of FOUNDATION’s structure and the learning process. To help you set up the options that work best for you, the first phase will focus on:

• Understanding how your company operates and what it needs
• Defining each user’s role in the software
• What to expect from the implementation process

Phase 2: Maintenance Items & the Accounting / Project Management Framework

Next, your trainer will help you set up the maintenance items that form the basis for your future transactions and help you route those transactions to your G/L so you can see how you will be able to view your data.

Your maintenance items are essentially the building blocks of FOUNDATION. Setting them up is one of the most important components of your new system. The basic process looks like this:

Items that your trainer will work with you on include:

Phase 3: Practicing Daily Transactions

You’ll learn the daily functions of the software and have guided experience in a practice database, including:

• the process and flow of entering timecards, invoices, billings, change orders and project documents
• receiving and making payments
• and other daily items you’ll need to run your business

Practicing these functions — especially on your own — will help to make your transition easier by increasing your familiarity with the system. It will also allow you and your trainer to test your system setup, view reports and see your database in action.

Phase 4: Going Live

By this point, you’ll be ready and feeling confident to take your system “live.” In FOUNDATION, “going live” is divided into two parts:

Phase 5: Settling in & Review

Once you’re live in FOUNDATION your trainer’s final task is to help you settle into the day-to-day and ensure you understand the system. During this phase, training time is mostly self-guided. You’ll be encouraged to ask questions about anything that arose since going live. We’ll also discuss ideas and processes that may make the software easier to use.

You’ll also learn more about reporting structures and reconciling accounts, as well as covering issues that may have been missed or need to be reviewed.

Finally, the Wrap-up Meeting

The last session will be similar to your planning meeting — we want to check in! Recognizing that your business is unique, we’ll do a final review of your setup and your experience to make extra sure we’ve set you on the best path to success as you define it.

We’ll also get you ready to begin using our support department, which will be ready to help you troubleshoot your transactions, maintenance and reports and continue to build up your understanding of the system as needed. Once you graduate from training, you’ll always have us just a phone call away!