Glen Fern Construction is a full-service general contractor based in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Excel spreadsheets submitted from field to office via email were not an ideal timekeeping solution for this small but growing company. Interested in solving critical problems–accuracy and efficiency–Glen Fern chose Rhumbix as their timekeeping solution and appreciates the application’s ease of operation and reliability.

A Family Tradition of Quality

Glen Fern Construction is a full-service general contractor providing new construction and renovation for commercial, residential, and municipal projects. Based in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, this four-generation family company is the rebirth of Odden Construction. Glen Fern’s name reflects the 100-year-old estate kept in the family to this day, now beloved by Gregory and Cindy Odden – husband and wife, and company owner and bookkeeper! 

“We work hard to make this company the gold standard and follow our old family tradition of hard work, building with quality, and offering fair prices. When my husband and I started Glen Fern in 2014, we dove in with a full commitment to providing great experiences for our customers and serving the family legacy.”
CINDY ODDEN, Bookkeeper, Glen Fern Construction

 

A Timekeeping Solution to Grow On

As a small but growing company, Glen Fern sought a better solution for timekeeping. They typically manage 6-7 projects at any given time, with two superintendents and seven field employees. “We’ve been trying to get more technology into the field. We felt a smart move would be giving our team a timekeeping solution that they could use with iPads and smartphones wherever they go,” Cindy says. “We’d been using an Excel spreadsheet timecard that superintendents would fill out on their iPad and email to the office. There were problems with this, though. We didn’t always get cost codes, and we didn’t always get timecards submitted on time, or important details would be missing.” 

When seeking a new timekeeping solution, Cindy wanted to solve two key problems – better accuracy in job costing and efficiency in getting information from the field to the office. 

She explains: “Our requirements when evaluating solutions were ease of operation and reliability. We don’t need a lot of pricey bells and whistles in features we wouldn’t use. We require something that is user-friendly for the field staff. Essentially, the goal was to find the right fit solution at a reasonable cost. That’s what led me to choose Rhumbix. I knew we’d have just what we needed now to meet our needs, but I could see how Rhumbix would grow with us and meet our needs as they changed.” 

 

Evaluating Change

While leading the software evaluation process, Cindy consulted the field staff about their needs. “I knew what I required in a system from a bookkeeping perspective, but it was important for me to hear from the field, too,” she says. “They emphasized ease of operation. Specifically, the system needed to be easy to use, even without an internet connection, which would allow them to enter information and send it along to the office later.” 

During her search online, she happened to stumble upon Rhumbix. “All the information I read online about Rhumbix was really helpful and straightforward. It was clear that other systems had a lot of features we just didn’t need, and Rhumbix checked all the boxes for our requirements,” Cindy explains. “We needed the ability to cost code and manage multiple superintendents. We needed to be able to import and export with our accounting system, Foundation Software. Plus, of course, we needed our new solution to be user-friendly and cost-effective. Rhumbix fit the bill.” 

Cindy also credits Rhumbix sales representative Shary Dye with making the evaluation process easy. “Shary was very knowledgeable about the various systems we were using, about our needs moving forward, and about our industry in general. My experience with the Rhumbix team has been 100% positive, and everyone’s been responsive and helpful, answering all my questions in a timely manner.” 

 

Confident in Progress

Initial feedback following implementation was positive, and confidence continues to grow. “I enjoy using Rhumbix, and it’s been an amazing tool from my bookkeeping standpoint. Plus, I’ve heard positive feedback from the field team. They’ve adapted well while shifting from spreadsheets to using the app. It’s forcing them to stay on task, and if I don’t see hours entered, I can easily send them a reminder. Together, we keep everything current.” 

Cindy adds, “My advice to other contractors evaluating a timekeeping solution is to talk to your field staff and find out what their needs are. I’m so glad I did because it helped me decide on Rhumbix, and it’s proven to be a nice fit for all of us.”