Our Verdict…

We like JobBOSS² for its modern, user-friendly interface and high level of automation for purchase orders and job scheduling. It features customizable dashboards and reports, so users can easily view the KPIs and real-time data relevant to their roles.

However, we don’t think JobBOSS² is the best pick for process manufacturers. Additionally, ECI does not offer 24/7 phone support for JobBOSS², which might be a hindrance for some companies.

8.2
Our Rating
based on our expert editorial analysis
7.6
User Rating
based on 15 user reviews
Best for: JobBOSS² is best for small to mid-level manufacturers with 1-50 employees. The platform facilitates job shops and make-to-order operations in the SMB space. It’s the next logical step for a growing company that needs to go beyond QuickBooks.
Pros:
  • Detailed cost reports with access to historical data
  • Enhanced job costing
  • Logical database structure
  • Scalability
  • User-friendly interface
Cons:
  • Confusing visual cues
  • Limited support availability
  • Pricing requires consultation call
Starting Price
$4,995 (perpetual license)
Price Range Learn More
   $     $     $     $     $   
   $     $     $     $     $   

What Is JobBOSS²?

We found JobBOSS² Shop Management to be an affordable manufacturing ERP software. The solution offers key accounting, CRM, scheduling, inventory management, quality control, and job costing modules. It’s a cloud-based system accessible from your browser, with six different mobile apps for iOS and Android. JobBOSS² is the result of ECI combining the cloud-based system E2 with JobBOSS, merging the two products together.

Pros Cons
  • Automated purchase orders and job scheduling.
  • Modern, user-friendly interface.
  • Customizable dashboards and reports.
  • Confusing visual cues.
  • Limited support availability.
  • Must schedule a consultation call for pricing info.

Our Ratings

Usability - 8 Modern and intuitive user interface; conflicting color coding and UI elements might confuse new users; designed for users of all technical proficiencies.
Support - 7 Phone support only available 7 am-7 pm CST Mon-Fri; includes built-in documentation and links to recordings and video files.
Scalability - 8.1 Supports integrations with QuickBooks Online and Desktop, ADP, Paycheck, Redwing Payroll, etc.; syncs with Alora, a machine monitoring program, to provide shop floor insights; mobile apps are extensive but could use more optimization.
Security - 10 Can export financial data into other accounting systems; includes audit trails in every aspect of the solution; user-specific settings allow you to restrict access based on user type.
Value - 7.8 Affordable compared to other ERP systems in the SMB manufacturing space; does not offer low-code customizations; requires professional support to add customizations.
Performance - 8 System is fast and responsive; allows for quick search of purchased and manufactured parts; Work Queue feature and other workflows in mobile apps load slowly.
Key Features - 8.5 One-click conversion of quotes into orders; offers drag and drop scheduling capabilities; Design View allows you to customize reports fully; provides full accounting suite within platform; concurrency issues can occur when more than one user schedules jobs or works on quotes.

Who Uses JobBOSS²?

We found JobBOSS² is best for small to mid-level manufacturers with 10-100 employees. The platform facilitates job shops and make-to-order operations in the SMB space. It’s the next logical step for a growing company that needs to go beyond QuickBooks, closer to a comprehensive ERP system. Companies moving to mixed-mode manufacturing should examine ECI’s M1 ERP system.

What Features Are Missing?

  • Consistent UI: Though the software has one of the best interfaces we’ve seen for manufacturing ERP, some UI elements are not intuitive. For example, JobBOSS² has inconsistent color coding for work item statuses, modes, and buttons throughout the browser and mobile interfaces.

  • Limited support availability: Manufacturers requiring 24/7 support might want a different solution than JobBOSS². ECI offers phone support 7 am-7 pm CST Monday through Friday. Users experiencing issues during off hours or over the weekend must wait for assistance.

JobBOSS² Pricing

JobBOSS² offers either a r monthly subscription but does not publish pricing online. Factors like user count, business size, required customizations, implementation complexity, subscription fees, and ongoing support and maintenance affect total cost of ownership. The Silver, Gold, and Platinum packages all have a minimum requirement of one user.

Who Owns JobBOSS²?

