Performance Waste Solutions $100,000 with Automated Invoicing and More Using Quickbase
As a growing business, Performance Waste Solutions needed a better way to scale its operations beyond spreadsheets and emails. To keep the business moving forward, the company turned to Quickbase.
Challenge
- Heavy use of spreadsheets led to inefficiency and duplicated efforts
- No capacity to handle new projects and customers
Solution
- Quickbase as a platform for managing key processes
- Standardized apps for customer relationship management (CRM), invoicing, and customer service
Benefits
- $100,000 annual cost savings through improved efficiency
- Faster payment cycles and fewer administrative costs supporting the invoicing process
- More time and resources to pursue strategic business opportunities
The Challenge
As a national consultant for waste disposal and recycling solutions, Performance Waste Solutions serves a wide range of clients from municipalities, hospitals, restaurants, and hotels, to manufacturing plants, shopping centers, golf courses, and construction sites. The young companys ability to deliver cost savings (at an average of 30%) made it a leader in its industry. As Performance Waste Solutions grew, however, it became difficult to scale productivity. Managing nearly every process in spreadsheets — including invoice tracking and reconciliation — ultimately hampered the companys ability to grow and serve new customers.
"We were so busy that we didn't have time to properly support our customers outside of problem resolution," says Matthew Briant, Director of Operations for Performance Waste Solutions. "And with such a heavy load, our ability to explore new business opportunities and increase sales was hindered."
The Solution
To streamline key processes, Briant began by improving the company's CRM application, which was originally built on the Quickbase platform to store account and contract details. He then built an invoicing app on Quickbase that automates data import, client billing, and reconciliation with the companys financial system (Intuit QuickBooks). Even better, Matthew was able to deliver huge value with minimal technology investment.
"Management was anticipating the overall cost for the new automated invoicing process to be in the range of $20,000 to $50,000," says Briant. "When I told them we were actually under $5,000 and already fully implemented on Quickbase, more than a few jaws dropped."
Since then, Briant has created several Quickbase apps to support new business functions, including two apps to support demolition, clean-up, and restoration support services for those areas impacted by hurricanes Harvey and Irma. These apps have now transformed to support roll-off logistics management for multiple construction companies.
The Benefits
Quickbase apps have enabled Performance Waste Solutions to dramatically improve productivity and lower error rates, saving the company nearly $100,000 a year in overhead costs. For example, the process of gathering and entering data for 100+ locations and services for a new client was reduced from two employees spending 30 to 40 hours each to one spending about two hours. The ability to compile and deliver made-to-order reports — with just a few clicks — gives clients instant, customized visibility into contract status, rates and renewals, pickup schedules, and more across one or all of their properties. And a formerly frustrating invoicing process is now easily managed by one employee (instead of four).
This efficiency and productivity has freed up more time for expanding in new directions. Within the last year, Performance Waste Solutions has been able to join up with four new referral agreement partners to help the company increase sales, and the quality of its services in disaster recovery areas are now turning into permanent residency contracts.
"Everything we do is done within Quickbase," says Briant. "We count on Quickbase every day to keep our business moving in the right direction."
