Asterion helps commercial and specialty contractors examine estimating, extra-work, approval and billing handoffs around the software they already use, then choose configuration, a supported connection or a bounded build only where a documented gap remains.
WHO THIS IS FOR
For an owner, operations lead or estimator who wants the next handoff to be inspectable.
This selected workflow page is for commercial and specialty contractors who want to trace one repeated office-to-field or field-to-billing handoff before choosing a technical response. It is a relevant context, not an exclusive industry boundary or an eligibility requirement.
START WITH A REAL QUESTION
Where does a permitted piece of information become unclear, duplicated or unassigned?
Bring one normal case and one exception. We separate what the current system already does from what still needs a process decision, supported connection or bounded build.
NOT A CONTRACT OR PAYMENT OPINION
This page does not determine scope entitlement, lien rights, customer acceptance, tax, retainage, payment timing or legal compliance. Those facts belong to the signed agreement and the accountable professional.
THREE HANDOFFS TO TRACE
Follow the trigger, evidence, owner and exception.
These are workflow patterns to examine, not a claim that every contractor has the same systems or gap.
01 / ESTIMATE TO JOB
Estimate, award and job setup
Starts when: an opportunity becomes an estimate, bid revision or awarded job.
Information needed: project and customer identifiers, scope revision, estimate assumptions, job or cost-code structure and the requested date.
People and approval: an estimator or project manager prepares it; the person with commercial authority accepts the scope and terms.
Output: a recorded estimate or job setup that the delivery team can see; it is not proof of a signed contract or funding.
WHEN EVIDENCE IS MISSING
a drawing revision has no owner
customer or cost-code identifiers disagree
a bid is treated as accepted before written approval
the existing project tool already handles the case
02 / EXTRA WORK
Field request to billing review
Starts when: a field note, site condition or customer request changes the work after the original scope.
Information needed: the request, affected location, scope revision, photos or completion note, authorization evidence and the pricing basis used by the contractor.
People and approval: a foreman or project lead records the request; an accountable owner or contract administrator reviews authority and scope before billing review.
Output: a reviewable packet with a named reviewer and a status. Billing readiness is an internal handoff, not an invoice or a contractual right to payment.
WHEN EVIDENCE IS MISSING
the note is only verbal
photos or completion evidence are missing
the customer has not authorized the change
an approved scope changes and must be reviewed again
03 / JOB COST TO INVOICE
Time, material and job-cost handoff
Starts when: a time entry, purchase, subcontractor cost or approved scope reaches the accounting or billing queue.
Information needed: job and cost-code identifiers, source record, quantity or hours, supporting document, billable status and the reviewer who can resolve a mismatch.
People and approval: the field or office team supplies evidence; a designated billing or accounting owner confirms what may be included in the next invoice.
Output: a traceable billing-review queue or native invoice input. It does not establish customer acceptance, payment, retainage or collection.
WHEN EVIDENCE IS MISSING
the source job is unknown
a duplicate or reversed entry appears
the record is stale or has no supporting document
the native accounting workflow already provides the required review
CONFIGURE → CONNECT → BUILD
Use the contractor’s existing software path first.
Jobber, Procore, QuickBooks Online and other products are examples to check against the buyer’s actual account. Product names are not partner badges, tenant access or proof of a missing feature.
01Configure
Check the installed project, scheduling, document, change-order, job-cost and invoice features, including plan and permissions.
02Connect
Use a supported export, import, API or webhook only after the buyer names the account owner, source of truth, permissions and readback.
03Build
Create the smallest exception view, checklist or validator for the remaining gap, with an operator, acceptance cases and manual fallback.
Official product documentation is evidence of a vendor-described capability. It is not evidence that a buyer owns the edition, has configured it, can use the interface or should change a contract.
WHERE AI FITS
Sort and draft. Keep authority with a person.
AI may classify a field note, summarize a packet, surface missing fields or draft a clarification request. Deterministic validation and a native change-order or job-cost feature are better when the rule is fixed and the authoritative record already exists.
Exact product, edition/version, plan and enabled module.
Named data owner, permitted account and minimum necessary fields.
Stable job, change, cost-code and document identifiers.
Supported access, duplicate/outage behavior and a readback path.
Normal and exception samples, acceptance cases, operator training and manual recovery.
Without those facts, a recommendation remains a useful question, not a promised integration.
FICTIONAL COMMERCIAL-ELECTRICAL EXAMPLE
Brightline Electric checks one field request.
Commercial contractors are the broader context; this electrical example is one invented case inside it, not a separate trade page.
Trigger: a field note says that 18 emergency fixtures were added above the ceiling on a fictional dental tenant-improvement project.
Needed: the note, a scope revision, completion evidence, owner authorization and a pricing basis. A reviewer decides whether the packet is ready for the contractor’s billing process.
Missing evidence: the first packet has no completion photos or authorization. It stays incomplete and asks for clarification. A later scope edit invalidates an earlier approval.
Not represented: no customer, contract, invoice, payment, savings, integration, entitlement or production result.
Bring one stubborn handoff. Leave with a next check.
In a complimentary 30-minute review, we map the trigger, inputs, owner, output and exception. The answer may be a native configuration, a process change, a supported connection, a bounded build, a separately scoped investigation or no project.
Not by default. Start with the project, field-service or accounting software already owned. If its configured change-order, document, job-cost and billing path handles the normal case and the exception, keep it. A documented remaining gap may justify a supported connection or a bounded tool. See configure, connect or build
What is the difference between billing readiness and a right to payment?
Billing readiness means the internal packet has the evidence and human review needed for the contractor’s billing process. A right to payment depends on the signed agreement, change-order or notice terms, authorization, acceptance, applicable law and the customer’s actual contract. This page decides none of those facts and issues no invoice.
Can AI approve extra work or send an invoice?
No. AI may help classify a note, summarize evidence or draft a missing-item request for review. A person remains responsible for scope, authority, pricing basis, customer acceptance, invoice submission and any contractual or legal judgment.
What should we bring to a review?
Bring one normal handoff, one exception, the current product/version/plan, the person who approves the change and what “ready” means in your process. Use a category-level or fictional example first; leave out customer records, credentials, contract numbers and private documents.
Can you connect Procore, Jobber or QuickBooks?
Those are examples of software to inspect, not partner or access claims. Public product documentation describes different project, scheduling, job-cost or change-order capabilities, but your edition, plan, configuration, permissions and supported interface remain unknown. We check the installed path before proposing any connection. No vendor account or customer tenant is implied.
What happens when evidence is missing?
The item stays incomplete or moves to a named clarification queue. It does not become approved because a field is blank, a message was sent or a person guessed. The exception, owner, source and next check remain visible until the accountable reviewer resolves them.
Bring the messy process, something new you want built, or the question of where AI fits. We will work through whether there is a sensible way to improve it.
