Clear Reporting and Job Tracking that Actually Works

A Canterbury-based trades business was struggling to understand whether their jobs were actually profitable. Invoices were going out, but costs were not always coded to the right jobs, and reporting was limited to a basic profit and loss. The owners often felt like they were “flying blind” — not knowing where their money was going or which projects were worth their time.

Beyond Accounts restructured their Xero to capture job-by-job information. This included setting up tracking categories for each site/project, ensuring materials, subcontractor costs, and payroll were coded against the correct jobs, and building customised reports in Xero to show profitability by job and by client. We also scheduled monthly reporting packs so management had regular visibility, not just year-end surprises.

The impact was immediate. For the first time, the owners could see exactly which jobs were profitable and which ones were draining resources. They identified projects where costs consistently blew out, adjusted quoting to reflect reality, and dropped unprofitable work. Cashflow stabilised because invoices were matched to costs correctly, and they could confidently tender for larger contracts knowing the numbers stacked up.