As I have mentioned on my website, Deltek is the leader in government contract accounting systems. However, for the most part Deltek has not been very attainable for most small businesses. As a result most small businesses have been limited to Quick Books. As I mention on this website, Quick Books can be made DCAA and FAR compliant. This involves some add-ons and other work arounds. I do this rather often for small business clients. Deltek apparently has now developed an alternative that may be reachable by some small businesses. I feel the need to let the small business community know about this capability. It is called Deltek Essentials. I have not experienced this new Deltek product so I cannot comment on how well it will work for small business. The price tag is greater than any Quick Books solution; however, it is within reach of some small businesses. My first reaction to Essentials is whether the typical small business would have the adequate resources to run it and manage it. Or is this a tail wagging the dog thing. That would be my number one question. There is no doubt it will exceed the FAR and DCAA accounting system requirements as the Deltek technology has always been a leader. Deltek has always been an excellent technology for government contract accounting systems; actually it is no. 1 in the industry. JAMIS is right there as well. It has a lot of advantages over Quick Books. Assuming government contract accounting expertise is not required to run and manage it, and additional accounting resources are not required either, then I believe it will be a good solution for small businesses. This new Deltek product is certainly worth investigating. If I get the chance to see Essentials in action I will certainly comment on its viability for small business. At this point, it sounds like an alternative worth investigating.
