Rayco was already a successful startup operating in the solar, painting, and construction services industry when its founders made the decision to take the business to the next level. With a focus on growing fast, both geographically and in breadth of services, Rayco needed a flexible software system that could be customized quickly and would serve as a foundation innovation. Quickbase helps Rayco scale internal operations to meet market demand and stay one step ahead of the competition.
Challenge
- Change in business strategy required new technology support systems
- Need to centralize and streamline operations for future growth
- Lack of central repository for collaborative work across multiple teams
Solution
- Business process management (BPM) app built on Quickbase
- Centralized management of key business information and processes, including all projects, tasks, and resources
- Consolidation of multiple disparate apps into one Quickbase app
- Built-in business intelligence tools for tracking key success metrics
Benefits
- Scalable system ready to support rapid growth
- Improved efficiency in project and program management
- Single source for all work-related information
- Faster response to RFPs and bids
- Real-time insights into project status and key performance data
Hatching a modern business
Rayco was launched in 2007 by two recent college graduates who had little more than ambition and a desire to build a sustainable construction company. Today, Rayco is a $10 million company (and growing) that provides turnkey energy efficiency, solar power, and building modernization services — as well as painting and construction services — to customers in California.
Fast growth can be its own challenge, as Rayco would find out. After surviving the recession of 2008, and witnessing two large competitors go out of business a few years later, Rayco decided to future-proof its business model by focusing on expanding its regional footprint and highly-efficient trades.
To accomplish this, Rayco would need a system that would enable it to manage an array of key business information, from customers and contracts to vendors and subcontractors. At the time, the company's business processes were managed separately in disparate apps, spreadsheets, and paper systems.
As we were growing and getting more customers, work orders, jobs, and invoices, things became a lot more complicated. We needed something all-inclusive to help us manage our entire business.
Business Process Management with Quickbase
After hearing about Quickbase from a friend at a similar company, Cooley saw the value in adopting a flexible online platform for building business apps. He started by building a simple lead-tracking app in Quickbase. Next, he built a work order tracking app to ensure that customers got what they were promised.
Realizing Quickbase could be the system-wide solution Rayco needed — and that his time was too limited to build the all-inclusive system he wanted — Cooley sought out a certified partner to help with the implementation. He selected CloudBase Services, a Quickbase Solutions Provider based near Rayco's offices in Northern California.
After three months spent designing and building the complete system, Rayco rolled out its Business Process Management (BPM) app in April 2014. Finally, the company had a scalable system for managing the flow of information for every contact, RFP, customer, contract, project, employee, time card, deadline and more — all in a single system that is easy to learn and use.
My whole company relies on it, says Cooley. We use it to keep information in one place and ensure clear communication between teams.
A Return on Investment
Within months of using the Quickbase BPM app, Rayco employees were more productive, business processes were more efficient, and insights were easier to find. Key benefits of the BPM app include:
- Eliminating redundant data entry. Having a central system to manage many processes means Rayco employees no longer spend time duplicating data.
- Better insights on profitability and project delivery. Information no longer "slips through the cracks" and Quickbase's built-in reporting allows Rayco management to quickly assess the status of every project, including profitability against forecast.
- Increased sales opportunities. The Quickbase BPM app enables Rayco to deliver bids and proposals on time, every time, and to access historical information to complete RFPs more quickly.
- Operational efficiency. Because the BPM app manages nearly every aspect of the business, Cooley can easily generate reports and snapshots to assess potential process improvements.
Most importantly, Rayco now has a foundation to build upon as the business continues to grow, and additions to the system can be made anytime with only a few hours of development time.
We wanted a system that would allow us to deliver to customers at the same level even if business doubled tomorrow. With Quickbase, I believe we can do that.
The Partner Perspective
How CloudBase Services Delivered for Rayco
Rayco was able to build successful apps for lead management and work order tracking on Quickbase on its own. But when it came time to build out a complete business process management system to run the entire business, Rayco turned to CloudBase Services, a Quickbase Solutions Provider, to deliver.
After finding CloudBase Services on the Quickbase Solutions Provider page, Rayco CEO Gabe Cooley met with CloudBase representatives to assess their ability to deliver.
After meeting them, I felt I could trust them to build a customized solution that could deliver on what we wanted to accomplish.
From its perspective, CloudBase Services saw in Cooley a customer who understood his company's processes intimately and could drive change throughout the organization.
Gabe has a great ability to project what Quickbase can do for Rayco in the future, which is a strength. We just took a step back and started looking at how the company's processes were designed so we could help build that strong foundation.
Ultimately, Rayco and CloudBase Services were able to deliver not only a successful app rollout, but also lay the groundwork for continued success. With a steady, reliable partner that understands its business, deploying new functionality or changing the way the existing system works is just an email or phone call away.
