Viewpoint Spectrum reviews

Viewpoint Spectrum works well for our business

Opmerkingen: I highly recommend Viewpoint Spectrum to construction professionals seeking a reliable and efficient software solution. We use it daily for work orders and then billing customers.

Pluspunten:

The software also offers comprehensive project cost management, including budgeting, change order tracking, and subcontractor management, ensuring that all aspects of a project are carefully monitored and controlled.

Minpunten:

It does not integrate well into our other software, ServiceTrade, which runs our inspection and service department.

Great system for small/med company 1-250 employees

Opmerkingen: its been okay, a learning curve but after 3 years we have found ways around the items that we were not able to resolve with viewpoint

Pluspunten:

the ability to export most reports to excel. and the abilitiy to connect with Power BI.

Minpunten:

Payroll. not the best way to run payroll, if an error is made very difficult to resolve. lack of ability to email paystubs.

Viewpoint Spectrum will bankrupt your company

Opmerkingen: I never made it through implementation. Our "consultant" was constantly rescheduling, unavailable, on a trip to some other state. The "project managers" love to schedule useless meetings at a rate of $250 an hour. You will be required to buy "Crystal Reports" to make your own invoice templates or have the consultant do it at $250 an hour. This wasn't disclosed to us. The implementation was extremely difficult. The modules are very hard to use and have way too many features that are not used. Tax deductions in payroll were not correct after several attempts to get them correct. The answer was always to update the payroll deductions file which you also have to do manually. When I asked to end the contract after 2 years even though we signed for 3 because it wasn't working out they said "Too bad" and sent us to collections for a third year of use even though we never even got up and running on the project. A $60 to $80K mistake for our company that is now struggling to make payroll because of it. Highly recommend NOT using Viewpoint Spectrum.

Pluspunten:

Not a Lot. It was hard to use, expensive, hard to implement. Customer service is none existent during implementation and otherwise.

Minpunten:

Expensive, Hard to use, doesn't eliminate other programs because their modules aren't that great in some cases.

More than just an ERP

Opmerkingen: Overall has been very good, far more information available through reports than our previous system. much more expansive in data that can be collected and processed. You can see how projects are doing on a daily basis. Transition from the previous system excellent. Overall very pleased

Pluspunten:

It's a robust system that captures a lot of data in a timely fashion. It can be integrated in real time from sites, although we haven't progressed to that level yet, it is our intention to do so in the future. integrates all accounting functions as well as Payroll, PO's and equipment tracking. AP invoice scanning helps eliminate paper. Built in reports are very good and lots of customizable options as well

Minpunten:

Mostly geared for a General contractor, so some of the functions and reporting takes some work arounds as a subcontract. Our time capture for payroll is with another system which needed some customizing to integrate. Not always intuitive in its structure (voiding cheques in AP or payroll especially a direct deposit). limits to selecting multiple items ie.A/P vendors can only select up to 4 at a time unless you make grouping s or select all.

Pros and Cons

Opmerkingen: Rough beginning, but we learned a lot and still are learning. It is a detailed system that requires dedication to learn and to use. If you don't plan to spend enough time and resources to roll it out, it's going to be a difficult time. However, the more we learned about it the more we liked it. It will do what you tell it, but you have to learn how to do that. Definitely challenging, but stay the course and commit to constant improvement and you will be successful.

Pluspunten:

Spectrum really does a great job tracking job costs, and when the system is used properly does anything we need it to and then some in relation to jobs. Helps us organize everything and has some great job cost reports built in. Also appreciate the ease of importing data.

Minpunten:

Crystal reports are not ideal, no easy flexibility with report editing, bare minimum financial reports included, clunky processes to post transactions to GL and antiquated feeling user interface. And it's a small thing, but there are several fields that are way too short. Probably a fourth of our vendors have names that don't completely print on the checks. Also don't like the CONSTANT push to purchase add on products.

Spectrum Review for Electrical Contractors

Opmerkingen: Spectrum has treated us well so far. However the migration and implementation was a terrible experience.

Pluspunten:

Large upgrade from Procontractor, but I liked the functionality or workflow of Procontractor better.

Minpunten:

How each module is separate from the general ledger, becomes a pain!

New Spectrum User

Opmerkingen: We are still developing our processes as we are still a relatively new user, but overall we have had a very good experience with Spectrum.

Pluspunten:

The software was relatively easy to implement and start using after going live. There are numerous canned reports that are very helpful and it is also easy to navigate the database when creating custom reports.

