From ERP Transition Anxiety to Optimized Workflows and Team Confidence
The engagement concluded with optimized workflows, eliminated redundancies, clearly defined roles, and a comprehensive Training Manual — transforming what could have been a disruptive software migration into a catalyst for company-wide operational improvement.
CLIENT
Thayer-Bray Construction (TBC) is a general contracting and development company serving the greater Columbus, GA area since 1968. In addition to residential and commercial construction and renovation, they manage residential apartment buildings across five cities. Annual revenue exceeds $15M.
CHALLENGE
TBC was transitioning to a new ERP platform and needed to optimize their processes across Accounting, Operations, Project Management, and Field Operations to align with the new software — while maintaining business continuity and team confidence through the change.
RESULTS
Ascent delivered optimized workflows across all departments, eliminated redundant processes, reduced manual data entry, created detailed roles and responsibilities, and built a comprehensive Training Manual with step-by-step Quick Reference Guides — enabling a smooth ERP transition with full team adoption.
Your ERP migration should be a catalyst for improvement — not just a technology swap.
The Ascent Difference
We turned a potentially disruptive ERP migration into an opportunity to optimize every department — delivering workflows, roles, and a Training Manual that made the transition feel easy.
Thayer-Bray Construction has been a Columbus, GA institution for over half a century. With deep roots in both construction and property management, the company had built its operations around familiar tools and processes that worked — until they didn’t scale. The decision to migrate to a new ERP was the right one, but software transitions in construction companies are notoriously disruptive.
Controller Katie White and the TBC leadership team understood that swapping software without addressing underlying workflows would just digitize existing inefficiencies. They needed a partner who could use the migration as a catalyst — optimizing processes, clarifying roles, and ensuring the team was confident in both the new tools and the new ways of working.
Ascent engaged through department-level workshops, process optimization, and comprehensive documentation. Our engagement included:
- Department-by-department workshops: Accounting, Operations, Project Management, Field Operations
- Workflow optimization aligned with new ERP capabilities
- Redundant process elimination and manual data entry reduction
- Job narratives and role descriptions developed collaboratively with TBC team
- Training and support through software migration and adoption
- Deliverable: Operations and Training Manual with step-by-step Quick Reference Guides
“Ascent’s ability to synthesize our processes with our new software enabled us to walk through the transition with relative ease.”
— Katie White
Controller, Thayer-Bray Construction
Thayer-Bray’s ERP transition wasn’t just a technology swap — it was an operational transformation. Optimized workflows improved efficiency across every department. Redundant processes were eliminated. Manual data entry was reduced. And clearly defined roles gave every team member clarity on their responsibilities and how their work connects to the company’s success.
The Training Manual — with step-by-step Quick Reference Guides for the new ERP — continues to serve as both an onboarding tool and a daily reference, ensuring consistency as the company grows and brings on new team members.
For construction companies undergoing ERP migrations, the biggest risk isn’t the technology — it’s the change management. The firms that emerge stronger from a software transition are the ones that use it as an opportunity to optimize, not just migrate. If you’re going to disrupt your team’s daily workflows, you might as well make sure the new ones are better than the old ones.
Planning a technology transition?
If your construction company is migrating to a new ERP or software platform and you want the transition to be a catalyst for operational improvement, let’s talk about how Ascent makes that happen.