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Phoenix Consultants Group | Custom Computer Programming
  • Custom Software Developers
    • Analyzing Business Needs
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    • Data Collection and Management
    • Form Design & Development
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    • Payroll System for a Multi-Facility Physician Staffing Company
    • Ground Support Equipment (GSE) Management System for Airport Operations
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    • EPA Title V Air Quality Management System
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Tag: spreadsheet workaround

PCG Resource Library

In-depth guides for operations leaders running businesses on systems older than the people who maintain them. Written by Allison Woolbert, principal of Phoenix Consultants Group since 1995.

32 articles  ·  Last updated: May 2026

Jump to a topic

  • Executive Guides
  • Custom Software Development
  • Legacy Software Migration
  • ERP Migration
  • AI Integration & Resilience
  • Environmental & Field Data
  • Data Architecture & Integration

Executive Guides

9 articles

Decision-level guides for CEOs, CFOs, and operations leaders on the architectural problems that drive cost and risk in growing businesses. Each guide explains a specific symptom, traces the root cause, and outlines the structural fix.

  • › 10-Day Reporting Lag: What It Costs, Why It Happens, and How to Eliminate It Reporting & Intelligence
  • › ERP Scalability Problem: When the System That Got You Here Cannot Get You There ERP & Infrastructure
  • › Hidden Cost of Data Silos: An Executive Guide to Unified Operations Data Architecture
  • › Silent Margin Killer: An Executive Guide to Identifying and Closing Invisible Profit Leaks Profitability & Margin
  • › Spreadsheet Trap: Ending the Manual Workaround Tax Operations & Workflow
  • › The Inventory Accuracy Problem: What It Is Costing Your Production Floor Inventory & Operations
  • › The IT Key-Man Risk: An Executive Guide to Building Systems That Outlast Any Individual Risk & Resilience
  • › True Cost of Technical Debt: When Patching Is More Expensive Than Replacing Technical Debt
  • › When Growth Breaks the Business: The Architectural Fix That Frees the CEO to Lead Growth & Scaling

Custom Software Development

5 articles

When custom development is the right answer, what it costs, how long it takes, and how to scope the project before signing a contract. For founders and operations leaders evaluating build vs buy decisions.

  • › Custom .NET Software Development for Mid-Sized Business 2026 Pillar guide
  • › Custom .NET vs Off-the-Shelf SaaS: A 2026 Decision Framework Build vs buy
  • › Off-the-Shelf vs Custom Software Decision guide
  • › How Much Does Custom Software Cost? Pricing
  • › What Drives Custom Software Migration Cost in 2026? Pricing

Legacy Software Rescue & Migration

10 articles

Practical paths off Visual FoxPro, Visual Basic 6, Microsoft Access, and other discontinued platforms. Includes emergency rescue when the original developer is gone, when the source code is lost, or when the system is breaking under load.

  • › The Microsoft Access Exit Strategy: An Executive Guide to Migrating Legacy Databases Access migration
  • › Access to SQL Server: What Happens to Forms, Reports, and Macros? Access technical
  • › Visual Basic 6 Migration to .NET VB6 pillar
  • › VB6 Migration Target: Desktop or Web Application? VB6 decision
  • › Visual FoxPro Migration in 2026: Why It Is a Liability and How to Move FoxPro pillar
  • › Visual FoxPro Rescue When Your Original Developer Is Gone FoxPro emergency
  • › Paradox Database Migration in 2026 Paradox
  • › The Cost of Losing Your Business Software Source Code Crisis scenario
  • › My Developer Disappeared: What Do I Do? Crisis scenario
  • › Emergency Software Support Emergency

ERP Migration

2 articles

Replacing a business-critical ERP without stopping operations. When to move off Sage, Great Plains, or Peachtree, and how parallel-run migration keeps both environments live until the new system is validated.

  • › The Legacy ERP Problem: Migrating Off Sage, Great Plains, and Peachtree ERP migration
  • › Zero-Downtime ERP Migration ERP migration

AI Integration & Business AI Resilience

2 articles

Connecting business systems directly to AI, and building a continuity plan for when cloud AI providers fail. The Business AI Backup Plan series continues by email after Part 1.

  • › AI Integration for Business Systems: Connect Your Software Directly to AI AI integration
  • › Business AI Backup Plan: When Claude or ChatGPT Fail Part 1 of 4 · rest by email

Environmental & Field Data

3 articles

Custom software for environmental consultants, EHS directors, and regulatory compliance teams running field operations. When Excel and paper-based workflows stop meeting audit expectations.

  • › Custom Software for Environmental Remediation Tracking and Audit Reports Remediation
  • › Custom Field Data Collection Software for Environmental Consultants Field data
  • › Groundwater Monitoring Software: When Excel Stops Working for Regulatory Compliance Compliance

Data Architecture & Integration

1 article

Connecting systems that were not designed to talk: middleware, data movement, and integration architecture for businesses running parallel systems that need to share data without manual exports.

  • › Data Movement and Middleware Integration: Connecting Systems That Do Not Talk Integration

Have a legacy system or custom software question?

PCG has been running legacy migrations and custom development engagements since 1995. Book a 20-minute call to talk about what the right next step looks like for your situation.

Book Your Free Consultation

About the Author

Allison Woolbert

CEO and Senior Systems Architect, Phoenix Consultants Group

Allison Woolbert is the principal of Phoenix Consultants Group, the custom software consultancy founded in 1995. PCG has run legacy migration projects across Microsoft Access, Visual FoxPro, Paradox, VB6, and other discontinued platforms for industrial, manufacturing, and environmental services clients since the late 1990s. Allison leads PCG's discovery and architecture practice.

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