Our Story
After focusing his accounting practice on government contracting, Robert C. Smith, CPA saw first-hand how small businesses struggled to solve the accounting compliance challenge that stood between their company and Federal contracting opportunities.
He recognized the need for a cost-effective, accessible solution, and became an early advocate of using QuickBooks® for DCAA-compliant accounting. His clients needed guidance on how to support the accounting system requirements, and software to get it done.
In the fall of 2003, Robert teamed up with co-founders Dan Gainer and John McGrath to start ICAT Systems. They mapped out a way to automate the cost accounting calculations otherwise managed with tedious and time-consuming spreadsheets.
In 2005, ICAT launched as a software add-on for QuickBooks designed to execute calculations and generate reports essential for government contract management and compliance.
ICAT – which stands for Indirect Cost Allocation Tool – automates indirect rate calculations, indirect cost allocations to contracts, and reporting directly from QuickBooks. ICAT equips government contractors with the tools they need to deliver on the mission and scale their business.
Since then, government contractors all across the country successfully passed their accounting system review using ICAT with their QuickBooks general ledger.
Some companies have been using ICAT since the early days.
Others use it as a stepping stone on their path to growth.
Each one is unique, and we celebrate their success.
In addition to software, we help empower businesses through training and hands-on support. ICAT Systems began conducting workshops and seminars on the fundamentals of accounting system compliance in 2004. Today, we offer on-demand versions of our CPE-eligible training programs so any government contractor and accountant can build expertise online from wherever they are.