Parent company ECI Software Solutions owns JobBOSS² Shop Management. JobBOSS launched in 1984 in Minneapolis, MN, and ECI acquired the software in 2017. ECI Software Solutions is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, and continues to evolve the platform to meet the changing needs of the manufacturing sector.

Alternatives

Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Workwise Edition
Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Workwise Edition Screenshot
Price Range
   $     $     $     $     $   
   $     $     $     $     $   
Client OS
Deployment
On-Premises
What We Like
Mobile accessibility
Multi-warehouse support
Customizable reporting
What We Don’t Like
Requires consultation for pricing
High learning curve
Fewer integrations than NetSuite
ECI M1
ECI M1 Screenshot
Price Range
   $     $     $     $     $   
   $     $     $     $     $   
Starting Price
$5,000/month
Client OS
Windows
Deployment
Cloud or On-Premises
What We Like
Built-in payroll capabilities
Controls inventory of raw materials, finished goods, and assemblies
Fully configurable dashboard
What We Don’t Like
Complicated navigation
Steep learning curve
Not ideal for batch manufacturing
Epicor Kinetic
Epicor Kinetic Screenshot
Price Range
   $     $     $     $     $   
   $     $     $     $     $   
Starting Price
$175/user/month
Client OS
Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Web
Deployment
Cloud or On-Premises
What We Like
Built for manufacturers
Collects real-time shop floor data
Built-in artificial intelligence support
What We Don’t Like
Not ideal for multinational organizations
High learning curve

Summary

We recommend JobBOSS² for small to medium manufacturers with 10 to 100 employees. It’s an apt solution for companies moving away from manual methods. JobBOSS² supports fabrication, tooling and mold, machine builder, captive, screw, and spring shops.

However, we don’t think process manufacturers should go with JobBOSS², as it lacks the industry-specific functionalities necessary for formula-based production and variable product yields. ECI does not offer 24/7 support, and JobBOSS²’s UI has conflicting visual cues, which could initially confuse new users.

Overall, JobBOSS² is a great pick for manufacturers looking to automate operations and move beyond spreadsheets and QuickBooks.

JobBOSS² Shop Management
★★★★★
★★★★★
(15)
JobBOSS² Shop Management is an affordable manufacturing ERP software with accounting, CRM, scheduling, inventory management, quality control, and job costing modules. This cloud-based platform is accessible through your browser and comes with six mobile apps for both iOS and Android.
Price Range
   $     $     $     $     $   
   $     $     $     $     $   
Starting Price
$4,995 (perpetual license)
Client OS
Windows, Web
Deployment
Cloud or On-Premises

User Reviews of JobBOSS² Shop Management

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on August 16th, 2023 by Anonymous

We were looking for a new Manufacturing ERP for our business. We have been using JobBoss for the last few months.

The training included is really bad. You end up paying for a program before you really are able to use it. And on top of that, once it is set up, it doesn’t always work right.

We would not purchase the Job Boss program again if we had the chance.

The Good…

None

The Bad…

Training is bad

Does not always work correctly

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 16th, 2023 by Michael Du

We reviewed a few systems with Software Connect but ended up going with JobBoss2. So far the system has been great and really reduces our work load for certian tasks.

It has great data collection and integrates with QuickBooks which was a good plus for us.

The Good…

Integration with QuickBooks

Great data collection

Liked the Icons and user interface flow

The Bad…

Was sent the wrong training course and had some communication issues.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on December 1st, 2016 by Karen

There is one glaring flaw!!! We just discovered that the hours worked on a job don’t match with the Job Cost Detail report. The Job Cost Detail report says there were 6.5 hours for a job however, the Time Audit report says there were only 2 hours on the same job. Which one is correct? I called support. They informed me that this problem has been an issue with my version of the software. I currently use 11.9.4. I was given a couple of things to try to correct this problem and they didn’t work. I was told that I will have to upgrade to correct the problem. I was very disappointed at how flippent support was about this problem. It was like they didn’t care. I have to get my IT person involved to do the upgrade. I called support again to get their hours of operation and was placed on hold for over 7 minutes. I hung up, called back and contacted a different department to find out their hours of operation and informed them that I was on hold for over 7 minutes. They informed me that only (2) individuals were there to cover that area and that they have been busy all day with no break at that’s why I had to be on hold for such a long time. I don’t know when I’ll be able to get my upgrade completed and sit here wondering how many jobs I’ve invoiced that are incorrect, (I have close to 600 jobs that I’ve invoiced this year). I’m appalled that JobBOSS knew of this issue and yet I was never informed about it. No call, no email, nothing. Extremely disappointed in JobBOSS’s support and handling of problems.

