We’ve spent years preparing for the implementation and transition to Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). Since it was announced, it has appeared on the agenda at CFMA’s Annual Conference & Exhibition and has been included in various resources and courses.

Now that we are a year into implementation for nonpublic companies, we’ve experienced some expected lessons learned but have also been met with some surprises. Consider your own implementation experience. When you look in the rearview mirror, what do you see? Do you see someone who started the implementation process early, was well prepared, and likely encountered few, if any, surprises? Or do you see someone who found that it was too little, too late and spent numerous hours scrambling to start and finish implementing Topic 606?

Although the overall concepts of the coveted percentage-of-completion method (PCM) of recognizing revenue on long-term construction contracts has been largely preserved, some changes were required and other nuances have surfaced.