How to export job costs from JobBOSS²

The problem

JobBOSS² already records what each job was estimated to cost and what it actually cost. Getting that into a form you can analyze across all jobs is where shops lose time: picking the right report, getting one row per job instead of one row per operation, and making sure revenue, estimated cost, and actual cost all come through. The most common failure is an operation-level report: the same Job # repeats on every routing step with job totals on each line. Summing those rows would double-count costs, so MarginGuard blocks the import and asks for a job-level summary instead. The second most common is a report with estimates but no actuals posted yet; it imports, but variance stays empty until actuals exist.

What to measure

A usable export has one row per job with at minimum: job number, customer, revenue, and estimated and actual cost (totals or by category). With those, you can calculate margin erosion per job (estimated margin minus actual margin) and see which cost categories drove it. The table below shows exactly which JobBOSS² columns to include.

How MarginGuard helps

Upload the export to MarginGuard and pick JobBOSS² as the source. The JobBOSS² preset recognizes the column names below, shows a readiness score before anything is saved, and blocks unsafe multi-row files instead of guessing. No API, ERP credentials, or IT project is needed.

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How to get started

1. Step 1
   Open a job-cost report that can export

   In JobBOSS², go to Reports (or Job Costing / Financial Analysis). Report names differ between installations, so pick any job-cost, profitability, margin, or estimated-vs-actual report that offers Excel or CSV output. Don't assume a specific report (such as JCD) exports CSV in your configuration.

2. Step 2
   Filter to the jobs you want to review

   A good first file is closed jobs from the last 90 days plus open jobs with actuals posted. That is enough history to see patterns without exporting years of data.

3. Step 3
   Export to Excel or CSV

   Choose Excel or CSV as the destination. If the report only prints, try another report that includes job number, customer, sell price, and estimated and actual costs, or ask your JobBOSS² administrator to add an export.

4. Step 4
   Upload to MarginGuard

   Integrations → Import → JobBOSS² → upload. MarginGuard recognizes headers such as Job #, Sell Price, Est Labor, and Act Burden automatically, shows a readiness score, and asks before guessing about any money column.

Common mistakes

The most common failure is an operation-level report: the same Job # repeats on every routing step with job totals on each line. Summing those rows would double-count costs, so MarginGuard blocks the import and asks for a job-level summary instead. The second most common is a report with estimates but no actuals posted yet; it imports, but variance stays empty until actuals exist.

Other ERP export guides

Using a different system? See the E2 Shop System and Epicor Kinetic guides, or the general CSV import guide for any ERP or spreadsheet.

Downloads

• JobBOSS² sample export (CSV)

  Fictional jobs with real-world column names. Compare your export against it.

• MarginGuard universal template (CSV)

  Every supported column, if you build the file by hand.