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May/June 2008
Software Genie
CTS service helps shoppers select the right project software
By Debra Wood
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| CTS compares the features offered by
various construction software products. |
ood technology can improve productivity, but finding the right software can take hours of sifting through sales literature and listening to vendors pitch their products. The CTS screening and referral service can streamline the process for construction firms.
When Jerry McHugh, chief information officer at Mac Construction & Excavating, New Albany, Ind., decided to upgrade the company’s bookkeeping and job-cost software, he knew he wanted a program that integrated project management with accounting on a Microsoft-based platform. But tracking down the right one meant sorting through a range of options. “The service is helpful for separating the grain from the chaff,” McHugh says. “Using [CTS] comparisons and information, I was able to rule out several providers.”
CTS offers free software reviews and ratings at CTSGuides.com. Registering at the Web site allows access to a construction software selection kit. A white paper, eReports, software ratings, vendor pricing, support comparison charts and detailed product reviews can all be read online. To reference the site more than once without registering again, users can simply download the entire kit.
“It saves an enormous amount of time. Half the time, software is sold as opposed to bought. People don’t know the steps and processes to follow. They are at the vendors’ mercy...it’s extremely haphazard.”
— CTS Founder Sheldon Needle |
The service includes a 10-minute telephone consult with CTS founder Sheldon Needle, who after discussing the company’s needs, will recommend three or four vendors he thinks would provide the best fit within the discussed budget. “It saves an enormous amount of time,” Needle says. “Half of the time, software is sold as opposed to bought. People don’t know the steps and processes to follow. It’s extremely haphazard. Frankly, there are a lot of failures when people are buying software.”
Needle has evaluated construction software since 1986 when he was selling his research to consultants and end users. He later switched to the Web-based model. He says 21,000 large and small general contractors, design-build firms, subcontractors, highway contractors and others in the industry have called on his expertise to narrow the field of vendors. “It’s not so much about choosing the one that is the best, but he provides the benefit of not wasting time with vendors that would not meet the need,” McHugh says.
One important note: Vendors pay CTS an annual fee to be included in the referral network and obtain names of qualified potential purchasers, but CTS does not receive a commission or per-lead fee. Therefore, Needle says he has no incentive to refer one product over another.
A close relationship with the vendors allows Needle access to vendor product managers, whom he can ask about a prospect’s specific needs, such as multistate reporting of sales tax. He stays up to date with upgrades and new releases. “I never tell them what to buy, but I will give them the trade-offs and a frame of reference to help make the decision,” Needle says.
McHugh selected a new software system, but it is not yet operational. He says he was pleased with the research process and glad he contacted CTS. “I didn’t pay anything for it, so that’s always good. It was helpful,” he says.
CTS Inc.
6108 Stonehenge Place
Rockville, MD 20852
800-433-8015
www.ctsguides.com
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