How Alair’s Accounting Team Helps Builders Focus on Growth

Leading that team is Mandeep Randhawa, Director of Accounting Services at Alair. Before joining Alair, Randhawa spent her accounting career in public practice, working closely with entrepreneurs and small business owners across a variety of industries. While the transition to an in-house leadership role was a significant change, she says the culture at Alair stands apart. 

“There’s a strong culture of transparency, which creates an increased level of trust,” says Randhawa. “I also love the opportunity to collaborate with other departments that support our franchise locations. I get to work alongside teams in marketing, information services and performance, all working toward the same goal.” 

That collaborative approach extends to the way Alair supports its builders. 

Helping Builders Become Better Business Owners 

Through her years of experience working with entrepreneurs, Randhawa has observed a common challenge: business owners are often experts in their trade but most don’t have formal training in financial management.  

“Builders are excellent at construction, but not all have had formal training in financial management,” she explains. “They often need assistance and guidance with understanding profitability, forecasting, transparency and the details behind their finances.” 

Without strong financial systems in place, business owners can find themselves making reactive decisions rather than proactive ones. Randhawa says common challenges she sees are the struggle to access accurate financial information quickly enough to make informed decisions; delayed recognition of job costs; inaccurate revenue recognition; and an over-reliance on bank balances rather than project-based cash flow analysis.  

She adds that without clear visibility into the financial health of individual projects, forecasting and strategic planning become significantly more difficult. 

The Power of a Centralized Accounting System 

One of the key differentiators within the Alair model is its centralized accounting structure. 
Unlike many independent builders who manage accounting internally or rely on outside bookkeeping help, Alair provides franchise locations with dedicated accounting teams. 

“Alair’s accounting structure is centralized, standardized and highly collaborative,” says Randhawa. “It ensures consistency across all franchise offices while still allowing each location to focus on running projects and serving their clients.” 

This consistency creates significant advantages across the network. With every office speaking the same financial language, partners can more easily support one another, compare performance and share best practices. It also creates valuable benchmarking opportunities that are often difficult to achieve in the construction industry. 

Creating a Foundation for Growth 

For builders looking to scale their businesses, strong financial systems become increasingly important. Randhawa believes one of the greatest benefits of Alair’s accounting structure is that it frees builders to focus on growth rather than administrative complexity. 

That support extends far beyond traditional bookkeeping. Every Alair location is assigned a dedicated Accounting Services team consisting of a Controller, Accounting Supervisor and Accounting Administrator. Across the network, the team includes seven Controllers, eight Accounting Supervisors and six Accounting Administrators. with dedicated support for both Canadian and U.S. operations. Each Canadian and US team is also supported and managed by an Associate Director.

Every Controller is CPA-designated and brings experience working with multiple Alair offices, allowing them to draw on insights and best practices from across the network. 

“The Alair system provides access to an incomparable level of experience in the industry,” says Randhawa.  “And, we can scale up and down with each unit, which allows their accounting costs to reflect exactly what is needed at any point in time.”  

More Than Just Bookkeeping 

“A common misconception is that accounting is just bookkeeping,” she says. “In reality, everything we provide at Alair is a strategic function that drives decision-making and profitability.” 

The Accounting Services team provides detailed insights into project performance, cost controls, resource utilization and overall business health. These insights help partners make informed decisions based on real data rather than instinct alone.