Cash Flow Management with Workday Adaptive Planning | Ep. 8

Emma

Hey everyone, welcome back to FP&A Done Right! I'm Emma, and as always, I'm joined by the one and only Ethan.

Unknown Speaker

Hey Emma, great to be here. So, today we're diving into a topic that, honestly, gives a lot of finance folks in construction some serious heartburn—cash flow management.

Emma

Yeah, it's like, the lifeblood of any business, but in construction? It's a whole different beast. I mean, you get that big project win, everyone’s celebrating, but then—bam!—you’re hit with these massive upfront costs for labor and materials. And you’re often relying on project-specific bank loans, which, let’s be real, come with their own headaches.

Unknown Speaker

Totally. And those costs? They’re never fixed. Material prices, labor rates—they’re all over the place lately. Plus, you’ve got material delays, and suddenly your budget and timeline are just... out the window. Poof. Gone.

Emma

And it’s not just one project at a time, right? Construction companies are juggling, like, five, ten projects, all at different stages, each with its own cash flow quirks. It’s a constant balancing act, trying to keep enough liquidity to pay your bills while you’re waiting for those milestone payments to come in.

Unknown Speaker

Exactly. It’s this perfect storm of front-loaded expenses, unpredictable costs, and those infamous payment lags. It makes it so hard to get a real sense of your financial health—sometimes you can’t even see the forest for the trees.

Emma

And you know, this reminds me of a project-based business I consulted for a while back. They were always scrambling, trying to figure out if they could take on a new job or if they’d have enough cash to cover payroll. Their spreadsheets were a mess, and every decision felt like a gamble. It’s stressful! And honestly, a lot of construction companies are in that same boat.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, making confident decisions becomes a risky game. So, with all that in mind, let’s get into the meat of today’s episode—a real-life case study of how one homebuilder tackled these exact challenges.

Unknown Speaker

Alright, so let’s talk about this Pennsylvania-based custom homebuilder. They build these gorgeous homes across several counties, but they were facing all the cash flow headaches we just talked about—variable costs, material delays, juggling multiple projects, you name it.

Emma

And they weren’t starting from scratch, right? They already had Mark Systems HomeBuilder software, which is pretty standard in the industry. It was great for managing projects, but when it came to cash flow insights? Not so much.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, so what did they do? Spreadsheets. Lots and lots of spreadsheets. Manual data entry, exporting, importing—just a ton of time spent, and it was so easy for errors to creep in. Plus, they never had that real-time visibility they needed to make smart calls.

Emma

So that’s where Revelwood and Workday Adaptive Planning came in. But they didn’t just slap new software on top of the old stuff. Revelwood actually integrated Workday Adaptive Planning with Mark Systems, so all the financial data flowed into one place. No more data silos, just a unified financial hub.

Unknown Speaker

And it wasn’t just about the tech. Revelwood really took the time to understand the company’s pain points and processes. They mapped out all the data fields, made sure the migration was clean—no missing info, no corrupted data. That’s huge, because if you mess up the data foundation, the whole thing falls apart.

Emma

And then there’s the people side. They didn’t just hand over the system and say, “Good luck!” They trained the finance team, made sure everyone felt comfortable using Workday Adaptive Planning. That hands-on approach really helped build confidence and buy-in.

Emma

But, of course, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Implementing new tech always comes with bumps in the road. Data migration is one thing, but then you’ve got the human side—getting everyone on board, changing old habits, and making sure the system actually fits the way construction companies work.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, and construction has some really unique reporting needs. Revelwood didn’t just stick with out-of-the-box reports—they worked with the company to build custom dashboards and reports, so the team could slice and dice the data however they needed. And they even integrated those complex bank draw schedules right into the cash flow model, so everything was in one place.

Emma

That’s the thing—a good partner doesn’t just set up the software and walk away. Revelwood really listened, understood the industry, and stuck around to make sure the solution worked for the long haul. That kind of expertise is priceless, especially when you’re dealing with construction’s unique challenges.

Unknown Speaker

And you know, there was this one moment that really stood out for the homebuilder. They were able to confidently take on a big, risky new project—something they would’ve hesitated to do before, just because they didn’t have the cash flow clarity. But now, with real-time insights and forecasting, they could see exactly how it would impact their finances and make smart, strategic moves. That’s a huge shift.

Emma

Yeah, it’s not just about crunching numbers—it’s about transforming the whole business. And for anyone listening who’s feeling overwhelmed by cash flow challenges, just know: it is possible to get that clarity and control, even in a complex industry like construction. The right tools and the right partner make all the difference.

Unknown Speaker