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Fast Track Specialties, LP, a commercial subcontractor and building materials supplier, has increased efficiency and regained weeks of admin time since implementing Everlance in 2021. Kathy Pinon, an Accounting Specialist that manages APs and ARs, shares how Everlance’s ease of use won over her and the company’s Field Operations team.
Fast Track Specialties, LP is a Division 10 construction specialist serving the Houston and Austin, Texas areas.
The company is a trusted partner for the finishing touches on commercial projects, including furnishing and installing restroom partitions, whiteboards, fire extinguishers, baby changing stations, lockers and more. They are also the largest stocking distributor for Bobrick and Koala toilet and bath accessories in South Texas.
Founded in 2000, Fast Track Specialties, LP is a family-oriented company with a focus on relationships, safety and community involvement. When recognizing Fast Track Specialties, LP as an Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Top Performer in 2023, ABC’s President and CEO praised them for “raising the bar in developing people, winning work and delivering that work safely, ethically and profitably.”
The Field Operations team, consisting of specialized Project Managers, Estimators and Field Technicians, typically visits multiple job sites in a day. To record their mileage for reimbursement, they used to fill out a mileage log template. Most did so by hand, while a few completed it electronically on their own initiative.
These logs were then turned in to Kathy, and the process for handling them was “painful and convoluted,” as she put it.
Even before sending them for approval by the Director of Field Operations, she spent a lot of time going back and forth with employees verifying the numbers, especially the handwritten ones. It took many hours just to get through them all.
“Back then, it would take me a good while, maybe half a day to get it all processed… and every week because of the amount of travel and staff that we have in the field."
All in all, Kathy was spending 2 full days a month on mileage reimbursement.
In addition to being time-consuming, manual reporting increased the risk of errors and delayed or inaccurate reimbursements. Staff were likely to forget to record some trips, and the mileage recorded was subject to rounding and inflation. The report totals also had to be manually calculated, introducing another source of potential error.
Ultimately, the manual process was inefficient and time-consuming for everyone, from Accounting to the field staff and Director of Field Operations. As part of efforts to streamline approvals and save time, Kathy decided it was time to find a solution that would make things as easy as a button click.
With the help of the project management team, Kathy evaluated a few software options to replace their manual process. Everlance emerged as the automatic mileage tracking and reimbursement platform that worked best for their team.
The main reason was ease of use for their field operations team. Everlance was easy to understand, making it accessible for both tech-savvy and less tech-savvy employees.
The user-friendly interface ensured a smooth transition and facilitated adoption. Even their Director of Field Operations, who was initially unsure about the introduction of technology, was on board once he learned the benefits and actually started using it himself as he traveled in the field.
So to those who might be hesitant to implement automatic mileage tracking, Kathy says:
“It’s worth the time and worth the investment because of all the factors (time wasted, errors) that you would eliminate. I’ve never had anybody have issues with Everlance.”
Furthermore, Kathy really appreciated how Everlance streamlines the entire mileage process for her, with:
Everlance has turned mileage into a mostly hands-off process, serving as a reliable solution for mileage reimbursement. Two years on, Kathy continues to have zero complaints from her or the team.
[.quote-wrap][.quote-top][.quote-top]Everlance was easy to use and understand. And the people I've dealt with at Everlance are super helpful. I have no complaints.[.author-attribute][.is-pinon][.is-pinon][.author-facts][.author-facts][.author-bold]Kathy Pinon,[.author-bold][.author-pos]Accounting Specialist for Fast Track Specialties, LP[.author-pos][.author-attribute][.quote-bottom][.quote-bottom][.quote-wrap]
Implementing Everlance streamlined the mileage tracking and reimbursement process for Fast Track Specialties, LP, saving time and improving efficiency. Furthermore, it opened up a new world of insights to them, not previously possible with manual mileage logs.
In the streamlined reimbursement process, mileage reports can go directly to the Director of Field Operations for approval, and then once approved, to Kathy for payment. Without the need to verify numbers and go back and forth with employees, her processing time is cut in half.
In addition, Everlance has allowed Fast Track Specialties, LP to move from weekly to biweekly reporting because there’s no concern about missed trips. This cadence further cuts the time Kathy and the Director of Field Operations spend on approvals in half.
[.blue-line][.866]What used to take about 16 hours every month now only takes about 4 hours. They have valuable time back to focus on other critical tasks.[.blue-line][.866]
And that’s not to mention the time savings and convenience for the Field Operations team. With the app instantly recording mileage as they drive between job sites, they don’t need to stop and waste time writing down mileage, or try to remember all their mileage at the end of a long week.
With Everlance accurately and reliably tracking mileage based on GPS, there’s no risk of human error leading to missed trips, incorrect mileage or miscalculations.
Everyone feels good that the amount they’re reimbursed is what they should be getting – and with minimal effort required.
[.quote-wrap][.quote-top][.quote-top]The number one reason for a mileage tracking platform like Everlance is the accuracy of the data. Anything that’s manual is prone to a lot of errors. And it gives you a better understanding of where your staff’s at and what they’re spending time on.[.author-attribute][.is-pinon][.is-pinon][.author-facts][.author-facts][.author-bold]Kathy Pinon,[.author-bold][.author-pos]Accounting Specialist for Fast Track Specialties, LP[.author-pos][.author-attribute][.quote-bottom][.quote-bottom][.quote-wrap]
Along with reimbursement, mileage reports are used to allocate costs to different jobs. The more accurate data that Everlance provides also helps Fast Track Specialties, LP correctly allocate costs to each job, giving them a more accurate picture of the bottom line for projects and helping improve future job estimates.
That’s why as Fast Track Specialties, LP adds company vehicles, they also plan to use Everlance for trip tracking to support cost allocation.
While it wasn’t Fast Track Specialties’ reason for rolling out Everlance, the data captured has enabled new business insights for the team.
As part of the reporting, they can see how long field staff spent driving from site to site or at a specific job. This enhanced visibility empowers the Director of Field Operations to identify scheduling gaps and work with their Installation Coordinators to maximize resources and increase operational efficiency.
The visibility has helped increase accountability as well. With an added understanding of the activities and whereabouts of the field operations team, the Director can better manage the team and how they spend their time.
[.blue-wrap][.list-head]The bottom line:[.list-head][.list-subheading]Switching from a manual mileage process to Everlance led to:[.list-subheading][.list-div][.list-div][.c-row-flex] [.is-1] [.list-check][.list-check] [.is-1]75% reduction in admin time, from 16 to 4 hours per month[.c-row-flex][.c-row-flex] [.is-1] [.list-check][.list-check] [.is-1]Time savings for Field Operations team[.c-row-flex][.c-row-flex] [.is-1] [.list-check][.list-check] [.is-1]Elimination of human errors and more accurate reimbursements[.c-row-flex][.c-row-flex] [.is-1] [.list-check][.list-check] [.is-1]Proper cost allocation by job[.c-row-flex][.c-row-flex][.is-1][.list-check][.list-check][.is-1]Increased accountability and better resource management[.c-row-flex][.blue-wrap]
If you’d like to see how Everlance can help your business realize benefits like these, please get in touch and schedule a consultation today. We'd love to hear from you!
Cindy leads the B2B marketing team at Everlance, spreading the word about how our easy-to-use software makes life easier for vehicle program managers and mobile employees. She loves sharing customer stories and helping businesses find ways they can save time and money too.
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