Handle Uses TrackingMore to Reduce its Payment Cycle Time by 1.7x

A Construction Finance Revolution Aiming to Expedite Payment Cycles

Proper lien management is central to fostering successful and professional relationships among stakeholders in construction projects. For most construction companies, suppliers, and building owners initiating a project, the lien management workflow is primarily manual, time-consuming, and riddled with errors. One of the biggest challenges is shortening the order-to-cash cycle times and resolving disputes efficiently.

Handle is a construction software engineered to automate the lien management workflow and expedite the payment processes for construction projects. This end-to-end platform also facilitates secure online payments and waiver exchanges in a safe digital environment. Top clients utilizing Handle's platform include Fortune 500 companies like US Concrete, Oldcastle, Holt CAT, and H&E Equipment Services.

Despite Handle streamlining all these processes with a simple platform with a unified dashboard, further optimizing its dispute resolution times through fast verification ranked at the top of the company's challenges as it sought to revolutionize the US construction industry.

"Our team required a reliable tool, with secure data compliance, that could quickly verify construction orders from a single platform," said Jessica Francescatti, Director of Product at Handle.com

Getting to the Root of Handle's Challenges and How TrackingMore Stepped In

Patrick Hogan, the CEO of Handle, grew up in the lumber business courtesy of his family. Throughout the years, he noticed how payment processing was one of the paralyzing aspects of the construction industry.

Patric teamed up with former colleagues and friends Chris Woodard, Blake Robertson, and Lucas Azevedo to found Handle, but even after scoring big-name clients and experiencing tremendous growth in their user base, order verification times remained an obstacle in expediting the payment cycle. The lien management workflow in construction is notoriously complicated. It requires high-precision monitoring and review to ensure compliance with state laws so as to facilitate timely and accurate payments once a project or materials are delivered.

"The main reason we chose TrackingMore was that, after testing the platform, it exceeded our expectations in terms of reliability and data security, in compliance with ISO 27001 standards. Most notably, it helped boost tracking capabilities for material suppliers using our platform," added Jessica Francescatti.

Streamlined tracking, easy integration, high API stability, and automated updates were some of the fundamental elements Handle sought in a tracking solution. TrackingMore's powerful tracking API provided a remedy for Handle's challenges while surpassing the company's expectations.

Handle officially started working with TrackingMore in May 2019. Since then, the improvements have helped catapult Handle's platform to one of the most sought-after in the payment compliance space in construction. Some of these positive changes include but are not limited to the following.

Reduced overall payment cycle times by 1.7x

Soon after TrackingMore integrated with Handle.com's systems, teams at Handle began to verify supplier orders rapidly. TrackingMore's reliable and accurate order tracking data stream with a simplified dashboard for all shipments meant that Handle could safely count on it.

Faster verification ultimately resulted in faster lien management times for Handle’s end-users. This reduced overall payment cycle times by nearly 1.7 times, improving the unique selling point of Handle.com even further.

25% faster dispute resolution times

One of the deciding factors in choosing TrackingMore’s services was its commitment to high data security standards. Alongside a near-constant API uptime of 99.9% and faster verification times, Handle saw a gradual improvement in dispute resolution times up to 25%.

The robust data analytics provided by TrackingMore also aided Handle's teams in identifying bottlenecks and proactively resolving issues before they escalated into major disputes, thereby contributing to the enhanced speed in dispute resolution.

Payment Errors Reduced by 15%

TrackingMore is a data-first tracking solution that empowers businesses to gain valuable insights into their processes, allowing them to optimize for improved performance. Handle benefited from this with the integration of TrackingMore. Previously, the company had to follow up on each user, verify their data manually, and update payment information as necessary.

The partnership with TrackingMore led to these manual processes becoming significantly streamlined and largely automated. As a result, Handle observed that payment errors, which previously had been a concern, decreased by 15%.

8% improvement in CSAT scores

The positive impacts of TrackingMore's integration didn't stop at financial metrics, they also extended to customer satisfaction. With quicker order verification and reduced payment errors, Handle's Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) scores saw an uptick of 8%. End-users found it easier to manage their payments and navigate through the lien management process, resulting in less frustration and a better overall user experience.

The improvements also led to a noticeable decrease in customer support tickets, allowing the customer service team to focus on more complex queries rather than troubleshooting basic issues. As a result, Handle's customers frequently have glowing remarks about their service.

"Handle has provided lien management solutions tailored to our needs that allows our credit teams to focus the time saved on collection efforts and improving our DSO." – Becky Kuhl, Regional Credit Manager at U.S. Concrete, Inc. Central Division