Prior to ConnectWise, we were constantly looking at things in the rearview mirror – quite a way in the rearview mirror.
- Jason Nuss, Vice President of Cloud Services, HBS
Reconnecting with ConnectWise
Heartland Business Systems utilized ConnectWise’s solutions and platforms for about 20 years before partnering with it again about six years ago. That’s when the company found a far different – and far more evolved – platform, said Jason Nuss, Vice President of Cloud Services for Heartland Business Systems.
“It wasn’t as full-featured then as it was when we came back to it,” he said. “When we were originally with them, it was just ConnectWise Manage. They added in sell capability and they added in an automated capability.”
The enhancements to ConnectWise couldn’t have come at a better time for Heartland Business Systems, which was working with a set of fragmented, disconnected systems that put a strain on workflow and efficiency.
“We had a separate quoting system and a ticketing system that all it did was ticketing. Our invoicing platform was through our ERP, which was completely separate,” Nuss said. “We really didn’t have a good opportunity management or forecasting solution, and we didn’t have a remote monitoring and management platform either.
”Once implementation was complete, it didn’t take long for Nuss and the rest of Heartland Business Systems to start reaping the benefits of reconnecting with ConnectWise. Revenue increased by around 50 percent and the smoother workflow made Heartland Business Systems less prone to mistakes.
“Having a central platform that manages everything is the hub, and these other tools are the spokes,” Nuss said. “If I build a quote, it automatically links into my forecast, so if they order it, I can easily convert it into a sales order, which rolls into a PO (purchase order), and then into an invoice or service ticket. The workflow just made things flow much more easily for us as opposed to having to rekey a bunch of data, which opens us up for errors and delays in processing. The complete business workflow for all of our users and all of our customers lives in a single workflow, and that makes it so much more efficient.”
ConnectWise Allows for Real-Time Reports
While partnering with ConnectWise helped Heartland Business Systems grow, Nuss believes the ability the company now has to track its finances has been just as valuable to Heartland’s success.
Prior to working with ConnectWise, HBS was getting financial reports 30 days after deals had been completed, making it difficult for employees such as Nuss to make proactive business decisions.
“The openness of a Microsoft SQL database allows us to take things like Microsoft Power BI and deliver custom reports that are in real time so I can see what we sold up until this morning,” Nuss said. “That allows us to better predict where we’re going to finish and what’s going to be coming down the pike.”
HBS can now better prepare from a resource-utilization perspective and gauge where and when its projects will hit. The company no longer has to worry about being too late when it comes to making business decisions.
“Prior to ConnectWise, we were constantly looking at things in the rearview mirror – quite a way in the rearview mirror,” Nuss said. “Without ConnectWise, we would have less visibility of our business, whether it be revenue metrics, whether it be forecasting, whether it be service levels. I think it does a good job of bringing that front and center so you can manage your business in real time.”
Advice to Others
Businesses looking to optimize and make their processes more efficient need to find a good integration partner and then allow them to do their work.
“I would say to embrace the ConnectWise best practices,” Nuss said. “They’ve developed their product in a certain way. If you can adapt your business to the way their processes work, it’ll make your life a lot easier.
”When it comes to choosing a third-party provider, Nuss recommends looking at the big picture instead of examining everything piecemeal.
“Look at the product in its entirety,” he said. “Consider the ecosystem that’s there because that’s what makes it strong.”
Networking at IT Nation
Attending the IT Nation events has given Nuss a chance to learn and bounce ideas off other ConnectWise clients and customers.
“I think IT Nation, as a whole, has been really good,” he said. “It allows us to see how others are using the process and product, and it has given us ways to think outside of the box to help solve our business issues.
”IT Nation has also allowed Nuss and his colleagues to network and learn more about other companies in the industry. It has even paved the way for some collaborations.
“It’s also brought various ecosystem partners into our mix,” he said.
