Accounting Systems

A DCAA-compliant accounting system, built to be audited.

Q: Will DCAA approve our system before we bid?

A pre-award survey evaluates whether the system is designed to accumulate cost properly. It does not require operating history, which is why a young company with a well-built system can pass comfortably. See our page on the SF 1408 pre-award survey.

There is no DCAA certification you can buy. There is only a system an auditor examines and finds adequate. We build systems designed for that examination, in QuickBooks or Deltek Costpoint.

Book a compliance review All GovCon services

12 years inside DCAA
100+ DoD contractors audited
CPA led
QuickBooks, Costpoint, SAP & NetSuite
Remote, nationwide

What “DCAA compliant” actually means

DCAA does not certify or approve software. No product is compliant out of the box, and any vendor telling you otherwise is selling you something. What DCAA evaluates is whether your accounting system, as you have configured and documented it, can accumulate and report cost the way federal contracting requires.

The criteria come primarily from DFARS 252.242-7006, Accounting System Administration, and from the pre-award checklist in Standard Form 1408. Together they describe a system that segregates direct from indirect cost, accumulates cost by contract and by task, identifies and excludes unallowable cost, tracks labor by the day it was worked, and produces the reports a contracting officer needs to pay you.

Most small contractors already own software capable of this. What they are missing is the configuration, the written procedures, and the internal controls that turn software into a system. That gap is what we close.

What we build

A compliant system is a set of connected pieces. Missing any one of them is enough to draw a finding.

Chart of accounts and cost structure

A chart of accounts that segregates direct cost, indirect cost pools, and unallowable cost as distinct account ranges rather than as a reporting afterthought. Job and task structure that maps to your contracts and CLINs.

Indirect pools and allocation bases

Fringe, overhead, and G&A pools with defensible allocation bases, structured so that rates are both competitive in pricing and supportable in audit.

Timekeeping and labor distribution

A compliant timekeeping process with daily entry, documented corrections, and supervisor approval, plus the labor distribution that carries those hours into job cost.

Unallowable cost identification

Screening built into the account structure so FAR 31.205 unallowables are segregated as they are incurred, not hunted for at year end.

Billing and revenue processes

Public voucher preparation, provisional rate application, and contract ceiling and funding monitoring so you bill correctly and get paid on time.

Written policies and procedures

The documentation an auditor will ask for on day one. Accounting manual, timekeeping policy, and internal control narratives, written to be handed over rather than reconstructed under pressure.

How the engagement runs

System assessment

We evaluate your current setup against the DFARS criteria and the SF 1408 checklist, and give you a written findings memo identifying every gap and its severity.

Design

We design the chart of accounts, pool structure, and job architecture around your actual contract mix, not a generic template.

Build and migrate

We configure the system, restructure historical data where it is needed for comparability, and reconcile the result.

Document and train

We write the policies and procedures and train the people who will operate the system daily, because an undocumented system fails audit even when the numbers are right.

Ongoing operation

Optionally we run it: monthly close, rate monitoring, billing, and the annual submissions.

Questions

Frequently asked

Can QuickBooks be DCAA compliant?

Yes, for most small and mid-size contractors. QuickBooks Online and Desktop can both be configured to segregate cost properly and support job cost reporting. The usual limits are timekeeping, which generally needs a compliant companion system, and very complex multi-pool rate structures. We will tell you honestly if your structure has outgrown it.

Do we need Deltek Costpoint?

Not usually, and not early. Costpoint is powerful and purpose-built, but it carries real cost and administrative burden. It makes sense at higher contract volume, with multiple segments, or under full CAS coverage. We work in both and have no incentive to sell you software.

How long does an implementation take?

A straightforward QuickBooks build for a small contractor typically runs a few weeks. A pre-award deadline can compress that considerably, and a Costpoint implementation or a mid-year restructure takes longer. Timeline depends most on how clean your existing data is.

Will DCAA approve our system before we bid?

A pre-award survey evaluates whether the system is designed to accumulate cost properly. It does not require operating history, which is why a young company with a well-built system can pass comfortably. See our page on the SF 1408 pre-award survey.

What happens if we already failed a review?

A finding is normally correctable. We work from the actual audit report, address each deficiency specifically, document the corrective action, and prepare you for the follow-up review.