Minpunten:

The cost projection entry screen desperately needs to be updated. It was so cumbersome to use that we had to hire an outside consultant to build us an Excel template that interfaced with the system. Also, we allocate overhead based on a rate per manhour and this turned out to be a manual weekly process (our old software actually did this automatically).

Review

Opmerkingen: looking back it wasnt what was best for our company, and would have not purchased it

Pluspunten:

from accounting side, its really nice reporting structure

Minpunten:

cannot customize it for our specific use.training provided was very inadequate,felt like you were all in until it was sold, then felt left out

Viewpoint Spectrum is very functional

Opmerkingen: We are still implementing it but it seems to have all the features we need to operate more efficiently and to move off of some of our spreadsheets.

Pluspunten:

I love that we can have project managers approve invoices digitally, easier to keep track of what's out there. I also love that subcontracts and bid schedules can be uploaded to Spectrum and you can bill off of them, makes it easier to make sure pricing is accurate.

Minpunten:

I don't love how difficult it is to move costs to different jobs. Maybe I just need to play around with it more, but I wish it was easier to adjust.

Spectrum Review

Pluspunten:

Spectrum fit for us as we had outgrown Quickbooks. I love the document imaging and the cloud-based usage.

Minpunten:

You need to be well versed in Crystal reports to create any custom report = more money. Spectrum does not seem to review suggested features that users need despite having a place to put that.

spectrum review

Pluspunten:

Security and I like the TC1 addition to Spectrum

Minpunten:

The reports are hard to customize and not easy to read

Viewpoint Spectrum Assessment

Opmerkingen: Overall we have very few problems and almost no downtime. Our employees can access the system from any internet connection which has saved us during hurricanes, covid and such. We have never missed a payroll even during those times. It is easy to use and our employees are able to get their jobs done as needed relatively efficiently. It has open APis for pushing data in and pulling data out. They are focused on improvements to make the overall job of construction from the field, PM level and back office better and run more efficiently.

Pluspunten:

The product is mostly user friendly so it's easy to train new employees. single entry that feeds all the pertinent modules is key. The linking of the documents to transactions and then being able to see them throughout the modules is awesome and has saved time in the support functions to not have to pull copies of documents for others that need to see it. Also, the menu that allows you to jump from one thing to another on the same project without having to reselect the project number in a new screen is great. The ability to setup template views for inquiry screens and reports is nice as well for having consistency throughout the company. They are also very end user oriented. There are advisory boards to discuss possible changes to the system that allow users to give feedback. They have a campaign now where they are having meetings with clients to discuss new programming possibilities and get feedback on proposed look and feel. They initiate surveys, have an enhancement request panel and have a on-line network environment where customers can pose questions to others using the product for help and ideas.

Minpunten:

There is no option to post in detail to the GL in some of the modules and some transactions, even though coded to a job, do not show the job number on the GL side. The job cost transactions do not show the GL codes on the transactions. Therefore, it can be difficult at time to reconcile things between the job and GL. Also, even though the JC transactions pushes to the T&M module, there is not a direct unique link between the two so trying to create reports that have the cost and revenue associated can be tricky and is not always exact. There is an issue between how committed cost is handle for the purchase orders versus the subcontracts that can cause you reports to be out so you really have to understand this when viewing the job cost reports. Would like the ability for security to be able to have some more granular controls on what users are allowed to see. For example, you may want to allow the purchasing agent to run job cost reports to check non-labor activity but you do not want them to be able to see any labor costs. You can't do that right now. So then you have to create custom reports to separate the cost types and give them access to only those custom reports. Overall security needs to be revamped to a more true role based model. It can be challenging in setting users for rights within a module and keep segregation of duties in place.

