BUILDER
Magazine
August 2005
Microsoft
Moves In
The software
giant aims to make its new Solomon accounting
system a player in the home building
market.
By Steve
Zurier
THE CONVENTIONAL WISDOM FOR YEARS WAS that Microsoft
Corp. owned the desktop and not much else. But builders
evaluating new Microsoft products should keep in mind
that the company has a way of staking its claim, sticking
it out, and dominating niche markets over the long
haul.
Microsoft was late in adjusting
to the Web explosion in the 1990s, and few people ever
thought it could beat Netscape, but Internet Explorer
is now the dominant browser by far. Microsoft has also
had great success in taking on Oracle with its SQL
Server database software. Outlook Express is the most
popular e-mail software. Numerous builders use Microsoft
Project. And the Redmond, Wash.–based company
is fighting it out with Sony and other giants in the
consumer electronics world with Xbox and Windows Media
Center.
So why couldn't Microsoft deliver
an information technology solution for the home building
industry if the company decided to put its multibillion-dollar
reputation and marketing clout behind a product?
The answer is, it can, and it will—but it will
take time.
Slowly and deliberately, and until
now with little publicity, home builders are starting
to install Microsoft's Solomon accounting system with
either custom sales and warranty systems or Rockville,
Md.–based BuildTopia's Web-based construction
management system. Solomon partner Cardamel Consulting,
a home building technology consultancy with offices
in Phoenix and Denver that focuses on home building,
has rolled out the first Solomon systems in the market.
Eric de Jager, Microsoft's director
of product management for Solomon, says construction
and home building are one of 14 niche vertical markets
the company has targeted for the accounting software—others
include automotive, high-tech electronics, and the
food and beverage industry. De Jager says Microsoft
is looking for home building companies that build at
least 100 homes. “We're best suited for mid-sized
and larger builders,” he notes.
What do some of the early adopters
think?
“Solomon has some bugs, but
Microsoft has been quick to respond,” says Marianne
Cathey, CFO of Covenant Development in San Bernardino,
Calif. “There are some enhancements that need
to be done, and I'm confident they will make the changes,” she
says.
First on the list is making it possible
for a construction manager or super to view whether
a bill is paid. At press time, BuildTopia could talk
to Solomon, but Solomon could not talk to BuildTopia,
says Cathey.
Another fix Cathey recommends is
improving Solomon's search capabilities. “If
I want to look up the status of a purchase order, I
have to run a report,”
she says, adding that many of her concerns as an early
adopter will be addressed once Build-Topia's BT Accounting
is installed and tested at Covenant Development over
the next several months.
Karen Hanna, CFO of Moser Builders
in Berwyn, Pa., says one immediate benefit of running
Solomon is that it lets the company roll up subaccounts
from separate limited liability corporations into a
single general ledger. This lets Moser write one check
to trading partners and subs.
“In the past, I would have
to write seven separate checks for each subdivision,” says
Hanna, who adds that Moser started running Solomon
with BuildTopia on May 1. “Now, I can write a
single check to one vendor for several separate developments,” she
says.
For more information on Solomon
and how it applies to home building, visit www.cardamel.com.
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