The Good…

I like that we have a better grip on how many jobs we have and their due dates.

The Bad…

The support is awful!

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 12th, 2015 by Anonymous

I use it as a full-service ERP, covering all my production, purchasing and accounting needs

The Good…

None

The Bad…

We are a large company with 25+ users. I would like more granular security so we can manage specific functions within screens.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 6th, 2015 by Bill

Serapid decided to purchase JobBoss over the competition. We thought the program was a good solution to get us from multiple spread sheets to 1 software package shared by the whole company. The training was better than competitors. The software has brought job release thru final invoicing into the modern times. Inventory control is real time with stock status, cost and planning easily evaluated. Purchasing is straight forward form the job BOM to RFQ to PO in easy steps. Job costing is current and accessible. With the addition of the BOM Import tool JobBoss has hit a home run.

The Good…

We do not use all the modules available but are comfortable with those that we do. We found a steep learning curve at 1st, but we dedicated 2 people to the training to act as the implementation team and company trainers. We found the software not necessarily intuitive, but once the general idea was comprehended, like any new product, it became easier to use. We still get stumped once in a while by problems, but the JB knowledge base and call in help team is really good. Yes there are some quirks as you would expect from a canned software, but by and large the program is very functional. You may find some of the reports lacking what you want to see in the format you want, but they can be designed. Most employees learned the program easily, but there were some hard heads that resisted the changes. Overall JobBoss has more than accomplished what we hoped it would.

The Bad…

Some of the adjustability for part (materials) costing could be better. The 10 digit job number is a problem, but you can develop work arounds. We worked with the Beta testing on the import tool and had several improvements suggested there.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 5th, 2015 by Richard

The software does well for our needs… the accounting/ payroll integration could be better and I would like to see a Human Resource Module along with a Machine Maintenance Module…

The Good…

Ease of training and use…

The Bad…

The payroll integration and doubled entry

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 5th, 2015 by William

Module driven software with a very friendly data base design. The outline is a very universal structure, but is to be very accurate to the manufacturing processes. Data Collection is very powerful even know we do not fully utilize to it abilities. Data collection at serves the manufacturing very well as time and attendance and Job costing. Accounting package and Payroll would be considered add ons at one time, but have been upgraded and serve us very well.

Strengths - Flexibility, User Friendly, All in one (Quoting, Job\Sales Entry, Purchasing, Shop Floor Management, Shipping, Accounting and Payroll) how can you go wrong???

The Good…

Workflow Process and Documentation

  1. Easy to follow
  2. Easy to troubleshoot
  3. User friendly a. Department to take ownership in their module b. Work independent of each other c. Ties between different modules are seamless
  4. JobBoss allows you to fully utilize core modules with out adding modules that you maybe will not use or are not ready to use.
The Bad…

Move Custom fields to proper screens for input ease Lack of control on required fields Preference-User Codes an option to use description fields (Material Class, Additional Cost, Adjustment Reason,Change Reason, etc) Shop Boss versions ago we could set individual preference such as what cells to see and how you wanted to see. Lost in upgrades and never came back.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Karl

Good layout: standard progression using tabs. Self populating dropdown fields. Good search feature in most modules. Good formatting of crystal reports. Good Copy feature from Quote to Job, PO to PO, etc. We use JB from Quote to Cost, Inventory, Scheduling, Acct, data collection, etc.

The Good…

The menu layouts, the good report formatting. The excellent support that we used to get from Lisa O’Flaherty.

The Bad…

Difficult to export a report to excel without a lot of merged cells. So I frequently have to write a custom report.
The base reports in JB are good. But the costing and quoting reports are too limited. So we write our own. We are starting to use Event Mgr to create automatic actions like ASN. This would be a good base feature to have…

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Mike

JobBOSS handles the front end to the back end (and all points in between) for our Manufacturing Company operations. There is nothing I need to do outside of JobBOSS with other software to run and manage our business.