Opmerkingen: Our business has two divisions - Commercial Construction and Service Maintenance. We’re based in Pennsylvania and have been operating for about 28 years. The computer system we had been using prior to switching to Dexter + Chaney was outdated for our uses. After carefully reviewing all the options, Dexter + Chaney was high on our list. One of the main functions we were looking for was something that would tie together both divisions of our company. We liked what the sales team told us about the software, and it seemed to better suit our needs than the system we had. We were told it had modules that would make it possible to tie in both of our divisions, with great customer support, reports that were easy to use, and to meet all of our needs, etc. We started with Dexter + Chaney in 2005 (about 8 years ago), having high hopes that Spectrum (or Forefront as it was called at that point) could perform all the functions we were looking for, and more. We spent several months preparing for the change over/familiarizing ourselves with the screens/and inputting information. Every Vendor/Employee/Client had to be reentered manually, which was very monotonous, but relatively simple. Some of the modules were similar to the program we had used prior, but others were more difficult and required calls to support. It took us several months to feel comfortable using Forefront, and probably a year+ until we felt like we really had a decent grasp of it. Since we’re a smaller business, we have the ability to notice problems with reports/programs more easily than a company with hundreds of employees. After we went live with Dexter Chaney we came across several issues, but attributed most of them to new user errors. As we have become more and more confidence with Spectrum, we have found several major bugs in the system that were unknown to Dexter + Chaney, or they had thought were resolved. On a few of these occasions, we had to really push for them to investigate and resolve the issues. One of the biggest problems we’ve seen is that the new Versions seem to be released before they are thoroughly checked, and there are repeat problems.

We have received some good, and some lacking, customer support. There are several really knowledgeable reps who have helped us through our problems quickly. We have also spoken to other reps and management in support that have been very difficult, ignoring our concerns and refusing to listen or respond to our calls/emails. At one point, we were not getting updates on a problem and logged onto their website to see if anything new was posted for our issue. We didn’t get an answer, but instead found a string of emails they had accidentally posted, making it clear that our problem wasn’t being taken seriously on their end. Something as simple as calling in to support has proven to be a hassle since Dexter + Chaney only allows 3 people on the contact list, and we have 6 regular users.

Some of the programs cannot be used to the full extent of what they are shown. Example: Payroll is set up so you can do multiple check sequences in one pay run for an employee. The problem is that it’s not set up to calculate the correct taxes/deductions if you do this. If they are paying a tax/deduction that reaches the limit in the first check, it will also be taken out of the second check, and there’s a possibility for the reports to be wrong. We purchased the Infolink module a few years ago to help us write reports in Excel using Database Query. We were told by the sales team that it would be easy to use and we could create reports with the exact information we wanted. The training we received on it barely covered the basics. It’s far from easy to use, and many of the reports that come up cannot pull the requested information. Overall, I would say Dexter Chaney is average at best. We are able to use Spectrum for most functions, but not as easily as we were promised. Support in general is lacking, as is our confidence in the product any time there is an upgrade. It’s not as good as we were led to believe.

Solid product across the board

Pluspunten:

I find it easy to navigate through, most options are intuitive and easy to figure out, problems are easy to trouble shoot as far as reconciling and researching transactions.

Minpunten:

I wish report customization was available to the average user, not just to those trained in Crystal report writing, or for hire at prices that make it unattractive. The data is all there at the fingertips, its frustrating to not be able to pull down exactly what you want. That being said, there are a lot of canned reports available, they've done a fairly decent job of anticipating most needs, especially in the payroll area with work comp and payroll tax reports. I also would like to see payroll tax reports available to print/file out of Spectrum.

Spectrum Review

Opmerkingen: Visibility of job cost and the detailed reports have helped to simplify the reporting. Tracking contracts and change requests are important to us and are easy to do. Payroll processing time has been reduced and AP is so much better now that the invoices are routed. Automated purchase orders are now possible too.

Pluspunten:

The job costing module is valuable to us for tracking the real time cost of our projects. I like the interactive menus that change depending on what features are being used. We are able to have custom reports designed.

Minpunten:

I have no comments to add here, its a good program.

Great product has some flaws but nothing we were not able to work around.

Opmerkingen: It's been a great product that we've used for the last 9 years.

Pluspunten:

The way that as technology changes they system is updated to match.

Minpunten:

Vacation accrual system is not what I'd like it to be. I have to do my own spreadsheet to get it to work properly.

Like the Product Overall but Needs Help

Opmerkingen: Yet to be seen but we have not lost hope. We however need quality help from Spectrum.

Pluspunten:

It works for subcontractors that bid Lump Sum and have complexity in their work. Contractors such as electrical, hvac and suppliers and installers of structural and miscellaneous steel require better accounting than many other subcontractors.

Minpunten:

Initial Implementation and training has been poor and very frustrating. There have been some good experiences but overall it has been negative and not productive experiences. We own other Trimble products but no one seems to know anything about the other products Trimble sells and we own. We changes to Spectrum for it was supposed to work better than our former accounting system, Computer Ease, but that switch over has not produced the promised results.

Foundation Constructors, Inc. Review

Opmerkingen: Our initial set up did not go smoothly at all and we were very unhappy. Once we got things set up correctly for our use, we really like it. We are familiar with the data entry, reporting and more advanced options now and it works great for us! Now that we are set up and have some custom reports, things are good!

Pluspunten:

Once things were set up properly for us, it is fairly easy to use. Running reports is easy and the job costing works well for us.

Minpunten:

Customer service is terrible! Response time is slow and the help feature doesn't provide much guidance. I used the help feature more often in the past but, after one of the recent updates, it doesn't help me much at all. The other "Con" would be custom reports. We were surprised by how many reports we needed to customize for every day information.

Lacks everything we need

Pluspunten:

Easy to learn, but tutorials and 'Help' are of little actual help.

Minpunten:

Inability to customize reports. To do so, you must purchase Crystal Reports - which then won't correctly connect. Availability of Employee Kiosk is touted, but when we looked into it, were told it isn't available for Spectrum. Navigating Customer support is cumbersome.

Long-Time user - Honest Review

Opmerkingen: Overall over the past 11 years of using Spectrum the program has done the job and what we needed it to. The support has went downhill from where it started (Dexter+Chaney, Viewpoint, Trimble). Their focus should be on customer support, upgrades to existing program, then add-ons. It seems like there focus is in the reverse order.

Pluspunten:

Spectrum has robust features that work together well. Many of the features could use some updates to make the ease of use better. Some of the additional "pay" features should be offered in the baseline.

Minpunten:

The biggest con is all new features seem to be put with add-on products and the customer support is awful. We wait weeks for solutions. Any of the paid training for us has been train the trainer and the time could be cut in half. Most users wanting training for a feature that hasn't been used usually knows the basics of the program.

BSM Review

Pluspunten:

Accounts Payable module, Accounts Receivble module

Minpunten:

Reporting, drill down options to review jobs, accounts receivable credit limit notification, contract status report not reconciling to billed revenue.

Viewpoint Spectrum

Opmerkingen: The job costing and reporting features are much better than the software we used prior.

Pluspunten:

I like the help feature the most. If I get stuck on anything, I know I can use the help feature and find my answer.

Minpunten:

It could be a little more user friendly. When we first started using Spectrum, we struggled with learning how to operate it.

Spectrum is not a great solution.

Opmerkingen: I haven't solved any problems with Spectrum, only created them. My life will be harder and my job will be more difficult. Anytime I've asked to incorporate a feature, I've been told it can't be done and it's up to us to adjust our processes.

Pluspunten:

Our accounting department likes Viewpoint Spectrum. They like the all-in-one job cost integration it provides.

Minpunten:

Coming from the Operations side of the business, managing contracts and change orders, Spectrum makes everything more complicated than our previous system. Everything requires completing multiple screens and moving through multiple sections. I find there is no all-in-one capability. I can't even see PO's and sub-contracts on the same screen so my PM's don't see their total job commitment at a glance. I also can't get original and revised sub contract amts for the job on one screen.

Spectrum has good points and some not so good.

Opmerkingen: Some functionality has really improved over the years yet some has remained stagnant. We have 2 sisters companies in the construction business and 1 sister company that is a steel pipe distributor. Making construction software work for a steel pipe business has been a challenge. We have made it work, but would like to see more focus on OP and IC modules. The GL module needs some critical improvements, too.

Pluspunten:

All one package makes workflow easier. We could get this from any number of alternate software providers. What we like about Spectrum is the depth of it's functionality/capabilities.

Minpunten:

Some of the modules are very antiquated and need serious updates.

Spectrum is an effective and comprehensive Software for Job/Work Order Tracking

Opmerkingen: I have been learning about the Job module and it seems to be a very comprehensive system. I think there is a lot more that a Company could do with the various options within the module and then the analysis via reporting.

Pluspunten:

There are so many features that still need to be integrated into the user experience. The Webinar was extremely useful as I learned and advised the AP department of the function for the Automatic importing of invoices. The Banking and cash management is very straightforward and clearcut. I like how the modules are arranged and how they can be made favorites which makes my job more efficient.

Minpunten:

1) sending PR to multiple bank accounts within a company needs to be posted to Suspense and then journaled into the correct bank account - I'm not sure why that is.2) I wish the "favorites" actually reflected the "original path" of the favorited item (in the menu to the left). Sometimes when teaching someone else, it's hard to remember the original path.