The Good…

It is a very intuitive program. I have worked with many other ERP systems and I can say JobBOSS was the easiest to use and at the same time handles all of our business’ needs.

The Bad…

Outside of some minor enhancements, the software does not have a glaring weakness.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Ricky

Very user friendly. Easy to teach and reproduce implementation.

The Good…

Easy to learn and implement.

The Bad…

Would be good if modules were modifiable to some extent locally.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Scott

JobBoss is a very good and easy to use software. We have jobs that consist of 1 component and some with 200 components and many repeat orders. JobBoss handles the diffrent job types without any issues. JobBoss does an excellent job of tracking job time and costs. It is seamless from the Quote to final job cost. I would highly recommend it for any size shop.

The Good…

Reliability. The system never craches, updates are always functioning when a new release comes out. I have been using JobBoss since 1992 and it has always been rock solid.

The Bad…

Not being able to search a name in the customer admin. Example: Find the company that John Smith works for after he changed jobs 3 times with 3 different companies.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Anonymous

JobBoss helps us accurately track jobs from quotation to shipment. In addition the use of of ShopBoss helps keep us on schedule to make sure deliveries stay on time.

The Good…

JobBoss makes it easy to track all the jobs moving through our shop. It has allowed us to increase our shop load dramatically from the old job book we used in the past. There is no way we could do the volume of jobs we do now without JobBoss.

The Bad…

Looking back at jobs and finding information can be clumsy. No right click ability at many screens. For instance when I right click on a material in a job and click show activity it shows me the p.o. Why can’t I right click or double click on the p.o. to open it. Many areas are like this and it is cumbersome to open modules and click through to get to the information I want.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 4th, 2015 by Cindy

Software is very user friendly, puts the power at your fingertips to run your shop and office.

The Good…

Use it as little or as much as you like, just getting started, jump in start out with the basics and work your way up. with this package you don’t have to learn it all in the beginning to have it work for you.

The Bad…

it is not a point of sale system. some of us have that other side to the job shop business and for that the sales order side is just not quite satisfactory.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on May 30th, 2014 by Anonymous

JB was designed to help manage and control production costs in a typical job shop environment. It covers all aspects of manufacturing from quote to invoicing, and real time data collection.

The Good…

Sadly, I can’t think of anything that I like best. Things that work smoothly typically go unnoticed though, and I know it has strong points.

The Bad…

JobBOSS at first seems loaded with features and I’m sure it is. If there were more free tutorials available maybe it’s haphazard structure would make more sense. Other similar programs I’ve used offer recorded sessions. JB has some, but mostly, they have their hand out. The “pay us for software, and then pay us more to show you how to use it” approach just rubs me the wrong way. The inconsistencies in nomenclature from one area to the next make it a nightmare. In one area, something will be called this, and in another area, it will be called something else. JB opens with a navigation rectangle in the center of a page that I seldom use, preferring instead to use their optional “Explorer” view, which is a typical directory tree. But simple stuff like having the order of the selections between the two navigation choices be the same just doesn’t seem important to them. Their “Customer Portal”, which, by the way, won’t even connect through the latest version of the software (a message saying it’s out of date pops up, and ultimately redirects you to another site, which only works in Windows Internet Explorer. But it fails more than it works) is a joke, even though they do make an attempt at recording the basics of all calls there. I personally think the biggest problem with JB is the fact that NO ONE at Exact (the parent company) appears to use it at all. If they tried to actually utilize the software, or at least send some of their people out into facilities that are actually using it, they’d see a lot of the problems. For the record, in a past job, I chose a similar product over JB. Now, after using both, I feel strongly that my decision was the right one. I do feel JB has great potential, but unless you have plenty of money, you probably won’t ever implement it fully.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on December 17th, 2013 by Bill

It is built around a manufacturing job shop and is designed to track the job through the manufacturing stages. It is also supposed to handle inventory as well.

The Good…

The fact that we actually figured out how to use it!

The Bad…

It is not very intuitive and although there are very good online tutorials, there are none for how to start using. The tutorials are for people with a general knowledge of the program.